(Some information is from an article The Early Robertsons by “Wee Addie”, granddaughter of Eleanor Shennan nee Robertson, 1962)

Although it is generally believed that the Robertsons were descendants of King Robert Bruce of Scotland, none in New Zealand had evidence to prove that assertion. However a Genealogical Tree was said to be in existence which both Elizabeth McNee and Eleanor Shennan claimed to have seen, and it was thought to be in possession of their eldest sister Jane Ferguson, who spent some time in the West Indies and then returned to Scotland.

 

James Ferguson Robertson and Jane Bailey

The earliest known Robertson forebears are James Ferguson Robertson who married Jane Bailey (or Jean Baillie?) about 1775, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Other sources say they married 30 July 1798 in Perth, Scotland, possibly in vicinity of Kinfauns Castle, which may have been why ‘Kinfauns’ was chosen as name of George T Bathgate’s farm). James was a baker, so it is said. If this is true then he was no ordinary baker and must have had other financial interests as he was able to give his children a very good education. Two of them attended Edinburgh University – one became a Doctor of Medicine and the other was a solicitor.

Children of James and Jane Robertson (order of birth uncertain):

Daniel, born 1801 – a jeweller and goldsmith in Glasgow, married Jane Park (parents of Elizabeth McDonald Robertson) – more of them later.

James – a doctor, married and had one daughter named Mary. James was a rather delicate man who practised in Edinburgh for a time, but his health could not stand up to the strain so he was forced to relinquish his practise and started a consulting business attached to a chemist shop. It was said that his daughter Mary was one of the most beautiful girls in Edinburgh.

Alexander – a solicitor, did not marry. He later owned and lived on an island in the West Indies for many years, owning and working on a plantation which had slave labour. Some years after he sold it and returned to Scotland, he died, leaving all his money to the children of his niece Jane. The island was apparently later submerged by an earthquake.

Mary – married Sherrif Millar, who owned a boot shop. They had 10 children. After her marriage, Mary was ostracised by her brothers Daniel and James, as they thought she had married beneath her. She must have done well, however, as many years later when one of her sons had a degree bestowed upon him for some invention, two nieces, children of Jane and Duncan Ferguson, decided to pay a ‘formal call’ upon her. According to report they were very agreeably surprised by what they saw – a beautiful home with butler and maids – every evidence of wealth. They found Mrs Millar – their Aunt Mary – to be a most charming woman, with three refined and ladylike daughters.

 

Daniel Robertson and Jane Park

Daniel Robertson married Jane Park 9 May 1825 in Glasgow. Jane’s parents were Alexander Park (1773-1814) and ? Carr. Parents of Alexander Park were Mungo Park (1714-1792) and Elspeth Hislop (1742-1817) who were married 23 October 1761. The mother of Mungo Park was Jean (or Jane) Jerdon (or Jerdane) who died 1751. Mungo Park rented the farm of Fowlshiels (also spelt Foulshiels) near Selkirk, Scotland, from the duke of Buccleuch, and had thirteen children. Notwithstanding his limited resources, he kept a private tutor in his house for the education of his family.

The explorer Mungo Park (born 11 September 1771 at Fowlshiels) was their 7^th child and was an older brother of Alexander Park and thus uncle to Jane Park. This Mungo Park died 1806.

Daniel and Jane had 9 children:

Jane Sara, born 1826 – married her second cousin Duncan Ferguson and lived for many years on her Uncle Alexander’s plantation in the West Indies. They had 10 children, 4 sons and 6 daughters. After Alexander sold the island they returned to Scotland, taking with them a little slave girl from the plantation, who later had to return to the island as the climate in Scotland was too cold for her.

James, born 1829 – died young.

James, the second, born 1831 – also died young.

Marianne, born 1833 – first married John Bain, a solicitor, and came to NZ where he died about 1867, two years after his wife’s sister Eleanor Isabella, was married to John Shennan at their home. Marianne later married a man named Cosgrove who died in Sydney of consumption.

Janet, born 1834 – died young.

Daniel, born 1836 – also died young. The deaths!!! And another one to come.

David, born 1838 – died young.

Elizabeth McDonald, born 6 January 1839 at Govan, Lanarkshire – married William Cowan McNee in Glasgow on 24 February 1863.

Eleanor Isabella, born 1841 – married John Shennan, June 1865 in Dunedin.

Daniel was not a wealthy man but was more than comfortably off. His children had good educations. Eleanor Isabella was educated privately by the daughter of a minister who ran a private school for girls. Elizabeth wanted to be a school teacher but that idea was frowned upon by her parents. Her father thought she might eventually be forced to take a position as governess in someone else’s home, and the idea that one of his daughters should ever be a paid servant was most repugnant to him. But later on he lost some of his money through the failure of a bank with which he dealt and was forced to think again about his daughters. Then he had the bright idea that all of them, except Jane who was probably married by this time, should be apprenticed to the Dressmaking and Millinery profession. There were, at that time, establishments who took ‘young ladies’ as apprentices at a charge of £100 each. They were most select establishments, and the ‘young lady’ apprentices did not ‘mix’ with ordinary girls. So Marianne, Elizabeth and Eleanor learnt dressmaking and millinery, but only for a while. Their father died 16 November 1857, so Elizabeth determined to return to her original idea of becoming a school teacher, and attended Glasgow Normal Seminary, where she had just passed her second examination when she met William Cowan McNee and marriage loomed.

Marianne married first, then Elizabeth and they both came to NZ with their husbands. On the death of their father, each girl received £1000, a tidy sum in those days, and of course they all had some valuable jewellery.

Mrs Jane Robertson had quite a sad life – after losing all her sons through death and then her husband the same way, her daughters left her. It is understandable that the married ones had no choice but to follow their husbands, but young Eleanor who was not married decided to come out to NZ too, and she left before Elizabeth and William McNee (who came to NZ on the ‘Nelson’ which entered Port Chalmers, Otago on 12 November 1863   http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nzbound/otago1863.htm ). Eleanor had been bridesmaid to Elizabeth and her mother gave her a piece of wedding cake to give her sister Marianne when she arrived in NZ. However the story goes that she got hungry on board one day, and she and her friend ate it!

 

Elizabeth McDonald Robertson and William Cowan McNee

Elizabeth and William (Willie) emigrated to NZ on the ship “Nelson” on 15 July that same year from the Firth of Clyde Renfrewshire, Scotland, and arrived at Port Chalmers, Dunedin 12 November 1863. They settled in Dunedin, where Willie invested his and his wife’s money in a grocery business; but as he knew nothing about that trade and was too generous with credit, he lost most of the money he had invested. He then went into the Land and Estate business where he did very well. He was trusted and respected by all who did business with him.

Elizabeth and William’s family home was ‘Hope Hill’ on the corner of 158 Eglinton Road and Macnee Street, Mornington, Dunedin.

Wee Addie remembers seeing and hearing her uncle and aunt sing, including Auntie McNee singing to her own accompaniment, ‘Jessie’s Dream’.

Willie had a great fund of stories too and could carry on all night without repeating himself. Wee Addie’s father was much the same, and given an appreciative audience, could carry on indefinitely. One night when they were all at ‘Hope Hill’ the two of them got started, one trying to outdo the other, when Auntie McNee said, “Ah Wullie, you’ve met your match at last’.

Elizabeth and William had 11 children, names listed below (see McNee ancestry page for further details):

Daniel Robertson

William Robertson

Alexander John

Jane Ann (Janie)

James

Margaret Todd (Mardie)

Elizabeth (Biffy)

Marianne

Thomas

Jessie

Eleanor Isabella (who married George Thomas Bathgate)

A niece of Elizabeth remembers her ‘Aunty McNee’ as the “sweetest and lovliest old lady I have ever known. In the house she always wore the most delightful little lace caps, was petite and every inch a lady. Uncle was…more of a robust type of man, with a great sense of humour, most generous to all. All the girls had auburn hair, were most accomplished at the piano, were full of fun. There was always laughter in the house.”

Elizabeth was a caring member of the community. If someone was sick, she would take one of her daughters with her and assess the situation, then leave her daughter to care for them until they were well.

Elizabeth McNee nee Robertson died 12 March 1926 aged 87 years, and is buried with her husband at Dunedin Southern Cemetery Block 12, Plot 0023.

 

Above is a sampler done by Elizabeth McDonald Robertson, some time after her eldest sister Jane married Duncan Ferguson. One can see some family initials are easily recognisable – the first line are intials of her parents and surviving sisters – while others are harder to figure out. However Jane had daughters Marie and Alice.

 

A brooch remains in the family – of the style known as a ‘mourning’ brooch. One side has a photograph of Elizabeth’s father Daniel Robertson, and the other side has four locks of hair. Whether the hair belonged to Elizabeth and her three sisters, or were from her siblings who had died at a young age, is not known.

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