Roderick Ross, aged 63, is one of two witnesses from Geocrab in the Bays area of Harris. In the 1881 census, his address is merely given as "Crofters Dwelling House", without specific reference to any village. However, I have put in the search criteria as enumeration district 4, which encompasses Geocrab. His year of birth is given as 'about 1825', making him about 58 years of age - according to the census data. Roderick is a crofter.
Roderick's household is a large one in 1881. He is married to Marion, aged 44 (also recorded as a crofter), and they have seven children. Archibald, aged 18, is a fisherman. Ann, aged 16, is a general servant domestic, but is in her parents' house at the time of the census. Mary (14), Mary Jessie (12), Margret (10), Rachel (8) and Jane (6) are all scholars. All members of this family are recorded as being born in Harris.
The 1891 census shows the same family, minus Ann and Mary, as living at Geocrab, with Roderick now holding the occupation of farmer. Twenty years earlier, they are once again shown at Geocrab, with an older daughter Marion (then aged 10) also as part of the family. Roderick is then a road contracter. Finally, in 1861, we find the first reference to Roderick in the censes for South Harris. He is at that time married to Marion, but as yet without a family. However, the eldest daughter might well have been on her way by then. Roderick's occupation in 1861 is recorded as Wool Constable. That is an occupation I have been unable to trace in the various listings of occupations from the Victorian era, so if anyone knows what that entailed I'd be much obliged.
It should be noted that although Roderick was a Road Contracter in 1871, this had nothing to do with the construction of the Golden Road, which runs through the Bays area of Harris. This was to be constructed from 1897 onwards, with the last link to Cluer completed in the 1940s. The evidence by Alexander Davidson, who pled for the construction of a roadlink through the Bays, contributed to it being laid down.
Roderick's family roots required casting the web a bit wider, but in the end I found a Rory Ross, Rory being of course a contracted form of Roderick (or Ruairidh in Gaelic). He was aged 30 in 1851, marked as a Farmer's Son Constable in Geocrab. His parents were "Archabled" [Archibald] and Mary (nee Shaw), aged 69 and 50 respectively. Rory is shown with siblings John (25), Donald (23) and Margret (20). Their father is a farmer of 6 acres employing no labourer. In 1841, they are living in Strond, with Archibald as a tenant. The family also includes Ann (18) and Catherine (18).
Roderick Ross passed away on 25 May 1893 at the age of 78 after a five-day bout of enteririts.
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