Finley (or Finlay) Gibson, 1841 - 1924, was entitled to the Afghan Campaign Medal, seen above, as he served in that conflict. My great grandfather, he was in the 15th Hussars from attestation at the age of 18 years in 1859 to his discharge at the age of nearly 40 in 1880. His papers indicate that he intended residing at Stevenston in Ayrshire, though he was a Londoner by birth (birthplace St George's, Borough, East London, England).
The reason would become clear. I discovered that living in that Scottish village was his widowed sister, Margaret McIntyre, with her children. Finley and his brother, William, also a soldier, both made their home with Margaret for a while. Finley married Annie Bell in Stevenston in May 1881 and started his own family. By 1911 he was Foreman of the Dynamite Factory at Ardeer, known locally as the 'dinnamit'. Several of his children worked in the factory - a dangerous environment as explosions could, and did, occur.
Annie Bell married Finley Gibson in 1881
Finlay & Annie Gibson were my Great grandparents; my Grandmother was Margaret Gibson she married Roland Shaver in Port Alberni B.C. in 1910 they had two sons my father William Wesley & Chester Shaver. Grandma's sister Catherine Belle Gibson (Auntie Kate) also lived near us in West Vancouver,B.C. I'd like to connect with you to share more information.
ReplyDeleteHello and thank you for your comment. Regret I am having trouble with my vision at the moment and it is limiting my time sent at the computer. However, you are not forgotten and hopefully I will be able to chat to you when things improve. I have no details on Margaret Gibson nor on her husband Shaver, nor on their sons William and Chester. They are a big blank on my tree though of course I have where they fit in. If you use my blog's search facility - at top left of blog page - enter Finlay (or Finley) Gibson and a number of posts about this family come up. Regards Rosemary aka Mole
ReplyDeleteI am William Dalzell; My grandfather (same name) married Mary Bell Gibson daughter of Finlay Gibson Aug.4,1905 in Stevenston.
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