RAIT James Ramsay

Name	James Ramsay RAIT
Country Of Origin	Scotland
Born	1810
Died	1881
Birth/Baptism	Born approx. 1810, Edinburgh, Scotland
Parents	unknown
Apprenticeship	unknown
Skills	Clockmaker, Watchmaker
Work Locations	Hobart
Street Address	Liverpool Street, Hobart 94 Collins Street, Hobart
Marriage/Spouse	21 January 1860, at the residence of Rev. William Nicholson, Hobart, to Isabella Gemmel Tait.
Trial	19 July 1837, Edinburgh Court of Justiciary
Sentence	Fourteen years transportation for breaking into brewers and merchant premises of Messrs. Aitchison and Co., Infirmary Street, Edinburgh, and stealing money in banknotes, silver, and a bank draft.
Arrival	1 April 1838 on the convict ship, Moffatt (2)
Police Number	1306
Convict Assignment	On arrival to Mr Tate, Elizabeth Street, Hobart (John Tait). Approx. 1839-1844: David Barclay. Approx. 1844-1865: Thomas Hamilton.
Ticket of Leave
Conditional Pardon
Other	Alias Wilson (National Records of Scotland). June 1865: Following the death of Thomas Hamilton and 21 years in his employment, James opened a watchmaking business at 94 Collins Street, Hobart. He took legal action against widow Ann Hamilton for being dismissed without warning and claimed £28, his one-month wage, but was unsuccessful. July 1867: James wrote to The Mercury regarding the discrepancy in time between the St David’s and St Andrew’s clocks. He had overseen the St. Andrew’s clock for the past two years and stated it was timed weekly with a chronometer. ‘With St David’s clock … it apparently has no time; no two of its dials can mark the same, and it usually strikes a minute before the hour on one dial and two minutes after the hour on the other. It is impossible that it can be in concord with St. Andrew’s or with my chronometer, when it is not in concord with itself.’ February 1874: James charged his apprentice Thomas Self for being absent from work. The terms of his apprenticeship required Thomas to arrive every morning at 7 o’clock, but his hours had been erratic. The court dismissed the case due to Thomas Self’s ill health and being under the care of a medical doctor.
Death	9 November 1881, at his residence, 74 Collins Street, Hobart Cause of death: Chronic bronchitis
References
TAHO: CON31/1/36, CON27/1/7, RGD37/1/19 no201 Marriage 1860, RGD35/1/9 no3433 Death 1881. Web: National Records of Scotland AD14/37/465, 1837; Founders & Survivors convict database. Caledonian Mercury 20 July 1837 (British Newspaper Archive); The Mercury (Hobart) 2 June 1865, 1 July 1867, 21 November 1881; Hobart Town Advertiser 10 June 1865; The Tasmanian Tribune 14 February 1874.