Thomas Barton Aitken b. 4 Feb 1884 Fallside, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland d. 1 Feb 1975 Falkirk Infirmary, Stirlingshire, Scotland: Orwin & Millar Genealogy

1884 - 1975 (90 years)

Personal Information | Notes | Sources | All

Name	Thomas Barton Aitken
Born	4 Feb 1884	Fallside, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland
Gender	Male
Residence	1891	10 Summerfield, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland [1]
Occupation	1901 [2]
	warehouseman (wine merchant)
Residence	1901	29 James St, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland [2]
Occupation	17 Jul 1908 [3]
	Warehouseman
Residence	17 Jul 1908	11 Lindsay Road, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland [3]
Residence	1909	13 Prince Regent Street, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland [3]
Residence	1910	13 Prince Regent Street, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland [3]
Occupation	1912
	labourer
Residence	1912	3 Henderson St, Leith, Midlothian, Scotland
Occupation	1914
	railway porter
Residence	1914	Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland [3]
Occupation	1916
	railway porter
Residence	1916	Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland
Residence	1919	30 Arthur Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland
Residence	1921	30 Arthur Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland [3]
Residence	1923	30 Arthur Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland
Occupation	29 Jun 1957
	general labourer
Residence	19 Mar 1960	41 Chapelton Drive, West Calder, Mid Lothian, Scotland [3]
_UID	E72CE4C07CE5415D8184FEE3C3A8EB6355F6
Died	1 Feb 1975	Falkirk Infirmary, Stirlingshire, Scotland
Buried	Lauriston Cemetery, Falkirk, Scotland
Person ID	I5135	My Big Tree
Last Modified	2 Mar 2012

Father	John Aitken, b. 31 May 1848, Silvermines Farm, Torphicen, West Lothian, Scotland , d. 25 Feb 1937, 29 James St, Edinburgh, Mid Lothian, Scotland (Age 88 years)
Mother	Sarah Barton, b. 26 Nov 1851, Ecclefechan, Dumfries, Scotland , d. 11 Mar 1918, 29 James St, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland (Age 66 years)
Married	14 Feb 1878	United Presbyterian Church, Ecclefechan, Dumfries, Scotland
	Witnesses to the wedding of John Aitken and Sarah Barton were Peter Aitken and Janet Barton.
Family ID	F1621	Group Sheet \| Family Chart

Family Catherine Manson Spence, b. 27 Jul 1886, Dounreay, Caithness, Scotland , d. 19 Mar 1960, 41 Chapelton Drive, West Calder, Mid Lothian, Scotland (Age 73 years)

Married 17 Jul 1908 13 Prince Regent Street, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland [3]

Witnesses at the wedding of Thomas Aitken and Catherine Spence were James Aitken and Nell Spence.

Children

	1. Thomas Barton Aitken, b. 31 May 1909, 13 Prince Regent Street, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland , d. 14 Aug 1958, General Hospital, Kettering, Northamptonshire, England (Age 49 years)
	2. Helen Sutherland Aitken, b. 18 Aug 1910, 13 Prince Regent Street, Leith, Mid Lothian, Scotland , d. 14 Jul 2001, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland (Age 90 years)
	3. Sarah Barton Aitken, b. 15 Sep 1912, 3 Henderson Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 27 Jan 1978, Laurieston, West Lothian, Scotland (Age 65 years)
	4. John Aitken, b. 18 Apr 1914, Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 3 Sep 1986, 13 Pomona Road, St Helier, Jersey (Age 72 years)
	5. Sinclair Aitken, b. 18 Apr 1914, Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 5 May 1914, Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland (Age 0 years)
	6. William Wilson Aitken, b. 12 Apr 1916, Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 20 Jun 1957, London, Middlesex, England (Age 41 years)
	7. Sinclairina Spence Aitken, b. 9 Apr 1919, 30 Arthur Street, Leith, Midlothian, Edinburgh , d. 8 May 2004, Maddington, WA. Australia (Age 85 years)
	8. Catherine Manson Aitken, b. 15 Feb 1921, 30 Arthur Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 14 May 2014, St Michael Hospital, Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland (Age 93 years)
	9. James Aitken, b. 18 Feb 1923, 30 Arthur Street, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland , d. 1 Nov 1995, Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland (Age 72 years)

Last Modified 13 Nov 2010

Family ID F1624 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Notes

Catherine did not enjoy the best of health suffering from heart disease most of her life.
She had 9 living children and also some still births.
Many times Thoams and Catherine moved houses. Not always because of Tom's itchy feet but sometimes to move into less taxing premises for Catherine.
Catherine's mother, father and siblings, except for sister Jo, went to Canada. As Jo and Catherine were already married they stayed behind.
As Kate and Tom's family grew ever bigger they moved around Edinburgh quite a lot. After Prince Regent Street they next lived at 3 Henderson Street, Leith, where Sarah was born. At this time Tom was a Labourer.
When the next three children were born, Tom was working on the railway as a Porter and was living at Broomhouse Cottages, Corstorphine.
During WWI he served in the Scots Guards as a Private.
After the war the family moved to 30 Arthur Street, Leith, where Sinclarina, Cathy and Jim were born.
Catherine used to knit very fine shawls, in the Shetland style. The toilet would be put "out of bounds" to the family when Catherine was "smeekin" the shawls. She would hang them in the toilet. A fire would be set, on a shovel-full of sulphur, in the toilet. The toilet door would be sealed. This she called smeekin, probably smoking. This was the method used to whiten the shawls. Relatives, who were seamen on the ships sailing between the Shetlands and Leith, would collect the shawls in exchange for cases of eggs and smoked fish. The shawls would then be taken back to the Shetlands where they would be sold as Shetland Isles knitwear. The eggs and fish would be shared with friends and relatives around Leith.
Tom Aitken had many jobs but was basically a country person. Over the years he was a railway porter, railway shunter, warehouseman, horse and cart driver for Melrose Drovers and gardener.
Tom had the ability to turn a soapbox into a piece of furniture. Likewise he had the ability to turn a piece of furniture into a soapbox.
Catherine developed heart trouble and so the family was on the move again. They lived in Lochend, Craigentinny and East Thomas Street.
After his family married and moved on, Tom lived and worked on various estates.
He was a very fit man and a great walker.
In 1996 he was living in the Calders.
Terry Stewart his Mum, Dad, and sister had just returned from Australia when Tom met them at Mid Calder Railway Staion. He had walked from home to the station, a distance of about 2 miles. He gave directions to his house where Catherine would be waiting to give us our tea. Tom had to walk on into West Calder, to get his pension. From the station it was a round trip of some 3 miles. By the time we got to the house he had caught up with us.
Catherine and Tom celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary at Sinclarine and David Stewart's house at 17 Meadowbank Avenue, Meadowbank, Edinburgh, in 1958. Great aunt Nel, Catherine's sister and bridesmaid came over from Canada to help them celebrate.
Tom stayed on at Chapelton Drive until he had to enter a nursing home, about 1974.
Every so often he would disappear and go for a long walk.
It was in the nursing home where he developed gangrene. They removed a leg but very shortly after this he died.

Sources
[S15] 1891 Census (Reliability: 3).

[S16] 1901 Census (Reliability: 3).

[S77] Terry Stewart (Reliability: 3).