William Yeudall was born on the 16th of March 1807 and baptised on the 22nd at Galston.

William was married to Isabel/ Isabella Caldwell at Galston on the 27th of June 1828. The OPR for Galston narrates that the couple were 'proclaimed for the 3rd time in order to Marriage on Sabbath the 22nd June 1828 & married 27th.'

He was recalled as a 'sawmiller (master)' on the death certificate of his son, Abram Yeudall. He was similarly designated during his lifetime on the death certificate of his wife, Isabella Caldwell, in 1878. The 1909 death certificate of his son John recalled him as a 'timber merchant & sawmiller (deceased)'.

According to James Mair in Pictorial History of Galston the firm of W. & A. Yeudall acquired and converted the Kilknowe saw mill, which lay between Henrietta Street and the River Irvine.

This was built in 1746 by Andrew Blair, and was originally a lint mill. According to the same source, Robert Burns whilst at Mossgeil was one of the farmers who brought their flax here.

It appears on a map as a sawmill as early as the 1860s. Notice that on the evidence of the census records William made the career switch from joiner to sawmiller at some time between 1841 and 1851. However, early in the 20th century the firm moved to a new yard on Barrmill Road, and the Kilknowe premises were demolished at some time between the wars.

In the 1831 census, William appears living at Dale Street, Galston, designated as a wright. There were three males in the household, and one female. One male was over twenty, presumably William himself. The solitary female may be presumed to be his wife, Isabella. The other two males were probably his two small sons, Abram and William.

In 1841, the entry for William's family home, now in Henrietta Street where William would continue to reside for the remainder of his life, was as follows:

William Yeudall, 30, joiner
Isabel Yeudall, 30
Abram Yeudall, 12
William, 10
John, 3
Robert, 8 months
William Caldwell, aged 70

All were stated to have been born in the county.

It may readily be imagined that William's household at 19, Henrietta Street was a lively one, and it is captured in the following terms by the 1851 census:

William Yeudall, head, mar., 44, sawmiller, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, wife, 42, b. Galston
William Yeudall, son, unm., 19, sawmiller, b. Galston
John Yeudall, son, 13, scholar, b. Galston
Robert Yeudall, son, 10, scholar, b. Galston
Martha Yeudall, daur, 7, scholar, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, daur, 1, b. Galston
Mary-Ann Caldwell, nephew (sic), 7, scholar, b. England

By 1861, the household was similarly composed, except that William, the nineteen-year-old unmarried son at the time of the 1851 census, had died in 1856. The informant was William Yeudall, father of the deceased, who had been present at the time of his son's death.

William Yeudall, head, mar, 54, woodmerchant's sawmiller, employing two men & boy, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, wife, 52, b. Galston
John Yeudall, son, unm., 23, colliery clerk, employing one boy, b. Galston
Robert Yeudall, son, unm., 20, wright, b. Galston
Martha Yeudall, daur, unm., 17, sempstress (sic), b. Galston
Maryann Caldwell, niece, unm., 17, sempstress, b. England
Isabella Yeudall, daur, 11, scholar, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, granddaughter, 6, scholar, b. Galston

It may be noted that Martha died aged twenty-two in 1865, having married and had a daughter in the interim. William was the informant on his daughter's death certificate. The child, Isabella Hutchison, followed her to the grave four months later.

William's six-year-old granddaughter, Isabella Yeudall, is almost certainly the daughter of his son Abram Yeudall.

It is fairly clear from the 1851 & 1861 census taken together that Mary-Ann Caldwell was a permanent member of the household.

In 1871, the family was resident at 21, Henrietta Street, a house having three rooms with one or more windows. It is not clear whether the family had moved from no 19, or else the houses had been re-numbered. The fact that he had a house of this size is a mark of his relative affluence.

The household had contracted somewhat, and the entry runs as follows:

William Yeudall, married, 64, wood merchant, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, married, wife, 62, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, unmarried, daughter, 21, b. Galston
Isabella Yeudall, unmarried, granddaughter, 16, b. Galston

On this evidence, it would seem that Isabella Yeudall's residence with her grandparents was indeed a permanent arrangement.

Isabella Yeudall, William's daughter, died in 1875, aged twenty-five. Once again, William was the informant on his daughter's death certificate.

William Yeudall appears as a widower aged seventy-four in the 1881 census record. He was stated to be a wood merchant and sawmiller employing three men, and his place of birth was once again given as Galston.

The others residing with him at 34, Henrietta Street were:

Isabella Clarkson, neice (sic), mar., 38, domestic servant - housekeeper, b. Fenwick
Isabella G. Clarkson, visitor, 3, b. Glasgow

It may be noted in this connection that there is a reference to 'Mrs Isabella Gilmour or Clarkson, widow' in the 'Inventory Umql William Yeudall' dated the 6th of February 1891. This is quite certainly the same lady. She is mentioned in this context as one of William's tenants 'of Heritage situated in Henrietta Street Galston'. An annual rent of three pounds and ten shillings was payable. In 1891, Isabella was resident at 29, Henrietta Street, Galston, in which connection her daughter's place of birth was entered as Dennistoun, Glasgow. Isabella Caldwell Clarkson, the widow of James Clarkson, a commercial traveller, died on the 18th of August 1918, at 42, West Main Street, Darvel. She was then entered as 77 years of age. The cause of death was certified as pneumonia, from which she had been suffering for four days. The deceased's parents were entered as Robert Gilmour, a 'Tailor (Jour) (Deceased)' and Annie Gilmour, MS Caldwell, also deceased. This establishes that the precise relationship of Isabella Caldwell Clarkson to William Yeudall was that she was the daughter of his late wife's sister. The informant was Isabella Gilmour Clarkson, the deceased's daughter, who had been present at the time of death. This is unquestionably a reference to the same woman who as a little girl who had been listed in the household of William Yeudall at the time of the 1881 census.

William Yeudall died on the 30th of December 1890, at 1.45 p.m., at Henrietta Street, Galston, aged eighty-three years. His occupation was entered as 'saw-miller (master)', and he was stated to be the widower of Isabella Caldwell.

The cause of death was entered as 'senile diarrhoea', from which he had been suffering for six days, as certified by Dr Alex. W. Aird.

The informant was A. Yeudall (quite certainly a reference to Abram Yeudall), his son, who had been present.

Testamentary Writings

The following points emerge from William Yeudall's 'Extract Registered Trust Disposition and Settlement and Codicil' (Scotland's People, ref. SC6/46/21):

William Yeudall's solicitors were J. & J. Hendrie and Cunningham, Solicitors in Galston, and it was this firm who ingrossed his will, duly attested by him on the 6th of September 1888.

He continued at this time to reside in Henrietta Street, Galston.

He appointed as his executors 'my sons Abram Yeudall, Joiner, Galston, John Yeudall, Teacher, Alton by Galston, and Robert Yeudall, Joiner, Dumbarton'. Abram, John and Robert were directed to ingather their father's estate, both heritable and moveable, convert it into money, and divide it equally among themselves after all due expenses had been met. They were made the Residuary Legatees.

By means of a Codicil dated the 15th of March 1890, William altered his original directions in the following particular:

'I William Yeudall Senior, residing in Henrietta Street, Galston, revoke the directions to the Trustees named in my Trust Disposition and Settlement of date the sixth day of September in the year Eighteen hundred and eighty eight to pay over a share of the residue of my estate heritable and moveable to my son John and in lieu and place thereof I direct them to pay same over to his wife Isabella Morrison as an alimentary provision for his and her children.'

The reason for this change is not entirely clear, since John was still living at this time. The Codicil expressly provides:

'I request her to consult with, and get the consent and approval of my said son John, her husband...'

It would also appear from this that John and Isabella's marriage continued relatively intact.

The most likely explanation is that William took this step because of John's indiscretion which resulted in the birth of an illegitimate daughter, Janet McCulloch. William's pointed reference to 'his and her children' ('her' signifying John's wife, Isabella Morrison) clearly indicates his intentions. The only problem is that John's paternity of Janet had become public in 1880, so it is difficult to see why this provision in favour of Isabella Morrison had not been made in the original will.

The inventory of William Yeudall's personal estate and effects (Scotland's People, ref. SC6/44/52) which was solemnly sworn by his son Abram at Ayr on the 26th of January 1891 provides a number of insights into his affairs.

In addition to his heritable estate, which was not specified beyond a somewhat vague indication that it was to be taken as 'including my property in Henrietta Street, Galston', he left moveable property to the value of seventy pounds, one shilling and eightpence. This was made up as follows:

1. Cash in the house - £11

2. Household furniture, as valued by Mathew Morton, Auctioneer, Newmilns - £16 3/7d

3. Money in bank - £40 3/1d

This was made up of a deposit with the Union Bank of Scotland Ltd, Galston, of £40, together with 3/1d in interest which had accrued to the date of Oath to the Inventory.

William had four tenants of heritable property at unspecified addresses in Henrietta Street, Galston. Whether these properties were commercial or domestic is not stated. The tenants were:

William Wilson, grocer, annual rent £10
Robert Craig Jr, paper maker, annual rent £4
Joseph Liddell, miner, annual rent £3
Mrs Isabella Gilmour or Clarkson, widow, annual rent £3 10/-

The proportion of the rents due from Martinmas 1890 until William's death was calculated as £2 15/-.

It may be noticed that William Wilson, grocer, one of the tenants listed above, also appears as a witness to William Yeudall's Codicil dated the 15th of March 1890.

Yeudall Gravestone

By the time of his death aged eighty-three at the end of 1890, William Yeudall had been a widower for twelve years. He had also buried more of his children than survived him, the second of his four sons and all three of his daughters. He had also experienced the loss of at least one grandchild. A gravestone inscription in Galston cemetery provides a fitting memorial of the Yeudall family's hardships and vicissitudes over three quarters of a century and three generations:

'Erected by William Yeudall, in memory of his children. Elizabeth Yeudall died 8th December 1836 aged 2 years. William Yeudall died 9th February 1856 aged 25 years. Martha A. Yeudall wife of Hugh Hutchison died 19th November 1865 aged 22 years. Her child Isabella Hutchison died 20th March 1866 aged 9 months. Isabella Caldwell Yeudall died 1st January 1875 aged 25 years. His wife Isabella Caldwell died 9th June 1878 aged 70 years. Above William Yeudall died 30th December 1890 aged 84 years. His son Abram Yeudall died 18th December 1905, aged 77 years. Also Grace Kay wife of above Abram Yeudall died 24th April 1911 aged 80 years.'

All deaths referred to above, with accompanying details (with the exception of a minor discrepancy concerning William junior's age) have been confirmed from the relevant death certificates, apart from that of Elizabeth whose death, being pre-1855, does not appear to have been otherwise recorded.

William junior's death certificate proved difficult to retrieve, for the simple reason that it was incorrectly indexed in Edinburgh under 'Yendall'. He was buried in the Parish Churchyard of Galston, and not, as one might imagine, in the cemetery. (The cemetery was not opened until 1891, long after most of the deaths recorded on the stone had occurred.)

Forebears

William Yeudall's parents and grandparents can be identified as followed:

One great-grandfather, William Mitchell, father of Isabella, is also positively established.

Brothers and Sisters

William Yeudall had at least five brothers and five sisters. All were born and baptised at Galston, at various dates between 1804 and 1826.

These were: 1. Anne, born on the 29th of March 1804 and baptised on the 1st of April; 2. An elder brother, also called William, born on the 26th of February 1806 and baptised on the following day. This is probably indicative of his impending death; 3. Robert, born on the 31st of August 1809 and baptised on the 3rd of September; 4. Abram or Abraham, born on the 16th of February 1812 and baptised on the 15th of March; 5. John, born on the 28th of August 1814 and baptised on the 4th of September; 6. Isobel, born on the 12th of February 1817 and baptised on the 16th ; 7. & 8. Twin sisters, Jean and Martha, born on the 2nd of November 1821 and baptised on the 2nd of December; 9. Janet, born on the 15th of July 1824 and baptised on the 18th; 10. Thomas, born on the 27th of December 1826 and baptised on the 31st.

The following detailed accounts of these siblings and their progeny are presently available:

3. Robert, a joiner (master) married Mary Ewing Jarvie. The ceremony was recorded at Fenwick on the 8th of February 1833.

The first child of the marriage was Mary Ann Ewing Yewdall, born at Galston on the 20th of November 1834.

Robert and Mary's second child was a son, named Abram, born on the 3rd and baptised at Galston on the 18th of January 1837.

The first Abram must have died in infancy, for the next child of the marriage was baptised in the same name at Galston on the 14th of September 1838.

Robert and Mary's daughter, Janet, was born on the 27th of January and baptised on the 18th of February 1841 in Galston. The OPR (incorrectly) recorded that she was their third child.

In connection with these three birth entries, Robert was designated as a wright.

Robert and Mary appear in the 1841 census living in Henrietta Street, Galston, with their children Mary, aged six, Abram aged two, and Janet, aged six months. Robert was designated as a j (journeyman?) joiner, aged thirty. Robert's wife Mary was also stated to be thirty.

Mary Ann Ewing Yewdall was married to William Wilson on the 3rd of June 1859 at Wallace Street, Galston, after Banns According to the Forms of the Established Church of Scotland. William was a railway surfaceman (bachelor), aged 26, resident in Stewarton. Mary Ann was a spinster, also aged 26. She was resident at Wallace Street, Galston. William's parents were Thomas Wilson, a cart-wright, and Agnes Wilson, MS Craig. The bride's father Robert Yeudall was entered as having been a joiner, but he was deceased by this time.

Robert and Mary's son Abram married Elizabeth Rodger on the 7th of September 1866 at Newmilns. His age was given as 28, and his usual residence as Wallace Street, Galston.

Abram and Elizabeth's son Robert died on the 5th of July 1867 at 5h 15m p.m., at Wallace Street, Galston, aged six months. The cause of death was certified as hydrocephalitis, from which the child had been suffering for ten days. The marriage must have endured for less than a year, as Elizabeth was herself deceased by this time.

Abram next married Christian (Christina) Lawson on the 14th of June 1872 at East Main Street, Darvel. His usual residence was entered once again as Wallace Street, Galston. He was thirty-four years of age.

Abram and Christina were resident at 24, Barr Street, Galston, at the time of the 1901 census, in a house having five rooms with one or more windows, just two doors up from Abram's cousin of the same name. Abram was entered as a shoemaker, employer, aged 62, born in Galston. Christina's age appears to be entered as 69 and her place of birth was given as Darvel. Living with them was their unmarried daughter, Margaret, who had been born in Galston.

Mary Ann Ewing Wilson, daughter of Robert Yeudall, a joiner (master) and Mary Yeudall MS Jarvie, both deceased, and married to William Wilson, a road surfaceman, died on the 16th of April 1903 at 9h 10m in the morning, at 2, Station Road, Galston. She was 68 years of age. The cause of death was certified as cancer of the bowel and liver. The informant was the deceased's brother Abram Yeudall, who was present at the death.

It would appear to be this same Abram Yeudall, a member of the local Kirk Session, who receives a mention in Some Idle People by Eileen White. The caption to a group photograph, at p. 47, taken at Galston Parish Church, states: 'Abraham Yewdall of Galston in Scotland, a cobbler (centre). He was the great-grandson of another Abraham Yewdall, a soldier in the 1780s. The Yewdall family was known in Idle from the 16th century. The "Yewdall look" was distinctive to the family in Galston, where Abraham's descendents still live.'

Abram Yeudall, a retired shoemaker, and son of Robert Yeudall and Mary Ewing Jarvie, died on the 23rd of September 1914 at Woodstock, Stepps, Lanarkshire. He was entered as aged seventy-seven years, although he was only seventy-six. The causes of death were certified as senile decay, arterio sclerosis and degeneration of the cardiac muscle.

4. The marriage of Abram Yeudall and Janet Kirkhop was recorded at Campsie, Stirlingshire, on the 15th of June 1839, in the register of 'names of parties proclaimed in order to marriage'. The number '2' in a separate column appears to indicate that they were proclaimed twice. Abram was stated to be a joiner of Haughead, Campsie (the 1841 census narrated that Haugh-head was a village with a population of 328 souls). Somewhat unusually for the OPR, the fathers of the couple were recorded as 'Abram Yeudall Galston' and 'George Kirkhop Do.'

The birth and baptism of their daughter Jean was recorded in Campsie on the 11th of January 1841. It was stated that she had been born on the 27th of December 1840 and baptised on the 10th of January 1841 by the Rev. Robert Lee. The place of residence of Jean's parents was entered as 'Crofthill'.

At the time of the 1841 census, the family was resident at Crofthill Street, in the 'wester district of the village of Lennoxtown'. Abram was designated as a joiner. Both Abram and Janet were stated to be aged twenty-five, and born in Scotland, but not in the county. Their daughter Jane was entered as five months old, and born in the county.

At some point thereafter, apparently prior to 1847, they moved to Springburn, just north of Glasgow. Their unmarried daughter Jane, clearly the same girl as was born in Campsie, a worker in a warehouse, died on the 29th of December 1859, at 2h 30m a.m., at Cowlairs Cottages, Springburn, aged nineteen. The cause of death was gastrointestinal fever.

At the time of the 1861 census, the family was living at 34, Cowlairs Row, in a dwelling having three rooms with one or more windows. Abram's age was given as forty-nine, and his wife Janet's as fifty. Both were stated to have been born in Galston. Abram was designated as a joiner. With them was their unmarried daughter Martha, aged fourteen, whose place of birth was given as Glasgow. Also resident with them was Martha Smith, who appears to have been Janet's aunt, also born at Galston. She was a widow, aged sixty-nine, and a retired nurse. There was a boarder named James Hunter, aged fifteen. He was an apprentice pattern maker, who had been born in Forfarshire.

Janet Kirkhop died on the 16th of June 1863 at 3h 15m p.m. at 34, Cowlairs Cottages, Springburn, aged fifty-three. The cause of death was certified as heart disease.

The death was entered in the Deaths column of the Glasgow Herald on the following day:

'Suddenly, at 34 Cowlairs Cottage Row, on the 16th inst., Janet Kirkhop, wife of Mr. Abram Yeudall.'

The family's tribulations were once again highlighted in the Glasgow Herald's Deaths column on the 8th of January 1866:

'At 34 Cowlairs Cottages, aged 19 years, Martha, daughter of Mr. Abram Yeudall.'

5. There is further evidence of a Yeudall colony at Cowlairs Cottages, Springburn, in the shape of John Yeudall, a pattern maker, and his wife Janet Mair.

It is not at present known where or when John Yeudall and Janet Mair were married, but OPR records for ten of their children and census evidence of three others, all born over a twenty-five year period, have been located:

Helen, born on the second and baptised on the 31st of January 1841 at Galston. (The year is clearly entered as 1840 in the OPR, but since it is the very first entry under the heading '1841', it would appear that this is an obvious clerical error). She was stated in the OPR to be the first child of the marriage, and appeared as Ellen in the 1861 census, then unmarried and aged twenty; Alexander Mair Yeudall, baptised on the 14th of July 1844 at Galston; Martha Allan Yeudall, baptised on the 2nd of April 1846 at Galston; Jean, born on the 18th of March 1848 at Glasgow; Abram baptised on the 3rd of February 1850 at Galston; John, known only from the 1861 census, and born c. 1851 at Galston; Janet, born c. 1852 at Glasgow; Ann, born c. 1854 at Glasgow; Thomas, born on the 1st of September 1856 at Springburn; Isabella, born on the 20th of January 1860 at Springburn; Agnes, born on the 23rd of January 1862 at Springburn; William Yeudall, born on the 5th of January 1864 at Springburn; Margaret Forbes Yeudall, born on the 14th of May 1865 at Springburn.

At the time of the 1861 census, John and Janet were resident at 35, Cowlairs Row, Springburn. John was a pattern maker, aged forty-one (forty-six appears more likely), Janet was thirty-nine, and both were born in Galston. With them were their nine children Ellen, unmarried, a power loom weaver, born at Galston; Alexander, sixteen, pattern maker's boy, also born at Galston; Martha, fifteen, power loom weaver, born at Galston; Jean, thirteen, born at Glasgow; John, nine, scholar, born Galston; Janet, eight, also a scholar, born at Glasgow; Ann, six, born at Glasgow; Thomas, four, born at Glasgow, and Isabella, one, born at Glasgow.

William died on the 17th October 1864 at 4h a.m., at 35, Cowlairs Cottages, Springburn. He was aged nine months. The cause of death was general wasting, from which he had been suffering for seven months.

Alexander died on the 22nd of January 1868, at 1h 15m a.m., at 29, Cowlairs Cottages, Springburn. He was an iron finisher, unmarried, and aged twenty-three. The cause of death was phthisis, from which he had been suffering for eleven months.

8. Martha Yeudall married John Caldwell of Henrietta Street in Galston in 1854. They gave up their names in order to marriage on the 1st of April and were proclaimed three sabbaths.

John Caldwell died on the 3rd of April 1869, aged fifty-eight. His parents were John Caldwell and Mary Morton, both deceased. His grandfather was Allan Caldwell. John senior was originally from Ayr. On this evidence it does not appear that John belonged to the same family as William's wife Isabella, as might otherwise have been suspected.

Martha died on the 18th of August 1904, at 20, Goatfoot Road, Galston. She was entered as the widow of John Caldwell, coal miner. Her age was (correctly) entered as eighty-two, and the causes of death were given as senile decay, from which she had been suffering for five months, and bronchitis. The informant was William Strachan, son-in-law of the deceased, who had been present.

9. Janet was entered in the 1851 census as twenty-six, unmarried and living with her father, Abram Yeudall at 25, Church Lane, Galston.

Janet married Joseph Craig at Galston a few weeks later on the 31st of May 1851.