Janet Barr was born on 17^th March 1856, at 67, Brown Street, Glasgow, in the Clyde district of the city.

At the time of the 1861 census, Janet was living in the family home at 25-31, West College Street, Glasgow. She was entered as a scholar aged 5.

At the time of the 1871 census, Janet was living in the family home at 75, Brown Street, Glasgow. She was entered as 14 years of age and her occupation was entered as ‘boot & shoe factory’.

When Janet married John McIntyre on 13^th July 1877, she was a tailor’s machinist, spinster, aged 20, usually resident at 188, Holm Street, Glasgow. One of the witnesses, Agnes Barr, was probably Janet’s cousin. Agnes Barr, daughter of William Barr, was a close contemporary of Janet’s, and it may be that the two girls were close. In 1871, Agnes was a boot folder, so it may be that they worked together.

At the time of the 1881 census, Janet was twenty-four years of age, and living with her husband and two children at 3, Carrick Street, Glasgow.

Janet acted as the informant on the birth certificate of her son, Edward Barr McIntyre, in 1886. She signed with her ‘X’ mark.

Janet appears as the informant on the death certificate of her mother, Jane McGregor, in 1904. The certificate was registered at Govan on 30^th May 1904 and Janet signed with her ‘X’ mark, again indicating that she was illiterate. Janet’s address at that time was entered as 2, Anderston Quay, Glasgow, and she was present at the time of death.

Janet survived her mother by less than two years. She died on 16^th March 1906, at half past five in the evening, at 466, Saint Vincent Street, Glasgow. Her age was entered as 48, though she was in fact just one day short of her 50^th birthday. The informant was her widower, John L. McIntyre.

The causes of death were gastric catarrh, from which she had been suffering for eleven days, and syncope.

Brothers and Sisters

The following brothers and sisters of Janet Barr can be confirmed:

Mary was baptised on Jura on 26^th July 1847. The entry in the Jura Parish Register reads:

‘Lawful Daughter of Hugh Barr and Jean MacGregor Ardfine was baptised’

She appears as a scholar aged 13 on the 1861 census, which also gives her place of birth as Jura.

At the time of Hugh’s application for poor relief in 1886, Mary was listed as:

39 years, born in Jura, married & 6 – 2 working – husband Samuel McBride, Labourer, Whitefield Road.

At the time of mother Jean’s application in 1894, Mary was forty-seven, still married to Samuel McBride with six children. Samuel was stated to be an ‘uLabr in S. S.’ This presumably signifies that he was an unskilled labourer on the South Side.

Mary was apparently with her mother Jean McGregor at 35, Hill Street, Anderston, when Jean was admitted to the Poor House in August 1902.

On the evidence of the census records and of her 1868 application for poor relief, Marion was born c. 1850 on Islay. The latter source specifies her place of birth as the Parish of Bowmore. Further authority is provided by Hugh’s 1886 application for poor relief, according to which she was then thirty-seven and born in Islay.

Marion Barr, a domestic servant (spinster), aged 17, was married to William Sproul, a moulder (bachelor), aged 18, on 25^th January 1867, at 13, Windsor Street, Glasgow, after Banns according to the Forms of the Free Church of Scotland. Marion was able to sign her own name but William signed with his ‘X’ mark. His usual residence was entered as 4, West College Street, Glasgow, and hers as number 8. His parents were entered as Robert Sproul, a bottle blower (deceased) and Helen Sproul MS Long. The register was signed by David Farquhar, Minister, and by John Moore and Catherine Shaw, witnesses.

A daughter, Jane Sproul, was born on 7^th October 1867 at six in the evening, at 75, Clyde Street, Glasgow. William on this occasion was designated as an iron moulder apprentice. The informant was Marion, who signed her own name. One odd detail is that she wrote her surname as ‘Sproull’ with two l’s, whereas the name was given as ‘Sproul’ with one l in connection with the entries for Jane and William.

On 30^th April 1868, Marion, then living at 111, Piccadilly Street, Anderston, applied for poor relief. Her husband of fifteen months, William Sproull, had deserted her and her unweaned child, Jane, who was six months past and born at 75, Clyde Street, Anderston. Marion, a domestic, aged eighteen, was in good health but her plight was outlined on 1^st May as follows:

She makes application because the Husband has gone away and refuses to give her any support. He the Husband is residing with his mother at 75 Clyde St. Anderston he is a moulder to trade and working.

In a separate paragraph, also dated 1^st May, it was certified by Assistant Inspector Daniel Gibb Douglas that:

The pauper applies for relief to assist to pay for the Keeping of her child she being unfit to maintain. she is not suffering from any Disease of any kind whatever.

Marion’s list of residences appears to account for the entire period of her life to date, after leaving Islay. She had lived for one year in Main Street, Anderston; three years at 29, West College Street; five years at 63, Brown Street; a further five years in West College St (it is suggested that 29 appertains to the second West College Street sojourn and not the first, or else possibly both); a period of months in Helensburgh with Mr McDonald (this is apparently the point at which she left home and it surmised that she was in domestic service in Mr McDonald’s employ); two years in Robertson St with Mrs McDiarmid; eight weeks in West College St; eleven weeks at 75, Clyde Street; culminating in one week at her present address.

A badly-written note dated 7^th May 1868 appears to read:

Resd (Resolved?) in respect she is (?) her husband. Is working in Saracen Foundry Washington St residing at 58 Piccadilly St Anderston.

Marion and ‘William Sproul’ must have reconciled their differences, for in 1886 they were married without children (implying that daughter Jane had not survived) and living in Melbourne. William was a Pattern Maker and they must have been prospering, for it was recorded on father Hugh’s application for poor relief that they had sent home thirty shillings the previous Christmas.

In 1894, Marion was entered as forty-five and still married to ‘W^m Sproull’, in Australia.

All known subsequent children were born at Clyde, Glasgow, and are known from birth and/or death certificates.

Jane McGregor Barr was born on 28^th February 1858, at 63, Brown Street, Glasgow. She died on 27^th November 1860, at 29, West College Street, Glasgow. She was entered as being three years of age but in fact she was just over three months short of her third birthday. The cause of death was an inflammation of the chest, from which she had been suffering for six weeks. She was buried at North Street, Anderston.

Edward was born on 24^th May 1860, at 29, West College Street, Glasgow.

Isabella was born on 25^th November 1862, at 37, Brown Street, Glasgow.

Jane was born on 10^th January 1865, at 4, West College Street, Glasgow.

At the 1881 census, Jane was a ‘shirtmaker machinist’ aged 16. She was the last of the children still living in the parental home in Canning Street, Anderston.

In 1886, she was recorded as ‘21 years, born in West College Street, Single, has one child, a Machinist with Tillie & Henderson, earns 8/- weekly & is with applicant’.

In 1894, she was twenty-nine and married to John McLeod, with three children. Jane was living at 8, McAlpine Street, but John was in Woodilee Asylum.

Jane had her mother, Jean McGregor, living with her at 3, Main Street, Anderston, for five months prior to Jean’s admission to the Poor House in 1902.

Barbara was born on 20^th June 1869 at 75, Brown Street, Glasgow.

It seems that only Mary, Marion, Janet and Jane were still surviving in 1886 as they are the only children of the family listed in connection with father Hugh’s application for poor relief.