Robert McFie
1746-1827
Notes of the family by Wm Macfie
Robert McFie my father was born at the Waulk Mill, Innerkip Parish ( see map ) on the 11 Feb & baptized 15th 1746, he was educated at Innerkip, he wrought as a joiner with his brother William, at Bridgend for some time and came to Greenock about the year 1765, he wrought for some time with the late Robt Buine, ( father of Provost Buine) . About this time he complained, of a pain in the chest, I think in consequence of a severe fever, he then turned his attention, to a grocers shop & began in 1769, with a partner James Orr his cousin. Mr Orr seems to have been thoughtless, for in less than a year, my father assumed the business to himself, paid all the debts & removed from the Bell Entry to William Street, ( Greenock ) which was a house of one story, he has often told me , he began with £26 nearly all of which had been saved by himself, by his own labour, his father could give him little assistance.
My father must have been very Industrious , as he married in 1772, Mary Andrew , furnished a house and in 1784, brought the ground on which his shop was, for which he paid £200 it is scarcely 4 falls, but the situation was & is very good as the business is carried on to this day (in the same place), in 1784 he built the house & shop , which now belongs to my brother John Macfie of Edin. This house cost about £600, the (unreadable ) wood of which it was built, only cost 1/1p.foot, from about 1775 he did a large business, as in addition to his general business, he became a partner in a whale fishing concern, I recollect of one ship they had the ANN which sailed from Pt Glasgow, at this time , a considerable part of sugars imported, were the property of merchants in Greenock, he brought largely, from them and went to Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock & Ayr when he sold them , and from about 1774, up to 1804, he had a great share of the trade, to Campbelltown, Rothesay, Terbert, Largs & c, & c.
In 1788 my father with Jas Hunter, Wm Ritchie, Geo Robertson, John Wilson, Tho Ramsay, Wm McCunn ( McEwen) and Nicolas Witte, fixed on building a sugarhouse, for which purpose they bought the property of John Johnstone in Sugarhouse Lane , on which was a dwelling house, and mahogany rails, to the stair & marble Jambs & which they converted into a small sugarhouse. Wm McCunn (McEwen) junr was manager and & N Witte the boiler. The capital advanced was £ 4000, each partner advanced £500 but they got a good deal of money on loan Wm Ritchie & my father bought the sugar for many years for the concern, when they began they could not boil more than 300 hhds pr an but they enlarged the house after it was burned in 1793 and again after the fire of 1795, when they added another pan ( formerly they had only 2 pans) and boiled ( unreadable) having a very large stock of refined sugars which they could not sell they agreed that each partner should take his proportion of the goods & do what he could with them. I think my fathers share of them was 4 tons of lumps 2 tons of loaves & a parcel of treacle. When they gave up the advance of £500 was worth £ 1350.They had been paid 5 % pr/an on the £ 500, the Sugarhouse was sold to John McAlpine who had become a partner & my father bought the property opposite.
| 1746-1827 |
Mar 9 1772 Port Glasgow ,Scotland |
1749-1815 |
| 1773-1773 |
1774-1853 |
1776-1854 |
| 1778-1811 |
1780-1853 |
1781-1782 |
| 1783-1852 |
1785-1785 |
1786-1851 |
| 1789-1850 |
1790-1863 |
1792-1793 |
| 1774-1853 |
1799 Greenock Scotland |
-1807 |
| 1801-1856 |
1803-1816 |
1805-1840 |
1807-1899 |
No research had been made as far as it is know to establish whether James Macfie was descended from the same line as Mary Macfie. Nothing was done at the time the families were living to establish any liens and now some 200 years later it becomes an almost impossible task. Possibily the marriage records at the times, if indeed they were completed in detail, might contain the names of Jame's parents , but this would only allow us to step back one generation, it is not known if that would be sufficient to help discover the origins of James Macfie's family.
In the year 1807, Captain James Macfie sailed for Buenos Aires on the brig Garland and was never heard of again. For a time it was suspected, that he and his ship had been taken captive by the French, and been carried to a settlement in the West Indies, as he had had a similar experience in 1805. However is was soon assumed that he had indeed been lost at sea.
About 1815 a considerable share in the business of Macfie, Lindsay & Co was given to Mrs James Macfie, to assit her in bringing up her family. A few years later her son William Andrew, entered the concern as an apprentice, he subsequently became a partner in it and remained with the firm until 1837.
No notes have been found regarding the death of Robert in 1816
| 1801-1856 |
Feb 07, 1837 Greenock, Scotland |
1813-1899 |
| 1837-1894 |
1839-1874 |
1841-1916 |
| 1843-1860 |
1845-1854 |
1847-1930 |
James was in Nassau about 1820.
James Macfie was business partners with Colin Campbell in Jamica
Early in the year 1836 James Macfie decided not to go back to Jamaica, and arranged with his partners to take up a post at Glasgow. In November he became engaged to his cousin May Graham and they were married on the 7th of Februrary 1837.. In June William Andrew Macfie expressed a desire to retire from Macfie Lindsay & Co, his placed was taken by John Graham, who had just given up his mill.
The 1901 census shows John G Macfie born Scotland, living in Lancashire , Moss Side Parish and holding a commission with the East India Company
| 1837-1894 |
Sept 20 1866 Manchester, England |
1844- |
| 1867- |
1869- |
1870- |
| 1872- |
1874- |
1876- |
| 1879- |
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In 1901 Elizabeth ( 33) Morna (24) and Gladys ( 21) are living with their mother in Lancashire, Woking Parish, England
Douglas Graeme and David Fleming Macfie, counld not be located on the 1901 census so perhaps they had died before this date.
| 1869- |
Apr 20 1901 |
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| 1902- |
1908- |
We find James who was born in Manchester England, listed on the 1901 census records as having the profession of Solicitor
| 1872- |
July 26 1899 |
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| 1847-1930 |
October 23 1872 |
1848-1928 |
| 1873- |
1875-1890 |
1878-1880 |
1880- |
1886-1914 |
| 1805-1840 |
June 30 1837 Greenock, Scotland |
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| 1838-1858 |
1840-1857 |
| 1807-1899 |
January 16, 1839 |
1818-1883 |
| 1840-1846 |
1841-1841 |
1842-1921 |
| 1844-1847 |
1846-1926 |
1848-1849 |
| 1850-1850 |
1851-1866 |
1854-1866 |
| 1856-1893 |
1857-1934 |
1859-1860 |
| 1860-19 |
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William Andrew Macfie and his wife moved to Sweden , where they continued in a long line of descendants
For more information on this particualr branch of the family you are invited to click on the following site.
The Thorburn Macfie Family Society
James Washington Macfie, established himself in British Columbia, Canada and produced his own family unit, therefore creating another Canadian link to the Sugar Macfie family of Scotland
| 1778-1811 |
1807 |
-1855 |
| 1808-1824 |
1809-1831 |
1811-1826 |
| 1780-1853 |
January 11,1808 Greenock, Scotland |
1774-1830 |
| 1811-1890 |
1813-1899 |
1815-1836 |
| 1817-1892 |
1819-1840 |
1820-1899 |
The Graham Family
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Thursday, 03-Sep-2009 18:39:32 MDT
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