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Migrations of the

American Family

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by Location

Origins of

the Surname

Variations of

the Surname

Armorial Bearings, Symbols and Mottoes

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Family history

The only known ancestor of this lineage is our 8th great-grandmother Mary Barrie. Many researchers have her surname as Berry.  We have chosen to use Barrie as that name is native to Scotland and is most closely associated with the area around Glasgow, Scotland where Mary is said to have been born in 1663.  She married Robert Robertson, also a native of Glasgow, around 1683.  To this union at least 4 four children are known to have been produced between 1684 and 1692.  It is possible that Mary Barrie Robertson and her family joined the throngs of Scottish people who emigrated to the Plantation of Ulster in what is now Northern Ireland.  This wave of Scottish immigration to Ulster took place in the 1690s, when tens of thousands of Scots fled a famine (1696–1698) in the border region of Scotland.  It is not known when and where Mary Barrie Robertson died.  It possible that Mary died in Northern Ireland or she may have perished as a result of the aforementioned famine.   Our line of descendancy continues through Mary’s son James Robertson born at Glasgow in 1685.

Direct ancestors

Additional information about the persons in our database  as   well  as   a   complete

listing of individuals with this surname may be reviewed by clicking on this LINK.

MARY¹ BARRIE was born in 1663 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. She died after 1692 in Northern Ireland?. She married Robert Robertson about 1683 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland?. He was born about 1659 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He died after 1692 in Northern Ireland?.

Robert Robertson and Mary Berry had the following children:

·            JOHN² ROBERTSON was born on 31 Aug 1684 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland.

·            JAMES ROBERTSON was born on 01 Oct 1685 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He died on 17 May 1749 in Augusta County, Virginia. He married Rebecca Royston about 1711 in Coleraine, Londonderry, Northern Ireland ?. She was born about 1689 in Coleraine, Londonderry, N. Ireland. She died about 1784 in Augusta County, Virginia.

·            MARY ROBERTSON was born about 1689 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. She married William Dinsmuir on 16 Dec 1719 in Govan, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He was born in 1694 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland.

·            ISOBELL ROBERTSON was born on 21 Jan 1692 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland.

The WorldConnect Project is a set of tools, which allow users to upload, modify, link, and display their family trees as a means to share their genealogy with other researchers.

The WorldConnect Project continues to grow, as it now contains several hundred million records thus it offers researchers the single largest collection of family trees on the Internet.

Use this free genealogy site to help you get the best genealogy searches from Google™ by using your family tree, for your research. It will create a series of different searches using tips or "tricks"

that will likely improve your results. The different searches will give you many different ways of using Google and the Internet to find ancestry information about this or any other Surname. 

Source documents

The documents contained within this “Source Documents Archives” have been located during our research of this family, and used as evidence to prove many of the facts contained within the database of this family’s record.   We have source documents related to the following persons within our database with this surname.

·       None

·        

This Link will take you to our

archive of source documents.  

You are welcome to download any of the documents contained within this archive that does not cite a copyright.  Should you encounter a problem obtaining a copy you may get in touch with us via the contact information found at the end of this web-page.

     Most of these documents can be considered as primary or secondary evidence.  Primary evidence is usually defined as the best available to prove the fact in question, usually in an original document or record.  Secondary evidence is in essence all that evidence which is inferior in its origin to primary evidence. That does not mean secondary evidence is always in error, but there is a greater chance of error.  Examples of this type of evidence would be a copy of an original record, or oral testimony of a record’s contents.  Published genealogies and family histories are also secondary evidence.

     Classifying evidence as either primary or secondary does not tell anything about its accuracy or ultimate value.  This is especially true of secondary evidence.  Thus it is always a good idea to ask the following questions: (1) How far removed from the original is it, (when it is a copy)?; (2) What was the reason for the creation of the source which contains this evidence?; and (3) Who was responsible for creating this secondary evidence and what interest did they have in its accuracy?

SOURCE: Greenwood, Val D., The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 2^nd edition, Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, MD 21202, 1990, pgs. 62-63

Migration routes

       Tracing our own family’s paths of migration can prove crucial in identifying previous generations and eventually, figuring out where and how they arrived in the “New World” as well as where they eventually settled.  Knowing the network of trails American pioneers traveled can help you guess where to start looking.  The trail map(s) provided below may assist you in understanding the routes that our direct ancestors of this family may have taken to find new homes and opportunities in the vast area now encompassed by the United States.

      During the 17^th, 18^th and 19^th centuries hundreds of thousands of Europeans made the perilous ocean voyage to America.  For many it was an escape from economic hardship and religious persecution.  For most it was an opportunity to start over, own their own land, and make a better future for their descendents.

Immigration records show a number of people bearing the name of BARRIE, or one of its variants, as arriving in North America between the 17^th and 20^th centuries.  Some of these immigrants were: Clement Barry who settled in St. Christopher in 1633; Debora Barrie, age 23, landed ar the colony of Virginia in 1635; Elizabeth Barry settled in New England in 1765; Garratt Barry who settled in Virginia in 1681; Alice Barry settled in the Barbados in 1680; Elizabeth Barie arrived in Maryland in 1662; Christopher Berry arrived in Maryland in 1669; William Barry settled in South Carolina in 1716; John Berry who arrived in Massachusetts in 1722; Peter Barrie came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1772; and Catherine Barrie, aged 28, landed at New York, Ny in 1803.

Use the following links to find more early immigrants with this surname:

$ Search Ancestry.com Immigration Records; or Free Ship’s Passenger lists at OliveTreeGenealogy.com

The Development of an Historical Migration Route

It is understood that in many if not all cases we do not know exactly what routes our ancestors took as they migrated throughout the United States.   As such certain assumptions have been utilized to re-create the migration path presented above.  With regard to 18^th and 19^th century land routes we assume that they travelled along few trails and roads that were in existence at the time.  Research shows that a great many of these old paths and trails are today designated as U.S. Highway Routes.  For example, a major east-west route of migration known as the National Road is now U.S. Route 40, and a primary north-south migration route of the 18^th century followed the Great Indian War and Trading Path is now U.S. Route 11.  In some situations the re-created migration route may travel along state routes that connect or run through the seat of a county as that populated place is probably the oldest settlement in the area. The use of water as a migration route is also likely.  For example, during the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries many families travelled west on the Ohio River as they moved on the new lands in Missouri or the Old Northwest Territory.  As such when applicable water routes have been included as the possible migration route.   

Images gallery

During our research we have collected images and photographs that are of general interest to a particular family.  Some of them are presented on this website because we believe they tend to provide the reader with additional information which may aid in the understanding of our ancestors past lives.

This Link will take you to our

collection of family photographs.  

Use the power of Google™ to find more interesting images about this topic. This button will link you to the Google Images Search   page.   Enter   the   topic   you   are

searching in the box and click “Search Images”. At the “Images” display page you will see the image, as well as the website of which it is associated.

Ancestral locations

Researching the locations where our ancestors lived has provided us with valuable evidence needed to fill in the gaps in our family trees.  It has also led us to many interesting facts that enhance the overall picture of each family group.

Locations of

Direct Ancestors

Locational Distribution

of  this Surname

Where In the World

are my Ancestors?

Locatiof Direct Ancestors

The names of states and counties on the following list were derived from the known places where the Direct Ancestors in the “Ancestral Lineage” (see above) were born, married, and / or died.

United Kingdom

Scotland

Lanarkshire (Glasgow)

Northern Ireland

Antrim?

Use this LINK to find out more about this

ancestral family and the locations listed above.

Locational distributionstors

Knowing the geographical areas where the surname you are researching is clustered and distributed is an indispensable tool in deciding where to focus your research.  We believe that the “Public Profiler” website will open up to you a wide range of solutions which implement current research in spatial analysis.  This site provides an array of local spatial information tools useful to the genealogist. 

The information presented herein shows where the BARRIE surname is distributed within North America as well as in the United Kingdom, the probable country of origin of this family.      Statistics show that there are approximately 68 persons per million of population with this surname, within The United Kingdom, and 12 persons per million of population within the United States.  Australia is found to be the country in the world where this surname is the most highly clustered having approximately 87 persons per million of population.  The top region of the world where this surname is the most highly clustered is Scotland, United

NORTH AMERICA

UNITED KINGDOM

click on thumbnail for larger image

Kingdom, with 454 persons per million, and Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom is the top city where this surname is found.

Click on the LINK to the right to see more information about the World distribution of a surname.  You can get

greater detail for any of the following maps by clicking on the area, i.e state, county that you are interested in.

Wjere are my ancestors Ancestors

Resources which enhance our knowledge of the places inhabited by our ancestors are almost as important as their names. The LINK to the right will take you to Maps, Gazetteers,   and  other  helpful   resources 

that will assist in discovering Ancestral Locations.  These web sites comprise only a small portion of what is available for researchers interested in learning more about where their ancestors lived.

Origins of the surname

An Introduction

to the Surname

Source/Meaning

of the Surname

History of

the Surname

More About

Surnames

An Introduction to the Surname

Source(s) & Meaning(s) of the Surname

     Most of the modern family names throughout Great Britain have originated as a result of the following circumstances: patronym or matronym, names based on the name of one's father, mother or ancestor, (Johnson, Wilson). Each is a means of conveying lineage; occupation (i.e., Carpenter, Cooper, Brewer, Mason); habitational (Middleton, Sidney, or Ireland) or topographical (i.e. Hill, Brook, Forrest, Dale); nicknames (i.e., Moody Freeholder, Wise, Armstrong); status (i.e. Freeman, Bond, Knight); and acquired ornamental names that were simply made up.

History of the Surname

    Surnames as we know them today were first assumed in Europe from the 11th to the 15th century. They were not in use in England or Scotland, before the Norman Conquest of 1066, and were first found in the Domesday Book of 1086. The employment in the use of a second name was a custom that was first introduced from the Normans who had adopted the custom just prior to this time.    Soon thereafter it became a mark of a generally higher socio-economic status and thus seen as disgraceful for a well-bred man to have only one name.  It was not until the middle of the 14^th century that surnames became general practice among all people in the British Isles

Variations of the surname

Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to unfold and expand often leading to an overwhelming number of variants.  As such one can encounter great variation in the spelling of surnames because in early times, spelling in general and thus the spelling of names was not yet standardized.  Later on spellings would change with the branching and movement of families. 

The complexity of researching records is compounded by the fact that in many cases an ancestors surname may also have been misspelled.  This is especially true when searching census documents.   The Soundex Indexing System was developed in an effort to assist with identifying spelling variations for a given surname.  Soundex is a method of indexing names in the 1880, 1900, 1910, and 1920 US Census, and can aid genealogists in their research. 

Searching for more Information about this and other surnames?

Use LINK button to view our Surname Locator & Resources page.

Amorial bearings, symcbols and mottoes

In the Middle Ages heraldry came into use as a practical matter. The word heraldry is derived from the German word heer, meaning (a host, an army) and held, (champion). Heraldry originated in the devices used to distinguish the armored warriors in tournament and war, and was also placed on seals as marks of identity.  The Germans transmitted the word to the French, and it reached England after the Norman Conquest of 1066.  As far as records show, true heraldry began in the middle of the 12th century, and appeared almost simultaneously in several countries of Western Europe.  Heraldry spread to the German burgher class in the 13th century, and even some peasants used arms in the 14th century.  A German coat of arms is usually referred to by any of the following terms; Wappen, Familienwappen, Blasonierung, Heraldik, or Wappenschablonen.

Gallery of Images

Descriptions of the

Armorial Bearings

Motto(es) of

this Surname

More About Hearldic Bearings

Image gallery

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

ARMORIAL BEARINGS

The associated armorial bearings for this surname and close variant spellings are recorded in Burke’s General Armorie and Rietstap’s Armorial General.  The additional information, presented below, is offered with regard to the armorial bearings depicted above:

FIGURE 1:  These arms have been attributed to a Barr or Barry of Scotland.  The shield is blue with a silver eagle displayed surmounted by a black fesse containing two white stars.  The heraldic symbolism of the "displayed," wings signifies protection.

FIGURE 2: These armorial bearings belonged to Barry of Ireland. They were initially bestowed upon David de Barrie, who accompanied Robert Fitz-Stephen when he conquered Ireland in 1170.   They subsequently belonged to David de Barry, 5^th Viscount Buttevant, who was descended from the aforementioned David de Barrie. In 1490 his descendant William Barry sat in Parliament as Viscount Buttevant.  In 1628 David Barry, Viscount Buttevant, became the First Earl of Barrymore.  This title has been dormant since 1824.

These arms have also been attributed to a Barry of Lemlara of County Cork, and a Barry of Ballyclough, County Cork, as well as to Richard Barry, Lord Mayor of Dublin, 1610-1611.

 The ARMS are of a silver shield containing three red bars-gemels.  The CREST shows a black wolf’s head coming out of a silver castle with two towers.  MOTTO “Boutez en avant.”  The heraldic symbolism of the wolf signifies the, “Reward from perseverance in long sieges and/or hard industry.”

FIGURE 3: These arms were granted in 1699 and represent the family of Barry from the French Province of Guyenne and Gascony where during the 18^th century, Jean-Pierre Barry was the Baron of Batz.  The ARMS feature a blue shield containing three golden elephants. The heraldic symbol of an elephant signifies, “Great strength, wit, longevity, happiness, royalty, good luck, and ambition.”

FIGURE 4: Johannes Rietstap has attributed these arms to a Barre of France. The shield is ermine and has red bend sinister (left side).  Ermine is a fur (black with white spots), that represents, “Dignity.”

FIGURE 5: This is an example of the modern tartan of the city of Barrie, Ontario, Canada.

FIGURE 6: This is an example of the ancient tartan of the city of Barrie, Ontario, Canada.

FIGURE 7: These arms belong to a des Barres of Brittany in France. The shield is red and contains a golden cross.  The heraldic symbolism of the color red represents a, “Warrior or martyr; Military strength and magnanimity.”

FIGURE 8: This is the coat-of-arms of Baron Barry of Santry who is a descendent of the Barrys of Ireland as described in Figure 2. The ARMS are of a shield divided into a barry of six, colored silver and red. The CREST features a red wolf’s head coming out of a golden ducal coronet. The MOTTO is “Regi legi fidelis”, translated as, “Faithful to king and law.” The utilization of bars is common in many of the arms of Barry. The bar symbolizes, "One who sets the bar of conscience, religion, and honour against angry passions and evil temptations."

FIGURE 9:  These armorial bearings were granted to a Bary of Frankfurt, Germany in 1859. The ARMS feature a red shield with three silver fish heads.  The CREST has a silver star between a pair of red wings. The MOTTO is, “Fidus Deo et regi,” translated as, “Faith in God and King.” The fish as represented in these arms signify, “A true, generous mind; virtuous for himself, not because of his heritage; also unity with Christ, and spiritual nourishment.”

FIGURE 10: This shield represents the arms of a de la Barre of Gaudreville a community within the former French province of Artois. The shield is silver and contains a fretty of red. The fretty, i.e., (latticework) signifies, “Persuasion.”

FIGURE 11: This coat-of-arms was granted to a Barry of Roclaveston Manor, near Nottingham, England.  The ARMS features a red shield containing three silver bars embattled. The CREST shows the battlements of a tower upon a red bar charged with three golden roses.  The MOTTO of this Barry is, “A rege et Victoria.” The heraldic utilization of a gold or yellow rose signifies, “ Infidelity and jealousy.”

FIGURE 12: This is a representation of the coat-of-arms belonging to a Barry of Eynsham, Oxfordshire.   The ARMS show a blue shield containing gold two lions passant gaurdant.  The CREST is a red lion’s head that has a golden collar.  The heraldic lion signifies, “Bravery, strength, ferocity, and valour.”

MOTTO(ES)  

     A motto is a word or sentence usually written upon a scroll and generally placed below the shield, but sometimes, especially in Scotland, above the crest.    Many ancient mottoes were war-cries such as the Douglas motto of “Forward.”    Many mottoes refer to the name of the bearer, for example “cole regem” for Coleridge.   In general most mottoes convey a sentiment, hope, or determination, such as the Cotter motto “Dum spiro spero” where the meaning is “While I have breath I hope“.     Mottoes are often used by several successive generations, but may be changed at any time by the grantee. The languages most in use are Latin, French, and English.  Exceptions are seen in Scotland where they are often in the old Lowland dialect, and in Wales, often in the language of the principality.    

The following family mottos have been attributed the BARRIE surname and its close variant spellings: Barry(see figure 11)  – “A rege et Victoria” = “From the king and by conquest”;  Barry – “Boutez en avant” = “Push forward”;  Barry – “Fortitudine” = “With fortitude”;  Barry – “Legi regi fidelis” = “Faithful to the king and law”;  Barry – “Poussez en avant” = “Push forward”;  Barry (see figure 8) – “Regi legi fidelis” = “Faithful to king and law”;  Barrymore (see figure 2) – “Boutez en avant” = “Push forward”; , Bary (see figure 9) “Fidus Deo et regi,” = “Faith in God and King.”

Heraldic bearings

The art of designing, displaying, describing, and recording arms is called heraldry. The use of coats of arms by countries, states, provinces, towns and villages is called civic heraldry.   A Coat of Arms is defined as a group of emblems and figures (heraldic bearings) usually arranged on and around a shield and serving as the special insignia of some person, family, or institution.  Except for a few cases, there is really no such thing as a standard "coat of arms" for a surname.  A coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, is a design usually granted only to a single person not to an entire family or to a particular surname.  Coats of arms are inheritable property, and they generally descend to male lineal descendents of the original arms grantee.  The rules and traditions regarding Coats of Arms vary from country to country. Therefore a Coat of Arms for an English family would differ from that of a German family even when the surname is the same. 

Some of the more prominent elements incorporated into a  coat of arms are :

Crest - The word crest is often mistakenly applied to a coat of arms.  The crest was a later development arising from the love of pageantry.  Initially the crest consisted of charges painted onto a ridge on top of the helmet.

Wreath or Torse – The torse is a twist of cloth or wreath underneath and part of a crest. Always shown as six twists, the first tincture being the tincture of the field, the second the tincture of the metal, and so on.

Mantling – The mantling is a drapery tied to the helmet above the shield. It forms a backdrop for the shield.

Helm or Helmet - The helmet or helm is situated above the shield and bears the torse and crest. The style of helmet displayed varies according to rank and social status, and these styles developed over time, in step with the development of actual military helmets.

Shield or Arms - The basis of all coats of arms.  At their simplest, arms consist of a shield with a plain field on which appears a geometrical shape or object.  The items appearing on the shield are known as charges.

Motto - The motto was originally a war cry, but later mottoes often expressed some worthy sentiment. It may appear at the top or bottom of a family coat of arms.

Searching for more information about heraldry? Click on the button at the  right to look at our webpage featuring links   to   websites   having   images

of a wide variety of arms, crests, and badges.  They may also feature additional heraldry resources as noted in the accompanying descriptions.

Web resources

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·             Our Surname Locator And Resources web page contains the following: (1) links that will take you to an updated listing of all surnames as posted in our three databases at the Rootsweb WorldConnect Project; (2) the Surname List Finder a tool that finds sound-alike matches for a given surname from among RootsWeb's thousands of surname lists; (3) the Soundex Converter that can be used to find the soundex code for a surname, plus other surnames/spellings sharing the same soundex code;  (4) Surname Message Boards the world's largest online genealogy community with over 17 Million posts on more than 161,000 boards; (5) Surname Mailing Lists of all surnames having mailing lists at RootsWeb, as well as topics that include (6) Surname Heraldy, and  (7) Mapping a Surname. 

·             Your genealogy research of this surname can be facilitated by use of Surname Web. This website links to the majority of the surname data on the web, as well as to individual family trees, origin and surname meaning if known, and many other related genealogy resources. 

·              Surname Finder provides easy access to free and commercial resources for 1,731,359 surnames. On each surname specific "finder" page, you can search a variety of online databases all pre-programmed with your surname.

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