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| In Loving Memory (Photo taken by the mason) |
Almost a year after finding the unmarked grave of Ella’s maternal grandparents, John McDonald Beattie (1860-1936) and Ursilla (pronounced “Yer-SILL-a”) Katherine Bruce Beattie (1862-1937), in Aberdeen, Scotland, we received word from the mason last week that we finally have a gravestone in place. Hooray!
This grave had been unmarked for over 80 years, and through this blog, we became acquainted with our dear cousins in New Zealand (in 2015), who introduced us to other dear cousins in Aberdeen (in 2017), who happened to have the original receipts that proved our family’s ownership of the plot.
While visiting Aberdeen last May, we found the plot through the help of a couple gravediggers who were referencing tattered maps that were stored in a drawer in a small, unmanned cemetery office (there were no digital maps or maps posted in the cemetery itself). We had to get additional approvals from Aberdeen City to move ahead. I received quotes from multiple masons, vetted them based on recommendations from local cousins, the local genealogical society, and the bereavement/burials division of Aberdeen City.
This grave had been unmarked for over 80 years, and through this blog, we became acquainted with our dear cousins in New Zealand (in 2015), who introduced us to other dear cousins in Aberdeen (in 2017), who happened to have the original receipts that proved our family’s ownership of the plot.
While visiting Aberdeen last May, we found the plot through the help of a couple gravediggers who were referencing tattered maps that were stored in a drawer in a small, unmanned cemetery office (there were no digital maps or maps posted in the cemetery itself). We had to get additional approvals from Aberdeen City to move ahead. I received quotes from multiple masons, vetted them based on recommendations from local cousins, the local genealogical society, and the bereavement/burials division of Aberdeen City.
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| Until We Meet Again (Photo taken by the mason) |
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| John McDonald Beattie with wife Ursilla Katherine Bruce Beattie |
As we would forge ahead on this project, I would sometimes get overwhelmed, wanting to make sure that everything was perfect and done correctly, feeling at a disadvantage trying to manage this from the other side of the world, feeling regret that the grave has been unmarked for 80+ years. But I took comfort in something that a local Bay Area mason told me: There has never been a better time to tackle a project like this. When we look at how easily we can communicate over email, Skype, send digital photos back and forth, research and fact-check with historical documents online in searchable databases, connect virtually with cousins - so much of this wasn't as easy even 5 years ago. Now was the right time.
This stone is intended to be a Rosetta stone of sorts, not just including the names and birth and death dates of John and Ursilla, but also the names of their parents, their marriage date, and their only child’s name. We want future generations to come back to this spot, and to realize exactly how their ancestors fit into the family tree.
And this stone will act as a testament that John and Ursilla’s lives mattered and that their memory lives on - despite their poverty (an orphaned iron worker and a domestic servant/dressmaker), their handicaps (they were both deaf since childhood), and their initially small posterity (they had only 1 child, who then had just 2 children. But the generations have really grown since then.)
A huge THANK YOU to all the family members who collaborated on this project - through sharing ideas as well as financial contributions. It's been quite the journey over the past year, working together to see this to completion.
One of my favorite parts of the stone is the final line, "Until We Meet Again." Indeed, if we believe in an after life, then until we meet the Beatties again, and until we meet with each other again in this life. It represents such hope and love.
One of my favorite parts of the stone is the final line, "Until We Meet Again." Indeed, if we believe in an after life, then until we meet the Beatties again, and until we meet with each other again in this life. It represents such hope and love.
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See also:
- John McDonald and Ursilla Katherine Bruce Beattie - Final Resting Spot: https://greatflyingscots.blogspot.com/2017/05/john-mcdonald-and-ursilla-katherine.html
- John McDonald Beattie (1860-1936) - According to His Daughter, Kate: http://greatflyingscots.blogspot.com/2018/04/john-mcdonald-beattie-according-to-his.html
- Meet Ursilla Katherine Bruce Beattie (1862-1937): https://greatflyingscots.blogspot.com/2017/02/meet-ursilla-katherine-bruce-beattie.html
- Williamina/Wilhilmina/Wilhelmina - A Rose by Any Other Name...: https://greatflyingscots.blogspot.com/search/label/Wilhilmina%20Inkster%20%281835-1896%29
