McNab Family History

Our great-grandfather Alexander McNab died on the 21st March 1909 in London.
He left £337 (£51,000 in today's money) 

Details from the 1911 Census: 

The family were living at 39 Cranwich Road, Stamford Hill

Jemima – Head of household (48). Widowed. She died later that year.

The six children were aged Annie (21), Andrew (20), Lena (18), James (16), Elizabeth (12), Alastair (2)

Annie worked as a typewriting clerk while Andrew and James worked as billposting clerks, all three in advertising.

Elizabeth was at school and they had a lodger – Percy Jackson (27) a music student.

Of the six siblings I have discovered the following...

Annie Bruce McNab

Annie married an American named Charles Ellery on the 18th April 1913
Charles was from Isle of Wight, Virginia, USA
The 1891 census shows him living in Ryde, Hampshire and in 1901 &1911 living in Beckenham, Kent. Charles did military service from 1914 to 1920

Their daughter Joan Ellery was born on the 25th August 1920

Annie died in 1947 aged 58

Joan was a professional dancer and was married twice, firstly to Richard Morgan in 1940 and then in 1953 - husband unknown

Joan died on the 3rd August 1970

 

Andrew McNab

Born on the 12th January 1891 in the Plantation district of Glasgow, Lanarkshire

1891 census shows the family address as 100 Paisley Road, Govan

Andrew died on the 6th March 1913 in London aged 22

 

Lena McNab

Lena married Walter Hunter Thorburn in January 1918

Uncle Hunter was born on the 7th October 1884 at Innerleithen

A club cricketer for Peebleshire, he made his debut in first-class cricket for Scotland against Ireland at Perth in 1909. He played first-class cricket for Scotland until 1912, making a further three appearances against Ireland and one against the touring Indians.

Daughter Eileen was born on the 1st April 1919 in Peebles and died in 2000

Son Alistair was born in 1926 and died in 1989

Hunter died on the 27th March 1957 in Peebles

Lena died on the 22nd August 1941

James Miller McNab 

James emigrated to Canada on the 28 May 1913 aged 18 arriving in Quebec, with his final destination being Winnipeg. Occupation: clerk.

He married Agnes Chisholm Blackwood on 18 May 1916 in Winnipeg

Daughter Muriel Agnes (known as Mollie) born 12 December 1920

Daughter Leanna Bernice born on the 10th August 1930 in Vancouver

James died on the 20th March 1978 in Vancouver, Canada

Mollie married George Russell Brealey on the 18th April 1944
Mollie died on the 6th February 1990 in Vancouver

Leanna married George James Allin 1930-2019. Records on Ancestry show 4 children but their names are hidden. These are the only possible second cousins I have come across so far.  

Leanna died 16 Dec 1997 at Creston, British Columbia

Elizabeth McNab

Born in 1899 in Glasgow 

Married James Bertram on the 6th October 1926 in Peebles. 

She died on the 10th May 1972 in Edinburgh 
 

Alastair Miller McNab

Born 1909 Stamford Hill, London

Possible marriage in Oct 1959 to Audrey E Jones

Audrey E McNab is on the 1963 Electoral Register for Twickenham. 

Off The Beaten Tracks 24 November 2025

Next week's Ginger Feather show has three tracks featuring Miranda Sykes - collaborations with Rex Preston and Jim Causley along with Daphne's Flight who I think she joined in the last year or two. 

Listen now on Mixcloud or from Monday at 8pm on Ginger Feather FM

Hayseed Dixie - Kirby Hill 

Miranda Sykes & Rex Preston - Only One Way 

Faye Hield - Sweet William's Ghost 

Fotheringay - Winter Winds 

Bert Jansch - A Woman Like You 

Flook - Tie the Knot in Georgia / Ed's Big Five-O / Faqqua

Stephen Fearing - Keep Your Mouth Shut 

Alison Krauss - Forever 

Jim Causley & Miranda Sykes - Blackingstone Ravens 

Daphne's Flight - Ballad of the Seven Sisters 

Plumhall - Never Forget My Name 

The Staves - I'll Never Leave You Alone 

Hayseed Dixie - Rockin' In The Free World 

America - Sandman 

Off The Beaten Tracks 17 November 2025

This is the first radio show I've recorded in a while. In the McCalmans song Ainster is the local pronunciation of Anstruther which was where the Fence Collective was formed back in the 1990s. Early members of the collective included KT Tunstall and James Yorkston. 

Steeleye Span play at The Platform in Morecambe on the 20th of November. 

Listen to the show now on Mixcloud or from Monday at 8pm on Ginger Feather FM

Ralph McTell - Oxbow Lakes
Ross Ainslie - Fly Higher
Steeleye Span - New York Girls (2023 version)
Sarah Deere-Jones - The Female Smuggler
The McCalmans - Ainster Harbour
The Rails - Fair Warning
The Young 'Uns - Cable Street
The Society of Strange and Ancient Instruments - Maurice Manley’s Polka \ John Ryan’s Polka
Bellowhead - The Outlandish Knight
Banter - Lay Me Low
Charlotte Carrivick - Waiting For Annie
Katherine Priddy - Walnut Shell
Neil Young - Heart of Gold
Phil Ochs - The Men Behind The Guns
Joni Mitchell - I Don't Know Where I Stand 

Off The Beaten Tracks mix November 2025

Back with a mix after a few weeks of being poorly with the latest version of Covid. There are a couple of football-related songs from Jez Lowe and Chris Wood and a new song from James J Turner. I've been listening to some Marillion recently including their first two albums with singer Steve Hogarth so have included an acoustic version of one of their songs. 

Listen now on Mixcloud or from Monday on Ginger Feather FM.

Benji Kirkpatrick - Angel 

Culverake - The Reedcutter's Daughter 

Fairport Convention - The Hens March Through The Midden & The Four Poster Bed 

The Low Countries - Putty (Live at BBC Lancs) 

Marillion - Sympathy (acoustic version) 

Ninebarrow - The Weeds 

Mikey Kenney - The Dandelion 

Alice Allen & Patsy Reid - Mrs Forsyth’s Strathspey / of Mortlach 

Jez Lowe & The Bad Pennies - It's a Champion Life 

Chris Wood - Only A Friendly 

I'm With Her - Year After Year 

Eric Bibb, North Country Far & Danny Thompson - Toolin' Down The Road 

Skyrie - Raggle Taggle Gypsy 

Rab Noakes - Love Potion Number 9 

Jaywalkers - Playsuit 

James J Turner - Long Time Coming 

Fairport Convention - My Girl 

Danny Thompson tribute show

Last month we lost one of the great characters of British jazz and folk music namely Danny Thompson, best known for having been in the late 60s band Pentangle and for his collaborations with John Martyn and Richard Thompson. He played double bass on a mind-blowing number of albums and this show includes some favourites of mine along with tracks from one or two albums which I have only recently discovered by Eric Bibb and Ralph McTell. 

I saw Danny about half a dozen times as a member of Richard Thompson's band, sometimes just the two of them, other times with drummers Dave Mattacks or Michael Jerome and the multi-instrumentalist Pete Zorn. 

So farewell Danny and thanks for all the music played on the instrument described in the sleeve notes to Ian McNabb's 1998 ...Emotional Party album as "circa 1860 Grand French swell-backed double bass 'Victoria'".  

John Martyn & Danny Thompson - Sweet Little Mystery
Richard Thompson - Easy There, Steady Now
Richard Thompson & Danny Thompson - Big Chimney
Ian McNabb - Little Princess
Marianne Faithfull - Sally Free and Easy
Pentangle - I've Got A Feeling
Nick Drake - Three Hours
Ralph McTell - Take It Easy
Kate Bush - Watching You Without Me
Eric Bibb, North Country Far & Danny Thompson - You Really Got Me
Blind Boys of Alabama - Jesus Gonna Be Here
The Richard Thompson Acoustic Trio - Al Bowlly's In Heaven
Bert Jansch - Kittiwake 

Listen on Mixcloud or on Ginger Feather FM from Monday at 8pm. 

Off The Beaten Tracks mix 24 September 2025

Due to holidays and a new kitchen being put in at my house, I've been taking a break from doing shows but have put this mix together partly because my friends in The Low Countries have released a new compilation titled Fan-Fare. Also a shout-out goes to our friend Bob who is currently away on holiday and is letting us use his kitchen. The tracks by Clannad and Lunasa are from his CD collection.

As ever, listen now on Mixcloud or from Monday on Ginger Feather FM.

Jon Palmer Acoustic Band - Bridges Not Walls
The Low Countries - Gently Johnny
Merry Hell - Don't Say I, Say Us
Molly Tuttle - Rosalee
Bob Dylan - A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
Clannad - Theme From Harry's Game
Lunasa - Absent Friends
I'm With Her - Find My Way To You
The Low Countries - At The End of the Day
Billy Bragg - Take Down The Union Jack
Richard & Linda Thompson - It'll Be Me (live)
Pentangle - Sally Go Round The Roses
Toby Hay - Another Song For Bear
Ninebarrow - Summer Fires
Marit & Rona - New England Fireman Set 

Off The Beaten Tracks 1 September 2025

This show includes songs by two bands* who are playing at the Love Lancaster Live music festival which runs from the 9th to the 12th of October. This is a smaller event featuring mostly local bands and is replacing the Lancaster Music Festival which is taking a year off. 

Listen to the show on Mixcloud or on Ginger Feather FM from Monday at 1pm or 8pm.

Billy Bragg & Wilco - Way Over Yonder In The Minor Key 

The Broken-Hearted Few* - Hidden From The Sun 

The Low Countries* - Sun Street 

Reg Meuross - This Land Is Your Land 

Mikey Kenney - Kindling of Morning 

Teddy Thompson - What's Love Got To Do With It 

Sarah McQuaid - Jackdaws Rising (Live in Rapid City) 

Michael Chapman - Waiting For A Train 

Katie Spencer - Shuffleboat River Farewell 

Duncan McCrone - I Ain't Marchin' Any More 

Grace Petrie - The Best Country in the World 

Anna Lavigne - Pockets of Time 

Martin Stephenson - Sweet September Rain 

Stevie Palmer - Gently Into The Night 

Nick Drake - Harvest Breed