9
notes how the men of the RA were highly disciplined and efficient, and that can only come about by
excellent preparation before becoming involved in
any battles, sieges, or expeditions.
John’s daily pay as a gunner in 1810 was one shilling, five pence, and three farthings. When he
became a bombardier his pay would have gone up to two shillings, one penny, and three farthings a
day at 1810 rates (Duncan vol II, p.263). It is not stated if the men were paid for seven days a week,
or six. There had been an increase of twopence halfpenny for gunners and threepence halfpenny for
bombardiers since 1801 (Duncan vol I, p. 418), so it is possible there was another pay rise in the next
decade, too.
John remained a bombardier for five years one month, and then was discharged due to a pectoral
(lung) complaint and general debility. His discharge took effect on 31 May, 1819, and he was then 30
½ years old and had spent a total of ten years and eight months in the army. He was still a relatively
young man with a wife and family to support, but now had poor health. He received a pension at the
rate of one shilling a day from 1 June 1819. This was less than half what he was paid as a
bombardier, and whereas previously he had a wife and one child and army accommodation
provided, he now had a wife and several children and had to pay rent.
It is possible that John lived for a while in the Inverary district of Scotland. The researcher in England
who found the information on John and Kenneth’s baptism noted the word “Inverary” on John’s
soldier documents which suggested that his pension payments were to be made there. Inverary is
written in large writing at right angles across the document. She could not find any further records
for John in District Pension Returns.
There is an extended gap between the birth of Kenneth and the next known child. Perhaps there
were others who did not survive infancy; or perhaps John was away from Isabella with the army for
significant lengths of time.
A son, Farquhar, was 15 in the 1841 census, born in the 1820-’25 period. He was born in Scotland
but not in Inverness-shire. I have been unable to find a record of his birth or baptism. (Note that
1841 census ages were rounded down in 5-year blocks for people over 15 years.)
A boy named William aged 14 born in Inverness-shire appears in the 1841 census but not in the IGI.
He would have been born in or about 1827.
Certainly by 1826 the family had moved to Inverness and lived in Castle St. A child named Alexander
was baptised on 16 February, 1826, the son of “John McLennen, Pensioner Castle St, and his spouse
Elisabeth Noble”. The minister has recorded “Elisabeth” instead of “Isabella”. (IGI and also Inverness
Parish burials film). Alexander does not appear with the family in the 1841 census. He was 15 then,
and may either have died or have been elsewhere. We must also not discount the possiblilty that he
was not the son of our John and Isabella despite the coincidences in address, occupation, and
mother’s maiden name.
A son named Donald was baptised on 9 September, 1829, with the same details as for Alexander but
with the mother correctly named as Isabella Noble (IGI, and Inverness Parish burials film).
10
After five sons, John and Isabella had two daughters born in Inverness town. Mary was born on 10
September, 1831, and christened on 20 September (IGI). She appears in the 1841 census as a 9 year
old. Catherine was born on 13 April, 1834, and christened on 25 April (IGI). Catherine does not
appear in the 1841 census, so presumably did not survive infancy.
The family could not be found in the 1851 census for Inverness. Several John McLennans and several
Isabella McLennans are recorded, but none where details of age, birthplace, etc, match those of the
1841 census. Possible explanations are that one or both had died between 1841 and 1851, or they
had moved, or some details were recorded incorrectly. A Mary McLennan aged 19 and born in
Inverness was working as a servant in the lodging house of a Margaret Young at 36 Petty St, not far
from Castle St. Whether this Mary was the daughter of John and Isabella is not known, though age
and birthplace details do match.
The Caledonian Canal was completed in 1822. It linked, by canals and numerous locks, the three
lochs (Linnhe, Lochy, and Ness) cutting diagonally across Scotland from the west coast to Inverness.
Unless the family returned to visit at Kintail before going to live in Inverness, the new canal would
have been the easiest route from Inverary to Inverness.
There were some hard times, or harder-than-usual times, in Inverness in the 1830’s. Cholera was
present in the poorer parts of the town in 1832, and in 1836 the harvest failed (Prebble p. 167-173).
Whether Castle St was included in the poorer parts is yet to be checked, though it was probably not
in the very poorest part because the banker’s house that Kenneth broke into was in Castle St.
I have not yet found any information regarding the deaths of John and Isabella. If John died first,
Isabella would not have inherited his pension (see letter from Mrs Hughes 20.11.1987). The
surviving District Pension Returns for Inverness start at 1845, and John was not listed in them (Mrs
Hughes). He did appear in the 1841 census. Perhaps these two facts indicate that John died in the
1841-5 period.
Compiled by Anne Pollitt in 1993 and expanded in 2009, and again in 2010.
In the 1992 version of the IGI on microfiche I found a baptism record that MIGHT be our John.
John MacLennan born about 1785 at Kintail in Ross and Cromarty, parents Donald MacLennan and
Mary McRae.
Our John was born late in 1788, so “about 1785” is a bit vague; but it was the ONLY entry on the IGI
for baptism of a John MacLennan in that time period at Kintail. I couldn’t find any other entries for
John MacLennan in that time frame for other possible local names such as Lochcarron, Lochalsh,
Glensheil.
The same fiche had the marriage of Donald MacLennan and Mary McRae in Kintail in 1784.
I then checked the LDS microfilm no. 990654 of the Old Parish Registers for Kintail for the period
1776-1819. There was no baptism of a John McLennan recorded in the 1780’s. In fact, from 1787 and
right through the 1790’s there was only one baptism recorded apart from the six children born to