Frances Finlayson

Frances was known as Fanny, a name which for some reason has gone out of favour!  She was born in Wemyss to Andrew Finlayson, who is given in her death record as a soldier, although we don't as yet know anything about his service record, and Betsy Boswells.  Andrew was of the right age to be fighting in the Napoleonic campaigns but as we don't know which regiment he was in we can't confirm his involvement, unlike Donald Mackay who almost certainly was at Waterloo.  Her mother was given as Elizabeth Bolls in her birth record, Elizabeth Bouls in her sister's birth record and Betsy Boswells in Frances's death record.  I can't see Bolls and Boswells as being the same name so I favour Bolls as it was recorded at the time.  It's interesting to see Betsy written though as that shows what name her mother went by rather than the Sunday name of Elizabeth, even if Walter didn't know what his mother-in-law's maiden name was.

Fanny died of phthisis, which she'd suffered with for over a year.  It's modern name is tuberculosis or TB and was a wasting disease, hence it's other common name consumption, which is pretty-much eradicated in this country now apart from isolated cases, usually immigrants.  However, in the past it was a frequent killer until immunisation programs controlled it.