Robert Wylie

Robert Wylie was born on December 17, 1880, at home on 10 David Street in the District of Camlachie, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. His parents, James Wylie and Jane Williams, had been married for 11 years. James Wylie worked as a cabinet maker (journeyman) at the time. The Wylie family had lived at the David Street home since 1874. 

I have been able to document six children born to James and Jane: James Williams Wylie (born in 1871, High Church, Glasgow), Margaret Williams Wylie (born in 1873, Bridgeton, Glasgow), Elizabeth Kirkland Wylie (born in 1874, Bridgeton, Glasgow), Helen Campbell Wylie (born in 1875, Camlachie, Glasgow), Robert Wylie, and Alexander McKenzie Wylie (born in 1879, Camlachie, Glasgow).

Birth registry for Robert

Robert is my husband’s 1st cousin 3x removed. Their nearest common relatives are James Wylie and Margaret Gilchrist, Robert’s grandparents, and my husband’s 3rd great grandparents.

Before Robert’s birth, Elizabeth, Robert’s sister, passed away on November 14, 1874 at the tender age of six weeks. She succumbed to bronchitis at the family home on David Street. Elizabeth was laid to rest in Lair 728 at Eastern Necropolis Cemetery in Glasgow. In 1875, Robert’s sister Helen was born. Although the family still resided at 10 David Street, the district name shifted from Bridgeton to Camlachie. Tragedy struck once again before Robert’s birth. Alexander, another sibling, was born on March 15, 1879, but his life was cut short just 28 hours later. The cause of Alexander’s death was recorded as “exhaustion from abnormal parturition,” indicating extreme fatigue and weakness during childbirth due to irregular labor patterns. Alexander was laid to rest on March 17 at Eastern Necropolis Cemetery in Glasgow.

In 1881, when the census was conducted, the Wylie family still resided at 10 David Street. At that time, Robert was the youngest member of the family, just three months old. His father had taken up work as a chair maker, while his brother James and sisters Margaret and Helen were attending school.

1881 Scotland Census

On June 5, 1889, tragedy struck the Wylie family when Robert’s mother, Jane, passed away suddenly at home on 36 East John Street in Camlachie. Her cause of death was recorded as a cerebral hemorrhage, which had taken place the day before. Two days later, on June 7, Jane was laid to rest in Lair 728 at Eastern Necropolis Cemetery. Robert, now motherless, was 8 ½ years of age.

In 1891, when the census was conducted, the Wylie family resided at the East John Street home where Robert’s mother had passed away. Robert’s widowed father continued to work as a chair maker. His sister Margaret, enumerated as Maggie, was employed as a silk weaver, while Helen worked as a warper. A warper was “a textile worker who arranged the individual yarns which created the ‘warp’ of the fabric upon a large cylinder called a beam” according to the World Through the Lens website. Robert, aged 10, was attending school.

1891 Scotland Census

In late 1898/early 1899, Robert worked as a French polisher. In that capacity, he was considered a skilled craftsman who used a specific technique to polish furniture to a mirror-like shine. Around that time, he fell ill with phthisis, also known as pulmonary tuberculosis. After suffering from this disease for five months, Robert, aged 18 and single, passed away on May 9, 1899 at the family home on East John Street in Camlachie. His brother James was with him at the time of his death.

Robert was laid to rest at Eastern Necropolis Cemetery in Glasgow on May 12, 1899, in Lair 728 along with other family members.

Death registry for Eastern Necropolis Cemetery

Lairholders registry for Eastern Necropolis Cemetery, Lair 728

References

• Alex Wylie, Daily interment books, July 1878-December 1885, image 137, Eastern Necropolis Cemetery, Glasgow, Scotland; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSJJ-FK46?i=136&cat=1323530 (requires free account).
• Alexander McKenzie Wylie, Statutory registers Births 644/2 326, National Records of Scotland, 1879.
• Alexander McKenzie Wylie, Statutory registers Deaths 644/2 243, National Records of Scotland, 1879.
• Elizabeth K. Wylie, Daily Interment Books, January 1874–June 1878, Cemetery Records for Eastern Necropolis Cemetery, Glasgow, 1861–1995, image 133, https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-N3ZK-1242?i=132&cat=1323530 (free account required).
• Elizabeth Kirkland Wylie, Statutory registers Births 644/3 2574, National Records of Scotland, 1874.
• Elizabeth Kirkland Wylie, Statutory registers Deaths 644/3 2074, National Records of Scotland, 1874.
• Helen Campbell Wylie, Statutory registers Deaths 644/2 1489, National Records of Scotland, 1875.
• James Williams Wylie, Statutory registers Births 644/2 674, National Records of Scotland, 1871.
• James Wylie, Census 644/217/14, National Records of Scotland, 1881.
• Jane Wylie, Statutory registers Deaths 644/2 462, National Records of Scotland, 1889.
• Margaret Williams Wylie, Statutory registers Births 644/3 1889, National Records of Scotland, 1873.
• Mrs. Margaret Wylie, Cert. No. 6899, Lairholders, Eastern Necropolis Cemetery, Glasgow, Scotland.
• Obscure Old English Census Occupations, World Through the Lens; https://www.worldthroughthelens.com/family-history/old-occupations.php. 
• Robert Wylie, Census 644/223/3, National Records of Scotland, 1891.
• Robert Wylie, Daily Interment Books, December 1897-August 1912, Cemetery Records for Eastern Necropolis Cemetery, Glasgow, 1861–1995, image 105; https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/1323530?availability=Family%20History%20Library (requires free account).
• Robert Wylie, Statutory Registers Births 644/230, National Records of Scotland, 1881.
• Robert Wylie, Statutory Registers Deaths 644/2371, National Records of Scotland, 1899.