Bute MIs, McLea Family.

Not including the Rev Dr Archibald MacLea's headstone, there are a few other McLea stones on Bute (although some have probably been lost over the years).

These are found at St Mary's Chapel.

From Alison Ramsay:

134 Samuel Duncan d. 18.3.1869 aged 78, wife Jane Duncan d. 28.10.1890 aged 78, children James d. 29.8.1840 in infancy, Archibald Weir d. 30.5.1846 aged 5, James d. 11.1.1850 aged 5, Samuel d. 5.3.1850 aged 12, Walter d. 20.9.1850 aged 14mths, Daniel d. 17.1.1880 aged 37, Jane d. 5.3.1902 aged 54 (husband Robert Service), Catherine McLea d. 6.5.1923 aged 89.

237 Donal McLea (merchant) in Rothesay d. 17-8, wife Janet Jameson 28.2.1728.

250 Stone erected by Robert McLea shipbuilder Rothesay, d. 12.3.1895 aged 77, wife Grace Miller d. 8.8.1906 aged 75, children John Thomas d.1.12.1875 aged 3, Robert Miller drowned at Tuticorin India 20.5.1878 aged 16, Mary Cumming d. 15.4.1879 aged 21, Margaret Cumming d. 19.11.1889 aged 22. (west side) John McLea mariner, d. Rothesay 7.1837, wife Ann Mackinlay d. 4.1826, sons Thomas, late shipmaster d. 7.1847,John, late shipmaster d. 1874 aged 60.

251 Thomas McLea, shipmaster, d. 10.7.1847

427 Stone erected by John & Samuel Duncan, heritors here in memory of father John Duncan late shipmaster d. 1.11.1793 aged 40, mother Catherine McLea d. 5.2.1830 aged 74.

It seems that the latter inscriptions all refer to a family of shipbuilders with the McLea name on the island. I'll have to look through the OPRs to see what I find in terms of births and/or marriages.

I know that none of these are in my direct line, at least to 1800 or so. Before that, my line has a little more guesswork in it in places, so I suppose it is possible that the older headstones could be ancestors.

It's always interesting to read about other McLeas on the island, including one who was living there as late as 1923!

Kyle=