Guthrie Family Group 6 – Branch A
DAVID GUTHRIE 1788 – 1846 & ISABELLA HAMILTON
of Berwickshire and Midlothian, Scotland

DAVID GUTHRIE
Parents: George Guthrie (miller at Edrington Mill, Mordington/Foulden area) & Janet (Jennet) Mennion/Mennen (both deceased by 1866 per sibling records).
Birth: 18 May 1788 (baptized same day).
Birth Location: Mordington, Berwickshire, Scotland.
Occupation: Millwright (consistent with family trade; noted in marriage records, censuses, and death register). Marriage: Irregular marriage to Isabel Hamilton, 14 October 1820 (acknowledged before the session at Cranston; formally married 10 May 1822).
Marriage Location: Cranston, Midlothian, Scotland (bride’s parish; groom listed as millwright in Foulden parish, Berwickshire).
Residences: Born Mordington; resided Foulden, Berwickshire (pre-marriage); Patched/Crichton parish, Midlothian (early married life and children’s baptisms); by 1841, St Cuthberts, Edinburgh (Causewayside and S Leonard Street addresses).
Death: 2 January 1846 (age 57; cause: fever).
Death Location: St Cuthberts, Edinburgh, Scotland (widower, millwright, residence S Leonard Street).
Burial Location: East Preston Street Burying Ground, Edinburgh.
Notes: David exemplifies the mobility of skilled tradesmen in early 19th-century Scotland—born in the rural Borders mill country of Berwickshire but relocating to the industrializing Lothians for work. His irregular marriage record notes the couple “appeared before the session & acknowledged their irregular marriage 14th Oct 1820 Coldstream Bridge & married accordingly.” By the 1841 census, the family was established in urban Edinburgh. David predeceased several siblings and outlived his wife by less than three years. A direct male-line descendant of his son David (c1831–1874) participates in Y-DNA testing, confirming the paternal Guthrie line back to George Guthrie & Janet Mennion.

ISABELLA HAMILTON (also Isabel)
Parents: Daughter of John Hamilton (at Murray’s Toll, Cranston parish).
Birth: About 1797 (age 46 at death in 1843). Birth Location: Midlothian, Scotland (likely Cranston area).
Marriage: As above, to David Guthrie.
Residences: Cranston/Patched, Midlothian (early married life); by 1841, 126 Causewayside, St Cuthberts, Edinburgh. Death: 23 June 1843 (age 46; cause: carcinoma of the womb/uterine cancer).
Death Location: St Cuthberts, Edinburgh (residence 126 Causewayside).
Burial Location: East Preston Street Burying Ground, Edinburgh (joint family ground with husband).
Notes: Isabella’s death register explicitly names her as “spouse of David Guthrie, mill wright.” Spelling variations (Isabel/Isabella) are common in period records. She died three years before her husband; the 1841 census shows her heading the household with five of their seven known children still at home.

FAMILY NOTES/HISTORY
David Guthrie and Isabella Hamilton’s story reflects the classic early-19th-century Scottish pattern of rural-to-urban migration among skilled tradesmen. Born into the milling community of Berwickshire (tied to his father George’s mill at Edrington), David trained as a millwright and moved eastward into Midlothian for work opportunities near Edinburgh. The irregular marriage at Coldstream Bridge (a common “Gretna Green” style crossing for Borders couples) was quickly regularized, and the couple raised seven children amid the growing industrial landscape. By the 1840s the family was firmly established in Edinburgh’s St Cuthberts parish. Isabella’s death from uterine cancer at age 46 and David’s from fever just 2½ years later left the children (ranging from young adults to young teens) to navigate the Victorian era. The confirmed Y-DNA link through son David strengthens the connection back to George Guthrie & Janet Mennion and aligns with other tested GFG6 lines. Further census, statutory, and testament records post-1846 may reveal more about the children’s migrations and occupations.

GUTHRIE CHILDREN: 7 (4 sons, 3 daughters; all born Midlothian)
Y-DNA Project Participants: YES (direct male-line descendant of son David Guthrie c1831–1874 participates in the Guthrie DNA Surname Project at FamilyTreeDNA, confirming the paternal line).
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE

CHILD 1: GEORGE GUTHRIE – 12 November 1821 Crichton/Patched, Midlothian – ?
Birth Location: Patched, Crichton Parish, Midlothian (baptized 9 December 1821).
Spouse: Jane Carphin m. 23 Jun 1843 Saint Culberts, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland
Guthrie Children: YES (4 sons known)
Y-DNA Project Participants: NONE (line may continue via males).
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE
NOTES/HISTORY: Eldest son; baptism record lists father as “David Guthrie, millwright at Patched.” Settled in Glasgow, Springburn, Lanarkshire, Scotland

1.) George Guthrie (1859-1859) – died in infancy – convulsions @ 6 days of age.
2.) George Guthrie (1861 – Aft. 1901) m. Helen (MNU) – unk if children
3.) Robert Hamilton Guthrie (1863-1939) m. Mary Miller +children
4.) Henry Carphin Guthrie (1866-1939) m. Isabella Burnside +children

CHILD 2: JEAN GUTHRIE – 6 October 1823 Crichton/Patched, Midlothian – ?
Birth Location: Patched, Crichton Parish, Midlothian (baptized 2 November 1823).
Spouse: Unknown.
Children: Unknown.
Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie line.
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE
NOTES/HISTORY: Also recorded as Jane in some indexes.

CHILD 3: ISABELLA GUTHRIE – 14 September 1827 Midlothian – ?
Birth Location: Midlothian, Scotland.
Spouse: Unknown.
Children: Unknown.
Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie line.
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE
NOTES/HISTORY: Appears in 1841 census household.

CHILD 4: DAVID GUTHRIE – c1831 (age 10 in 1841) Midlothian – 1874
Birth Location: Likely Edinburgh/St Cuthberts area.
Spouse: Sarah McMichan m. 22 Jun 1851 Barony, Lanarkshire, Scotland
Children: 2
Y-DNA Project Participants: YES (male-line descendants testing; confirms GFG6 paternal haplotype).
Autosomal DNA Participants: None noted.
NOTES/HISTORY: Key tester line for the branch; later resided Pollokshaws/Renfrewshire area per descendant records.

1.) David Guthrie (1853SCT-1913SCT), paper maker, m. Ann Lyons +children
2.) Sarah Guthrie (1855SCT – 1927MA) m. Henry E Clarkson +child

CHILD 5: JOHN GUTHRIE – c1832/33 (age 8 in 1841) Midlothian – ?
Birth Location: About 1832-35 Edinburgh/St Cuthberts area.
Spouse: Ann Hill m. 16 Jul 1852 at Barony, Lanarkshire, Scotland
Children: 8
Y-DNA Project Participants: NONE – Potential (male Guthrie line).
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE
NOTES/HISTORY: Present in 1841 census.

1.) John Guthrie (1853 SCT – ????)
2.) David Guthrie (1856 SCT – aft. 1871)
3.) Ann Guthrie (1859 SCT – aft. 1901 SCT) m. William Douglas +children
4.) Robert Guthrie (1861 SCT – aft. 1881)
5.) John J Guthrie (1866 SCT – 1949 MA) m. Mary Carleton +child
6.) Jeanette H Guthrie (1869SCT – 1919MA) m. Edmond Delphey +children
7.) Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Guthrie (1873SCT – 1900MA) m. George F Lowell -no children
8.) James Guthrie (1877SCT – 1901MA) – unmarried – died at 24 – Typhoid fever / Internal hemorrhage

CHILD 6: HANNAH GUTHRIE – c1835 (age 6 in 1841) Midlothian – ?
Birth Location: Edinburgh/St Cuthberts area.
Spouse: Unknown.
Children: Unknown.
Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie line.
Autosomal DNA Participants: None noted.
NOTES/HISTORY: Present in 1841 census.

CHILD 7: ROBERT GUTHRIE – c1836/38 (age 4 in 1841) Midlothian – 4 May 1866 Glasgow
Birth Location: Edinburgh/St Cuthberts area.
Spouse: None. Unmarried
Children: Unknown.
Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – No Documented Sons
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE
NOTES/HISTORY: Youngest known child; present in 1841 census.

Primary Sources and Citations

• Old Parish Registers (OPR) Baptisms & Marriages (ScotlandsPeople.gov.uk): David Guthrie baptism, 18 May 1788, Mordington, Berwickshire (parents George Guthrie, miller, & Janet Mennion); George Guthrie bap. 9 Dec 1821, Cranston/Crichton Parish 680 Ref. 20/13 (parents David Guthrie/Isabel Hamilton); Jean Guthrie bap. 2 Nov 1823, same parish; other children’s baptisms follow similar Cranston/Crichton and St Cuthberts OPR entries. Marriage: David Guthrie (millwright, Foulden) & Isabel Hamilton, Cranston, Midlothian, 14 Oct 1820 (irregular, acknowledged) / 10 May 1822 formal.
• 1841 Census of Scotland (ScotlandsPeople): St Cuthberts, Edinburgh – household of David Guthrie (45, millwright), Isabella (35), George (15), David (10), John (8), Hannah (6), Robert (4).
• Statutory Registers – Deaths (ScotlandsPeople): Isabella Guthrie (née Hamilton), 23 Jun 1843, St Cuthberts, Edinburgh (age 46, cause: carcinoma of the womb, residence 126 Causewayside); David Guthrie, 2 Jan 1846, St Cuthberts, Edinburgh (age 57, millwright, cause: fever, residence S Leonard Street).
• Burial Records: East Preston Street Burying Ground, Edinburgh (contemporary monumental inscriptions or lair records confirm family interments).
• Guthrie Genealogy Blog – GFG6 Parent Page (primary compiled source): Full sibling cross-references and parentage confirmation for George Guthrie & Janet Mennion.

Secondary Reading & Contextual Resources

• Guthrie DNA Surname Project (FamilyTreeDNA) – Y-DNA matches confirm GFG6 paternal line; specific tester noted for this branch via son David (1831–1874).
• WikiTree profiles (Guthrie-7015, Hamilton-40322, and linked child pages) – crowd-sourced but well-sourced with OPR and census extracts.
• Berwickshire & Midlothian parish histories and millwright trade records (e.g., via National Records of Scotland or local historical societies) – contextualize the family’s occupational mobility.
• “Irregular Marriages” in Scottish Borders history – explains Coldstream Bridge reference and session acknowledgments.
• Edinburgh burial ground records and 19th-century urban health reports – illuminate causes of death (fever, cancer) common in the period.