Family of Alexander Gordon 1635

[Inez Reed]

I am looking for background information of the family of Alexander Gordon who was transported to Massachusetts Colony following the Battle of Worcester. His parents were Thomas and Margaret Milne Gordon. Anything to "flesh out" his life and that of his family would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Inez Reed

[Lesley Robertson]

I am looking for background information of the family of Alexander Gordon who was transported to Massachusetts Colony following the Battle of Worcester. His parents were Thomas and Margaret Milne Gordon. Anything to "flesh out" his life and that of his family would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Inez Reed

Do you know where in Aberdeenshire he came from?
There's a lot of background information and useful links on GENUKI. There's also the Aberdeen and North east Scotland FHS.

[kinshar]

Hi

Heres some links to info on Alexander Gordons Life & Family which may help.

http://en.rodovid.org/wk/Person:63028

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Gordon_(pioneer)

http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Alexander-Gordon

Regards
Kinshar

[Inez Reed]

Hi Lesley - I've seen the links that were posted in another response. The problem isn't a lack of knowledge of his life in Massachusetts and Exeter, NH but his life prior to transport. He was christened in Aberdeen in the church of St. Nicholas. His paternal grandfather may have been an Archibald Gordon(e) (b. abt. 1556) and a Kattrin Cheyne.

I know nothing about Alexander's mother (Margaret Milne) only that the Milne family was a sept of the Clan Gordon.

He was captured as a youth and apprenticed out (fancy word for involuntary labour) to learn husbandry in the colonies. I wondered if he had siblings or just what his father Thomas did to earn a livelihood.

Regards,

Inez

[Lesley Robertson]

Hi Lesley - I've seen the links that were posted in another response. The problem isn't a lack of knowledge of his life in Massachusetts and Exeter, NH but his life prior to transport. He was christened in Aberdeen in the church of St. Nicholas. His paternal grandfather may have been an Archibald Gordon(e) (b. abt. 1556) and a Kattrin Cheyne.

I know nothing about Alexander's mother (Margaret Milne) only that the Milne family was a sept of the Clan Gordon.

He was captured as a youth and apprenticed out (fancy word for involuntary labour) to learn husbandry in the colonies. I wondered if he had siblings or just what his father Thomas did to earn a livelihood.

Regards,

Inez

That's why I suggested the Aberdeen and NE Scotland FHS. If anyone has any information about people in 17th century Aberdeenshire, it will be them. Don't be surprised if there isn't very much (your main hope is Church registers) - damp, neglect, poor materials and war do nothing to help records survive. It might be worth asking whether trial reports survive - many were reprinted by historical societies in Victorian times (I found one from one of my lines who was shipped out as indentured labour in a published account of the post-Culloden trials).

Also, don't get distracted by modern-day Clan histories. "Milne" is another version of "Mill" or "Miller" and it's likely that, as with other occupational names, there's a number of unrelated families with the same surname. They would likely have taken any Clan affiliation they had (and the Clans weren't strong in the cities, mainly in the Highlands and Islands) from their local landowner.

Lesley

[Inez Reed]

Hi Lesley - Not that I trust the IGI but Kattrin Chein is listed twice; once as mother to a son George by an Alexander Davidson in 1580 and a second child, Thomas (father of Alexander) in 1584. It may be worth a follow-up if I can get the original microfilms on loan. Other researchers on other websites have postulated that Kattrin Cheyne was from "unlinked Cheynes before the 1696 poll". I don't know how they came to that conclusion unless they trolled through the Aberdeen records for the 100+ years that proceeded but to each his own.

The Milne family was quite another story. I didn't find anything that looked promising but it was a cursory look.

Several individuals (related) have gone the Y-DNA testing route and initial results seem to indicate that Alexander was related to the southern Gordons (Sir William's line). It's a small sample but an interesting research effort.

Clan histories are underwritten by their own agendas. Likely as not, our Gordons were cut adrift from the clan structure. I'll be going the OPR route as soon as I can schedule an orientation visit with the local Family History Center.

Best wishes,

Inez

[Inez Reed]

Alexander Gordon's father was Thomas b. 1584 son of Archibald and Kattrin Cheyne Gordon.

Inez