American actor traces Scottish ancestor in 'spine tingling' discovery

Actor James Rawlings (left), his father, also James (centre) and the portrait of artist MB Watt (right) that made the breakthrough family connection for the American.

James Rawlings of Louisiana has spent years researching his family history but hit a wall when trying to advance his Scottish family line.

But the late-night discovery of a portrait in the online collection of Hamilton’s Low Parks Museum gave him the breakthrough he needed with the man staring back at him completely taking the actor aback, given the resemblance the subject had to his own father.

Family search for lost Peploe painting of Edinburgh flower seller

Mr Rawlings said: “My father died young as did his father before him and as a result the story of that line in my family tree had largely been lost but I set out to piece it together.

“It was in the early hours of the morning when I suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, made a significant breakthroughthanks entirely to Low Parks Museum in Hamilton.

“I had already established a paternal line of Scottish ancestry when online searches resulted in two portraits from the museum the family resemblance was spine-tinglingly obvious.

“And although this was an exceptional discovery, the fascinating revelations did not stop there.”

The portrait was of artist Malcolm B Watt, from the Hamilton area, has since been confirmed as the great great grandfather of Mr Rawlings.

It has now emerged that a painting that has hung in Mr Rawlings home for many years – and on several occasions almost thrown out – was created by his ancestor.

James said: “Although the painting had been passed down through the generations we had never known who the artist was and to be honest we are quite lucky to still have it as it was nearly thrown away on several occasions.

“The painting is showing its age but now we know my ancestor M.B. Watt was the artist it will be given much more care. It is a window on the past and to our family history.”

South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture Museum Officer Sharon Paton said: “What James found was a painting of The Hoolet Raw in Chatelherault by M.B. Watt and the really exciting thing is it has a sister painting passed down through the generations of his family.

“James told us the family had long wondered what and where the painting depicted and said that when the mystery was solved in the early hours of that morning he was worried his celebrations would wake up the whole family.”

Mr Rawlings is continuing to uncover more of his famils story and is researching possible burial sites which he hopes may lead to other descendants and, hopefully, family still living in Scotland

He is also trying to establish links to Scottish landscape painter John B Fleming, whose family came from the Avondale area of South Lanarkshire.

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Joy Yates

Editorial Director