First Highland Livingstons in America?

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Grant Livingston
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 3:04 pm

First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Grant Livingston »

Anybody have any information about the first Highland Livingstons in N. America? I have heard that there was a descendant of a highland Livingston who fought in the American Revolution? First Livingstons to make it to Ellis Island?

I am trying to get an idea of where the first Livingstons in N. America started settling, and eventually I would like to be able to trace my ancestor's , or at least blood relatives', journey across the U.S. (I currently live in California).

Thanks!!!
Livingstone_PEI
Posts: 260
Joined: Fri Jul 17, 2009 4:44 am

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Livingstone_PEI »

Hi Grant

Can you tell us a little about your family? I suspect most highland Livingstones would have come to the US as sailors or soldiers. The rest will likely chime in on this.

Barry
Canadian Livingstone
Posts: 2770
Joined: Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:00 pm

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Canadian Livingstone »

Hi Grant,

Welcome to the Forum. All good questions. I would imagine that Livingstons from Scotland both highland and lowland reached America through Ellis Island once it was established. I dont the know the history of Ellis Island, but prior to Ellis Island in the 1700's and 1800's many would have arrived one way or another at the New York Harbor. I cant say who was the earliest Livingston in North America. Robert Livingston of Livingston Manor, NY was a prominent land owner of an old and established lowland Livingston family and he arrived as early as the 1600's. There was also a lowland Livingston family that established itself very early in the 1600's in Virginia I think it was. I am not certain who the earliest highland Livingston was who settled in America. Certainly Daniel Livingston a highlander and former British solidier in Montgomery's Highlanders who settled in the then Province of New York in the Salem area of Washington County New York State in the 1760's was one of the earliest confirmed "Highland Argyllshire Livingstons" to settle in America. Later Daniel and some of his sons ended up in the 1790's in Upper Canada as they had supported the British during the American Revolution thus becoming one of the earliest highland Livingston families to settle in what was become Canada.

As Barry has stated it would be helpful if you could provide the Maclea Livingstone Society with some family tree info which indicates where your great-grandfather and great-great grandfather resided in the U.S or Canada in the 1800's. This may help in better indentifying the specific origins of your Livingston family.

regards,

Donald
Canadian Livingstone
Posts: 2770
Joined: Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:00 pm

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Canadian Livingstone »

There were also "Scotch Irish" Livingstons from Ulster from the six counties of Northern Ireland who settled in South Carolina and Georgia in the early 1700's but these were not highland Argyllshire Scottish Livingstons. Highland Livingstons from Argyllshire Scotland settled in North Carolina later in the 1700's and early 1800's.

regards,

Donald
CatherineAllene
Posts: 9
Joined: Mon Apr 15, 2019 10:56 pm
Location: Surry County, Virginia

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by CatherineAllene »

I am new to this forum and thought it may be useful to share what I have on my Livingston line. This line was in the Virginia colony in the 17th century. John Livingston, 1688-1762, married in the Virginia colony, Margaret Todd, 1690-1750. They patent 400 acres on Poropotank Creek, New Kent County, in 1713. Their son , John Jr. 1716-1752 was killed in a ship wreck in Jamaica. He married Francis Muscoe,1712-1781, in New Kent county, VA, and their son, John Orrell Livingston, settled west in Wilkes County, North Carolina by the mid-18th century. He is my 4th great -grandfather. I am trying to determine where this line originates in Scotland? Every indication is that it is the Callendar line from the lowlands. My question is why would a member of this line leave for America? The highland Livingstons would have had financial reasons to leave. I look forward to any input on this topic.
Canadian Livingstone
Posts: 2770
Joined: Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:00 pm

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Canadian Livingstone »

Hi Catharine,

Welcome to Clan Maclea Livingstone Forum. I also have wondered about the origins of the Poropotank Creek Livingstons of Virginia in Scotland. I understand that Livingston researchers descendants from this Livingston family have suspected a connection with the Callendar Livingstons. There is my knowledge however no definite proof of origins of this Scottish Livingston family in Scotland except they are likely of lowland origin. Not all lowland Scots with the name Livingston in the 1600's were of the aristocratic Callendar Livingston family. I had some hopes that Y chromosome DNA testing of Poropotank Livingstons might help shed some light on their Scottish Livingston origins through close matches with other Livingston such as those are descended from Robert Livingston Lord of Livingston Manor NY who came to that part of America in the late 1600's who is said to be descended from a Callendar Livingston Lord William Livingston, but apparently there is not match in terms of Y Chromosome DNA so far with this oldest NY Livingston family said to have Callendar Livingston roots and a Poropotank Livingston. I am not certain however how many Livingstons of the Poropotank Livingston ancestry have done a Y chromosome test such as the Familytreedna project some our Livingstones of Argyllshire Maclea Livingstone ancestry have done for more than 10 years now.

I am sorry to say I have not seen any info indicating precisely where in Scotland your earliest Livingston ancestor in Virginia came from for certain. Sometimes settler land petitions include information provided by the settler indicating where the settler originated in the British Isles but generally this kind of info does not occur in land grant and deeds. No doubt back in the 1600s there would have a been a paper trail for whatever land transaction took place where your family acquired that large acreage of land, but even if you were lucky enough to find a copy of the original land transaction it is probably not very likely that it would mention their family origins in Scotland. The land records office in Richmond Virginia apparently has land records going back to 1625 and land related information on early settlers of King and Queen County, Virginia I suspect.

This is problem for many Americans of Livingston Scottish lowland origin who settled in America in the 1700's. Most of them have no documented information or old family history records indicating precisely where in Scotland they came from or none that survived over the many years. They would have come over on a sailing ship, but most of the early voyages of Livingstons to America do not have any passenger lists which survived over time or that has located and indexed. And even if they did still exist they don't always record the origin point of those travelling aboard the vessel to America.

In terms of family research I see a book with a family tree by Lucille Barco Coone published in the 1990's The Livingstons of Virginia and some more family history activity and info by some descendant of the Virginia and later North Carolina family group of this original family but no information that you are probably looking for regarding where precisely in Scotland the original Virginia family originated. Also this publication focusing on early families including those of Queen and King County.
https://library.genealogical.com/printp ... p?ref=1458

also https://mygenealogy.secure-chrislands.c ... fred-Bagby

The Livingstons Livingstones that ended up in what is today the southern United States of Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia, Kentucky represent a number of interesting Livingston from a variety of origins. Some of these Livingston families are undoubtingly of Scotch Irish origin. That is to say Livingtons of Lowland Scots likely of South Western Scottish counties who settled in Ulster Ireland in the early 1600's and later settled in early 1700's in Pennsylvania, Virginia and migrating into other states of the South. In North Carolina near the South Carolina border a number of Livingston families of highland Argyllshire Maclea Livingstone origin located. There is Greene County, Georgia Livingston family that has info stating that they are Scotch Irish likely from County Down in Ulster apparently their ancestor arriving in Georgia in the early 1700's. So there are Livingstons in the Southern States with a number of different origins no doubt. Some I am more familiar with than others in terms of a sense of their probable origins. I always enjoy learning about Livingston families such as yours that I know very little about and appreciate you visiting our forum with your inquiries. My focus has been largely Argyllshire Maclea Livingstones which is where my Livingstons originate, but make an effort to try to be informed on many of the other Livingston family groups out there.

regards,

Donald (Livingstone) Clink
Historian
Clan Maclea Livingstone Society
Greg Livingston
Posts: 308
Joined: Wed Jul 22, 2009 11:42 pm
Location: Ankeny, IA, USA

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Greg Livingston »

Catharine,

Do you have a male Livingston relative that would be interested in joining the MacLea/Livingstone/Boggs DNA project on FamilyTreeDNA? This could assist you by pointing you in the correct direction for continuing research.
Greg Livingston
Clan Commissioner
Northglenn, Colorado, USA
CatherineAllene
Posts: 9
Joined: Mon Apr 15, 2019 10:56 pm
Location: Surry County, Virginia

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by CatherineAllene »

Donald and Greg,

Thank you for your reply. I have a close 3rd cousin, Robin Livingston, [130 shared cm] whom, I believe,tested with the Family Tree Livingston DNA project and maybe others. I will contact him today. Our results are both on Family Tree since he tested there and I transferred my DNA to that site and to Gedmatch as well. My brother, Jon Correll, tested on Ancestry and also my daughter. Unfortunately my older brother, Jim Correll, tested on 23 and Me.

A few of our closest Livingston family members still live in North Carolina in Wilkes and Caldwell Counties near the South Carolina line. Our line is interesting in that there were several Livingston children born outside of marriage so that the Livingston name remained in my family from New Kent, VA in the early 18th century to my grandmother, Nola Livingston, who married George Henry Correll.

Catherine Correll Walls
CatherineAllene
Posts: 9
Joined: Mon Apr 15, 2019 10:56 pm
Location: Surry County, Virginia

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by CatherineAllene »

My third cousin, Robin Livingston, replied to question about testing as follows:

"I didn't test with this group, but joined the FTDNA project. They are a Y-DNA project. I have also joined the White surname Projects on FTDNA and uploaded m Big Y data file to the DNA warehouse for addition into the Big Y phylo tree."


Catherine
Canadian Livingstone
Posts: 2770
Joined: Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:00 pm

Re: First Highland Livingstons in America?

Post by Canadian Livingstone »

HI Catharine,

Our Clan Maclea Livingstone group has been involved with Y chromosome testing via familytreedna for close to 15 yrs I think as have many other Livingstons not connected to this Clan group or the subsequent Clan Maclea Livingstone Society. There are now a very large group of Livingstones Livingstons from a number of origins including those like my cousin who is directly descended from a Livingston from Morvern, Argyll a short nearby to the Isle of Lismore where the Clan Chief and his ancestors have lived for centuries in Western Argyllshire. But as I was saying the Y chromosome testing results via Familytreedna has suggested there are a number of other Livingston family groups out there. I am not familiar with the other Y Chromosome tests out there but I know like you say that other companies offer them. I am more familiar with familytreedna.

Since there are so many Livingstons since the early 2000's that have been tested with the Familytreedna and given that little i known about the Poropotank Livingston Scottish origins, I would definitely encourage Robin to go with the 67 or 111 marker Y chromosome test if he has not done so. He might find it easier also to understand his matches and be kept up to date by familytreedna on any new Livingston matches that come up from time to time or other families that are also closely matched with Livingstons.

The results for the Maclea Livingstones have been very consistent and helpful with the genealogical research I had been doing with many of the participants as well as some other Livingstons matching with other DNA match groups. I have also been working with some Livingstons who tell me their families resided in Ulster Ireland and they seem to be a part of few Livingston match groups who interestedly have info suggesting they are what in America and Canada are referred to as being "Scotch Irish". The challenge for the moment is trying to eventually determine where in Scotland their Livingston ancestors may have lived their family members settled in the six counties of Ulster in the 1600's. I have info that some of the Livingstons who settled in County Down in Ulster and other nearby Counties may have originated from some Counties in South Western Scotland like Ayrshire and other nearby Counties. There are still Livingtons living in these South Western Scotland counties but I don't know that any of them have done the familytreedna test. What I am hoping is that someday a Livington proven to be of South Western lowland Scottish ancestry will be a match with a known Livingston of Ulster Scotch Irish ancestry but I may have wait for that to happen if it happens at all - sometime in the future - if my hunch proves to be correct. Certainly the Ulster history is on my side I think in that it is a known fact that many of the Scottish Presbyterian settlers from lowland Scotland that settled in Ulster in the early 1600's originated from South Western Scotland in lowland Counties like Ayrshire.

regards,

Donald
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