Introduction / Families / Drever / David Drever and Ann Reid / John Drever and Barbara Groat

Barbara Drever and John Harcus

Barbara Drever was the fourth of the six children of John Drever and Barbara Groat. She was born about 1849, probably at Windywa. Certainly the family had moved there from Hammar by the time of the 1851 census.

She married John Harcus from North Park in Eday at Windywa on 2nd October 1873. He was born on 1st January 1849, the son of John Harcus and Mary Cutt. It is not thought that this Harcus family had connections with other Harcuses on Pharay or their ancestors on Westray.

Barbara and John are thought to have had five children:

• Mary Harcus b. 26th November 1873 who married Marcus Horne Elphinstone

• John Harcus b. 26th September 1875

• David Harcus b. 14th January 1878 and who married Elizabeth Wards

• James Harcus b. 2nd November 1879. He was a carpenter and emigrated to the US in 1904. James married but it is not known if they had family. He died on 16th December 1940 in San Francisco.

• Barbara Jessie Harcus b. 5th February 1882 and who married Robert John Muir in Kirkwall in 1913 and subsequently on 4th June 1920 John Doig Drummond. There is no apparent connection with the Drummonds on Pharay. Barbara died on 1st February 1959 in San Francisco.

The family probably moved to Kirkwall around 1878 / 79. Their son David was born in Eday but Barbara in Kirkwall. The family were living in Union St at the time of the 1881 census.

Barbara Drever died in Kirkwall on 15th March 1884.

John remarried in St Andrews, in the East Mainland of Orkney, in 1887. His second wife was Margaret Linklater.