G1 - Micheal Shiels & Bessie Broun
The story of the Shiels family begins more than three centuries ago with Micheal Shiels, born about 1690 in County Kildare, Ireland.
As a young man, Micheal travelled from Ireland to Scotland to work during the harvest. What may have begun as temporary work became the beginning of a new life. He settled near Coulter, Peebleshire, where he worked for Dan Scott and established the Scottish branch of the Shiels family whose story is told on these pages.
A New Life in Scotland
Micheal found employment with Dan Scott, a relative of Francis Scott, 2nd Duke of Buccleuch. Family records tell us that Micheal was paid £10 per year for his work.
For a young man who had travelled from Ireland seeking seasonal employment, this appears to have provided something much more important — an opportunity to put down roots and build a permanent life in Scotland.
From Ireland to Scotland
Sometime in the early years of the eighteenth century, a young Micheal Shiels left his home in County Kildare, Ireland, and travelled to Scotland in search of seasonal work.
He came to work during the harvest, probably expecting the journey to be temporary. Instead, Scotland became his home.
Micheal settled near Coulter, in the countryside around Peebles. His decision to remain there would shape the lives of generations of Shiels descendants who followed.
Micheal & Bessie — 1716
On November 24, 1716, Micheal married Elizabeth (Bessie) Broun. Their marriage is recorded at Culter, Lanark, Scotland.
Their marriage marks an important moment in the Shiels family story. Micheal, the young Irishman who had come to Scotland seeking harvest work, had now established a permanent home and begun a family there.
Among their children was their only son, Daniel Shiels, born about 1720. It is through Daniel that the Shiels family line followed on these pages continues into the next generation.
The Story Continues…
Micheal and Bessie’s son Daniel Shiels, born about 1720, would carry the family story into the next generation.
Daniel’s life would take the Shiels family in a new direction — from his apprenticeship as a stone mason to his later work as a skilled mechanic and agent associated with the estate of Francis Scott, 2nd Duke of Buccleuch.