Rachel McKerras (Veitch) Haig (1820 - 1879)

Born 29 Nov 1820 in St Cuthberts, Edinburgh City, Midlothian, Scotland

Wife of John Haig — married 20 Aug 1839 in Edinburgh, Midlothian.

Descendants

Died 21 Mar 1879 at age 58 in Ramsgate, Kent, England, United Kingdom

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Joann Hanmer [send private message]

Biography

Rachel McKerras Veitch was born on about 29 November 1820. She was the third daughter of Hugh Forester Veitch and Mary Robertson.

She married John Haig on 20 August 1839 in Edinburgh, Midlothian^[1]. They went on to have about nine children.

1851 Scotland Census

Cameron House, Markinch, Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland^[2]:

John Haig - Head - Estimated birth year: 1803 - Destiller and farmer of 540 acre, emply 52 men - St Andrews, Fife, Scotland

Rachel M. Haig - Wife - Estimated birth year: 1820 - Midlothian, Scotland

Mary E. Haig - Daughter - Estimated birth year: 1844 - Wemyss

Hugh U. Haig - Son - Estimated birth year: 1845 - Wemyss

Janet S. Haig - Daughter - Estimated birth year: 1847 - Wemyss

Rachel N. Haig - Daughter - 1850 - Wemyss

7 servants.

1861 Scotland Census

24 Charlotte Square, Edinburgh, Scotland^[3]:

John Haig - Head - Estimated birth year: 1807 Distiller, St Andrews, Fifeshire, Scotland.

Rachel M. Haig - Wife - Estimated birth year: 1823 - St Cuthberts, Edinburgh City, Scotland

William H. Haig - Son - Estimated birth year: 1841 - Wemyss

Hugh V. Haig - Son - Estimated birth year: 1845 - Wemyss

Janet S. Haig - Daughter - Estimated birth year: 1848 - Wemyss

Henrietta F. Haig - Daughter - Estimated birth year: 1852 - Markinch, Fife

John A. Haig - Son - Estimated birth year: 1858 - St Georges, Edinburgh

George O. Haig - Son - Estimated birth year: 1860 - St Georges, Edinburgh

4 servants.

Her husband John died on 20 March 1878.

Rachel Mackerras Haig passed away on 21 March 1879 at Ramsgate, Kent, England and was buried at Northhall Cemetery in Markinch, Fife, Scotland^[4][5]. The inscription on her headstone reads:

In Affectionate Remembrance of
JOHN HAIG Of Cameron Bridge
Who Died 20th March 1878, Aged 75 Years.
And Also Of
RACHEL His Wife
Third Daughter of HUGH VEITCH Of Stewartfield
Who Died 21st March 1879, Aged 59 Years.
Erected By Their Children
To The Sacred Memory Of Their Dearly Loved
Father And Mother.

Notice of her death was printed on page 4 of the Fifeshire Journal dated 27 March 1879:

DEATHS.

On the 21st inst., at Ramsgate, aged 59, Rachel McKerras, widow of John Haig of Cameron Bridge, and daughter of the late Hugh Veitch of Stewartfield.^[6]

Research Notes

Questionable identification. How did she go from Kentucky to Scotland?

There is no mention of this person on the haigwhisky website that is one of the two sources cited. The other source, http://thepeerage.com/p30547.htm#i305461, identifies Rachel Mackerras Veitch as the daughter of Hugh Veitch of Stewartfield, Midlothian, Scotland. Because it is implausible that a girl from frontier Kentucky ended up marrying a Haig in Scotland, and because that father identification on thepeerage site is so different from the currently connected parents, I am disconnecting her from the parents Benjamin Veatch and Sarah Powers. Smith-62120 14:59, 24 June 2021 (UTC)

Sources

1. ↑ Marriage: "Scotland Marriages, 1561-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XY9K-PFM : 11 February 2020), Rachel McKerras Veitch in entry for John Haig, 1839.
2. ↑ https://www.findmypast.co.uk/transcript?id=GBC/1851/0020780857
3. ↑ 1861 Scotland Census: Parish: Edinburgh St George; ED: 61; Page: 11; Line: 9; Roll: CSSCT1861_124. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1861 Scotland Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Original data: Scotland. 1861 Scotland Census. Reels 1-150. General Register Office for Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland.
4. ↑ Death: "England and Wales Death Registration Index 1837-2007," , FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2VMM-DX3 : 31 December 2014), Rachel Mckerras Haig, 1879; from "England & Wales Deaths, 1837-2006," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing Death, Thanet, Kent, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
5. ↑ Burial: Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/120155477/rachel_mackerras-haig: accessed March 16, 2024), memorial page for Rachel Mackerras Veitch Haig (29 Nov 1820–21 Mar 1879), Find A Grave: Memorial #120155477, citing Northhall Cemetery, Markinch, Fife, Scotland; Maintained by Memorium (contributor 47853990).
6. ↑ Fifeshire Journal dated 27 March 1879 page 4 (requires subscription to view)

See also:

• http://www.haigwhisky.com/haig-whisky-jameson-history-whisky-cousins/
• The Peerage