M'Intagirts

Christina

A couple of years ago I found a 17th Century Will which at first I thought might be for a man with a version of our clan name, Farquhar McIntagairt, from Inverness in 1667. Subsequently considerable doubt was thrown on this possibility from an etymological viewpoint when I found out a little more about the Gaelic make up of the name, and I wrote a fairly extensive blog about this on 13 Jan 2011. However, I am including now, for completion, references to the document collections I have found recently which include the name or variations of it, first from Dunbarton - Writs of Munro of Foulis, 1299 - 1711 where in 1566 one Patrick Mcintagirt was a witness; second from Marriage Books in both the Midlothian: Edinburgh - Commissariot of Argyll, Register of Inventories, 1693-1702, and in Inverness: Commissariot Record of Inverness, 1630 - 1801.

The record from Inverness is that which includes a reference to the Will I found earlier with the date which I presume to be the probate date of 17 June 1667, in Fanellan, with the information that Farquhar married Katherine nein Alister vic Ean Vore (Katherine daughter of Alister son of Ean ?). There are four records from Argyll, all a generation later, so one is tempted to think they concern the offspring of Farquhar and Katherine, except that there are three Johns who died in different years. Maybe two of them were offspring and maybe all are related. For the record they are:

M'Intagart (M'Intagert, M'Intagirt), Hugh, in Tountaynish. See M'Ilvernock, Effie.

M'Intagart (M'Intagert, M'Intagirt) John, in Crosshill. See Mairtain, Marie.
Mairtaine, Marie, spouse to John M'Intagirt in Crosshill, par.(ish) of Kilkeran, d. Jan 1694; Malcolm and John, children 04 May 1694.

M'Intagart (M'Intagert, M'Intagirt) Mary, spouse to John M'Cleran in Cove, d. May 1693 11 Jul 1693.
M'laurine (M'Claurine, M'Cleran, M'Laurin, M'Claurine) John, in Cove. See M'Intagirt, Mary.

M'Intagart (M'Intagert, M'Intagirt) John, in Auchadachein, par.(ish) of Kilfinan, d. Dec 1701 01 Dec 1701.

M'Intagart (M'Intagert, M'Intagirt) John, in Auchadalverrie, par.(ish) of Kilfinnan, d. Mar 1698; Christian N'Keich, relict; Archibald, son 07 Feb 1699.

Together with Christian (or Christine) there is the beautiful silhouette portrait which I have reproduced above. From 100 years before Farquhar comes the extracted Parish Record from the Writs of Munro of Foulis, subtitled Hic dies eorum obitis et non sepulturae annotator. The text reads:

80. 02 Oct 1566. Notarial Instrument under the hand of James Buchart, clerk, of the diocese of Brechin, narrating that in presence of him the witnesses underwritten, compeared Robert Munro of Fowlis and discharged John Munro and Farquhar Munro, his brother, portioners of the feu-lands and town of Kilterne, with the mylne zair and fishing thereof, of 14 barrels of salmon owing by them to said Robert Munro for the fishing of said zair for the years 1564 and 1565, for which discharge said John Munro and Farquhar Munro resigned said fishing in favour of said Robert Munro, without prejudice to said town lands and mylne of Kilterne together with ale-house. Witnesses, Paul Munro Robertson, Patrick Mcintagirt, Alexander Mcawne moir, Hector Munro Johnesoun, and sir Alexander Moresoun. (NB. the title sir indicates an ordained priest).

The above extracts can be found on www.ancestry.co.uk, and each has the footnote that the copyright 2012 is with The Generations Network, Inc.

Alberta Obituary

On 23 January 2010 I wrote about 'Three Military Men', the first of whom was Robert, known as "Ross" McIlhagga born about 1933, who died 3 October 2001 in British Columbia, Canada. I had to admit that I did not know to which Clan family tree he belonged. Then in June last year I reported the death of John Owns ("Jack") McIlhagga, the eldest son of Joseph McKee McIlhagga and Catherine Ross, and I mentioned (from information in the obituary) that he had been predeceased by his two brother Ross and Alan. At the time I did not make the connection to my earlier blog, but must do so now, for I have received a further obituary notice from May this year of the widow of Ross McIlhagga. She (and they) must surely fit our family trees at this point. The obituary notice was from the Vermilion Standard, Alberta newspaper, printed on Wednesday May 16, which reads as follows:

Marnie McIlhagga (nee Antos) of Vegreville passed away at the age of 80 years. Marnie is survived by three daughters, Lynda (Larry) Baddock, Susan (Randy) Cannon and Sharon McIlhagga; eleven grandchildren, two great grandchildren, one brother Ted (Irene) Walden, and one sister Eleanor James. She was predeceased by her husband Ross.

A tenancy for Archibald

On 15 August I reported that in 1898 the name of John W. McElhagga had been crossed out from plots 28a and 29 in Maxwell's Walls, in Book D of the Griffrith's Valuation Continuation Volumes. I did not then say that the name inserted was that of Archibald McElhagga which in its turn was then crossed out in 1902 and that of Agnes inserted. The Immediate Lessor column had the note 'In fee'. The size of the plot was Acres 27, Roods 0, Perches 5, for which was being paid in 1909 the sums of £12.5.0. for land and £1.10.0 for property, a total of £13.15.0. Also against the plot 29b in 1902 the name of Mary McMullen was deleted as was Archibald McElhagga as the Immediate Lessor (it had been John W. McElhagga before Archibald). The name of Agnes McElhagga remained against plots 28a and 29 until 1922 when it was deleted and the name of Robert Scott inserted.

Who was Archibald and who was Agnes? This was certainly Archibald the fifth son of William and Margaret McIlhaggo, who was born about 1853. He died on 10 April 1898 at the young age of 45. Agnes (nee Jamieson) was his wife. They had married on 8 June 1885 in Wellington Street Presbyterian Church, Ballymena. She was born on 26 April 1865. Clearly she continued farming until 1922 when she retired to live to the grand age of 90 years, dying in 1956.

This blog completes all the references I found in PRONI to the Griffith's Valuation Continuation Books relating to the parish of Connor.

A tenancy for Samuel

There is one more name which appears in the 1862 Griffith's Valuation in Connor Parish. Like Francis he is in the townland of Ballymuckvea and he is Samuel McIlhaggert. His landlord was a representative of Samuel Densmore. The plot he was living on is in the Ballymena Union, Kells Electoral Division and is listed in Book A of the Continuation Volumes as number 17c. This number probably indicates that it is one of a row of cottages. The plot is very small, Acres 0, Roods 0, Perches 12, defined as a house and garden, for which Samuel paid 5/- for the land and 15/- for the house, a total of £1 per annum. However Samuel's name was deleted in 1864, so he had it for only two years from the time of the original valuation.

Who was this Samuel? Of all the Samuels I have on record there are I think two possibilities, though one first thought both rather remote. One is a man born within the Connor Parish family. The other is a man who would have moved in from Carnmoney. For reasons I will explain, I favour the 'incomer'. The 'local' boy isn't actually in Connor or indeed in Ireland. His grandparents were Henry McIlhaggo and Mary McDowell and his father was William Gage McIlhaggo. However William migrated to Rutherglen in Scotland where Samuel was born in 1844/5. We know this family were there in 1861 when Samuel is in the Census for Rutherglen, aged 16. The question is, would this teenager have 'moved back' to the parish of Connor within a year and have become a tenant of a cottage in Ballymuckvea? Admittedly his grandparents may still have been in the parish, so it is possible but I think unlikely. It looks as if by the age of 19 or 20 he was married to Jane Easton and living in Rutherglen where the following year, on 2 Jan 1865 they had their first child, also Samuel. It seems to me that he had been in Rutherglen all along.

The second possibility is that Samuel born into the Carnmoney family on 30 July 1842, about whom, at the present, we know very little, except that he was baptised in Carnmoney on 27 November 1842, is a candidate. He was the son of Nathan McIlhaggar and Ellen Wilson. In our records the surname of this family is spelled as McIlhaggar and McIlhaggart and this accords with the Griffith's Valuation spelling of McIlhaggert. This may seem a slender basis for preferring Samuel of Carnmoney over Samuel of Rutherglen, but the fact that he stayed only two years I think supports my preference, as does the fact that he would have been a bit older than the so-called 'local lad'. He would have been 20 to 22 while he lived in Ballymuckvea, at least a year older than Samuel from Rutherglen.

A shared tenancy in Castlegore

In the Parish of Connor the townlands of Maxwell's Walls and Castlegore  share a boundary and adjacent to McIlhagga lands in Maxwell's Walls was the farm of Francis Gardiner in Castlegore. In the Castlegore section of the Connor Valuation Continuation Book A, at Map 36 we find that in January 1866, to the name of Francis Gardiner there was added the name of Nathaniel McElhagga. It appears to indicate that they have equal shares. The name of the Immediate Lessor is 'Same'. Perhaps Francis was 'getting on' and needed a younger man to share the work, or perhaps it was a case of giving an opportunity to a younger man. The house(s), offices and land were quite large at Acres 61, Rood 1, Perches 5 (which had been slightly altered in 1864 to A61, R0, P10 when the rent on the land of £22.10.0 becomes £24 plus buildings £1). In 1865 Francis and Nathaniel appear to be paying £12.10.0 each.

I blogged about this situation on 10 October 2010, but on that occasion did not address the question of who Nathaniel was. There is really only one candidate. William and Margaret McIlhaggo's second son was Nathaniel Owens who we know chiefly because he had a very successful business career as an Oil Merchant. However, we now know that first, for ten years, he was a farmer in partnership with Francis Gardiner. We know the time period because in the Castlegore section of Book B, in 1876, against Map 36 we have the name of Nathaniel McIlhagga deleted and that of James Boyd inserted. This was at the same time as the name of Henry McIlhagga was deleted from Map 37, a small plot within plot 36, and James Boyd also inserted. The name of Nathl. McIlhagga was also deleted as the Immediate Lessor. James Boyd was the husband of Nathaniel's younger sister Jane. She and James had been married four years before in 1872. They were still in Castlegore in 1901.

Rockhampton to Melbourne

25 Jan 1947

Rockhampton is on the coast of Queensland, Australia, near Bundaberg where part of the McIlhagger family lived. Ernest Frederick George was one of the sons of George and Annie Elizabeth McIlhagger. George had emigrated from Belfast in 1883 with his parents. Ernest was born in 1911 and probably attended one of the several Churches of Christ churches in the area. There are today one in Bundaberg and two in Rockhampton. 'EFG' was to become a minister of that Denomination and to serve in the State of Victoria. In 1942 he married Margaret Coventry who I imagine was from Melbourne where they married and where 'EFG' did part of his training. Perhaps they went north to Queensland after their marriage for, according to the above newspaper cutting from the local Rockhampton paper, 'Mrs. McIlhagger' (I am presuming she was 'EFG's wife!) had for a time before 1947 been President of the Ladies' Guild of Rockhampton Church of Christ congregation. I assume that 'EFG' was the minister at the time. However, early in 1947 it was a move south again for them, apparently to Melbourne and this event was reported in the local Rockhampton newspaper on the 25th of January of that year. The report, as you can see, is entirely about 'Mrs. McIlhagger' with no mention of her husband. I hope I have got the sequence of events right. If not, I suspect someone will let me know.

Two Weaver tenancies

Before considering any further references in the Valuation Books for Connor, I think I should look for any references to the other clan member who appears in the 1835 Tithe Book for Connor, namely James McIlhaggo, and also the other man who, given his probable dates, may well be another brother in this family, Francis McIlhaggo. Both James and Frances were Weavers by trade. James married the 'other' daughter of Francis Gardiner. Mary Anne, and had five children. Francis married Nancy Fletcher and also had five children. Neither were in the original Connor Griffith's Valuation but both appeared in the Continuation books of the Ballymena Union, Kells Electoral Division.  

In Book A under the townland of Slaght we find James McHaggar, at Map 12f renting a house for 15/-. He appears also in Continuation Book B with the same map reference where his name is deleted and that of his wife Mary Anne McIlhaggar inserted as the house resident, still paying 15/-. We may therefore assume that James died in 1890. In Book C, dated 1901, with the same map reference, Mary Anne McIlhaggar's name is deleted from the house, with the note 'Kennedy got h. by exchange'. this  could imply that someone called Kennedy and Mary Anne swapped houses, though there is no sign in these Books of her occupying another house. Clearly we can draw no conclusion from this that Mary Anne had died.

This brings us to Francis who is not in the 1835 Tithe Book. He is however to be found in the 1862 Griffith's Valuation for the nearby townland of Ballymuckvea, which, like Slaght is in the Parish of Connor but is found under the Kells Electoral Division. Francis' landlord is named, Alexander Brownlee, who in 1865 had married Nancy Betty, a daughter of William and Margaret McIlhagga. This was one of six houses on the same plot of land. Alexander and Nancy Betty lived in another of the houses. This plot has map reference B, with house Bb being occupied by Francis and Nancy. He was paying 15/- per annum for the house. In Bc was Elizabeth Francey, presumably related to Thomas Francey who married Jane(t), one of the daughters of Francis and Nancy McIlhaggo.

When we move to Book B we find Francis McElhagga's name deleted from the Ballymuckvea house and the name of James Cooper inserted. This presumably gives us the death year for Francis of 1889 when he would have been about 80 years old. As there is no reference to his wife Nancy continuing to live there, we may presume that she predeceased him. In that family Francis' name continued through his grandson born to his son William, in Paisley, Scotland in 1882.