Issobell Gray his relict
page 478, opening
- Earlier reading / question
- Isobell Gray read as relict
- Why this reading
- Direct widow term in opening
- Effect on the family
- Confirms John's widow; does not state maternity of the children
Illustrated manuscript reading
John Glasgow, sailor in Saltcoats: testament dative, 1637
Death December 1636; court proceedings April 1637, precise day unresolved
National Records of Scotland, Glasgow Commissary Court, CC9/7/27, register pages 478-480
Second manuscript pass · 10 September 2026
The names, reconsidered
New readings and unchanged uncertainties are both recorded. A confirmed name or role does not by itself confirm a WikiTree identity or a relationship.
Read the name and relationship audit (4 findings, not a count of unique people)
Kathrein & Agnes Glasgow his lawfull bairnes; defunct thair father; repeated in caution
pages 479-480, children/executor and caution clauses
- Earlier reading / question
- Kathrein and Agnes lawful children
- Why this reading
- Direct child/father words in two parts of same record
- Effect on the family
- Confirms John's two daughters; repeated wording is corroboration within one source
Johne Broune, sailler in Saltcoittis, acted as caution
page 480, caution
- Earlier reading / question
- John Broune sailor in Saltcoats as cautioner
- Why this reading
- Name, occupation, locality and role visible together
- Effect on the family
- No kinship; legal surety only
No Jonet Mathie, Mary, matching household detail or other bridge appears
whole entry versus Glasgow-1030
- Earlier reading / question
- Glasgow-1030 excluded as present identification
- Why this reading
- Full three-page entry inspected, including accounts and caution
- Effect on the family
- Do not add Isobell, Katherine or Agnes to Glasgow-1030
Follow the handwriting
The people behind the words.
The Saltcoats estate administration explicitly names John Glasgow's widow and twice identifies Katherine and Agnes as his lawful children. It does not call the widow their mother, and the household evidence excludes Glasgow-1030 as the present identification.
NameRelationship / roleUncertain
New to secretary hand? Start with the shapes.
Follow the writing line. Ascenders rise above small letters; descenders fall below them. A neighbouring line can cross the word you are reading.
Count the short strokes. These are called minims. Joined i, m, n and u shapes can be ambiguous; compare a clear repeated word by the same clerk rather than guessing from a modern alphabet.
Separate reading from expansion. A contraction is not a fully written modern word. Square brackets retain doubtful letters or editorial additions. A familiar legal formula is a clue, not permission to fill a gap.
Then assess the relationship. Reading a name securely is not the same as proving kinship. Look for the actual role words and who they refer to.
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01Ascenders in the explicit child clauseAscenders in the explicit child clauseInspect reading
Proposed readinghis lawfull bairnes
The walkthrough reads this clause with the named daughters and the later thair father phrase. It expressly establishes children of the deceased John Glasgow, not their mother's identity.
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his lawfull bairnesLoading the secretary-hand teaching font...
his lawfull bairnes
The white-background view suppresses paper colour; reviewed focus boundaries exclude separable neighbouring fragments where available. It does not restore missing strokes. Colour follows retained source pixels inside proposed letter groups, not a reconstructed pen path. Ambiguous crossings remain neutral where reviewed; other crossing ink may still belong to another line.
The font repeats the proposed spelling, not this clerk's handwriting. Similarity is a teaching aid, not confirmation; uncertainties remain in the reading above.
Locate the word in its passage Original context
Reading, meaning and uncertainty
Expansion: his lawful children
Confidence: high for the child relationship
Evidence boundary: The visible ascenders help make the existing lawfull bairnes reading inspectable; it supports the daughters' stated child status but says nothing about maternity.
Teaching typeface: Joscelyn by Peter S. Baker, based on a different Renaissance secretary hand. SIL Open Font License. Source images remain separate and unchanged.
NRS CC9/7/27, register page 478; Crown copyright, National Records of Scotland.
The Saltcoats sailor and his widow
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Choose a phrase to locate it in the manuscript. Only its outline is shown, so overlapping strokes stay readable.
On the page
vmqle Johne glasgow sailler in Salt-coittis within the parochin of Ardrossane ... maid & gevin up be Issobell gray his relict
In modern English
the late John Glasgow, sailor in Saltcoats within the parish of Ardrossan ... made and given up by Isobell Gray, his widow
How to read it
The occupation and locality travel with John's name across a line break: Salt- ends the first line and coittis begins the next. Later, Issobell Gray is followed by his relict, the period legal description of his widow. Widowhood is explicit; motherhood is not, and an administrator could act for children without being their mother.
What this establishes
John Glasgow was a sailor in Saltcoats and Isobell Gray was his widow.
What it does not establish
It does not identify him with Glasgow-1030 or state that Isobell was the mother of the children named on the next page.
high
Slow reading
Inspect the words, not just the conclusion.
Compare the original strokes with the proposed reading. Tall or trailing strokes from neighbouring lines may enter a sample; the notes distinguish what is visible from what remains uncertain.
Phrase 01
Johne glasgow sailler in Salt-
John Glasgow, sailor in Salt-
Look at the strokes
- Johne begins with a large descending J and tall h.
- sailler contains two tall near-parallel l strokes in its middle.
- Salt- starts with a large flourished S and ends in a visible hyphen at the line edge.
Reading limits: The person, occupation and split locality are clear; the locality must be completed from the next line.
Phrase 02
coittis
coittis, completing Saltcoats
Look at the strokes
- The word resumes at the far left beneath Salt-.
- Its two t strokes rise above the other letters and are crossed by a shared horizontal stroke.
- The final long s descends slightly below the body line.
Compare in this hand: The caution clause later writes Saltcoittis in one continuous locality form.
Reading limits: This is a line-wrap continuation, not a second place.
Phrase 03
Issobell gray his relict
Isobell Gray, his widow
Look at the strokes
- Issobell begins with a tall capital I and contains a long s-like stroke before the rounded obell ending.
- gray has a deep y descender extending below the line.
- his relict is separately spaced; relict has tall l and t strokes marking the legal noun.
Reading limits: Widow is explicit; no word in this sample calls Isobell the daughters' mother.
NRS CC9/7/27, register page 479; Crown copyright, National Records of Scotland.
Katherine and Agnes, their father John
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Choose a phrase to locate it in the manuscript. Only its outline is shown, so overlapping strokes stay readable.
On the page
In name & behalff of Kathrein & Agnes glasgow his lawfull bairnes ... to the defunct thair father
In modern English
In the name and on behalf of Katherine and Agnes Glasgow, his lawful children ... to the deceased, their father.
How to read it
Read the first line for both names, the next for his lawfull bairnes, and the following line for thair father. The Scots word bairnes means children, while thair father repeats the paternal relationship from the children's perspective. The double wording makes John their father independently of representation, but still does not name their mother.
What this establishes
Katherine and Agnes Glasgow were lawful children of the deceased John Glasgow.
What it does not establish
The clause does not expressly identify Isobell Gray as their mother or name a daughter Mary.
high
Slow reading
Inspect the words, not just the conclusion.
Compare the original strokes with the proposed reading. Tall or trailing strokes from neighbouring lines may enter a sample; the notes distinguish what is visible from what remains uncertain.
Phrase 01
Kathrein & Agnes glasgow
Katherine and Agnes Glasgow
Look at the strokes
- Kathrein begins with a tall flourished K and contains a crowded -threin sequence.
- The ampersand is a distinct looping sign between the forenames.
- Agnes opens with a large rounded A; the shared glasgow follows after both names.
Compare in this hand: The caution clause repeats both daughters in the same order.
Reading limits: The first forename is visibly Kathrein; Katherine is a modernized expansion.
Phrase 02
his lawfull bairnes
his lawful children
Look at the strokes
- his is a compact possessive before a clear gap.
- lawfull shows two tall l strokes in law and another pair at the end.
- bairnes begins with a tall b and ends in a long s descending below the body letters.
Compare in this hand: The closing caution repeats lawfull bairnes of before John's name.
Reading limits: Children is explicit; the phrase does not specify daughters except through the feminine forenames.
Phrase 03
thair father
their father
Look at the strokes
- thair begins with a tall t and h followed by a compact -air.
- A clear word gap precedes father.
- father starts with a long f descending below the line, followed by a tall h.
Reading limits: The paternal relationship is explicit; the phrase names no mother.
NRS CC9/7/27, register page 480; Crown copyright, National Records of Scotland.
The relationship is repeated in the caution
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Choose a phrase to locate it in the manuscript. Only its outline is shown, so overlapping strokes stay readable.
On the page
Johne Broune sailler in Saltcoittis ... as cautioun ... Kathrein & Agnes glasgow lawfull bairnes of vmqle Johne glasgow sailler in Saltcoittis
In modern English
John Brown, sailor in Saltcoats ... as cautioner ... Katherine and Agnes Glasgow, lawful children of the late John Glasgow, sailor in Saltcoats.
How to read it
Follow the wrap from Johne at the right end of one line to Broune at the left of the next. That man is introduced as cautioner, a guarantor, not as kin. Lower down, the clause repeats both daughters, lawfull bairnes of, and the deceased Saltcoats sailor. The repetition corroborates the relationship inside the same testament but is not an independent source.
What this establishes
The same record independently repeats the daughters' relationship to the Saltcoats sailor within its closing administration.
What it does not establish
Repetition within one testament is not an independent source, and John Brown's cautioner role proves no ancestry. The household remains distinct from Glasgow-1030 and Jonet Mathie's family.
high
Slow reading
Inspect the words, not just the conclusion.
Compare the original strokes with the proposed reading. Tall or trailing strokes from neighbouring lines may enter a sample; the notes distinguish what is visible from what remains uncertain.
Phrase 01
Johne
John
Look at the strokes
- The capital J has a broad upper loop and long descending main stroke.
- The h rises sharply above the rounded o/n/e sequence.
- A terminal stroke carries the reader toward the line break.
Reading limits: The forename is complete; Broune continues on the next line.
Phrase 02
Broune
Brown
Look at the strokes
- The capital B is a large double-bow form extending above and below the body line.
- The r joins immediately into the rounded -oune sequence.
- The final e finishes with a short rising exit stroke.
Reading limits: The surname is secure; the line identifies John Brown as cautioner, not a relative.
Phrase 03
Kathrein & Agnes glasgow
Katherine and Agnes Glasgow
Look at the strokes
- Kathrein repeats the tall K and crowded middle sequence from the earlier children clause.
- The ampersand is a looped separator before Agnes.
- glasgow follows once as the surname shared by both women.
Compare in this hand: Compare the same ordered pair on register page 479.
Reading limits: The names are secure; modern Katherine expands the manuscript's Kathrein.
Phrase 04
lawfull bairnes of
lawful children of
Look at the strokes
- lawfull contains repeated tall l strokes that stand above the body letters.
- bairnes begins with a tall b and closes with a long s.
- The short of attaches the kin term directly to the father's name on the next segment.
Compare in this hand: The earlier page uses his lawfull bairnes for the same two daughters.
Reading limits: The child relationship is explicit; lawful is a legal status term, not evidence of maternity.
Phrase 05
vmqle Johne glasgow sailler in Saltcoittis
the late John Glasgow, sailor in Saltcoats
Look at the strokes
- vmqle is the clerk's compact deceased abbreviation before the name.
- Johne has the same descending J and tall h seen in the cautioner's forename.
- sailler is recognizable by its paired tall l strokes.
- Saltcoittis is continuous here, with two tall t strokes, unlike the earlier line-broken Salt-/coittis.
Compare in this hand: This full locality form checks the split opening wording on register page 478.
Reading limits: The phrase identifies the deceased father; it does not identify him as Glasgow-1030.
Full case analysisInterpretation, supporting evidence, changed readings and remaining questions.
Modern interpretation
What the record says
John Glasgow was a sailor in Saltcoats within Ardrossan parish and died in December 1636.
Isobell Gray is expressly his relict or widow. Katherine and Agnes Glasgow are expressly his lawful children, and the deceased is called their father. Their executor role is additional administration, not the basis for the relationship.
John Broune, another sailor in Saltcoats, acted as cautioner. The record gives no kin term for him.
The record does not state that Isobell was the children's mother and does not name Mary as a child.
The household remains distinct from Glasgow-1030 and Jonet Mathie: no bridge in this testament connects them.
Evidence and limits
What it establishes
- Confirmed: testament dative, sailor occupation, Saltcoats, Ardrossan parish and December 1636 death month.
- Confirmed: Isobell Gray is John's relict; maternity of Katherine and Agnes is not stated.
- Confirmed: Kathrein and Agnes Glasgow are lawful children and John is expressly their father.
- Confirmed: the caution repeats the daughters and their father's Saltcoats occupation/locality.
- Confirmed: John Broune is a Saltcoats sailor and cautioner; no kinship follows.
- Excluded: Glasgow-1030 is not identified as this sailor, and Glasgow-3539/Mary is not established as his daughter.
What changed in this reading
- Old: widow, daughters and cautioner readings were maintained. New: each is confirmed unchanged after rereading the full clauses and continuation.
- Old: Glasgow-1030 was excluded as the present identification. New: exclusion is confirmed; no new bridge appears in the accounts or caution.
- Old: no Mary was established. New: confirmed unchanged after checking all three pages.
- No walkthrough text or geometry changed because the family and exclusion conclusions remain unchanged.
Still open
Do not fill these gaps with assumptions
- Whether Isobell Gray was the mother of Katherine and Agnes.
- Existing-profile identities for John, Isobell, Katherine, Agnes and John Broune.
- Precise April court day, inventory descriptions, debt parties and full confirmation/caution wording.
- Any connection to Glasgow-1030 requires an external documentary bridge.
Full working transcriptionLine-oriented readings, unresolved text and a downloadable plain-text version.
LLM-assisted working transcription
Read the manuscript passages
Square brackets mark uncertainty, editorial expansions or missing text. Ellipses mark omitted or unresolved wording. Numbering identifies lines in this working reading, not official manuscript line numbers. This is not a complete diplomatic edition.
Image / passage 478, opening
- The Testament dative & Inventar of
- the guidis geir debtis & sowmes of money qlkis
- pertenit to umqle Johne glasgow sailler in Saltcoittis
- within the parochin of Ardrossane
- [who] deceissit in the moneth of December [1636]
- faithfullie maid & gevin up be Issobell gray his relict
Image / passage 479, children and estate
- In name & behalff of Kathrein & Agnes glasgow
- his lawfull bairnes [and executors dative wording partly unresolved]
- to the defunct thair father be the decreit of the
- Commissaris of glasgow [day unresolved] Aprile 1637 zeiris
- Inventar
- [faded inventory and inward/outward debt entries unresolved]
- [confirmation formula at foot partly unresolved]
Image / passage 480, caution
- The qlk day [compeirit] personallie Johne Broune
- sailler in Saltcoittis And of his awin consent
- actit him self as cautioun [administrative continuation unresolved]
- Kathrein & Agnes glasgow lawfull bairnes of
- umqle Johne glasgow sailler in Saltcoittis
- [obligation and closing formula unresolved]
- [following Muir estate excluded]
Source files and reading provenanceOriginal references, pages examined and the limits of this review.
Source coverage and reading provenance
High for John, occupation/locality, Isobell as relict, Katherine and Agnes as lawful children, and John Broune as cautioner. High that the testament supplies no bridge to Glasgow-1030. Low for faded account parties and precise administrative day.
Reviewed: 2026-09-10. Method: LLM-assisted fresh visual reread from original images.
Pages examined
- PDF page 1 / register page 478: entry begins at foot; preceding estate excluded
- PDF page 2 / register page 479: children, inventory, accounts and confirmation
- PDF page 3 / register page 480: caution at top; following Muir estate excluded
Supplied local source files
- 1637_John.pdf
The full originals remain in the local research archive. Selected unaltered crops are shown above for reading and commentary, with separate switchable highlights. Image credit: Crown copyright, National Records of Scotland / ScotlandsPeople. Duplicate downloads are not independent evidence. Consult the original using the reference above through ScotlandsPeople.
All associated profiles and identity comparisonsIncludes possible and rejected associations, not just proved relatives.
Earlier saved reading and research notesPreserved for comparison; later corrections above take precedence. These may include pages absent from the newly supplied scans.
This is an expanded working transcription. [word?] marks a tentative reading and […] unresolved text.
Opening: pages 478–479
The Testament dative & Inventar of the guids geir debts & sowmes of money quhilk perteinit to umquhile Johne Glasgw sailler in Saltcoittis within the parochin of Ardrossane the tyme of his deceis quha deceist in the moneth of December jaj vjᶜ threttie sex zeirs, faithfullie maid & gevin up be Issobell gray his relict
In name & behalf off Kathrein & Agnes Glasgw, bairnes lawfull & executores dative decernit to the defunct thair father Be decreit of the Commissar of Glasgw the [xxj?] day of Aprile 1637 zeirs As the […] beiris.
Inventory and accounts: page 479
The first inventory item appears to concern an old fishing boat and its equipment, but overlapping and show-through ink make that reading tentative. Household contents, utensils, furnishings and John's clothing follow. The valuations and total have not been securely transcribed.
Under debts owed to John, Johne Broune in Saltcoittis is securely named as owing borrowed money. Further entries may name [Agnes Stewart?] and Thomas [Broune?], but those readings should remain qualified. Under debts owed by John, the creditor's first name is Johne and the surname may be [Russall?]; the purpose and sums remain unresolved. The net estate was to be divided in three parts, with the deceased's part calculated separately.
Court confirmation: pages 479–480
Johne Boyle of Kelburne, Commissar of Glasgw approved and confirmed the administration after public notice and granted authority over the estate. The bond of caution then begins:
The quhilk day compeirit personalie Johne Broune sailler in Saltcoittis And of his awin consent actit him self as cautioner and souertie for Kathrein & Agnes Glasgwis lawfull bairnes, executores [confirmit?] to umquhile Johne Glasgw sailler in Saltcoittis.
That the guids & geir contenit in thair testament sallbe furthcumand to all pairties haveand entres thairto as law will And Issobell Gray relict of the defunct, gevar up of the said Testament, […]
John Brown's financial and surety roles do not, by themselves, establish kinship.
Modern-English summary
John Glasgow, a sailor in Saltcoats in Ardrossan parish, died in December 1636. Isobell Gray, his widow, submitted the inventory for Katherine and Agnes Glasgow, his lawful children. The court had appointed the daughters to administer their father's estate. John's possessions apparently included an old fishing boat and equipment as well as household goods and clothing, but much of the valuation remains difficult to read.
John Brown in Saltcoats owed the estate money and a sailor of that name and place later became guarantor for Katherine and Agnes. The two occurrences may concern one man, but the record does not explicitly say so. The court confirmed the administration on an uncertain day, apparently 21 April 1637, and Isobell undertook to protect the guarantor against loss.