RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

KINSEARCHING

by

Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
 

     What resources do descendants of Highland Scots who settled in pre-Revolutionary America have for tracing their immigrant ancestors? Usually, parish registers, which contain data on baptisms and marriages of the Church of Scotland, are a major resource. However, since their availability in the Highlands is limited, family researchers must look elsewhere. Alternative sources may include court records, estate papers, sasines (land registrations), gravestone inscriptions, burgess rolls, port books, services of heirs (land inheritances), wills and testaments, and especially rent rolls--many of which predate parish registers.

     Noted genealogical authority David Dobson has begun a new series, SCOTTISH HIGHLANDERS ON THE EVE OF THE GREAT MIGRATION, 1725 - 1775, to help identify the materials that may supplement available church records and which may act as a substitute for the lack of parish registers. The first volume, THE PEOPLE OF ARGYLL, pertains to the county of Argyll--the point of origin of many of the colonial pioneers who settled in upper New York, North Carolina, Jamaica, and the Canadian Maritimes. Coverage extends to all the county's parishes except the isle of Jura, which has been dealt with in another book. CAMPBELL, MCLEAN, and MCNEILL are the most common surnames among the approximately 3,000 individuals listed.

     THE PEOPLE OF HIGHLAND PERTHSHIRE, the second volume, concerns the area from which some of the Jacobites transported in 1746 originated. The majority of the people who sailed on the Commerce to New York in 1775 also came from this area. Of the nearly 1,200 persons mentioned, the most common surnames are CAMPBELL, ROBERTSON, and STEWART.

     In addition to the person's name, each book usually furnishes a place within the county (birth or residence, for instance), a date, and a citation for the source. Some entries also provide names of relatives, employment, vessel on which he or she traveled, and miscellaneous details.

     Neither volume claims to be a complete directory of everyone who left these particular regions in the eighteenth century. Dobson's goal is to demonstrate the wide range and quality of the available resources. Many genealogists will be looking forward to the next installment in Dobson's new series SCOTTISH HIGHLANDERS ON THE EVE OF THE GREAT MIGRATION, 1725 - 1775.

     Both paperback volumes have an introduction, maps, and illustrations. Neither book is indexed since names of main individuals are arranged alphabetically. Because some entries mention other people, an index to their names would be helpful.

     Priced at $18.50, THE PEOPLE OF ARGYLL (item order #9888) has 136 pages. Costing $17.50, THE PEOPLE OF HIGHLAND PERTHSHIRE (item order #9896) contains 109 pages. To the books' price, buyers should add the cost for postage and handling charges. For U. S. postal mail, the cost is $4 for one book and $2.00 for each additional copy; for UPS, the cost is $6 for one copy and $2.50 for each additional book. Both volumes may be purchased by check, MasterCard, or Visa from Clearfield Company, 3600 Clipper Mill Rd., Suite 260, Baltimore, Maryland 21211 (for phone orders, call toll free 1-800-296-6687; fax 1-410-752-8492; website www.genealogical.com).

     Charles N. Ferguson, 811 South Market, Shawnee, OK 74801 is seeking information about the death date and burial place of John Quincy ADAMS, who lived in Mississippi between 1860 and 1870. He was born in 1830 in Tennessee and died in Madison Co., TX. His wife was Permelia MOONEY, born in August 1837 in Mississippi. Their children were

Rosa, b. August 1877 (sic) in Texas;

Jefferson Davis, b. October 1861 in Mississippi;

Minnie, b. August 1866 in Mississippi;
and
Florence ADAMS, b. April 1870 in Mississippi.