James McLaren

James McLaren is an enigma.  He simply disappears from the records.  Of course it isn't helped by having a very common name and living in Glasgow with many others of that name.  He was born in Blairdrummond, moved to Tillicoultry where he met Ann Faichney, married her in Alloa, lived with her in Tillicoultry then moved to Paisley then Glasgow then just vanished.  There will be a logical explanation but I just can't locate it yet.  He disappears from the family home after son Hugh's birth in 1871 but his wife isn't mentioned as a widow until 1891.

His parents were from Balquhidder but married in Comrie. There is some dubiety about where one of  James's big sisters was born, different sources saying Balquhidder or Comrie but a look at the Parish map shows they were adjoining, suggesting that the family lived fairly close to the border between the parishes, e.g. Lochearnhead.