Origin of Dundee Livingston - Alexander Livingston

[Edward J Livingston]

Hi Folks,

I am new member of the forum and hoping gain some information on the origin of a portion of the Dundee branch of the Livngstone family.

Specifically, I am trying to trace the family tree which predates a goldsmith named William Livingstone (1720-1769) born in Dundee. He was the son of Alexander Livingston and Susannah Walker. The normal paper trail appears to dry up with this particular generation which would possibly suggest a relocation to that region during this period. I am descended from this branch and by way of family anecdote, my grandfather was a approached by a genealogist/historian in the 1920's to advise him that he was descended from a historically significant line of Livingstones. This would therefore suggest that some form of meaningful record exists somewhere. Alternatively, it might just have been a creative sales ploy aimed at pushing a copy of E.B Livingstone's book 'The Livingstones of Callender' which has since been passed down through this household. Either way, if any member might be able to shed some light on this, I would be very grateful.

[Kyle MacLea]

Hi Edward,

I'm hoping there will be some others out there who are researching this line who will come upon this post, and respond. This can take some time, but we've had great luck in connecting researchers who find their way here via Google at some point.

That being said, I'm hoping our intrepid researchers out there will find some time to take a look at your request and see if your line matches up with any others being researched.

Not to be discouraging, but this is a time period beyond which it is often difficult for Livingston (and other) genealogists to bridge. My own family can't be brought back to this time period with any certainty, although I have some hunches. The same can be said of many other lines.

However, I am hoping we may find you a useful document or two, or that someone with some experience in this area or with this family will have some suggestions.

We are very happy to have you on the Forum, Ed, and wish you good luck in your search!

Anyone out there with a suggestion or document to help?

Kyle

[Kyle MacLea]

As a side note, a DNA test of your Livingston line may also prove fruitful, quickly establishing relatedness to famous (or not-so-famous) Livingston lines. If you want more information about this possibility, let me know. The main DNA testing company we use is having a sale until the end of the year. But this is always a future possibility if you're not interested now.

Kyle

[jmlivingstone]

Edward,

The only Alexander Livingstone & Susannah Walker I can find, were resident in Falkirk, they had a family of two at the time, Margaret, b/c. 27 Dec. 1645 & James, b/c. 29 July 1653.

These two certainly appear to be too early for your family, but they also appear to be the only couple with the correct names in Scotlands People & Family Search.

As Kyle said, it's difficult to get much further back, I can get back to the late 1770's with Livingstones, before that it's pretty much guesswork at present,

John

[Edward J Livingston]

Hi Kyle,

Many thanks for your postings and warm welcome to the forum. I am looking into the DNA option and have in fact been corresponding with someone on this matter. As you suggest this project might be a tough nut to crack but hopefully with some time and perseverance, it could perhaps bear some fruit.

Thanks again for your time and I look forward to posting any future results.

[Edward J Livingston]

Thanks John.

Given the proximity of Falkirk this does seem like an extraordinary coincidence but the dates are a long way out. I am confident in the connection to William (b. 1720) so perhaps the record of his parents falls into the inaccurate category you mention.

Thanks again, Ed

[Kyle MacLea]

Hi Kyle,

Many thanks for your postings and warm welcome to the forum. I am looking into the DNA option and have in fact been corresponding with someone on this matter.

In addition to my genealogical interests, I am also a geneticist (albeit one in a completely different area than genetic genealogy). If I can be of any assistance, I am always at your service.

John's post was of interest and on-target--if others have thoughts on this connection or other suggestions, please post.

Kyle=

[Edward J Livingston]

Just a brief update on some new developments on this search. It would appear that the Alexander and Susanah were indeed not the parents of William. He was in fact the son of one John Livingston born in County Down in c1700. I have not been able to locate any formal birth record to validate this as yet and searches in this geographical area have not yielded any substantial results. There does however seem to be quite a high occurrence of unusual christian names, notably Grizell, which keeps cropping up in generations subsequent to William.

The first record of William is as an apprentice silver and gold smith in Edinburgh in March 1714. He went on to have 10 children by two different wives. Unusually, the first born son Adam, did not share the paternal grandfathers name of John. The family went on to live in Elgin, Inverness, Glasgow before returning to Edinburgh. Again, if anyone might be able to assist with any record of John Livingston in County Down, I would be very grateful.

[Kyle MacLea]

Ed,

Those Irish records are hard to find sometimes! If anyone has any luck, I'm sure they will post it here.

I think that name Grizzell may help you to find some relatives in a search somewhere. I don't have access to our database of Livingston/es in front of me right now, but if I did, I'd check for that name and see where it shows up. Perhaps someone else cares to take a look for any mentions?

Thanks for keeping us abreast of the research. What made you conclude the parentage was wrong?

Kyle

[jmlivingstone]

Ed,

I've had a look in both http://www.irishgenealogy.ie & http://www.groireland.ie, I could find no information on your John Livingstone in either of them.

Grizell does appear to be quite a rare name, between 1700 & 1800, I could only find around 14-15 listed anywhere in Scotland, most of them appear to be resident close to the east coast.

I could only find one Grizell listed as being born in Edinburgh.

Grizell, b. 13 May 1753, Edinburgh City, f. William Livingstone & m. Isobel Davidson or Yeamen.

William & Isobell m. 17 Nov. 1747 at Edinburgh, they had a son Edward b. 07 Jan. 1756 at Edinburgh.

John