Scots in Georgia and the Deep South, 1735-1845by David Dobson. Published by Genealogical Publishing Company, 1001 N. Calvert St., Baltimore MD 21202. 2000. vi, 218 pp. Hardcover. $25 plus $3.50 p&h.
Scottish immigration to Georgia began in the 1730's after the founding of the colony in 1732. The Scottish Lowlanders came for economic reasons as farmers and later as merchants. The Scottish Highlanders were recruited for strategic purposes to guard the southern frontier from Spanish incursions. The end of the French and Indian Wars in 1763 saw the withdrawal of the Spanish from Florida and the French from the settlements east of the Mississippi. This led to an influx of settlers, including the Scots into the South. Many of these Loyalists left when Florida was returned to the Spanish after the Revolutionary War.
Research for this book was carried out in Scotland, England and the United States with an emphasis on primary sources. These include probate records, court records, family papers, contemporary newspapers and journals, naturalization papers, church registers, gravestone inscriptions, government documents and census returns.
The details given are varied but two examples will highlight the value of these extractions.
BULLOCH, ANN GRAHAM, widow of James Bulloch, in Mulberry Grove, Georgia, sister Elizabeth - widow of James Jackson vintner in Inverness, nephews John and Thomas, sons of Reverend Thomas Chisholm in Kilmorack, executors John Stuart, Superintendent of Indian Affairs in South Carolina, and cousin George Cuthbert, witnesses Christopher Dawson, a planter, and Mary, wife of George Cuthbert of Drakies, Georgia. Pro 26 June 1764 Georgia.
CAMERON, DONALD, soldier of the Black Watch, imprisoned in the Tower of London on a charge of mutiny, transferred to Oglethorpe's Regiment in Georgia in 1743 [GHS, Cate Colln. 45/3172]
Unfortunately, the value of this excellent list is limited by the absence of an everyname index. This means individuals mentioned within citations are not cross-referenced. In the above examples there are no entries for the Chisholms, Christopher Dawson or Mary Cuthbert.
Reviewed by Paul Milner
BIGWILL v.7 no.5, 2000