Introduction / Barbara Allan / Westray Allans

Marion Allan and James Harcus

Marion Allan was the fifth known child of John Allan and Marion Hercus and the older of their two known daughters. She was baptised on 6th August 1770 on Westray, and she married there, probably about 1797, James Harcus. Even at that time there were several Harcus families on Westray and James' parents are not known, but he was born probably about 1770. Marion's death record of 1855 lists all of her children, their ages in 1855 if living, and their ages at death, and the year of death for the two that had predeceased her. James' and Marion's children were:

• Marion (Mary) Harcus, c. 11th Nov 1798 who married John Gullion, her first cousin.

• John Harcus, c. 31st Aug 1800 who married Jane Drummond

• Isabel(la) Harcus, c. 14th Nov 1802 who married John Benston on Eday on 13th Dec 1825. John was born 14th Oct 1801 and baptised three days later on Eday. It is believed that John and Isabel had no children. Isabel died in 1849 at age 48. John, a tailor, was the son of Adam Benston and Mary Sandison and a brother of Adam Benston who married Isabel's cousin Grace Gullion and of Isabella Benston who married Isabel's brother William Harcus. John later married Barbara Shearer of Stronsay, widow of Samuel Harcus (Hercus) on 29th Dec 1853 at Eday. (Any relationship between Samuel and this Harcus family has not been determined.) In 1871 John and Barbara were living at East Laro, Shapinsay where other Gullion and Allan in law relatives were living. They subsequently moved to Albert Street, Kirkwall where Barbara died in 1878. John died there on 18th April 1889 at age 87.

• Elspeth (Elizabeth) Harcus, c. 16th Feb 1806 who married Robert Groat

• William Harcus, b. 3rd Feb 1810 who married Isabella Benston

• James Harcus, b. on Pharay 18th Dec 1813 and baptised 22nd Dec 1813. James died at age 9 about 1822.

Based on the OPR the four oldest children were baptised on Westray and the two youngest in Eday parish where they were born on the island of Pharay. Therefore, between 1806 and 1809-10 the family moved from Westray to Pharay. At the time such moves were generally "encouraged" or forced by the laird. Based on death records of several of his children and of Marion, James was a farmer.

It should be noted that James' and Marion's family was not the first Harcus family on Pharay. At the end of the 18th century and into the early 19th, William Hercus and Jane Groat were raising their family there. They later moved to Wanton Brae, Eday, probably in the 1820s as land records indicate they were at Wanton Brae in 1825-7 and census and birth records indicate one of their sons was born on Pharay in 1817. Any connection between James Harcus and William Hercus/Harcus has not been established.

Data compiled by one of James' descendants, Dorothy Drever, in the 1950s states both James and Marion are buried in the old Eday Kirkyard and gives James' date of death as 11th April 1837 (and his year of birth as 1773). This data was probably obtained from his grave stone which may no longer be legible. In 1841 Marion was living with her son John at Doggerboat, Pharay and in 1851 she was at London, Eday in the household of her widowed son-in-law John Benston. Marion died on 3rd January 1855, at Shoehall, Eday, the first death recorded in the Eday civil register. Her death record indicates she had lived on Eday about 8 years.