McNaughtons of Ireland alphabetical

246 Pages·2015·3.99 MB·English

THE McNAUGHTONS OF IRELAND

After a few pages of introduction you will find my 240 page database of all the references I have found to male McNaughtons/McNaghtens/McNattens etc who
were alive pre c.1840 and had a stated link to Ireland. It is in alphabetical order - and approximate chronological order within that. However, scroll up and down
through a name to check that an individual doesn’t reappear later. If anyone discovers any more, please use the comments section and I shall update the table
over the years.
Some females are found at the end.

Notes:
Mc implies Scottish roots, and is hence more prevalent in Ulster. This database is hence heavily skewed to families in Ulster, and particularly County Antrim.
Marriage between Catholics and Protestants was always common. Catholics frequently ‘renounced Papism’ to further themselves in Society – particularly in order
to inherit land.
Note that when someone was married in an Anglican church, I erroneously put their religion down as C o I (Church of Ireland) when in fact they could have
been any religion but were only allowed to marry in the Parish Church (which was the Anglican Established Church).

I feel that, in the 18th C, “McNaghten” and particularly “McNatten” imply longer Irish domicile than McNaughton. However, some of the East Antrim coast
McNaughtons had been resident there -possibly for hundreds of years – in what was basically a Scotch community, the Glyns.
There is some evidence that McNaghton was pronounced McNaten/McNeighton. McNaughton was often recorded in England as MacNorton.
Most McNaghten families had changed their name to McNaughton by 1860 (and the Clan chief ones to Macnaghten).

The ones below are the Macs, Macks, Mcs, M’s and Ms : Naghtans, Naghtens, Naghtins, Naghtons, Nattans, Nattens, Nattons, Nautons, Nottens, Northens,
Nortons, Naughtans, Naughtens, Naughtons, Naightons, Neightons, Naughtins, Knightons, Nuttons and Nachtans. (On many search engines [PRONI, UHF], only the
precise spelling is searched for; and Ancestry won’t bring up Mc Norton in a search for McNorton!) Some are transcribed as McNangthon, McNutton and even just
plain Nafton! Often, the best way to search is for M*cN**t*n. Don’t forget to check for M’Naghtens etc. (often by typing MNaghten). Adobe Acrobat requires
exact spellings.

Websites I have checked include:
https://familysearch.org
www.ancestry.co.uk
www.findmypast.co.uk
http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&Surname=McNaughton&UserID=
http://www.proni.gov.uk/ (Public Records Office, Northern Ireland)
http://www.irishgenealogy.ie
https://rootsireland.ie
http://www.ancestryireland.com (Ulster Historical Foundation)
http://www.ireland.anglican.org/about/105 www.ballymoneyancestry.com
www. colerainefhs.org.uk
http://www.billmacafee.com/index.htm
http://www.failteromhat.com/
http://www.eneclann.ie/acatalog/Archive_CD_Books_Ireland.html
http://www.ballymoneyancestry.com/
[email protected]

In the table below are basically the male McNaughtons known to have been born in Ireland pre 1840. (Sorry the numbering is so crazy) It won’t actually help you
get any further back than the records you have (though it might have done!!) but it will alert you to just how many individuals with the same name were about at
the same time. It will help avoid jumping to conclusions. There are evidently mistakes in here (and not all are my own.)The sources are rarely stated and you’ll
have to use websites to find the actual record, but at least you can see what is and what isn’t out there.

Any names of spouses and parents, linking of entries etc. etc. that anyone can add, would be very much appreciated.

I am slowly building Family Trees for various McNaughton families on Ancestry.com:

Davis/McNaughton/MacNorton/Tracy/Treacy/Stacey/Pain
(My one- with several Napoleonic British soldiers in it if you click on Margaret McNaughton’s siblings) http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/69604131/family

McNaghten of Ballyreagh and Liverpool Family Tree
(Minor gentry of the Cloghs area) http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/79370546/family

McNaghten of Coleraine, Ballyboggy and Beardiville Family Tree
(A landed and influential family including the Clan Chiefs but ignore pre 1600 info since it is probably faulty. The Atticur/Kiltimurry branch is yet to be added)
http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/78153455/family

McNaughtens of Ballyrashane Family Tree.
(A humble Presbyterian family from the Coleraine and Ballymoney area with the same name as their landlords at Ballyboggy)
http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/79952754/family
McNaughtons of Cloughs, Layde & Cushendall Family Tree
(Predominantly Catholic farmers of the Glyns, but beware that some of the landed Ballyboggy family lived there too).
http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/77849459/family

McNaughton's of Dungannon Family Tree (farmers at Mullycrunnet especially) http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/81501815/family

Also look at the Glenravel Historical Society Tree for all the poor Catholic McNaughtons of the Clogh and Skerry area
http://trees.ancestry.co.uk/tree/19522790/family

Any information on the ones in bold would be very much appreciated. (The reason the whole table came about is that I was trying to find the ancestry of my 5
X Gt grandmother Margaret McNaughton (ref no.85 – now listed immediately after her brother Bartholomew)) born Nr BallyCastle, Antrim c.1783. Even after all
of this, I still can’t decide whether she was the daughter of a visiting soldier, from an Antrim blacksmith’s family or from an illegitimate line of the local gentry
!!

I can however now presume that she was the sister of a soldier Bartholomew McNaughton/McNaghten (ref no.76) born in BallyMoney in 1785.
He married Ann in Ealing (London) in 1807 and had Sarah in 1808 and George in 1818 BUT, in June 1809 the regiment says his wife was Mary who had three
children with her at the time!! I have found no trace of Bartholomew after his discharge in 1821 and I think he may have started another family elsewhere
(probably Ireland – but possibly Scotland or even Canada [he’s on a ship there in 1827]!)

Hence any information on early 19thC Bartholomew McNaughton’s round the world would be fantastic.
Also, any Mcnaughtons etc spotted in the newly released Roman Catholic registers, which are not transcribed, would be
much appreciated. http://registers.nli.ie/

Many Thanks

Jon
Jon.lee63 AT googlemail.com
WHEN A MCNAUGHTON FAMILY MIGHT HAVE ARRIVED IN IRELAND

The following is basically a series of paragraphs about Scots Irish migration cut and pasted from articles and books as I tought myself about Irish History and when
McNaughtons might have come to certain areas. It was an aide-memoir and never intended for publication. Hence it is plagerised and references are often not
given. I do apologise to the authors and hope that they forgive its use in this document which is purely for family research. You may be lucky and find information
that points to when your McNaughtons are likely to have first arrived in Ireland – but don’t get your hopes up!

The Norman invasion of the late 12th century marked the beginning of more than 700 years of direct English and, later, British involvement in Ireland. In 1177,
Prince John Lackland was made Lord of Ireland by his father Henry II of England at the Council of Oxford.[Wiki]

From these early times, Scotts were regularly employed as mercenaries (Gallowglass service) in Ireland and some may have settled there. “The first 160
Gallowglass, who appear to have been from Clan MacDoughall arrived in Ireland in 1259AD as part of Dougall MacSorley’s (King of the Hebrides) daughters dowry
in her marriage to Aedh O’Connor, the then King of Connaught. The Gallowglass fought like the Normans protected in mail coats and iron helmets. But they were
notable with their characteristic two handed axes and Claymores (a large 2 handed sword). This trickle of warriors became a flood as many mercenary Gallowglass
Clans either sought new lords after backing the losing side in the Scottish wars of Independence or just somewhere to ply their trade, and given the battle against
the encroaching Normans or the constant inter-Clan warfare there was always a demand for the services in Ireland.

Many Clans like the McCabe’s and MacSweeney’s transplanted completely to Ireland. The MacSweeney’s vacated their homeland around Castle Swin on the
Argyll peninsula in Scotland for life in the service of the O’Donnell’s in Donegal. Others remained seasonal travellers appearing in the spring and summer offering
their services to the highest bidder (everybody appears to have decided that making war in autumn and winter in Ireland was a bad idea). While others like the
MacDonald’s/MacDonnell’s’ and MacNeill’s established territories in County Antrim in the northeast of Ireland to complement their lands in Scotland (the
MacNeill’s appear to have been the new occupants of Swin Castle vacated by the MacSweeney’s). County Antrim provided the shortest crossing point between
Scotland and Ireland and the presence of Scottish Clans there may have been an attempt to monopolise this lucrative trade”.
(http://www.irishorigenes.com/content/gallowglass-do-you-belong-warrior-clan)

John Mor MacDonnell, Lord of the Isles (an idependant principality of Scotland - its domain including the islands of Islay, Jura, and Rathlin, and part or all of the
peninsula of Kintyre), settled in the Glens of Antrim in 1399 and formed a huge estate from Coleraine to Larne. This was headed by the Earl of Antrim.
In about 1500, MacDonalds of the Isles found their rebelliousness against the Scottish government had made Scotland too hot for them. Alexander or Alastar
MacDonald, who had five or six sons, gave serious attention to strengthening the clan’s foothold in Antrim. Thereafter as Macdonnells, the sons proceeded to
annex the lands of the MacQuillans — an Anglo-Norman family— by the device of raiding and warring.
The youngest of the Macdonnell brothers was Sorley Boy (1505-1590). In 1558 he was established as Lord of the Route, and by the Route is meant a slab of
Antrim extending inland from the sea between the rivers Bush and Bann. In 1580 an army of 3000 Scots landed with fighting culminating in the battle of Ora in
1583 (between Loughguile and Layd). In Jan 1585 Sorley boy landed at Red Bay with 2000 Scots – which culminated with him being granted the land from
Coleraine to Larne.
Consequently Shane Dhu MacNaughtan had employment when he came over from Scotland: he became land agent and managing assistant for Sorley Boy.
Those Scots that settled in the 16th C were ‘industrious and proud farmers’ – and Catholic.

The Crown did not attempt to assert full control of the island until after Henry VIII's repudiation of papal authority over the Church in England and subsequent
rebellion of the Earl of Kildare in Ireland threatened English hegemony there. Henry proclaimed himself King of Ireland and also tried to introduce the English
Reformation, which failed in Ireland. Attempts to either conquer or assimilate the Irish lordships into the Kingdom of Ireland provided the initial impetus for a series
of Irish military campaigns between 1534 and 1603. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ireland)

When James became King of England and Ireland in 1603, English military and political pressure on the Catholic Gaelic Irish landholders increased and eventually
resulted in ‘The Flight of the Earls’ in September 1607. Sir Randal MacDonnell had his ownership of the four northern baronies of Antrim (330,000 acres)
confirmed but, in exchange, was induced to encourage Protestant English and Scots to settle (just prior to The Plantation of the rest of Ulster).
In 1609 a fort was built at Coleraine to resist the raids of Scottish islanders and enable settlement. In 1610 the Plantation of Coleraine was begun by London
Companies - The Irish Society being given land for 3 miles around by Sir Randal. [By 1611, 380 men were involved in building the town (and there were 100 men
living there by 1622, and 357 living in the town and Liberties by 1630.)] Sir Randal was rewarded by being made Earl of Antrim in December 1620. His chief agent
was John Shane MacNachten and his descendants became the MacNaughton gentry of North Antrim - with the MacNaughton Clan Chief getting the estate of
Benvarden and being High Sheriff of Antrim. Ballymoney was established around 1620.

SCOTTISH SETTLEMENT OF COUNTIES ANTRIM & DOWN

The MacDonald clan from Scotland, who in addition to being mercenary soldiers in Ireland, settled much of County Antrim in the 1400s and gradually increased
their holdings by strong-arm tactics. King James VI of Scotland had cultivated the Antrim MacDonald Chief, Sir Randal MacDonald, in order to deprive the
rebellious MacDonalds of the Scottish Highlands of an obvious source of support, and to keep Irish power in the north of Ireland as weak as possible. On
becoming King of England in 1603, James gave the MacDonalds patent to their land in Antrim. MacDonald, although a Roman Catholic, immediately began settling
his lands with Lowlanders from Scotland, the first arriving in 1607. By 1630 there were 800 Scottish males living on the MacDonald estates in Antrim. This would
have meant a total Scottish population of about 3,000. In County Down, the two leaders of the Scottish settlement were Hugh Montgomery, a Scottish laird from
Braidstone in Ayreshire, and James Hamilton, who had begun his career in Ireland as a school teacher in Dublin in 1587. The terms of the crown’s grant to these
two Scots were specified in 1605, and included an obligation to inhabit the lands with Scots and Englishmen. The planning and settlement was left entirely in the
hands of Montgomery and Hamilton. The first Scottish settlers arrived in 1605-1606. Their first task was to build cottages and booths out of sods and saplings,
then the soil was tilled. By 1630, there were about 2,700 Scottish males on these two estates in County Down, of which about 80% were names commonly found
in the south-western counties of Scotland. When females and children are added to the total, there would have been about 5,000 Scots settled in Down in 1630.

THE OTHER SIX PLANTER COUNTIES

In 1610, the Crown developed an elaborate, detailed and rigidly controlled scheme for the settlement of Counties Armagh, Donegal, Cavan, Fermanagh, and
Londonderry. Nine extensive areas in these six counties were assigned to Scots for plantation. These baronies or precincts were then divided into lots of 1000,
1500, and 2000 acres, not including bogs and mountains. Those who received these lots were termed ‘undertakers’. Over each barony was placed a Chief
Undertaker, who was allowed to receive up to 3000 acres. Chief Undertakers were chosen by the King and included one Duke, one Earl, three Barons and four
Knights. Fifty ordinary Undertakers were then chosen by the Chiefs. All Undertakers were expected to be on their land by September 30, 1610. On every 1000
acres received, there had to be 24 able bodied Scots or Englishment over families (to minimize old clan allegiances). Two of the families were to be freeholders;
three were to be leaseholders, and the remainder could be cottagers. Undertakers had to be prepared to muster their tenants twice a year and to provide them
with weapons. They were to be called on to fight any insurrections of the Irish. Undertakers were given three and one half years to erect fortifications, the type
determined by the size of the lot granted. Men of 2000 acres, for example, were required to build a small castle of stone or brick, with a stone wall surrounding it.
All Undertakers had to post bonds, as a guarantee that they would comply with the conditions. Failure to comply resulted in forfeiture of the land. Reporting
requirements resulted in the production of countless muster rolls and maps, some of which have survived. Because of surviving muster rolls and maps, the names
of most of the original planters can be determined. By 1622, there were between 3000 and 4000 Scottish adults on the land in these six counties.

DENIZATION

Prior to 1707, Scotland was a distinct Kingdom from England, governed by its own laws, with its own manners and customs. To ensure that the arriving Scots
could be kept under control from rising up in Ireland in support of their brothers in Scotland, they were required to take an oath of loyalty to the British Crown, as
‘denizens’ in Ireland. For Scots to become English subjects in Ireland, it was necessary to obtain letters patent of Denization, pay a fine and take the Oath of
allegiance. As a denizen, the planter occupied an intermediate position between an alien and a native born subject. He had the privilege of purchasing land, but
heirs born before the date of denization could not inherit the land on the denizen’s death. A denizen could use the law courts, but was not qualified to hold any
office of trust, civil or military. ‘Naturalization’ was a second step in the process, which could only be applied for after seven years of denization. It placed the alien
in the same position as if he had been born a British subject. All the obligations and rights of citizenship applied. Those who refused denization were essentially
without rights to property or law. (http://www.thestewartsinireland.ie/stewart-origins/)

“By 1630, there were 814 Scots and 142 Englishmen of military age living on the Earl of Antrim’s estates. Half of these families were in the barony of Dunluce, on
the fertile lands of the Route, with most of the rest in the town of Glenarm or along the coast of County Antrim. However at least half of the Earl of Antrim’s chief
tenants were Irish or highland Scots, as were many of the smaller lessees.” (Montgomery, Ian. Tenants on the Estates of the Earls of Antrim in the Seventeenth
Century)
After 1630, Scottish migration to Ireland waned for a decade. Indeed, in the 1630s, many Scots went home after King Charles forced the Prayer Book of the
Church of England on the Church of Ireland, thus denying the Scots their form of worship. In 1638, an oath was imposed on the Scots in Ulster, ‘The Black Oath’,
binding them on no account to take up arms against the King. Insulted twice, many returned to Scotland. (http://www.thestewartsinireland.ie/stewart-origins/).

The 1613 overthrow of the Catholic majority in the Irish Parliament was realised principally through the creation of numerous new boroughs which were
dominated by the new settlers. By the end of the seventeenth century, recusant Roman Catholics, as adherents to the old religion were now termed, representing
some 85% of Ireland's population, were then banned from the Irish Parliament. Protestant domination of Ireland was confirmed after two periods of war between
Catholics and Protestants in 1641-52 and 1689-91. Political power thereafter rested entirely in the hands of a Protestant Ascendancy minority, while Catholics and
members of dissenting Protestant denominations suffered severe political and economic privations at the hands of the Penal Laws.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ireland)
Roman Catholics were restricted in acquiring and retaining property, and Presbyterians were not allowed to hold office; and both had to pay tithes to the Church
of Ireland.

Some McNaughtons changed their name to McNaught1 to signify that they were Protestant. Davie McNaughton has come across several accounts of the changing
of the name in Ireland:
“The Laird "Sir John" adhering to the old faith, while the son, also a " John" taking up the Protestant persuasion and and using the McNaught as a surname to
differentiate from his Father.”
Apparently, McNaught, MacNeight, MacKnight, MacNutt, Menautt, Minnitt, Knight, Menagh, Menaght were used interchangeably in different areas – but I
doubt by the mid eighteenth century. Many McNaughts were found but have not been included here.
(If I had put on all the plain Naughtens, Naughtons and Naughtans on, we’d be submerged.)

The Ulster Forces and Covenanting Army: Muster Rolls of 1642
‘Men and Arms’: The Ulster Settlers, c. 1630,
is essentially the first ‘census’ of English and Scottish settlers in the nine counties of Ulster in the early seventeenth century. The edition includes extensive
additional information on the settlers drawn from a variety of contemporary sources.

The Presbyterian Historical Society in Belfast holds transcript copies of the muster rolls for nearly all the Ulster regiments and troops of horse raised in the
aftermath of the 1641 Irish Rebellion. The official mustering of the Ulster forces was carried out by William Robert in 1642. Two almost complete sets of muster
rolls of the Scottish Covenanting army have survived in the National Archives of England – two rolls for each of the ten foot regiments, and two each of the
general’s lifeguard of horse and of foot. Hew Kennedy mustered the army as it landed in Ulster. Thomas Clayton, who conducted the second muster, was
evidently an English man, and appointed by the muster master general of England. He mustered the great majority of the army from 9th to 14th September 1642,
the exceptions were Sinclair’s, mustered 28th September, Argyll’s 16th to 18th November, and a few men of Lindsay’s, 5th November and Lothian’s, 10th
November, 1642. (over 300 rolls!?)
Kew: SP16/492/58; SP16/539/1/105; SP28/120

Full scale Irish Rebellion broke out on 23rd October 1641 and by January 1642 the land to the West of the River Bann at Coleraine was lost to insurgents, with a
massacre of British soldiers by the MacDonnels taking place on 3rd Jan 1642 at Portna. On the 11th February there was an Irish victory at the Battle of the Laney
and the church and town of Ballymoney was burned. In April a large Scottish Army 8–10,000 strong under Maj Gen Robert Monroe arrived to crush the Rebellion
and the Earl of Antrim decided to render his services. Coleraine was relieved in May (after perhaps thousands had died from disease). At Ballybogey or Benvarden
where the McNaghtens were, there was a small fort in the middle of the bog but it surrendered. The male defenders were taken to Dunmull but many were then
executed in what became known as the Dunmull massacre. Coleraine became a garrison for the Scottish Army which was quartered from Portna to Ballycastle
until 1648 - and several will have presumably settled in the area. The 17th C settlers were however, compared to the industrious ones of previous centuries, little
more than the ‘scum’ of Scotland and England. (see http://archive.org/stream/jstor-20608903/20608903_djvu.txt)
The Earl of Antrim forfeited his lands.

On 3rd Jan 1649 King Charles I was beheaded and enraged Ulster Scots besieged Londonderry. Cromwell landed in August and defeated Sir George Munroe’s Army
which then returned to Scotland. The countryside was still mostly populated by Scots – with the English living predominantly in the towns. Plague and famine
ravaged the area till 1653. In 1652 the Presbyterians really started to arrive in numbers. In 1656 the countryside between Coleraine and Clough was described by
a visitor as “Scotch country”. In 1659, there were 633 people living in Coleraine and its Liberties – and a mere 26% of those were Irish.

With the Restoration of the Monarchy in the 1660s, the area was restored to the Earl of Antrim. Presbyterian ministers were however ejected.
By 1668 Coleraine was Ulster’s fourth most important port and in 1673 a bridge was built across the Bann. It also became a garrison town. Around a thousand
Scots per year were by now arriving – to escape religious persecution in Scotland - and Presbyterianism flourished. Quakers also arrived at that time – with
meetings at Coleraine, Ballynacree and Ballymoney. There were very few Papists in Coleraine town – in 1666 there were only 12 catholic families in the town, 12
in the suburbs and 8 in the rest of the parish. Many Scots came to Ireland in the 1680s.

In 1688 the Protestant William of Orange was appointed King in England, and King James II fled to Fance. Support for James still held in Ireland and it was decided
that the Earl of Antrim should hold Londonderry for King James. In December, he arrived with his Catholic army but the gates were barred by the Protestant
inhabitants and the famous siege ensued. No McNaughtons are listed as being amongst the defenders – though Helen, wife of John MacNaughton of Benvarden
(and the Clan’s Chief) was there with her uncle Stafford. On 7th April the Protestant garrison of Coleraine abandoned the town and burned it – making for Derry.
William’s army eventually landed in Ireland and the siege of Derry was lifted (a couple of McNaughtons are listed as fighting at Derry with the Jacobite army). By
August 1689 the entire north was under pro- Williamite forces (Danish forces were quartered at Bellaghy, Ballyrashane and Dunluce). The Jacobites were finally
defeated at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. However, even in 1704 the area was still much ruined - and the economy too (with shipbuilding ceasing and the Irish
woollen trade supressed).

There were great winds in 1713, drought from 1714-19, livestock disease 1716-17 and harvest failures 1726-28

Throughout Ireland, Protestants known as middlemen rented large amounts of land on the various estates then sub-divided the land into smaller holdings which
they rented to poor Catholic farmers. The middleman system began in the 1700s and became a major source of misery as they kept sub-dividing estates into
smaller and smaller parcels while increasing the rent every year in a practice known as rack-renting.

The average tenant farmer lived at a subsistence level on less than ten acres. These Catholic farmers were usually considered tenants-at-will and could be evicted
on short notice at the whim of the landlord, his agent, or middleman. By law, any improvements they made, such as building a stone house, became the property
of the landlord. Thus there was never any incentive to upgrade their living conditions.

The tenant farmers often allowed landless laborers, known as cottiers, to live on their farms. The cottiers performed daily chores and helped bring in the annual
harvest as payment of rent. In return, they were allowed to build a small cabin and keep their own potato garden to feed their families. Other landless laborers
rented small fertilized potato plots from farmers as conacre, with a portion of their potato harvest given up as payment of rent. Poor Irish laborers, more than
anyone, became totally dependent on the potato for their existence. They also lived in a state of permanent insecurity with the possibility always looming they
might be thrown off their plot. (http://www.historyplace.com/worldhistory/famine/introduction.htm )

Farm rents trippled in the 1720s and emigration to America (Boston in New England) really took off.
Rents in town increased greatly in 1734 with an expansion of the Linen Trade. By 1737, farm rents were said to have become so great that tenants were unable to
live.There was a poor harvest in 1739 and a severe winter; a failed grain harvest in 1744; and a hard winter in 1756. South Carolina offered settlers inducements
in 1737 and Philadephia in Pennsylvania was popular in the 1750s. There was much hardship after the 1756 harvest was destroyed by October storms. In 1759
3,500 Protestant weavers left for Pennsylvania, and Nova Scotia too. By 1768, New York had 3000 houses (though no Catholics), and Connecticut,
Massechusettes, Vermont and New Hampshire were fully settled. There were then two bad harvests and a depression in the linen trade from 1772-74. Estates
were let to the highest bidder – who then had to oppress the tenantry to pay for it. It was estimated that 300,000 people emigrated from Ireland to America from
1733 to 1773 and, with a hatred for the English government, later formed the bulk of the army for American Independence. Most of them were Presbyterian – for
Catholics seemed tied to their ancestral parish.

Most rural houses were long low buildings of stone and mud, with 3 rooms and stable and cowhouse attached; rush or straw thatch and a few (if any) small
windows. In 1769 most holdings were 6 – 20 acres in size. Most scraped a living by spinning and weaving at home – with a small holding to provide food. Spinning
of flax fibre was done by the women, and the men would weave it into cloth. This was then bleached using Kelp and dried on the bleaching greens. The staple
food of the poor was potatoes, oatmeal and milk and they generally kept cows. In 1776 they were better off than they had been twenty years earlier and dressed
remarkably well – with the Scotch women wearing red shawls on Sundays. Marriage without parental consent was a heinous sin and could be met with dire
financial penalties. By 1790 many of the bogs had been worked out and turf for fuel became too expensive for the poor.

In the 1730s tenancies had been for 41 years or 3 lives (with an extra 20 years if improvements had been made). In 1749 tenants were ejected if improvements
and repairs had not been made. In 1764 leases for improving tenants were for 31 years or 3 lives but in 1767 perpetuity leases were granted if applicants could
prove their right to holdings (NOTE: much genealogical information contained there-in) but never-the-less, from 1765 over 30,000 linen weavers and farmers
from Ulster emigrated to America to free themselves from the unjust landowners (or undertakers). Many that remained joined the insurgent Hearts of Oak or
Hearts of Steel men in 1770 – Protestant tenants protesting at landlords’ evictions. Some were killed - but all were pardoned in 1772. (Many loyal inhabitants
posted Memorials of their loyalty in the Belfast News.)

The depression in the Linen Trade in 1772 led to much unemployment and a fear of attcks by the White Boys. In 1771 Ballymoney was guarded by Colonel
Campbell’s Highland Watch of ‘uncouth looking mercenaries’. In general the locals hated the army. Residents mostly supported the cause of the Americans but
when Independence was declared 4th July 1776, deep and long-lasting rifts occurred between families in Ballymoney. In 1776 Coleraine formed its 1st Company of
Volunteers to resist French Invasion.
Coleraine expelled any beggars who wouldn’t work but the poor were sustained by the Parish Cess. A fund for relieving the poor was set up in 1773 and a House
of Industry set up in 1775 – run by the Coleraine Charitable Society - with 13 residents and 84 persons receiving outdoor relief. This was discontinued in 1790.
A Methodist revival took place from 1772 with several visits by John Wesley till 1789.
Ballymoney was burned by Government forces in 1783 for being a centre of rebellion. In 1785 two companies of the 5th Foot were stationed at Coleraine – with
dragoons too.
Ballycastle had prospered from the mid 1700s with collieries and glasshouses. In 1785 the pier was swept away and blocked the basin. This may have been the
start of its demise - which was compounded by lunacy in the Boyd family that owned most of the town.
(My ancestor Margaret was born in Ballycastle c. 1783 and her brother Bartholomew in Ballymoney in 1785. He joined the 5th (Irish) Dragoons in 1797 (nearly two
years underage) which implies the family was living in Co. Antrim from 1783 – 1797 at least – and that their father was therefore more likely to have been a local
inhabitant (though still possibly in the army) rather than a visiting Scotish soldier merely stationed in Antrim during the mid 1780s. They were from the labouring
class and the father most likely a weaver. Margaret and Bartholomew were certainly both Church of England in later life – many soldiers were Established
Church.)

In 1795 three companies of foot were stationed there and in 1796 EA McNaghten of Beardiville wrote that most of the inhabitants of Upper and Lower Dunluce
and Carey had taken the Oath of the United Irishmen (many of whom were Roman Catholics and Seceders). They tried to lure soldiers to join them and rumour
held that most of the Kerry Militia (an ‘abandoned set of men’) stationed at Coleraine were U.I. They were replaced by HM’s Somersetshire Fencible Volunteers
and the 2nd Royal Manx Fencibles and the Aberdeen Fencibles. The Coleraine Yeomanry (foot and horse) was formed in 1797. By 1798 many people were refusing
to pay rents. Clough and Ballymoney were centres of the republican United Irish Rebellion of 1798. Many ‘idle Irish’ from Ballymoney were reported to be in
Scotland ‘pestering’ the inhabitants of Campbeltown to join the U.I. When actual Rebellion broke out in June, both Ballymena and Antrim were captured by