In tracing my 3x great-grandfather, William Ritchie, vital records and the census recorded his occupation first as a journeyman carpenter, and going on to become a master joiner. The only mention of his being an undertaker came in a newspaper, when one of his great-grandchildren shared memories of him.

William as a journeyman

William, who was born in 1855 at the Drums of Ballinshoe, between Kirriemuir and Forfar, was the son of a former shoemaker turned farmer. He grew up on a farm, but by the time he married Mary Joss at Sunnyside Lodge, Hillside, in February 1879, William’s occupation was given as journeyman carpenter.

William and Mary lived in St Vigeans, adjacent to Arbroath, for a few years before moving to Inverkeillor, a bit further north. In 1891 the Ritchie family was living in the joiner’s cottage at Inverkeillor. Ten years later they were further north again, living at the joiner shop in Thornton, west of Laurencekirk.

However, by 1902 the Ritchie family had moved to Hillside, near Montrose, which is where William’s parents-in-law, James and Helen Joss, lived. 47-year-old William established his joiner and contractor business at Hillside, carrying it on for many years.

William’s own business

According to one of his great-grandchildren, William “ran a thriving business doing all aspects of joinery work including shoeing horses and making carts, bogies and wheels for the various trades in and around Hillside”.

It was quite a family business, with William’s son James Joss Ritchie working with him and eventually taking over the business, along with his adopted son William Ritchie Caie Black, who worked as the blacksmith.

William was described as a staunch churchman, who was a trustee of the Hillside Parish Church near where he lived, so perhaps it was no surprise that he was involved in the community in other ways as well.

He carried out building works, including being appointed as the joiner for the Hillside Public Hall built in 1910. The hall “has been used for many years for many church activities. It was funded by public subscription and built adjacent to the church”.

More than a joiner

At the time, it was fairly common for those with carpentry skills to combine their joinery business with that of being an undertaker, being often called upon to build coffins. William was someone who did just that. His joiner shop was conveniently located next door to the Hillside Parish Church, and his adopted daughter-in-law, who was a nurse, helped with the laying out responsibilities .

‘The coffins or “boxes” as they were referred to, were all made to measure. They were covered in black velvet, sawdust was then used as padding inside the box, and they were lined in white material edged with black lace. They were then finished off with a brass plate giving the name and age of the person inside …. For funeral occasions, William Ritchie wore a top hat or his “lum hat” which he kept in a big round hat box, a black frock coat and a stern face. The coffins were taken from the church to Sleepyhillock [cemetery] in a hearse hired from the Star Garage in New Wynd.’

~ ‘Gable Ender’, Montrose Review, 19 April 2001, p. 14.

William remained in Hillside for almost forty years. His wife Mary died in 1929, and he stayed in Hillside, living amongst his family and the community he must have known well. He died there in 1940, aged 84, survived by his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Selected references

‘Gable Ender’, Montrose Review, 19 April 2001, p. 14.

‘Hillside Golden Wedding’, Dundee Courier, 13 February 1929, p. 3.

‘Veteran Joiner Dead’, Montrose Standard, 29 March 1940, p. 2.

Death of William Ritchie, died 21 March 1940, registered 21 March 1940, Montrose registration district, General Register House, Scotland, vol. 312, no. 65, page 22.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/129015709/william-ritchie: accessed April 19, 2026), memorial page for William Ritchie (29 May 1855–21 Mar 1940), Find a Grave Memorial ID 129015709, citing Sleepyhillock Cemetery, Montrose, Angus, Scotland; Maintained by Memorium (contributor 47853990).

The History of Dun & Hillside, Montrose Trinity Church of Scotland, https://www.montrose-trinity.co.uk/dun-and-hillside-church, accessed 19 April 2026.