Janny59,
Just a couple of points from your original post. You say that Drainie was renamed Lossiemouth. That’s not really right. Drainie is the name of the parish and Lossiemouth is a town within that parish. There was no change of name. The town has been there under that name for 250 years or more, since the first proper harbour was built.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lossiemouth
The 1891 census shows his occupation as fisherman. In 1901 he’s a pilot. A pilot is employed by the local harbour board, and would have a Master's Certificate (ie qualified to be Captain or Mate of a ship). He has a specialist knowledge of the tides, sandbanks, rocks and hazards and guides Captains of visiting ships to assist with navigation in the area around the harbour. Once clear of the hazards, a launch takes him off and back to the port (or vice versa for arriving vessels). Local fishing boats wouldn’t need a pilot. This would be for larger vessels unfamiliar with the port.
Pilot is not the same as harbour master, but perhaps he was the assistant harbour master or was promoted to harbour master later in his career? You were searching for the name of his boat. A harbour master wouldn’t routinely have a ship. He was in charge of the harbour, responsible for navigation marks and lights, dredging, safe operation, repairs, mooring fees and so on. He would have had a Master’s Certificate (I think that’s a mandatory requirement). He would have been at sea at some time previously but his duties would have required him to mostly be ashore near the harbour, so he couldn’t really have captained a fishing vessel at the same time. (He might have owned one of course, but someone else would have been the skipper).
I see a possible death for Isabella Stewart registered in Drainie in 1920, aged 55. GROS ref 130/6. The only death for a William Stewart there in the 1920s was in 1923 aged 63. GROS ref 130/23. You can view those certificates on the Scotlandsepeople site for about £1.60 each.
I had a look in the newspapers for any mentions of your William. There is one in the Scotsman on 13th July 1914. He was still a pilot then. It states he had been appointed a local justice for Morayshire. That’s a part-time responsibility. Justices would be responsible for authorising search warrants, and sitting on lower level court cases (drunkenness, applications for licenses. That sort of thing). Justices courts typically meet once or twice a month. His appointment shows he was of very good character and was a highly respected member of the community.
There appears to have been someone else named William Stewart who was also a pilot in Lossiemouth. There is mention in the Aberdeen Press & Journal of 18th June 1934 of a William Stewart, pilot there whose young daughter was knocked down in a traffic accident. A different family though. Or a different generation anyway. The P & J for 15th July 1992 mentions that veteran William “Pilot” Stewart of Lossiemouth took delivery of new meeting rooms built for retired fishermen at the port, by the Scottish White Fish association. So still alive in 1992.
Elwyn