Robert Leslie (1733-c.1820) & Agnes Henderson

In his will, dated 1815, Robert Leslie describes himself as a tenant in Myreside, in Fife. He was married to Agnes Henderson, and he refers to two sons and four daughters:

• Robert Leslie his oldest son.
• David Leslie his youngest son, a mason in Dundee.
• Ann Leslie.
• Agnes Leslie, married to James Smith, a weaver in Myreside.
• Elizabeth Leslie, married to James Dowie, a mason in Blebo-Craigs.
• Margaret Leslie.

Read about Robert Leslie's will (includes a full transcript of the will).

From the 1931 family tree which resurfaced in 2001, and from subsequent research using genealogical databases available online on the Family Search and ScotlandsPeople.gov.uk websites, we now know much more about this family.

Robert Leslie was christened on 10 June 1733 in Cameron parish in Fife. He married Agnes Henderson on 19 September 1773 in Forgan or Cameron parish in Fife (Agnes presumably lived in Forgan parish, so it was probably there that they married). It is possible that Agnes Henderson was Robert's second wife. The family tree refers to him having an earlier wife, Ann Malcolm, who was born about 1733 and died on 2 December 1765 (without children). There was certainly a Robert Leslie in Cameron who married an Ann Malcolm on 13 November 1761. There is a stone in the graveyard of Cameron Parish Church in memory of Ann Malcolm, wife of Robert Lessly. Correcting the misspellings (see Note 1 below), the stone reads:

Here lies the corpse of Ann
Malcolm, spouse to Robert
Leslie, who departed this life
December the ?? 1765
aged 32 years.
Piety, humility and peace
did shine in her, evidencing she had grace.
We on the wings of time do fly,
fast hastening into long eternity.
The corpses of Leslies dead and gone
lie buried round about this stone.
Memento Mori

Though we haven't yet confirmed that this is the same Robert Leslie as the one who married Agnes Henderson, it may be significant that this stone is in a group of three in the churchyard, the other two stones being in memory of Robert's children Robert Leslie, Ann Leslie and Agnes Leslie and Agnes' husband James Smith (see Note 2 below). We haven't found a grave for Robert Leslie or Agnes Henderson, though.

Robert Leslie and Agnes Henderson had nine children, all born in Cameron parish:

• Robert Leslie was born about 1773 and died on 9 May 1855. He doesn't appear to have married or had any children. He and his sister, Ann, as adults, shared a house in Radernie (possibly the house he inherited from their father). When Robert died, he left everything to his nephew, Robert Leslie Smith, the son of his sister Agnes Leslie, with some small bequests to his other neices and nephews.

• Ann Leslie was born about 1774 and died on 24 December 1850. She doesn't appear to have married either.

• Agnes Leslie, my great-great-great-grandmother, was born on 11 September 1777, christened on 21 September 1777 and died on 8 April 1869. She married my great-great-great-grandfather, James Smith, on 26 July 1805.

• Elizabeth Leslie was christened on 25 September 1779, and married James Dowie, a mason in Blebo-Craigs (Kemback parish), on 5 November 1814. They had four children:

  • Archibald Dowie, christened on 27 July 1815 in Kemback.
  • Charles Tullis Dowie, christened on 6 December 1817 in Cameron.
  • Meldrum Dowie, christened on 7 December 1821 in Kemback. Meldrum married Isabella Galloway from Kilconquhar in 1856. They lived in Blebo-Craigs, where Meldrum was a quarrymaster and later a farmer. In 1891 they are recorded in the census as living in Blebo Craigs Farm House. They had five children. Meldrum died in 1897, and Isabella in 1905.
  • Adam Blair Dowie, christened on 29 November 1823 in Kemback.
  
  

• Helen Leslie was christened on 26 August 1782, and died before 1790.

• David Leslie was christened on 26 September 1784 and died some time between 1822 and 1837. He worked as a mason in Dundee according to his father's will. His eldest son, Robert Leslie, was also a mason in Dundee according to the 1837 will of David's eldest brother, Robert. In this will, Robert refers to the son of his "late brother David", so we know David must have died by then. He married Betty Wilson in St Andrews and St Leonards parish on 26 November 1808. They had four sons, all born in Dundee:

  • Robert Leslie, born 24 September 1809, christened 30 September 1809.
  • David Leslie, born 11 March 1811, christened 18 March 1811.
  • William Leslie, born 4 May 1817, christened 11 May 1817.
  • James Leslie, born 21 May 1822, christened 30 May 1822.
  
  

• Margaret Leslie was born on 5 October 1787 and married Alexander Wann from St Andrews & St Leonards parish in December 1817. They had six (possibly seven) children, all born in St Andrews & St Leonards parish (only four of these children - Charles, Robert, Jean and Elizabeth - were named in the 1837 will of their uncle, Robert Leslie; possibly Isabel and Agnes died before that date):

  • Isabel Wann, christened on 11 October 1818.
  • Charles Wann, christened on 14 May 1820.
  • Agnes Wann, christened on 7 April 1822.
  • Jean Wann, christened on 5 September 1824.
  • Robert Wann, born on 2 May 1826.
  • Elisabeth Wann (the record showed this as "Elasebeth Wan"), born 3 December 1829.
  • Elizabeth Wann, christened on 17 September 1836. Either this is the same Elizabeth, but they took an awfully long time to get around to having her christened (!), or, more likely, the first Elizabeth died, and they gave the same name to their last daughter, a common practice in those days of high infant mortality.
  
  

• William Leslie was born on 5 June 1789 but died in 1789 or 1790.

• James Leslie was born on 11 October 1790 and presumably died before 1815 since he wasn't mentioned in his father's will.

Samplers

One source of information used by the original researcher who worked on the old family tree was a series of samplers produced by various female children in the family. Some were found in the possession of a descendant living in Greenock, others in the possession of a lady in Melrose. We have no idea if these samplers still exist.

The earliest sampler was created by Agnes Leslie in 1790 and the latest by a member of the Anderson family in Crail (into which one of Agnes Leslie's daughters married) in 1849. As recorded on the family tree, these samplers included initials for members of the girl's family, with those who were dead being embroidered using black thread. It's a bit of a jigsaw puzzle, trying to work out who each pair of initials referred to, and the original researcher didn't always get it right. But they are a useful indicator as to who was alive or dead at the time the sampler was created.

• Agnes Leslie's sampler in 1790 shows her sister, Helen Leslie, and her brother, William Leslie, as having died.

• David Leslie was still alive when Agnes' daughter, Agnes Leslie Smith, created a sampler in 1819.

• James Leslie, as well as not being mentioned in his father's will of 1815, is shown as having died when Agnes Leslie Smith created her sampler in 1819.

Next: Agnes Leslie and James Smith

Notes

1. The exact transcription of the inscription on Ann Malcolm's gravestone is as follows:

   Heir:lys:the:corps:of:Ann
   Malcom:spoues:to:Robert
   lessly:who:departed:this:life
   december:the:??:1765
   Aged:32:years
   peity:humility:and:pace:ace
   did:shine:in:her:evedencing:the:had:gr
   We on the wings of tim do fly
   fast:hastning:into long Eternity
   The:corps:of:Lesslys:dead:and:gon
   Lys:buired:round:about:this:ston
   MemenTomoRi

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2. The other two stones near Ann Malcolm's gravestone are:

   1. One in memory of Robert Leslie's son and daughter Robert Leslie and Ann Leslie:

      Erected
      by ROBERT LESLIE SMITH
      Merchant Dunoon Argyleshire
      in memory of his uncle
      ROBERT LESLIE
      Feuar New Inn of Radernie
      who died on the 9th of May 1855
      in the 81st year of his age
      and of his aunt
      ANN LESLIE
      who died on the 24th Decr 1850
      in the 76th year of her age.

      Note: Earlier researchers, recording monumental inscriptions in Fife, have recorded this Robert and Ann Leslie as husband and wife. Our family tree shows them as being brother and sister, and that appears to be born out by the older Robert Leslie's will, which refers to his son Robert and daughter Ann. I haven't been able to find birth records for either of these two people so far. However I recently obtained a copy of the younger Robert Leslie's will via the ScottishDocuments.com website. The will is dated 1837, and in it, Robert makes no reference to a wife, but does refer to his sister, Ann, as living with him. I am certain that the Robert and Ann Leslie referred to on this memorial stone were brother and sister.

   2. And one in memory of Agnes Leslie, her husband James Smith, and their daughter Agnes Leslie Smith (see the page on Agnes Leslie and James Smith for details).

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© 1998-2005 Donna Smillie <dms@zetnet.co.uk>