| Notes |
- Duncan Stewart was the illegitimate son of Robert Stewart and Mary Dochart who were both servants at Ardvorlich at the time. His later whereabouts is unknown. He has not been identified in later records.
Some online genealogies claim that he is the Duncan Stewart who moved to St Marylebone, St Pancras, Middlesex, England, before 1851 where he had a family and then later immigrated to Geelong, Victoria, Australia, where he died in 1863. However, there is no evidence to support this claim and it has been refuted by Y-DNA evidence.
The 1851 census for St Marylebone, St Pancras, Middlesex, England, shows a Duncan Stewart born about 1795 in Scotland. It does not indicate where in Scotland he was born. Some researchers have suggested that he was this Duncan Stewart born 1795 in Ardvorlich, illegitimate son of Robert Stewart and Mary Dochart, based on an incorrect identification for his wife as coming from Comrie parish, Perthshire, Scotland. Her connection to Comrie has also been disproved. Furthermore, the Stewarts of Ardvorlich Y-DNA signature is R-M269>R-DF41>S775>R-L745>FGC34909>Z38845>R-Y60195 which does not match the Y-DNA of a descendant of the Duncan Stewart who lived in Geelong, Victoria, Australia, which is R-FT28897.
----------------
I have been able to confirm everything about Duncan Stewart and his wife Janet after they end up in England in 1851 and later after they move to Australia. However, at this point, it looks like it is not possible to confirm Duncan's origins beyond the fact that he was born about 1795 somewhere in Scotland.
There are two sets of trees online that claim Duncan's wife was either Janet Robertson or Janet Adam. I can find nothing to confirm either of those. The only verifiable information about the Janet who was in England is that she was born about 1801 or 1802 somewhere in Scotland. I can find nothing to confirm her actual origins or her surname.
The online trees that claim she was Janet Robertson show Duncan and Janet being married in 1823 in the town of Perth. Whereas the connection to Comrie parish derives from the trees that claim she was Janet Adam, born 1802 in Comrie as the daughter of James Adam and Mary Drummond. The connection of Duncan Stewart to Comrie (specifically the illegitimate birth in 1795 in Ardvorlich to Robert Stewart and Mary Dochart) appears to derive from the connection of Janet Adam to Comrie. However, I find in 1851 and 1861 a Janet Adam born in Comrie in 1802 residing in Dalginross in Comrie with her husband Andrew Gilbert. As the name Adam is uncommon in Comrie, it would appear that this is likely the Janet Adam who was born in 1802 to James Adam and Mary Drummond and that she has likely been wrongly claimed as the wife of Duncan Stewart based solely on her matching birth year. It would appear that we can eliminate Janet Adam as the wife of Duncan Stewart. if so, then we have no reliable information that ties Duncan Stewart to Comrie at all, as far as I can find, thus the proposed 1795 birth to Robert Stewart and Mary Dochart must be called into question.
It's possible that there could be more than one Janet Adam in Comrie about the same age, but that would require further research to confirm.
If Duncan's wife was Janet Robertson then it is possible that they were married in the town of Perth. If so, then it is highly unlikely that Duncan came from Comrie as that's contrary to the common migratory pattern. Most emigrants from Comrie migrated southwards, not eastwards. It would be extremely unusual for a man born in Comrie to marry in the town of Perth and then immediately move to England. It's certainly possible, but it defies the normal patterns. Thus I would need solid evidence to be convinced that it's true. If the marriage of Duncan and Janet in Perth in 1823 is correct then it is far more likely that Duncan came from nearby to Perth and not from anywhere near Comrie or Balquhidder.
|
1795 - UNKNOWN
