The Robertson Family of Marshfield

farming, tanning, shoemaking and perhaps for a time a general store. He is said to be one of the first settlers to arrive at that property. In later years he was kicked by a horse and left a cripple. The first church in the Marshfield area was situated on the corner of his farm (the Baptist Church). James and Betsy had a small family for that day as there were only four children. This family was afflicted with TB which took the life of the son who would have inherited the home farm, so Roslyn Farm was not destined to remain in the Robertson family for long.

The second son John was ill it is told and he was the reason the emigration plans of 1818 had to be changed. Another story goes that John died before Jean came out from Scotland with the other children in 1819 but another says that he was conscripted into the army and never heard of again. It would seem most likely that his illness did cause his death but as conscription was common at this time, and much feared by the citizens, the latter story is also a possibility for it would seem likely that John was one of the older children and therefore of age to serve in the army.

The third oldest son Alexander “Sandy” married his first cousin Margaret “Peggy” Fergusson, (Sandy’s father and Peggy’s mother were brother and sister) they had 13 children. Sandy became a farmer and shoemaker on what was called “Goose Pond” farm. After his father’s death he had inherited this farm and carried on the family tradition of shoemaking and farming. At times he employed eight to ten men. He largely supplied shipyards with boots which were said to be of superior quality.

The second oldest daughter Elizabeth “Betsy” died in Scotland before they left for the new land. It is reported she died an untimely death at age twelve by being thrown from a runaway horse.

The fourth son Peter Wallace was born in Scotland about 1806 and emigrated with his mother the year after his father emigrated. He married first Christiana “Christy” Robertson who was born in Inverness, Scotland so it is unlikely that they are related or knew of each other. They settled in Kinlock, Lot 48 and raised their family there. Like his father and brothers, Peter was a farmer and shoemaker. It is reported that Peter and Christy had a large family of eleven children, if this is so only three sons and two daughters were reported to be living when Peter died. After Christy died Peter

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moved to Souris East and married Perpetua McPhee daughter of John McPhee and Margaret MacLean. In 1872 Peter wrote a rather vague will and it is possible that he did this on purpose as it sounds like the family didn’t get along with his second wife. Several of his family moved to the States.

Margaret the third daughter was born 30 November 1808 Perth, Scotland and died in California. She married, on 5 August 1837, Peter Forbes from the Union Road. Peter Forbes’ will serves only to confuse an already cloudy issue. Peter wrote his will in 1875, just shortly before his death. In it he indicates that his wife Margaret had left in 1871. Margaret and Peter had a disagreement of major proportions for it ended in Margaret taking her family and putting the continent between herself and her husband. She settled in California half a dozen miles from the Spanish Mission of Los Angeles. The family notes left us little information on the children save one. In his will Peter left money to a grandson Francis but no clue as to where he lived or who his parents were. In later years we find a Francis Forbes living on Lot 49 but this could be coincidental as there were quite a few Forbes families in that area.

One son William came back to the Island on a visit during the year 1887 and while here he met and married a McCallum girl from Brackley. They returned to California and William died there a few years back from a heart attack. They had no issue.

We still don’t know who Peter’s parents were, the people who he refers to in his will as brother and sister are the children of James Ferguson and his wife Catherine McFarlane. James and Catherine were married 13 October 1812. Their marriage is recorded in St. Paul’s Anglican Church records and there is nothing there to indicate that she was a widow at this time. Peter was born about 1810 so it is possible that Catherine had been married previously to a Forbes, but who? In his will Peter makes no mention of his mother. He wrote his will on 2 October 1875 and died on the 16 October of the same year at the age of 65. Catherine Ferguson died on 7 October of the same year at age 94.

In Peter’s will he left to his grandson Francis Forbes six hundred and forty-eight dollars, to be paid when he became of age by his executors hereinafter named. He bequeathed to his brother James Richard Ferguson three hundred and twenty-five dollars. He bequeathed to his nephews