Janet Meney Conway

7 June 1911 Golden Wedding of James Conway and Agnes McKenzie Fisher

8 June 1921 Diamond Wedding of James Conway and Agnes McKenzie Fisher

Parents:

• Birth*: Janet Meney Conway was born on 24 February 1877 at 104 Rosebank Street, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, ; 1877 births in the district of St Clement in the burgh of Dundee; ref 201; 1877 February Twenty Fourth 11h 45m am, 104 Rosebank Street Dundee; f; James Conway bakers' vanman, Agnes Conway ms Fisher, 1861 June 7th Monkton; James Conway father; 1877 March 1st at Dundee; Dav Scott registrar.¹
• She was the daughter of James Conway van driver and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid.
• (Bride) Marriage*: Janet Meney Conway married James Gibson, son of James Gibson and Agnes McPhail, on 7 June 1911 at Mathers Hotel, Dundee, Angus, Scotland, ; 1911 on the 7th day of June at Mathers Hotel Dundee after banns and publication according to the forms of the Presbyterian Church of England James Gibson slater master bachelor, 30, 76 Main Street Kilwinning, fath James Gibson insurance agent, moth Agnes Gibson ms McPhail (dec), and Janet Meney Conway housekeeper spinster, 34, 20 Bank Aveue Downfield, fath James Conway jute mill night watchman, moth Agnes Conway ms Fisher, signed John Conway, S M Conway, A H Charlton ministers Dundee, wit Janie Conway, Mary F Conway, James F Conway, reg 1911 June 9th at Dundee Thos Meek registrar.²
  
• (Deceased) Death*: Janet Meney Conway died on 28 January 1946 at 3 Park Avenue, Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland, , at age 68 Janet Meney Gibson married to James Gibson slater master retired 1946 January 28th 9h 45m am 3 Park Avenue Kilwinning, f, 68 years, fath James Conway bakers salesman (dec), moth Agnes Conway ms Fisher (dec), cerebral haemorrahge 1 day as cert by Carrick McDonald MBChB, inf James Gibson widower present, reg 1946 January 28th at Kilwinning R Jamieson assist registrar.³

• Name Variation: As of 24 February 1877, Janet Meney Conway was also known as Jenny Conway.
• (Witness) Marriage: She witnessed the marriage of Robert Fisher McKenzie Conway dentist & baptist minister and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Miller Morrison on Wednesday, 29 August 1906 at Mather's Hotel, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, ; 1906 marriages in the district of St Mary in the Burgh of Dundee, ref 251; 1906 on the twenty-ninth day of August at Mather's Hotel Dundee after publication according to the forms of the English Presbyterian Church; signed Robert Fisher McKenzie Conway dental operator bachelor, aged 23 residing 5 Rustic Place Dundee; parents James Conway jute mill night watchman and Agnes McKenzie Conway ms Fisher; signed Elizabeth Miller Morrison antique dealer's assistant spinster, aged 23 residing 11 Reform Street Dundee; parents Richard Russell Morrison antiquarian and Elizabeth Morrison ms Miller; signed Rev John Conway Hammersmith Presbyterian Church of England assisted by T W Lister minister of Frederick Baptist Church Glasgow, signed James Conway, Jessie Miller, Janet Conway witnesses; registered 1906 August 31st at Dundee John K Stirten assit regsitrar initialled TM (Thos Meek registrar.)⁴
• (Witness) Event-Misc: Janet Meney Conway was present when James Conway van driver and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid were celebrating their Golden Wedding Anniversary on 7 June 1911 at Mathers Hotel, Dundee, Angus, Scotland, .⁵
  

  

  

  Mathers Hotel Dundee
• Married Name: As of 7 June 1911, her married name was Gibson.²
• Newspaper Article*: Janet Meney Conway and James Gibson were mentioned in a newspaper article Marriages - Gibson-Conway. - At Mathers' Hotel, Dundee on the 7th inst., by the Rev J Conway, London (brother of the bride), assisted by the Rev S.M. Conway, Bowhill, and the Rev. A. H. Charlton, Dundee, James Gibson, Kilwinning, to Janet Meney, fitth daughter of James Conway, Dundee on 7 June 1911 at Mather's Hotel, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, .⁶
• (Witness) Event-Misc: Janet Meney Conway was present when James Conway van driver and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid were celebrating their Diamond Wedding Anniversary on 8 June 1921 at Masonic Hall, Cupar, Fife, Scotland, .⁵
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
• Announcement*: Janet Meney Conway Adrossan & Saltcoats Herald; 1 Feb 1946; Deaths; Gibson - suddenly at 3 Park Avenue, Kilwinning, on 28th January 1946, Janet Meney Conway beloved wife of James Gibson. - Deeply regretted. on 1 February 1946.⁷

Census & Directory Entries

Member of Household	3 April 1881	They was listed as a member of the household of James Conway van driver and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid in the 1881 census at 7 Kinloch Street, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, . Janet Conway, daughter, aged 4, born Dundee, Forfar, Scotland; James Conway, head, married, aged 45, Van Driver, born Ireland; Agnes Conway, wife, married, aged 39, born Ayr, Scotland.8
Member of Household	5 April 1891	They was listed as a member of the household of James Conway van driver and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid in the 1891 census at 11 Dons Road, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, . Janet Conway, daughter, aged 14, Millworker, In-giver, employed, born Forfarshire, Dundee; James Conway, head, married, aged 55, Van Driver, m employed, born Ireland, Co Down; Agnes Conway, wife, married, aged 49, born Ayrshire, Prestwick.9
Member of Household	5 April 1891	She was listed as a member of the household of Samuel Meney in the 1891 census at Byres, Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland, . Janet Conway, niece, 24, grocer's shop girl, Beith; Samuel Meney, head, 56, foreman railway surfaceman, Ireland.10
Member of Household	31 March 1901	She was listed as a member of the household of Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid in the 1901 census at Lydox Mill, Dairsie, Fife, Scotland, ; Agnes Conway, head, married, aged 59, housekeeper, born Ayrshire, Prestwick; Janet Conway, daughter, single, aged 24, sewing-maid, working on own account, born Forfarshire, Dundee.11
Member of Household	31 March 1911	They was listed as a member of the household of William Fisher Conway and Jane Hutchison Wilkie in the 1911 census at 20 Bank Avenue, Downfield, Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, . Janet M Conway, sister, 34, single, housekeeper, worker, born Forfarshire, Dundee; 4 roomw with windows, 5 people in household; William F Conway, head, 45, married, dairyman, employer, born Ayrshire, Kilwinning; Jane H Conway, wife, 45, marr 33 years, 3 children born 2 still living, born Forfarshire, Dundee.12

Notes

• (Witness) Residence: Janet Meney Conway lived at Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland, ; Kilwinning is described in a directory published by Pigot & Co in 1837 as … an ancient and thriving little manufacturing town … 24 miles from Glasgow, 3 nw of Irvine, 4 ne of Saltcoats, the like distance s of Dalry, 10 nw of Kilmarnock and 5 from Ardrossan; situate on rising ground about 2 miles from the sea; stretching westward from the right bank of the Garnock, and approached through long ambrageous paths, skirted by beautiful fields. It consists chiefly of one street and bye-lanes, with a few rows of modern houses. The weaving and manufacture of gauzes, muslins, shawls, etc are carried on, to an important extent, for the Glasgow and Paisley markets, to which they are conveyed by the local agents. The agricultural produce of the parish is likewise considerable; and coals, which are obtained in abundance, are conveyed by a railway passing from east to west across the parish. …
  Kilwinning was the first place in Scotland where free masonry was established; it is said to have been introduced by the foreign architect who was employed in erecting the monastery here. The abbey is thought to have been built about 1140. Briefly, free masonry is accepted as having been born out of the guilds of craftsmen of the middle ages, in particular the masons. A mason often had to travel the length of the county to seek work. He had to prove his rank and ability to his prospective employer. This he did by showing that he was in possession of certain secrets that he had learnt from his guild.
  The Statistical Account written by the Rev. Archibald Blair Campbell in April 1842 describes Kilwinning in great ecclesiastical detail, but includes gems such as (describing the population of around 630 families in the town): There are three individuals deaf and dumb in the parish, two fatuous, and two blind. … There is no smuggling. Poaching is carried on to a small extent. He continues: The male inhabitants of Kilwinning are chiefly employed in weaving and mining; the females in sewing. The only individuals found necessary for keeping the peace are one of the county police and a sheriff-officer. … Formerly there were several stagecoaches, which passed through Kilwinning to Glasgow and other places, but they have all given up since the opening of the Glasgow and Ayr Railway, about two years ago, which affords the greatest facilities, both for travelling and the conveyance of goods, and farm produce.
  He is highly critical of the 27 licensed Inns or Alehouses in the parish – Their effect on the morals of the people, especially the miners and inhabitants of the town, is of the most pernicious description. In his conclusion he observes The inhabitants are, we believe, more industrious than they were towards the end of last century; but they are more extravagant both in regard to their clothing and mode of living, and it is to be feared, less contented with their circumstances. … The desire for luxuries is, in many instances, too prevalent, and a want of prudence, foresight, and economy, often appears. The inhabitants of the parish, in general, are intelligent and well informed, and many of them are exemplary in the discharge of all the duties of their station.^13,14
  
• (Witness) Note for Web: She and Agnes McKenzie Fisher kitchen maid, Marion McKenzie Conway jute weaver, John Conway minister Church of SCotland, William Fisher Conway, Jeannie Conway, Elizabeth Conway, Agnes Fisher Conway, James Conway commercial traveller, Samuel Meney Conway dentist & baptist minister and Robert Fisher McKenzie Conway dentist & baptist minister was mentioned with Mary Fisher Conway howdie wife in 1983. From the pen of Marion C Miller (1983) :
  
  Under the Rose
  
  'Under the rose, Kate, under the rose', my great aunt Mary would frequently whisper to my mother. Many years were to elapse before I understood that information imparted subrosa (under the rose) was only intended for tried, tested and trustworthy ears. At the advance of avid young listeners, X-certificate conversation would come to an abrupt halt. My great aunt would suck her teeth back into their normal position with a sharp, resounding and final click. As age had withered her fuselage, the teeth no longer fitted snugly into the contours of her mouth. With the porcelain in position she was quite unable to chew. Always allocated prime position next to my father at the head of the table, she removed her teeth just after grace and before demolition commenced. She was not given to secreting her discarded treasures in the folds of her lavender-laced handkerchief. No ... she was a forthright sort of person. Her teeth, both sets, were planted on her side plate where they glared relentlessly at my father, assaulting his appetite and inducing temporary anorexia.
  There was no wine at table in my childhood, and glasses for water or lemonade were only in evidence on high occasions. There was always a glass of water for great aunt Mary. No ... she didn't drink it ... but she liked to rinse her teeth before returning them to the ill-fitting aperture, when the repast was over.
  At that time we thought she must be very old, but she was in fact still in her lively seventies and had many a tale to tell. She had been an upper crust 'howdie' before trained midwives were commonplace. Entering the homes of the renowned and rich prior to the event, she supervised the birthing process, hurrying the event along with her own secret concoction of raspberry leaf tea. She would remain in residence for at least a month after delivery and often for much longer. If her departure was at all delayed there was every chance that there would be another child on the way soon to guarantee her continued employment.
  Great aunt Mary liked to dress in black and indeed it showed off her pure white hair to greatest advantage. She also used her sombre dresses as a backcloth against which she could display her many swinging chains of beads, multi-coloured neckerchiefs, and large brooches set with precious or semi-precious stones, all donated by thankful parents.
  'When I was with Sir Andrew and Lady X', she would commence and you knew you were about to have a glimpse of life in a society in which you were never likely to mingle. She had been accustomed to a life of refinement, but she was willing to share her treasured memories with those in humbler circumstances. But she was not all prim and proper. She loved a party and she could jangle her beads in a neat-ankled Charleston which left mouth agape. Nowadays she would have been accorded the title of 'great old swinger'.
  If we thought she was old, what of the ancient monument? Her mother was still alive and maintained in a state of semi preservation by another spinster daughter in a rambling house in the country. My great grandmother was open for viewing between the hours of 3 and 4pm. The old lady was like a mechanical toy which had seen better days, there being residual movement in her head, one arm and those searching piercing eyes where ambition still flickered. She might be desiccated almost mummified, but when her hand beckoned from within the folds of her many shawls the recipient of the gesture approached with a degree of trepidation and a touch of reverence.
  The eyes below the lace-capped head would search for evidence of her genetic contribution. These eyes had seen a lot of life. The offshoot of an immigrant Irish family fleeing from the potato famine she had been fortunate to find work as a "tweenie" in an Ayrshire mansion. Crossed with my great grandfather of similar peasant origin she was to produce a brood of thirteen children of whom nine survived. The unashamed ambition which hovered behind her eyelids had seen three of her sons launched into the ordained ministry. In her lifetime she had seen the strength of her genetic contribution raise her descendants from menial tasks in the dusty mills to solid middle class. As she started to fade into insignificance, her off shoots embraced the church, the law, medicine and commerce. She missed her hundredth birthday and her royal telegram only by a short head. If she knew her great-great-grandson whilst still a schoolboy had been selected because of his innate talent in communication to sit next to a royal prince at a private dinner ... she would have been pleased, but not I think surprised. I doubt whether she would have subscribed to the theory that the stars govern your fate ... I think she knew that she handed something on ... and if it's the blarney ... it's genetically dominant.
  What was it that reminded me of great aunt Mary ... it was a word association! It's quite a popular party game but the technique is also used by psychiatrists to probe the mysteries of the mind. You may reveal too much by a straight swift answer, so I always allow the word to linger in my cerebral pathways until multiple cross connections have suitably disguised my tortuous mental process.
  I know ... I was in the kitchen waiting for the beans to heat. Lovely to think that the good old 57s are enjoying a comeback in the high fibre diet. The radio was muttering away in the background, but I heard only one word 'ROOTS'. My first thought was teeth, because that canine has been gnawing away for months, then followed swiftly the thought of origins and ancestors ... finally there was the closing snap reminiscent of gnashing dentures and my brain had solved the equation Roots + Teeth = Great Aunt Mary.
  Sometime I must sweep some more of the dust from my cerebral computer and write more of my forebears ... or is it all too confidential? Could I perhaps just whisper it to a few of my friends ... 'Under the rose' of course.¹⁵