Andrew Rodger

Source: New Register House, Edinburgh.

Source:    New Register House, Edinburgh.

Source: New Register House, Edinburgh.

Buried in Eastwood Cemetery, Glasgow.

1. Robina Rodger was born in 1865 and died June 7th 1877 in Stewarton, Ayrshire.

Died only two days before Andrew Rodger's birth.

2. Robert "Bob" Rodger (Gas Stoker) was born 2nd Day of July 1866 in Stewarton and married around 1890 in ____ to ____.

Big and strong. Andrew Rodger spoke of Robert's huge hands and broad shoulders.  In the 1881 Census, Robert has left home, and at age 14 is working as a farm servant in Kilmaurs.  In the 1991 Census, he is working for his father as a stoker at the Newmilns gas works. He is married, but living alone in Hillside Place, Newmilns.  A Robert Rodger married an Isabella Torrance in Loudon in 1991.

3. William Mackie Rodger was born February 16th 1869 in Stewarton.

Went to sea and was never heard from again. At a seance, they were told that the ship's rigging had fallen on him in a storm and killed him.  A William Mackie Rodger married a Janet Mitchell Oliver in Kilmarnock in 1900.  OneWorldTree reports that he died in 1881.

4. James Rodger (Mounter, Policeman) photo was born on the 10th of June 1871 in Stevenston and married on the 23rd of June 1899 in Melville Street, Falkirk to Alice Rutherford Hogg.  At the time of the wedding, James was a Police Constable, Age 27, Address 5 Sturrock St., Kilmarnock.  Andrew Rodger and Marion Rodger were the best man and bridesmaid at their wedding.  James died in Cambridge, England in 1953.  Alice was born on the 14th of June 1865 in Minto, Roxburgh, Scotland to George Hogg and Elisabeth Rutherford, and died in Cambridge on the 8th of February 1935.  Family photos courtesy of Mavis Forsdyke (descendant) - Photo1 - Photo2.

In the 1891 Census, James is a "Mounter", presumably at the lace mills in Newmilns.
James became a policeman in Kilmarnock, 57 Wentworth Street, Middlesborough, Yorkshire, and then Cambridge in England. Came up from Yorkshire and registered his mother's (Ann Mackie's) death in 1925. Went blind before he died.

• Jane "Jean" Waldie Rodger was born on the 19th of May 1901 in Middlesborough (Volume 9d Page 607), Yorkshire and married in ____ to George Dale Pickering.  Jean died in January 1992 at age 90.  They had a son and daughter.  George was born in June 1905 in Skirlaugh, Yorkshire.
• Ann "Nan" Mackie Rodger was born on the 17th of July 1906 in Middlesborough, Yorkshire and married on the 8th of July 1939 in Cambridge to Albert William Forsdyke.  Albert was born in Apr-Jun 1903 in Cambridge.  They had a daughter and a son.  They emigrated to Australia in 1947, where they lived in Melbourne.  They returned to England in 1970  where Ann died on the 30th of July 1985 in Lastingham, Yorkshire.  Albert returned to Australia and died in Melbourne on the 27th of March 1994.

5. Jessie Rodger was born Jan 23rd 1874 in Stevenston and died 1875.

Her mother, Anne Mackie, lost two daughters in two years. She said it was because they ran a public house in Stevenston (or Saltcoats) and were so busy that they didn't have enough time to properly care for the children.

6. Andrew Rodger (Twister in Lace Works, Army Medic, Powerloom Tender, Fruit Shop Owner, Billiards Hall Owner) was born June 9th 1877 in Kilmarnock and married on the 31st of October 1919 in Eastwood to Sophia Fraser (Cotton Weaver, Mill Worker, Munitions Worker, Fruit Shop Manageress).
   
7. Marion "Murren" Rodger (photo) was born April 27th 1879 in Kilmarnock.

Spinster.

8. Annie Rodger (photo) was born December 30th 1880 in Kilmarnock, and married in 1908 in Kilmarnock to Robert "Bob" Aaron of Newmilns.  Robert was born in 1880 in Kilmarnock to Robert Aaron (Lace Weaver) and Agnes Brown.

Bob was of Jewish descent. He was a very good friend of Andrew Rodger.  Bob was a witness, and best man, at the wedding of Andrew Rodger and Sophia Fraser.  Andrew persuaded him to come to Glasgow and get into the fruit business.  Helped Bob start up a fruiterers business in Partick in Glasgow.  When their son was called names at school, they changed their name from Aaron to Arran.  Annie died of cancer during WWII in King's Park, Glasgow.  Bob lived into his 90s in King's Park.

9. David Lockhart Rodger (Horse Breeder) (photo) was born March 10th 1886 in Kilmarnock, and married to Mabel ____.

Had a very difficult time at school and detested his schoolmaster. After leaving the school, he bumped into his old schoolmaster in the street. His old master asked how he was. David very rudely said, "No the better fur seeing you!".
Ran away from home at the age of 19.
He and his English wife had no children. They came up to Scotland to live at one stage, I think near Bathgate, but she could not understand a word that the Scots spoke, so they returned to England.
Very fond of his nephew, James Lockhart Rodger. Wanted Lockhart to come down to England to work, and live with him as his son. Lived in Winnersh in Berkshire. Became quite famous as a breeder of trotting race horses. Left his house in Winnersh to his faithful housekeeper.  Died roughly around 1970.

Andrew's family a few years before he was born.
 

1881 Census - Kilmarnock, Ayrshire - Film 0203602 597 ED 23 Page 37

19 Langlands St. - 2 rooms with one or more windows.
 

Andrew's older sisters Robina and Jessie have both died. Andrew's older brother Robert is no longer at home. From the 1881 Census Index, he appears to be in Kilmaurs.

Robert Rodger, 14, Kilmaurs. Farm Servant for John Smith. Born Stewarton. 598 ED5 Pg6 Film 0203603.

1891 Census - Loudoun, Ayrshire - Film 0220222 ED 13 Page 10.

New Gas Works, (probably between 15 & 23 Main Street) Newmilns - 3 rooms with one or more windows.
 

1891 Census - Loudoun, Ayrshire - Film 0220222 ED 13 Page 22.

7 Hillside Pl., Newmilns.
 

1891 Census - Loudoun, Ayrshire - Film 0220222 ED 11 Page 16.

19 Back St., Newmilns - 1 room with 1 or more windows.

Young Robert Aaron was a close friend of Andrew Rodger's, the best man at Andrew's wedding, and the future husband of Annie Rodger.
 

1891 Census - Loudoun, Ayrshire - Film 0220222 ED 11 Page 18.

Gasworks, (probably in Back St.), Newmilns - 3 rooms with 1 or more windows.

The Young family were not related but were close friends of the Rodger family.
 

1901 Census - Middlesbrough, Yorkshire, England.

57 Wentworth Street.

Andrew's brother James has married and moved to England.
 

• 20 Braeside, Kilmarnock. 1877 (birth)
• 19 Langlands Street, Kilmarnock. 1881.
• New Gasworks, Main Street, Newmilns. 1891
• 12 Green Lodge Terrace, Glasgow. 1919 (marriage)
• 104 Riverford Road, Eastwood. 1921
• 30? Pleasance Street, Pollokshaws. ~1923-~1927
• 235 Auldhouse Road, Newlands, Glasgow. ~1927-1962 (death)

• Twister, Lace Mills, Newmilns, Ayrshire.
• Powerloom Tender, Coustenholm Mills, Pollokshaws.
• Fruiterer, owned a chain of fruit and vegetable shops in Shawlands (Cumberland Street)
• Also owned a billiards hall in the Cowcaddens in Glasgow.

Grew up at the gasworks in Newmilns, Ayrshire.

Andrew was a close friend of Robert Aaron of Newmilns. See 1891 Census above.

At the age of 13, he was already working in the mills as a "twister". Andrew talked about being awake well before dawn in fear of being late for work at the mill.

The Rodger family were close friends of the James and Margaret Young of Newmilns. James was manager of the older gas works in Newmilns. See 1891 Census above.

Had his uniform and was ready to go off to the Boer War in South Africa, but wasn't called up.

Served as a medic in the Royal Army Medical Corps during the Great War in Mesopotamia and India. Came back very ill with malaria and not expected to live long. Got into all kinds of health cures and lifestyles. His medals and some army photographs survive.

Visited Bella Wamsley while out in Bombay.

Kept a diary of his travels. Studied language, religion, culture and history of Middle Eastern countries and India. Wrote long letters to his mother about his travels while serving with the army in Middle East and India from about 1916 to 1919. When the minister back in Newmilns heard about the letters, he read them out from the pulpit to his congregation at church. Then the letters were published, under the pseudonym "Vagabond", in the Irvine Valley News newspaper. Some of these articles still survive.

Worked his way up from young boy to manager at a lace mill in Newmilns, Ayrshire. Transfered to Coustenholm Mills in Pollokshaws where he met Sophia Fraser.

Decided mill work would kill him, so spent their savings buying fruiterer's shop at 330 Cumberland Street, Shawlands. A young boy in the next close to the shop was Benny Lynch who became a prize fighter. Bought two more shops. Account books for Fruiterer Shop business and some photos still survive. Shops kept the family well off through the depression. Andrew would rise very early every morning to go to the fruit market to purchase his produce. Sophia took care of the management of the shops, which she loved.

They sold the shops when the war started and fruit became scarce. The shops had become unprofitable. Bought a billiards room business in the Cowcaddens in Glasgow which was quite a rough area. Andrew, who was now at retirement age, had to travel home late at night by bus with the day's takings.

Sometime around the late 1940s, Andrew went blind, and remained blind for many years. Recovered his sight after a cataract operation around 1960.

When Walter Flockhart used to take him out in the car for a drive, Andrew would whack the roof of the car with his walking stick in excitement. Used to consider other drivers extremely rude for overtaking without stopping to say hello.

Kept quite a library of books. Favourite subjects were Burns, Scottish History, Harry Lauder, Churchill, Mesopotamia and the hanging gardens of Babylon.

Played the fiddle.

Believed in Spiritualism and went to hear from "Dr. Kohiste", Japanese doctor from the 19th century.

Health food fanatic and Member of the Temperance Society and Templars.

Other descendants:

Mavis Forsdyke of Melbourne, Australia (formavis@optusnet.com.au)
        James Rodger (1837) and Ann Mackie.
        James Rodger (1871) and Alice Rutherford Hogg.

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Last Updated:  January 11, 2006.

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