TWO LONG-LOST cousins who live thousands of miles apart were accidentally united this week at the Angus and Dundee Roots Festival.

Arbroath woman Carolyn Siddalls and Canadian Stuart Hosler found their family links at a workshop on family names held at the town’s Webster Theatre on Sunday.

Amazingly Carolyn had only offered to volunteer at the event to help out, but little did she realise she would meet a long-lost relative.

She said, “All the volunteers were provided with profiles of the festival delegates and, as I read the outline of Stuart Hosler’s family tree, I realised my great-great-grandfather, James Burns Thomson, was Stuart’s great-grandfather.”

Stuart, from Alberta in Canada, was visiting Tayside as part of the week-long Roots festival, which aims to connect people with their past.

He said he was delighted to be introduced to a new cousin—especially one who hadn’t been added to his already-extensive family tree.

“It was wonderful to meet Carolyn and find out more about her branch of the family,” he said. “We exchanged family photographs and Carolyn was also able to tell me where James Burns Thomson is buried.”

Stuart said that, while his grandfather emigrated to Canada with his young family in 1913, Carolyn’s side of the family remained in Dundee, where many of them still live.

The two cousins have a lot of catching up to do and have organised a special family lunch to celebrate their finding each other.

Carolyn said she was looking forward to introducing Stuart to more family members.

“We’re having a special lunch for Stuart and his wife, Frances, so they can meet my parents for the first time and catch up with my aunt and uncle, whom they’ve met on previous visits to Scotland,” she said.

“It’s amazing to think that Stuart’s search for his ancestors has led him to members of his family who still live in this area.”

For the latest information about the Angus and Dundee Roots Festival, visit www.tayroots.com