Biographical notes

Marriage recorded in the St Quivox Parish register on 22 Feb 1846. The christening of their first child, James Chalmers Lauder took place on the 5 September 1846 as recorded in the St Quivox (Ayr) Parish Register.

Sometime before 1851 the family must have moved as they appear in the 1851 Census living at 19 Cotton Street, Paisley Abbey, Renfrewshire; Thomas Lauder (48) Head Married Mason [born] Ayr Ayrshire, Elizabeth Lauder (21) Wife Married [occupation] Attend family [born Ayr Ayrshire], James Lauder (4) Son [born] Ayr Ayrshire, Elizabeth Park (20) Unmarr Visitor Friend [?occupation hard to decipher as line drawn through] [born] Ayr Ayrshire. The age of 48 given for Thomas Lauder does not tally with all other sources which indicate that in 1851 he was aged about 31. The other mystery is the identity of Elizabeth Park (20) recorded as a visitor [Occupation friend?]. Possibly related to Elizabeth Lauder in some way perhaps a mistranscription for Elizabeth's sister Isabella Chalmers Park (b 1831), although then the expected relationship would have been sister in law.

Whilst living in Paisley, Elizabeth gave birth to their second child John Lauder. Evidence from subsequent census returns consistently give the date of birth as 1851 and the place as Paisley, Renfrewshire, but no OPR entry for his birth has been located. The birth must have been after 30 March 1851 when the 1851 Census was taken as John is not listed with the rest of the family.

The family must have moved back to Ayr as the birth of their third child, Elizabeth, occurred in about 1853. As with her brother John, no OPR for her birth has been traced and evidence comes from the 1861 and 1871 Census returns.

Their fourth and last child Robert Park Lauder was born on the 6 August 1855 and appears in the Ayr Burgh Register of births.

On 24 April 1856 Thomas Lauder was convicted of the crime of Forgery and Uttering (The crime of Forgery and Utterence is defined as 'A notifiable offence of forging and then using an official document such as a cheque), and was subsequently transported to Australia where as far as is known he remained until his death in Geraldston in 1883. Elizabeth Lauder gave birth to what must have been an illigitimate daughter, Isabella Lauder, on 13 MAY 1857 (exact date of birth from LDS website). In the LDS entry only the mother is named.

This child died the same year.

Elizabeth gave birth to an illigitimate child Joseph Park on the 02 JUL 1858 in Ayr, No father recorded in the Ayr register and the mother's surname used (exact date of birth from LDS website).

The depleted family is recorded at 13 Content Street (Ayr) in the 1861 Census; Elizabeth Lauder (30) Wife Married [born] Ayr, James Lauder (14) Son Unm [born] Ayr, John Lauder (11) Son Scholar [born] Renfrewshire Paisley; Elizabeth Lauder (8) Daughter [born] Ayr, Robert P. Lauder (6) Son [born] Ayr, Joseph Park (2) Son [born] Ayr, Alexander Park (24) brother Unm Mason [born] Ayr. No subsequent Census records for Joseph Park have been traced but neither has a record of his death in the Statutory registers

1871 is the last Census return so far traced for this family. The family is living at 28 Scotland Street, Tradeston, Lanarkshire; Elizabeth Lauder (40) Head Widow [Occupation] Painter [born] Ayrshire St Quivox; John Lauder (20) Son unmarried Plasterer [born] Renfrewshire Paisley, Elizabeth Lauder (18) Daughter Unmarried Biscuit Packer [born] Ayrshire St Quivox, Thomas Lauder (15) Son Lather [born] Ayrshire St Quivox, William Lauder (13) Son Lather [born] Ayrshire St Quivox, Alexander Lauder (4) [born] Ayrshire St Quivox. Thomas Lauder (1856) is near the age of Robert P Lauder born 6 August 1855. No record of a birth of Thomas Lauder 1856 has been traced to Elizabeth and Thomas. Likewise William (1858) Lauder would seem to be the same age as Joseph Park born 2 July 1858. The status of Elizabeth (senior) as a Widow was not true and was probably used to conceal the fact that her husband was a convict.