103928: 52 North Tolsta

52 Tolastadh bho Thuath

52 North Tolsta was officially a newly lotted croft in 1857, but it was occupied from 1851. The first occupants were John Macfarlane and Annie Maciver and they had five children. At least four of them settled there with them: Angus, Malcolm, Murdo and Margaret. Both Angus and Malcolm became cottars at 52 North Tolsta. John and Annie were both from Borve, but their son, Angus, had married a woman from Tolsta and had a daughter by 1849. It is not clear if the family had already moved to Tolsta by that point, if they had it would have been as cottars as they are not linked to a croft or on the subtenants list of 1820. In 1853 the family emigrated to Canada and settled  Huron Township, Bruce County, Ontario. At this time 52 North Tolsta passed to Alexander Murray.

Alexander Murray was married to Isabella Macdonald and the couple had five children: Anne, Donald, Neil, Annabella and Allan. Two of their sons, Neil and Allan became cottars at 52 North Tolsta. In due course 52 North Tolsta passed to their eldest son, Donald.

Donald Murray married Margaret Nicolson and the couple had eight children: Mary, Ann, Donald, Allan, Isabella, Colin, Margaret and John. 52 North Tolsta passed to their youngest son, John. In later life their daughter Ann settled as a cottar at 52 North Tolsta in a house built by her daughter, Mary Macleod.

John Murray married Effie Macdonald and the couple had two children: Donald and Allan. After John's death 52 North Tolsta passed to his brother-in-law, Angus Smith. Effie and the children continued to lived at 52 North Tolsta, and their house is sometimes referred to as 52b North Tolsta.

Angus Smith was married to Margaret Murray. It is not clear if the couple settled in a cottars house at 52 North Tolsta prior to Angus inheriting the croft; maybe in the same cottars house that Mary Macleod had lived in as their house is also sometimes referred to as 52a North Tolsta. The couple had seven children: Angus, Eliza, Angus, Donald, Margaret, Alexander and Donald.

Angus Smith married Isabella Maciver and the couple had three children: two boys and a girl.
 

Cottars:

Angus Macfarlane was married to Christina Murray and the couple had a daughter, Mary. It is not clear if either Christina or Mary were alive by the time Angus became a cottar at 52 North Tolsta. In 1853 Angus emigrated to Canada with his parents and they settled at Huron Township.

Malcolm Macfarlane married Marion Macleod and the couple had a daughter, Mary while they were cottars at 52 North Tolsta. In 1853 they emigrated with Malcolm's parents to Canada and settled at Huron Township, Bruce Country, Ontario. Once in Ontario they had a further six children.

Neil Murray married Catherine Gillies and the couple had a daughter, Isabella. In 1875 the family emigrated to Canada and settled at Southampton, Ontario.They had a further three children in Canada.

Allan Murray married Barbara Macleod and the couple settled as cottars at 52 North Tolsta. They had a daughter, Isabella, who died in infancy.

Mary Macleod built a cottars house at 52 North Tolsta, which was her mother's paternal home. She settled there with her mother, Ann Murray. The house is sometimes referred to as 52a. It is now demolished. Mary eventually moved to 3 Airigh a Bhreide.