In search of Hugh

As a general report I've been mulling over the four boys who allegedly came over in 1770, and learning more about them so I can be more sure of what families they belonged to. I am not absolutely sure we have the right ones.

Six came over before it was all over - James, William, Hugh, John, Thomas and Nathaniel. Charles reported that it was James, William, Hugh & John who came together in 1770, but he was talking about his grandparents' generation and may have gotten it wrong; it was likely that in his family they were well in touch with James, Hugh, John & William, and not the other two, so he got that wrong in reporting. Some have questioned whether there were four at all.

The situation on their mothers is also murky, and that is interesting because it means we may not be of the Wallaces or Cairnhill. We could be of some William Wallace who was hanging around Glasgow in 1750, married to any of several women including Mary Margaret Helen Muir. Jane Carshall, Mary Coke, and Jean Campbell are also names that come up. But here, can I find any evidence in any of the boys' lives to help me figure out which it could be? The only way is to dig and find out.

Hugh is a good example of how messed up dredging information can be. There are lots of Hughs out there - b. 1741, 1740, even 1750 - all of them seemed to die in 1823. One Hugh lived in Cecil County Maryland for a while - that one has to be ours! - another was a Revolutionary War soldier, and was buried at New Castle. We want that one too! One reason we want to claim that one is that Robert, a young lad, may have lost his father and it would make sense if he stayed with his uncle in New Castle when he met his bride, a New Castle girl. Make that one ours! But everyone claims that Hugh. He ends up on every tree because his fame puts him at the top of every google search.

James is the best candidate for older half-brother, who wasn't actually on that 1770 voyage. The reason is that he had already married and set up a family in Northern Ireland. It was likely that the pig-stealers were looking for him when they fled Scotland. He did bring the family to York. He did stay in touch with the family. But maybe he wasn't in New York in 1770.

The search goes on.