Capt. Robert Gibbon,
sea captain in the
merchant navy,
born 23rd Aug 1738.
He is
described as from Aberdeen
at marriage.
It seems he went to Holland for trade (as did his wife's family).
He must be "Robbert Gibbon", born approx. 1741 at Aberdeen,
who on 19 Nov 1768
became a citizen of the coastal town of Veere
in Zeeland,
SW Netherlands
(see map).
Veere was from 1541 to 1799 the
staple port
for Scotland,
in particular for the wool trade.
They lived Virginia St, Aberdeen.
There is a family bible,
printed 1766, with a concordance of 1767,
signed "Robert Gibbon and Barbara Yates",
Virginia St, Aberdeen.
A grandfather clock survives in the family,
from an Aberdeen clockmaker, dated 1760s.
Robert is described as "Shipmaster" at children's baptisms 1770 through 1780.
He is listed as "merchant" at dau's baptism 1789.
Barbara dies, 1791:
She died 13th Nov 1791, age 42 yrs.
See death notice in Aberdeen Journal.
She was
bur Nigg Bay.
Robert is
described as "merchant" in his wife's death notice 1791.
He must be "R. Gibbon"
who was owner of the
Fortune
(built 1795).
He is
described as "merchant" of Aberdeen in son Arthur's marriage contract 1815,
and grave at Nigg Bay.
He is
described as "Ship-owner" in his burial record.
Robert dies, 1821:
He
died 2 Aug 1821, age 82 yrs.
He was bur 7 Aug 1821 at Nigg Bay.
The family business was
"Robert Gibbon and sons, merchants" at 11 Virginia St, Aberdeen.
The business is still listed there with that name in
[Aberdeen Directory, 1824-25]
and
[Aberdeen Directory, 1825-26].
11 Virginia St was also the family home.
His unmarried daughters the "Misses Gibbon" are listed there in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1824-25
to 1839-40.
Capt. Robert and Barbara
had issue:
Elizabeth Gibbon,
born 5th Dec 1770,
bapt 12th Dec [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
must be after her grandmother Elizabeth Leslie,
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Alexander Gibbon,
born 1st Apr 1774,
bapt 30th Apr [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
must be after his grandfather Alexander Yeats,
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Margaret Gibbon,
born 6th [St.Paul's] or 7th [family tree] Feb 1776,
bapt 11th Feb [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
must be after her grandmother Margaret Innes,
mar 1799 to Dr. William Livingston.
Robert Gibbon,
born 4th June 1777 (NOT July),
bapt 11th June [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Ann Gibbon,
born 1 Nov 1778
[see her birthday], St.Paul's must be wrong to say 8 Nov 1778,
she spelt her own name "Ann" rather than "Anne",
bapt "Ann", 11 Nov 1778 [St.Paul's, Aberdeen].
See Her diary, 1818 to 1820.
After their father's death in 1821,
the unmarried daughters
Ann and Elizabeth and Barbara
lived together.
The Gibbon sisters lived
first at the family home, 11 Virginia St,
Aberdeen.
They were joined at some point in 1822-1841 by their widowed sister
Margaret,
whose husband died 1822 and who had no children.
The "Misses Gibbon" are listed at 11 Virginia St, Aberdeen in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1824-25
to 1839-40.
The "Misses Gibbon" are listed at 54 Union Place, Aberdeen in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1840-41
to 1844-45.
Union Place was the old name for the W end of Union St.
See 1867 map
and modern map.
Ann and Elizabeth and Margaret are listed at Union Place in 1841 census.
The "Misses Gibbon" are listed at
Ellangowan cottage, Pitfoddels, Aberdeen in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1845-46
to 1850-51.
The "Misses Gibbon" are listed at
Nellfield House, Cooperston, Aberdeen in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1851-52
to 1860-61.
Nellfield was formerly the home of their uncle Alexander Martin.
Ann died unmarried, 12th Mar 1856, age 77 yrs,
bur Nigg Bay.
Arthur Gibbon.
He was born 7 July 1780.
See birth record.
(Note these are birth dates not bapt dates.)
See [Family tree].
He was
bapt at St.Paul's, Aberdeen,
15 July 1780.
Robert Gibbon,
born 2 Dec 1781 (second Robert),
bapt 11 Dec 1781 [St.Paul's, Aberdeen].
Isabella Gibbon,
born 13th [St.Paul's] or 16th [family tree] Nov 1783,
bapt "Isabel" 18th Nov [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Elizabeth Gibbon,
Eliza, born 5th June 1785 (second Elizabeth),
bapt 12th June [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
living with sisters
Ann and Margaret at Union Place, Aberdeen, in 1841 census,
died unmarried, 15th Feb 1859, age 73 yrs, bur Nigg Bay.
Jane Barbara Gibbon,
born 17th Oct 1787,
bapt "Jean" or "Barbara Jean", 29th Oct [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Barbara Gibbon,
born 11th Mar 1789,
bapt 20th Mar [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
"Miss Gibbon" is listed as living
85 Crown St, Aberdeen, in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1861-62 to 1878-79,
living 1871 with her widowed sister
Margaret Livingston
at 85 Crown St,
died unmarried, 28th Feb 1879, age 89 yrs, bur Nigg Bay.
John Allison Gibbon,
born 21st June 1790,
bapt "John Alison" 24th June [St.Paul's, Aberdeen],
died in infancy, bur Nigg Bay.
Barbara Yeats.
Portrait perhaps c.1790.
(She died 1791.)
See larger
and full size.
St.Paul's Episcopal chapel, Aberdeen (baptism place of Gibbon children).
From here
in
map of 1866-67.
Loch St to the W.
St. Paul's St to the S.
Gallowgate to the E.
Now demolished and built over.
See modern map.
Birth of Arthur Gibbon, 7 July 1780.
See full size.
85 Crown St is listed as the Gibbon family home
in
[Aberdeen Directory] 1861-62 to 1878-79.
The current building at 85 Crown St
(on corner of St.John's Place)
is not the old Gibbon family home.
The current building
dates from 1908
and is a
Masonic Hall
or Masonic Temple.
It is about the largest building on the street.
It has various Masonic insignia on the outside.
A number of Masonic lodges meet here, including:
Lodge 1 - The Lodge of Aberdeen.
It is a listed building.
See entry.
The old buildings at the corner of Crown St and St.John's Place,
before the Masonic Hall was built.
From
this section
of
1866-67 map of Aberdeen.
The Masonic Hall was built 1908 at this corner
on the site of the last two houses.
If the numbering has not changed,
then the Gibbon home was one of these two houses (the N one).
Christian Milne married in 1797 to a ship-carpenter. She lived in Aberdeen.
Her
breakthrough was when her poems were made known to
"the Lady of Captain Livingston".
This is
Elizabeth Martin,
niece of Capt. Robert Gibbon and Barbara Yeats.
Elizabeth Martin showed them to her brother-in-law "Dr. Livingston.
This is
Dr. William Livingston,
who was also son-in-law of Capt. Robert Gibbon and Barbara Yeats.
(Two 1st cousins married two brothers.)
They helped her get the poems published in 1805.
The
preface
of the 1805 book of poems
lists references from:
"What do I intend by writing this history of my feelings?
Who is there that will care for this detail?
While I live, no eye but my own will peruse it,
and when I die in all probability my nieces may curl their hair
with this honest index of my mind."
- Diary of Ann Gibbon, Sun 1st Nov 1818.
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![[Family tree]](Scans/c/IMG_20170604_211339.jpg){kind=link}
