James Eccles

In 1891 James and Cuningham are living in Broadwigg Dairyman(? spelling) House in the Parish of Whithorn in Wigtown. Robert their son is unmarried and a dairyman, Jane 18 is a dairymaid, Agnes 16 a domestic servant, James 13 a scholar and William 12 a scholar.

I have not located a death or marriage record on Scotland's People for James Eccles. He may have moved or emigrated. There are no James Eccles in the 1911 Census of the right age in Scotland. There are no easy matches on Ancestry.com or Family Search either.

It is clear he moved from Scotland but there is simply not enough identifying information on any records to strongly suggest its him. He may have emigrated or moved to England but there is no evidence at all currently.

There is a tree on Ancestry that gives the name of his wife as Sarah but no other details. It looks like it might be a family recollection which may have some value.

I received this note from the tree holder. "Hi, you are correct in your assumption. James Eccles was my great uncle and he came back to see the family around 1950. I have photos of James and Sarah taken at the place I lived in 1950. They came over to Scotland from South Africa where they had lived for many years. James was stone deaf as was his sister Agnes they also had a sister Jeanie and a brother Robert. Robert was my granddad (my mother’s father) James and Sarah had no family and I don’t know any more about how long they lived after going back to South Africa. Hope this is a help to your research. Regards Nan"

Sarah Simpson McFerran South Africa, Transvaal, Civil Marriages, 1870-1930 Name: James Eccles Event Type: Marriage Event Date: 3 Apr 1918 Event Place: Yeoville, Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa Event Place (Original): Yeoville, Johannesburg Gender: Male Age: 40 Birth Year (Estimated): 1878 Spouse's Name: Sarah Simpson McFerran Spouse's Gender: Female Spouse's Age: 39 Spouse's Birth Year (Estimated): 1879 "South Africa, Transvaal, Civil Marriages, 1870-1930," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPH4-99T4 : 27 September 2019), James Eccles and Sarah Simpson McFerran, Yeoville, Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa; citing Marriage, Yeoville, Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa, NARS "Civil registration (marriages - coloureds), Transvaal and Swaziland, 1898-1927." The National Archives and Records Service of South Africa, Pretoria.

James's extended family have advised that she and James had no children. They returned to the UK in 1925, 1935, 1950 and 1956. Ships passenger lists are attached for those journeys. It's these records that provide Sarah's date of birth and middle initial.

James Eccles in the UK and Ireland, Outward Passenger Lists, 1890-1960 Name: James Eccles Gender: Male Age: 58 Birth Date: abt 1877 Departure Date: 21 Dec 1935 Port of Departure: Southampton, England Destination Port: Cape Town, South Africa Ship Name: Ubena Search Ship Database: Search for the Ubena in the 'Passenger Ships and Images' database Shipping Line: Deutsche-Ost Afrika Linie Master: Heldt

James Eccles in the UK and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960 Name: James Eccles Arrival Age: 79 Birth Date: 19 Jul 1877 Port of Departure: Durban, South Africa Arrival Date: 20 Jul 1956 Port of Arrival: Southampton, England Ports of Voyage: Durban; East London; Port Elizabeth; Cape Town and Las Palmas Ship Name: Carnarvon Castle Shipping Line: Union-Castle Mail Steamship Company Ltd Official Number: 1726/01 Search Ship Database: Search for the Carnarvon Castle in the 'Passenger Ships and Images' database.

I have located a death record for him but not his wife on Family Search. The record is attached.

James Eccles South Africa, Cape Province, Probate Records of the Master of the High Court, 1834-1989 Name: James Eccles Event Type: Probate Event Date: from 1959 to 1962 Event Place: Cape Province, South Africa Death Date: 28 Feb 1962 Spouse's Name: Sarah Simpson "South Africa, Cape Province, Probate Records of the Master of the High Court, 1834-1989", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HKZN-FYZM : 27 April 2020), James Eccles, 1959-1962.

(Last checked Sep 2020).