The Old Family
and how we got here
Isabella was born and raised in Inveresk, which was a separate village but is now part of Musselburgh. However, I'm inclined to think that Inveresk as used here is the part of Musselburgh to the east of the river. There are two separate High Streets east and west of the river and I reckon that the name Inveresk would be used for the eastern one, the west part going under the name of Fisherrow. Inveresk the village just to the south looks like a more affluent area than the Hunters would live in. Confusingly, the parish is also known as Inveresk and covers quite an area. Her father was a carter and later specifically a coal carter, which simply means that he was in the transport business in the days before lorries. Her birth record requires a double-take in that her christening was witnessed by John Anderson. She later married (another) John Anderson. John was a blacksmith at the time although he tends to be called a labourer in later records. He was in town on his own and had to have two witnesses from Isabella's side although his parents did later join him in Leith. Isabella was a servant before marrying and interestingly two of her siblings were working in a hair products factory. I mean products made from hair, not for hair.
She died young, leaving John and the elder daughters to bring up the younger children. She probably died from tuberculosis.