Thomas Keir was born on 17 May 1837, the son of Peter Keir and Jean Fergusson. His birth was recorded in the baptism register of Logierait parish, Perthshire, and the family’s residence was given as Wester Achnagee.
Logierait parish register entry for Thomas Keir, born 17 May 1837, to Peter Keir and Jean Fergusson in Wester Achnagee [NRS OPR Births 376/ p240]
Logierait parish church ~ August 2023
On a modern map it’s hard to locate “Wester Achnagee”, but a more contemporary map shows a place called Wester Auchnagie near Tulliemet/Tullymet.
![Wester Auchnagie [OS Map Six-inch Perthshire, Sheet XL 1867, NRS]](http://mermaid1864.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/wester-auchnagie-centered.png)
Wester Auchnagie [1867 OS Map Six-inch Perthshire, Sheet XL, NRS]
Two of Thomas’s siblings were born in Wester Auchnagie: Peter in 1841 and Alexander in 1844, and the family were enumerated there in the 1841 census.
| Name | Age | Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Peter Keir | 25 | Ag. Lab |
| Jane Keir | 20 | Ag. Lab |
| Thomas Keir | 2 | |
| Peter Keir | 2 months |
Western Auchnagie, Logierait [Census 376/ 2/ 1 page 1 NRS]
For the births of the next two siblings, Janet in 1847 and John in 1849, the family were residing in Milton of Tullymett (now Tullimet).
By 1851, the family had moved to Dron, and in the census of that year they were enumerated under the surname of Kier.
| Name | Relation | Condition | Age | Occupation | Birthplace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Kier | Head | Widower | 36 | Ag Mash Man | Loggyrate, Perthshire |
| Thomas Kier | Son | Unmarried | 11 | Scholar | Loggyrate, Perthshire |
| Peter Kier | Son | 9 | Scholar | Loggyrate, Perthshire | |
| Alexander Kier | Son | 7 | Scholar | Loggyrate, Perthshire | |
| Jannet Kier | Daughter | 4 | Daughter | Loggyrate, Perthshire | |
| John Kier | Son | 1 | Son | Loggyrate, Perthshire |
Dron [Census 377/ 4/ 4 p4 NRS]
![1868 OS map showing Dron, FifeBanks, and Longforgan [NLS]](http://mermaid1864.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/1868-map-Longforgan-including-Fifebanks-NLS-ed.jpg)
1868 OS map showing Dron, Fifebanks, Ladyfield and Longforgan [NLS]
Thomas’s father Peter married Isabella Sinclair on 31 March 1854 in Longforgan, and they had three children together: James (b. 1856), Grace (b. 1858) and Duncan (b. 1861), all born in Fifebanks.
Thomas worked as a carpenter in the local area and then later as a shipping clerk for the Dundee, Perth & London Shipping company in the nearby town of Dundee. In 1861 he was recorded as a lodger in the household of Elspit Robertson at 8 & 9 Dudhope Crescent, where he lived during the week, travelling back to Fifebanks for the weekend.
| Name | Relation | Condition | Age | Occupation | Birthplace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elspit Robertson | Head | Married | 50 | Tin smith’s wife | Errol, Perth |
| James Robertson | Son | Unmarried | 14 | Engineer’s Apprentice | Dundee, Forfar |
| Ann Robertson | Daughter | 12 | Scholar | Dundee, Forfar | |
| David Alexander | Lodger | Unmarried | 25 | Mill overseer | Monikie, Forfar |
| Thomas Keir | Lodger | Unmarried | 21 | Shipping clerk | Logierait, Perth |
8 & 9 Dudhope Crescent, Dundee [Census 282/2 24/ 10 NRS]
Thomas married Jessie Niven, a 22 year old domestic servant, on 15 May 1863 at Ladyfield in the parish of Liff.
On 7 November that year, Thomas left Ladyfield to get the steamer from Dundee to London. He was 24 years old, and left behind his heavily pregnant wife Jessie.
