The Old Family
and how we got here
John Anderson is a very popular name in Scotland which sometimes makes it difficult to differentiate among the various possibilities. However, we know that he was born in Kirkcady. Or do we? His first three censuses say this but the next two say Leith. Certainly his parents had been in Leith before he was born but it seems they made a short detour over to Kirkcaldy, where John was born, before returning south of the Forth to Tranent. They returned to Leith where it seems they were flaxmill workers before John married Margaret Alexander in Bo'ness. I had always assumed some connection with mining as the common connection between Kirkcaldy, Tranent and Bo'ness would appear to be coal but there is no explicit mention of mining, just labouring. That is, until the valuation roll in 1920 gives him as a miner. I was unsure if this was our John Anderson as there were others in the town but as this was the property my mother was born in there is a strong family connection and his son John was still too young to be a head of household so it seems pretty certain it was him.
It's interesting to note the names of the children. I happen to know what they were called in real life and Robert was Bob (or Boab), Henry was Harry, Hugh was Shug, Jane was Jean or Jeannie, Alexander was Sandy and Thomas was Tommy (pronouced Toamy). I don't know for a fact but I suspect that the eldest, John, had his name pronounced as Joan or Joanny, as Robert's son John (my uncle) had that pronounciation. Given that the father of the family was also John, it would make sense to differentiate with different variations on the name.
Mother Margaret was Maggie.