Monday, August 17, 2009

Daguerreotypes

George Gower Bruce

I am grateful to my cousin in Argentina for all the information he has sent me which I have kept as posted comments on this blog. I have not posted the comment with his e mail address, but I am able to forward any Elder comments for him . I have had a go at taking a digital photo of 3 Daguerreotypes that I have . They are the best I can do at the moment as the glass reflects.
Firstly here above is George Gower Bruce b.1794, the husband of Mary McKinnon Elder(My great great grandparents)
Next is Benjamin John Elder , a miniature of him as a young man, followed by his daguerreotype

Benjamin John Elder
Benjamin John Elder  Master Mariner
The photo below,also a daguerreotype is of Benjamin John Elder Bruce,my great grandfather, son of George Gower Bruce and Mary McKinnon Elder and nephew to Colin Elder of Skye(of Cruise of the Betsy Fame)
My own grandfather and his siblings were all born in Hull. A first son Gower Bruce was born in Scotland, and brought up by Georgiana Newell (nee Bruce ) after the death of his mother. My great grandmother was Marie Louise Bevan( from Hull). Benjamin John Elder Bruce and family emigrated to New Jersey(USA) in the 1890s but the line has now died out. My grandfather only remained in Hull , where I too was born in 1947.
My cousin in Argentina knows more than I do about the Elders. The family gathers here on Wednesday for the 6th birthday of my grand-daughter. In the meanwhile here are the Elder jewels such as they are, and the inside of MMcKEs Workbox. Will send you the outside pictures tomorrow. I cannot get them to rotate right now and it is after midnight.
Benjamin John Elder Bruce 

5 comments:

  1. Mrs. Margaret.
    Thank you again for your time and dedication.

    I leave you a comment about Sir George Elder, that was very interesting to me.

    John Elder was oldest brother of George. I really dont know if they had another brothers. But They were very close togheter. When George wanted to join the army, at Caledonians Regiment, the family was a poor one. John put the money, 100 pounds, by an intermediate agent, as was usual in those times, to buy lieutenancy. This agent, a man named MacDonald, broke, and the money was lost. George went to Skye with John, but in curcunstances not clear to me, a friend of him (please, see at pdf file attached before, about Sir George life), Sir Sidney Beckwith, put the money again, and finally George joined the army as a "Rifleman" at 1799. There is a document about the trial "George Elder against J. MacDonald", around 1803, with some of these details!. My gg-father, Arthur Sidney Welsh Elder probably had this name in recognition to Sir Sidney.

    http://books.google.com.ar/books?id=nXoDAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA545&dq=%22GEORGE+ELDER%22+COLONEL&lr=&hl=en#v=onepage&q=%22GEORGE%20ELDER%22%20COLONEL&f=false


    Some Napoleon life historians mentioned to me that probably George never discovered thar Sir Sidney put the money, but the fact is well known.

    Attached to, a link of a trial of "Macdonald and Elder" vs. McLeod, 1793, because of a cargo.

    http://books.google.com.ar/books?id=JOwDAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA104&lpg=PA104&dq=%22MACDONALD+AND+ELDER%22+MERCHANTS&source=bl&ots=eHrlNpVTft&sig=SQE3rFoxpLreuGs25_293NbVkdc&hl=en&ei=02gNSpGFCsuLtgeR34GACA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=%22MACDONALD%20AND%20ELDER%22%20MERCHANTS&f=false

    Please, in each link, look for Elder, because of some times there are more than one reference.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I was quite excited to see this blog. My family is related to Alexander Wallace Bruce, who I think is one of George Gower Bruce's brothers.
    Alexander died in 1840, but in 1871, his wife Henrietta is living in Glasgow with her brother and Alex. Bruce, age 22, born Edinburgh who I think is George Gower Bruce's son. What a coincidence.

    I wonder whether you have any further information about the family please? I have searched George Gower Bruce's Post Office records, and they are interesting. I also have some additional information about Alexander and his family.

    Thanks, Mary

    ReplyDelete
  3. My sister does the research in our family. I have sent her your comments. Alexander Wallace was twin to Georgiana (later married Newell Thompson).George Gower had 9 children I think, and his wife was my great great grandmother Mary Mckinnon Elder. My sisters and I are all that is left of the family of his son Benjamin John Elder Bruce. I remember Aunty Eva Borthwick, daughter of Margaret Bruce, a daughter of George Gower Bruce (who married James Borthwick).

    Miguel Elder, My cybercousin in Argentina knows lots, as does Nancy Elder in Canada.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The Alexander Wallace I write of is a son of George Gower Bruce, not the Alexander Wallace born in 1799 brother to George Gower Bruce. Will scan the birth page of the Family Bible in for you which mentions the boys born to William Bruce and Christian Sutherland, but no girls!! Will post as a new February 2011 post

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you very much for your comments and it's very kind of you to offer to scan in the birth page of the Family Bible.

    I don't know much about the Elders, more about Alexander Wallace and his family and some things about William Bruce, the father of George Gower Bruce and Alexander Wallace Bruce.

    Mary

    ReplyDelete