Annie Bruce

Annie Campbell Bruce was Granny to some of you and really I'm not the best person to be writing about her as I didn't have the personal contact that many of the Mackay cousins had.  I've only heard good reports of Annie but obviously I never met her myself.  I'll restrict myself therefore to factual matters and leave the recording of memories to others. 

She was actually referred to as Annie in the records except for one census where she was Anne.  She was born in 1885 in Govan, the shipbuilding area of Glasgow where her father George was employed as a ship model maker.  His job took him to Southampton when Annie was very young and they were there for a few years but I'm afraid I can't say how many (although my best guess is 1887 to 1893).  She had two younger siblings born there in 1888 and 1890 and the family was still there for the 1891 census and since the yard went into receivership in 1893 I reckon that's when they moved back up to Govan where they were recorded in 1901.  Other births would have helped confirm this but there weren't any more.  Did Annie have a bit of an English accent, anyone?

She was still in Govan when she married William Mackay who lived less than half a mile away in Edmiston Road, right beside Ibrox Park.  She then had her first three children in Govan before they moved to Kinghorn where they had another three while, strangely, having her only daughter back at their former home in Govan.  I can only surmise that a sibling was living there as Annie's parents had both died there in 1917 and 1918.  The full list of Annie's children is below.

William (Bill) b 22 Aug 1912 @  21 Clifford St, Glasgow
George Alexander b 25 Jul 1915 @ 21 Clifford St, Glasgow
Charles Bruce b 21 Dec 1918 @ 51 Cornwall St, Govan
Alexander Campbell b 4 Jan 1920 @ Greenbrae, Kinghorn (Streetview)
Christine Bruce b 26 Feb 1921 @ 21 Clifford St, Glasgow
Stanley b 6 Oct 1922 @ 2 Bayview, Kinghorn
Douglas b 14 May 1924 @ 11 Burt Avenue, Kinghorn

Before she was married, Annie was a glove saleswoman.

This photo shows Annie on Kinghorn beach with 2 Bayview the lower flat on the left of the photo, entered from the door under the stairs.  Annie is back left and her sister May (officially Mary) back right next to William.  The four front children are theirs, Campbell, Christine and Charles standing and George and Billy sitting, all info supplied by Sandra's cousin Douglas.  Going by the ages of the children this would have been 1923 or 1924 so they were actually living in Bayview or had just moved.

 (click to enlarge)