Thomas Ferguson ⁴¹

  General Notes:

at home in 1851. At the age of 23 he was a cashier in the family business and later designed the new buildings for T &J Ferguson. His uncle Thomas appointed him trustee, leaving him £300 and a third of the residue of his estate.
Thomas married Agnes Jean Workman McKie. In 1871, they lived at 7 Princes St with a servant, Mary Ferguson. Thomas later built a large house at 3 Seaford St, Kilmarnock, completed in 1884. The brass letterbox still bears the name Ferguson. James was interested in ornithology, building an aviary at the rear, later replaced by a flat roofed extension for theatricals and musical soirees.
Thomas was a talented photographer, the Kilmarnock Standard noting in 1913 that he "has carried off the premier honours in a number of important competitions as an amateur photographer." His family later donated 5,000 of his photographic plates to the Dick Institute. When Alistair Leslie bought the Ferguson house in 1977, his son found a large collection of frames, faded photographs and photographic plates in the cellar, including a photo of the Ferguson factory and its workforce.
Cricket was another of Thomas Ferguson's interests. The Kilmarnock Standard of 5.6.1909 published an article "Kilmarnock Willow Wielders - A Notable Family" which stated "it is questionable if a cricket match has been played in Kilmarnock during the last 40 or 50 years without a representative of the Ferguson Family on the team. In the early sixties the first connection with the club was formed, when Mr Tom Ferguson became a playing member on the Glebe Park, near the end of Robertson Place. In those days there was no boundary limit, batsmen having to run for all their counters ... Under such conditions smartness in fielding was as much an essential of the game as batting and bowling, and it was in the department that Mr Ferguson particularly excelled, his speed as a runner serving him well. One extraordinary incident in which Mr Ferguson participated is worth recording. Kilmarnock were playing Muirkirk, which at that time contained some powerful cricketers, when three players all sprained their ankle in dealing with the same ball. Mr Ferguson was batting at the time, and the bowler, in delivering the ball, Mr Ferguson in striking it, and the fielder in fielding it all met with the same mishap- a sprained ankle ... Not long after joining the club, Mr Ferguson was appointed Secretary and Treasurer, and discharged those duties for a number of years." A history of the Kilmarnock Cricket Club pays tribute to Thomas' contribution to the club, he "proved his loyalty to the willow by withstanding the temptations of the bowling green. These were the days of trial when only the staunchest remained. Conditions were difficult, finance was a constant worry and the outlook was far from rosy. But Tom Ferguson was true to his love. Perhaps his cricket was not of the highest order, but of his zeal, there can be no question."
Thomas Ferguson was already widowed when he died on 15.2.1932, of 5 Golf Crescent, Troon. His brother Andrew was the informant. ³⁸

Thomas married Agnes Jean Workman McKie on 23 Nov 1870 in Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland. (Agnes Jean Workman McKie died before 1932 ³⁸.)