Peter Aitken

1854 - 1937  (83 years)

• Name	Peter Aitken
  Born	1854	Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland
  Gender	Male
  Residence	1861	Mounteerie, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland   [1]
  Occupation	1871  [2]
  	carter
  Residence	1871	Mounteerie, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland   [2]
  Occupation	1901  [3]
  	nurseryman
  Residence	1901	Ballencrief Nursery, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland   [3]
  Residence	4 Oct 1917	Bughtknowes Farm, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland
  Residence	17 Aug 1921	Ballencrief Nursery, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland   [4]
  _UID	59B874A067D54A48BD354B78C34F669CBC0D
  Buried	1937	Bathgate Paulville Cemetery, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland
  Died	20 Oct 1937	Ballencrieff, West Lothian, Scotland
  	Cause: old age
  Person ID	I4973	My Big Tree
  Last Modified	12 Jan 2021

  
  

  Father	James Aitken,   b. 25 Mar 1816, Silvermines Farm, Torphicen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 16 Jun 1884, Hilderston Hill House, Torphicen, West Lothian Scotland  (Age 68 years)
  Mother	Marion Aitken,   b. 4 Sep 1815, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 6 Nov 1885, Hilderston Hill House, Torphicen, West Lothian Scotland  (Age 70 years)
  Married	24 Sep 1837	Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland
  	Name: James Aitken Gender: Male Marriage Date: 24 Sep 1837 Marriage Place: Torphichen,West Lothian,Scotland Spouse: Marion Aitken FHL Film Number: 1066638 Name: Marion Aitken Gender: Female Marriage Date: 24 Sep 1837 Marriage Place: Torphichen,West Lothian,Scotland Spouse: James Aitken FHL Film Number: 1066638 The banns for James Aitken and Marion Aitken were read both in Linlithgow and at Torphichen
  Family ID	F1590	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Janet Laurie Russell,   b. 3 May 1856, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 13 Jun 1934, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 78 years)
  Married	3 Sep 1885	Hilderston Hill, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland
  	Witnesses at the wedding of Peter Aitken and Janet Russell were John Pender and Janet Roberts
  Children	1. James Russell Aitken,   b. 19 Jul 1886, Hilderstone Old Glebe, Torphicen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 4 Oct 1917, Poelcappelle, Flanders, Belgium  (Age 31 years)   2. Jane Stein Aitken,   b. 10 Jul 1887, Hilderston, Old Glebe, Torphicen, West Lothian Scotland ,   d. 12 Jun 1969, 4 North Bridge Street, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 81 years)   3. George Russell Aitken,   b. 10 Dec 1888, Hilderston Hill, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 13 Jul 1896, Merchiston Bank Nursery, Edinburgh, Scotland  (Age 7 years)   4. Peter Aitken,   b. 1 Dec 1890, Merchiston Bank Avenue, Edinburgh, Scotland ,   d. 22 Mar 1918, Flanders, Belgium  (Age 27 years)   5. Marion Aitken,   b. 3 Jul 1892, Merchiston Bank Avenue, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland ,   d. 13 Feb 1984, USA  (Age 91 years)   6. Jessie Russell Aitken,   b. 28 Aug 1894, Merchiston Bank, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland ,   d. 14 Jun 1974, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 79 years)   7. John Aitken,   b. 21 Jul 1896, Torphichen, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 14 Sep 1917, Villers-Faucon, Somme, France  (Age 21 years)   8. Elizabeth Aitken,   b. 20 Jul 1898, Ballencrief Nursery, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 20 Jul 1978, Bangour, Broxburn, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 80 years)   9. Bethia Scott Aitken,   b. 17 Jun 1902, Ballencrieff, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 27 Oct 1989, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 87 years)
  Last Modified	30 Mar 2011
  Family ID	F1635	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Headstones

  Janet Laurie Russell 13 Jun 1934 Peter Aitken 20 Oct 1937 George Aitken 13 Jul 1896 James Aitken 4 Oct 1917 Peter Aitken 22 Mar 1918 John Aitken 14 Sep 1917 Andrew Britton 30 Mar 1950 Jane Stein Aitken 12 Jun 1969 Bethia Scott Aitken 27 Oct 1989

  
  

• Notes

  Most of the information I have on Peter is from a write up in the local newspaper after his death. He did most of his training, as a gardener, at Wallhouse and held posts at Tyninghame Gardens, the home of the Earl of Haddington, and other posts. He set up his own business, as a nursery gardener, at Morningside, Edinburgh in about 1887. Aproximately 10 years later he moved to Ballencrief nursery where he continued until his death. He was famous for his growing of Alpines. It was said that "Amongst his Alpines, Peter was at home. He handled them and looked on them as a lover looks on the charms of his mistress." He won many medals at all the big shows. The Kirkton Public Bowling Greens, Bathgate, were laid out by him. Regularly asked to be a judge at local shows. Peter was a very quiet and modest man. James Aitken Smith, in 2006, remembers his house at Ballencrief Nursery and described it thus; "The house at Ballencrieff Nursery looks , from the gate, back to front as the back of the house is facing you. The original intention had been to have the entrance on the hill road, where the gate of 'Sunniside' now is. Instead the present entrance on the Gateshields road was opened. The house had a scullery , large kitchen with 2 built-in beds, 2 bedrooms and large lounge, 'The big room'. Half of the loft was an attic which was where the boys slept. The rest was open space. The toilet was a dry closet and water came from a spring on the hill above, to an outside tap, which had branches to the greenhouse and washouse. Cooking was on a range in the kitchen. It had the usual oven on one side of the fire, but on the other was a boiler which had to be filled with pails carried from the outside. At least it had a tap which meant there was a supply of hot water for face, hand and dish washing. Baths were had in the washouse. Lighting was by oil lampalthough for as long as I knew the house it was the more advanced Tilley lamp which has a mantle and uses paraffin vapourised under pressure. He grew many different plants. The one most associated with his name was the Gentian, especially Gentian Acaulis, the spring flowering blue trumpet variety. In a catalogue he was advertising small Gentian Acaulis at 9d in 3" pots. However the rarer Acualis Alba was 7/6d. This would equate to about 30 pounds at todays prices. Peter showed his wares at not only local shows like Linlithgow, and Falkirk, but also nationally at Waverly Market, Edinburgh, and Kelvin Hall, Glasgow. His other big interest was fiddle and Scots music. being an accomplished violin player and along with his pianist daughter, Bethia, many a Saturday evening parlor concert was held.

  
  

• Sources

  [S12] 1861 Census (Reliability: 3). [S8] 1871 Census (Reliability: 3). [S196] 1901 Census Scotland, Scotland. (Reliability: 3). [S77] Terry Stewart (Reliability: 3).