Col. Donald Robertson b.1761 Blair Atholl d.1834 Nova Scotia

[Damadyl]

My Great-Grandfather was Alexander A Robertson, born in 1859 in Pictou, Nova Scotia. He died in 1918 in Quincy, Massachusetts. His father was Daniel Robertson, born in 1823 in Pictou and died in 1910 (unsure where). I am getting stuck on his father. I believe it was the Donald Robertson who immigrated from Rannoch aboard the Sarah in 1801, when he was 13. That jives with the Donald Robertson who was born in 1788 and died in 1871 in Barney's River. Donald's father's name should be Alexander Robertson, but I don't know which one and that is where I am stuck. I believe they lived on the Big Island that was granted to Colonel Alexander Robertson of Struan, so they must have been relatives of his. I am looking for at least the names of Daniel's ancestors

[deacon]

Before I reply to Damadyl's request, I should like to make to all and sundry two points about what has been posted heretofore in this thread.

Firstly, the subject heading of this thread is "Col. Donald Robertson b. 1761 Blair Atholl d. 1834 Nova Scotia." It should be noted that Donald Robertson was not a colonel or any other rank--he appears to have been a husbandman--and the only reference to this business about being a colonel is the statement in his widow's obituary in the issue of The Dundee Courier & Argus (Dundee, Scotland) of Saturday, December 24, 1870, and headed Death of an aged Blair-Athole Woman in Nova Scotia. The first two sentences of the obit reads: An aged lady, Janet Campbell, widow of Colonel Robertson, died in Nova Scotia, at Barney's River, on the 12th of last month, after a few days' illness, in the hundred and second year of her age. The Halifax Presbyterian says she was born in Blair-Athole, Perthshire, Scotland, in October, 1769, immigrated with her husband, a son, and two daughters to this country in the year 1800, and settled at Merigomish, in the county of Pictou.

Since the Courier & Argus is referencing a church newspaper, the Presbyterian, we can assume that the Presbyterian is the primary source for the suggestion that Donald Robertson was a colonel. We can also assume--at least, I am assuming--that a family member provided the information for the notice and, since I have read many incorrect obituaries in my genealogical pursuits of the last twenty years, I submit that no one should be surprised if some of the provided information is incorrect. Although Donald Robertson was not a colonel, his son, John, was; and a reference to the line of Robertsons called the "Colonel Robertsons" may have gotten jumbled 'twixt the cup and the lip and the jumble was ultimately printed. (You will note that Chetnut1 in his post of Jan. 27, 2014, makes reference to the family lines called the "Colonel Robertsons" and the "Piedmont Robertsons." You will also please not ask me what unit John Robertson was colonel in.) You can see a photograph of Donald Robertson's stone in Kenzieville Cemetery here: http://www.borenich.co.uk/Ross_Document ... nald_1760 with a photograph of Col. John Robertson's stone immediately below it.

Secondly, just because A.J. Bannerman, a great-grandson of Donald Robertson, titled his 1960 booklet The Family Tree of the descendants of Lt. Col. Alexander Robertson of Struan, Scotland, and said that Donald Robertson was the son of Lt. Col. Alexander Robertson of Struan, Scotland, does not mean that Donald Robertson was the son of Lt. Col. Alexander Robertson of Struan, Scotland. And, in fact, he wasn't. You may then well ask why Bannerman said so; and my guess would be that he was always told that he was, just as I was told from an early age that a certain famous signer of the Declaration of Independence was my ancestor (he wasn't--all that was in common with my family was the surname). Mr. Bannerman was 91 years old and his sister, "who did considerable research," was 81 years old when this booklet was compiled. No sources are quoted; no bible records have been consulted; no church records were searched.

It was important (apparently) to Mr. Bannerman that he establish for posterity the link between his family and that of Lt. Col. Alexander Robertson of Struan because of the implied nobility of the lieutenant-colonel's family line. Quoting from Bannerman's booklet: "He (the lieutenant-colonel) was one of the Clan Donnachaidh of Athol, known as the Robertsons of Struan, whose lineage is found in Scottish history back to the Battle of Bannockburn, where they supported Bruce. Shortly afterwards the name of Robertson was given to the Clan after Robert, third Chief after Duncan. Henceforth they were known as the Robertsons of Struan of Athol. . . Any person whose name appears on this Tree may thus trace his lineage back to Chief Robertson the Third, when the name of Robertson was given to the Clan in honour of the third Chief after Bannockburn."

Here are the first paragraphs of Bannerman's "Foreword," with extraneous sentences about the Clan Donnachaidh (which, incidentally, is pronounced "Donnachie") edited out by me in order to keep the focus on the lieutenant-colonel:
"Colonel Robertson was a native of Scotland, a distinguished soldier in the British Army during the Revolutionary War of the eighteenth century. . . The Colonel's regiment was disbanded and the Crown granted to him lands at Merigomish, N.S. described as the big island and two small islands in Merigomish Harbor. . .
"In 1801, members of his family came from Blair Athol, Scotland, to Merigomish, N.S. and later to Barney's River. There, Donald was granted 200 acres of land near Kenzieville. . .
"In Kenzieville, close to the highway and near the Presbyterian Church is the Cemetery. There, Donald Robertson is buried. A monument to his memory records his relationship to the distinguished Colonel."

Bannerman didn't have to prove Donald was the colonel's son; just saying so was good enough for him. And that last sentence is drive-by balderdash. There neither was nor is such a monument in Kenzieville cemetery. Those looking for the origins of Donald Robertson and Janet Campbell are better served by this website: http://www.borenich.co.uk/Ross_Document ... John.html

So then, Damadyl, thanks for waiting. I have to tell you that there is nothing in Bannerman's booklet nor at the website noted above that mentions your people nor allows for their place on the Donald Robertson/Janet Campbell tree, based on your names and dates. But I do have another line of Robertsons that may prove of value to you if you search it. On the last page of Bannerman's booklet there is a list of names floating free, as if they are leftover orts of genealogical information that Bannerman could not use in Donald Robertson's tree. There is no stated relationship between these names, but I can deduce with certainty that this is what the list intends to say: Colonel Alexander Robertson of Scotland had a son, Alexander. This latter Alexander married Margaret MacDonald in Scotland in 1784 and emigrated to Nova Scotia to settle on Big Island. Alexander and Margaret had a daughter named Amelia. Amelia married John Finlayson in 1817. John Finlayson had emigrated from Rosshire, Scotland, in 1805. Amelia Robertson and John Finlayson begat Edward Finlayson. Edward married Catherine Smith in 1874 and begat David Finlayson. David married Estelle Smith in 1908 and begat Ruth Finlayson. Ruth Finlayson married Harry Mason in 1939.

That's what I have, D. And now you have it.

[Damadyl]

Thank you so much for all of your hard work on this! At least I can eliminate one Donald! I believe the Alexander you mentioned in the last part of your post was born in 1753. and immigrated in 1787. I actually do have him in my tree, but I thought he was the Alexander on the Sarah passenger list that had the son Donald that was 13. When I realized that he actually came to Nova Scotia before that, I started researching again and came across this thread. So now, I will focus on the one that immigrated in 1787, and see if I can find a connection to my Daniel, my Great-Great Grandfather