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THE  GORDONS  AND  SMITHS 

AT  -MINMORE,  AUCHORACHAN,  AND 
UPPER   DRUMIN   IN   GLENLIVET. 


JOHN    MALCOLM    BULLOCH 


PRIVATELY   PRINTED 
1910 


AN     EXPLANATION. 


It  was  not  without  hesitation  that  my  brother  and  I  decided  to 
print  the  Mintnore  portion  of  this  record,  as,  unfortunately,  there 
appears  to  be  no  written  evidence  to  show  relationship  between  the 
families  of  Minmore  and  Auchorachan.  That  they  were  related  I  have 
always  understood  ever  since  I  knew  that  there  had  been  Gordons  in 
Minmore,  though  I  ought  to  add  explicitly  that  no  one  else  on  either 
side  whom  I  have  lately  consulted  is  of  that  opinion. 

Mr  Bulloch's  notes  show  that  there  was  a  Harry  Gordon  of 
Minmore  in  Auchorachan  in  1652,  and  according  to  a  memorandum 
which  my  brother  made  of  a  conversation  with  the  late  Colonel  John 
Gordon  Smith,  one  of  the  Auchorachan  Gordons,  was  in  Minmore 
towards  the  end  of  the  18th  century,  These  isolated  facts,  however, 
unsupported  by  any  other  information,  reveal  little.  One  fragment  of 
evidence,  very  suggestive  to  my  own  mind,  rises  up  from  the  past. 
I  remember  my  mother  speaking  of  the  Gordons  of  Deskie  as 
relatives  of  hers.  More  than  once,  whtn  I  happened  to  be  in  Glen- 
livet,  I  have  enquired  about  these  Gordons,  and  was  always  told  that 
the  family  formerly  in  Deskie  were  Stewarts,  not  Gordons.  My 
mother  knew  Glenlivet  so  well  that  this  puzzled  me  a  good  deal,  until 
Mrs  Donald  Gordon  (whose  late  husband  was  one  of  the  Minmore 
Gordons)  incidentally  mentioned  lately  that  some  of  the  Minmore 
Gordons  had  been  in  Deskie,  though  only  for  a  comparatively  short 
time. 

My  late  brother  William,  who  was  very  accurate  in  his  statements, 
told  me  that  my  mother  also  frequently  spoke  of  the  Gordons  of  Glen- 
bucket  as  relatives  of  hers.  But  here  again  no  documentary  evidence 
is  forthcoming. 

Apart,  however,  from  the  question  of  relationship,  my  brother 
and  I  feel  that  the  following  account  of  the  Minmore  Gordons  by  so 
distinguished  a  genealogist  as  Mr  Bulloch  deserves  printing  on 
its  own  merits,  as  a  valuable  contribution  to  Scottish  county  history 
Our  warmest  thanks  are  due  to  Mr  Bulloch  for  having  not  only  put 
the  result  of  his  researches  at  our  disposal,  but  still  more  for  the 
special  trouble  he  has  taken  in  writing  the  whole  of  this  record  for  us 
— the  notes  signed  by  me  excepted — at  a  time  when  he  must  have 
been  overwhelmingly  busy  with  his  own  important  literary   work. 

The  close  connection,  too,  of  this  piece  of  family  annals  with  the 
old  house  which  we  have  known  since  our  childhood,  and  in  which  we 
have  spent  so  many  happy  days,  constitutes  an  additional  reason  for 
giving  it  a  permanent  record.  T.  G.  K, 

Ringwood,  Hants,  October  1909. 


C  O  N  T  K  N  T  S. 

Pages. 

MINMORE  GORDONS         7"44 

William  I.  (alive  1662) 7-13 

Ludovick  II.  (died  1733)           13-14 

William  III.  (died  about  1767)           14-15 

John  IV.  (died  about  1776)      1519 

Major  John  (son  of  IV.) 32-44 

William  V.  (died  1829) 20-31 

AUCHORACHAN  GORDONS        45-51 

GORDON  SMITH  FAMILY 52-57 

INDEX  TO  PLACES 58 


THE  GORDONS  IN  GLENLIVET. 

rpHE  Gordons  of  (more  correctly  in)  Minraore  form  part  of  a 
large  group  of  the  house  of  Gordon  in  the  district  of  Glenlivet ; 
the  name  given  to  the  southern  part  of  the  parish  of  Inveravon,  which 
runs  right  across  Banffshire,  from  Aberdeenshire  on  the  south-east  to 
Elginshire  on  the  north-west.  The  group  consists  broadly  of  the 
families  in  Achnarrovv,  Auchorachan,  Clashnoir,  Inchnacape,  Lettoch, 
Min more,  Mofirsh,  Tomnachlaggan,  Tomnavoulin,  and  Tullochallum, 
with  Croughly  in  the  adjoining  parish  of  Kirkmichael. 

The  associations  between  Glenlivet  and  the  Gordon  family  have 
been  long  and  intimate.  To  begin  with,  Glenlivet  is  associated  with 
the  battle  of  1594,  in  which  the  Earl  of  Huntly  signally  defeated 
Argyll.  To  this  day  the  Marquis  of  Huntly  bears  the  title  of  Lord 
Gordon  of  Strathavon  and  Glenlivet,  created  for  his  ancestor,  the  4th 
Marquis,  in  1660  ;  and  the  district  belongs  to  the  Duke  of  JRichmond 
and  Gordon.  As  such,  it  retains  much  of  the  character  of  feudal 
times.  In  the  Glenlivet  district  his  Grace  owns  4275  acres,  divided 
into  234  holdings  of  under  50  acres  each,  and  rented  on  an  average  at 
12s  8d  an  acre.  The  interesting  point  brought  out  before  the 
Committee  on  Small  Holdings  is  that  in  many  cases  the  families  on 
these  holdings  have  been  there  for  "hundreds  of  years." 

The  fact  is  unfortunate  for  the  genealogist,  because  it  is  chiefly 
through  land  owning,  and  not  mere  tenancy,  that  one  can  trace  a 
family  record.  Another  great  obstacle  to  the  family  historian  is  to  be 
found  in  the  fact  that  many  of  these  Glenlivet  families  are  Catholics, 
and  consequently  they  are  often  unrepresented  in  the  parish  register, 
which  frequently  proved  a  disability  to  those  men  who  went  soldiering 
and  applied  to  the  War  Office  for  pensions. 

The  families  in  the  group  mentioned  differed  considerably  in 
social  importance,  some  being  mere  crofters  and  others  farmers  on  a 
large  scale,  and  some  being  almost  independent  of  the  noble  family  from 
whom  they  held  their  lands.  To  this  set  the  Gordons  who  dwelt  in 
MimiDre  belonged.  Unfortunately  many  of  their  records  were 
destroyed  when  Drimnin  House,  in  Argyllshire— where  the  Minmore 
family  is  naw  represented — was  burned  to  the  grounl;  but  we  know 
enough  from  other  sources  to  ba  able  to  piece  their  history  together. 

Minmore  Castle  is  now  a  ruin,  and  on  the  adjoining  site  stands  the 
famous  Glenlivet  Distillery,  belonging  to  the  family  of  Smith-Grant, 


which  combines  .three  of  the  Glenlivet  groups — the  Gordons  in 
Minmore,  the  Gordons  in  Auchorachan,  and  the  Smiths  in  Upner 
Drumin.  The  Smiths  are  descended  from  the  Auchorachan  Gordons, 
and  though  the  blood  relationship  of  the  latter  with  the  Minmore 
Gordons  is  by  no  means  clear,  the  continuity  is  asserted  in  the  tenancy 
of  the  Smith  family  on  the  estate  of  Minmore. 

The  three  strains — Minmore,  Auchorachan,  and  Upper  Drumin— 
are  here  treated  in  succession.  The  facts  have  been  gathered  from 
many  sources,  but  special  acknowledgement  is  due  to  Mrs  Skelton, 
the  author  of  "  The  Gordons  Under  Arms,;:  in  preparation  for  the 
New  Spalding  Club;  for  without  her  patient  research  it  would  have 
been  impossible  to  have  pieced  together  the  military  careers  of  the 
Minmore  family.  For  most  of  the  information  on  the  Smith  group  the 
writer  is  indebted  to  Brigade-Surgeon  George  Grant,  and  to  his 
sister,  Mrs  Grant  Robertson,  Ringwood,  Hants  (the  "  I.G.  K. ' 
of  the  notes),  to  both  of  whom  the  present  little  book  is  due. 
It  is  an  enlarged  reprint  of  a  series  of  articles  which  appeared 
in  the  "  Huntly  Express"  (the  greatest  source  of  Gordon  genealogy) 
between  June  1  and  July  27,  1906 ;  Feb.  14,  1907 ;  and  Feb.  28, 
March  6, 1908. 


THE  GORDONS  IN  MINMORE. 

^PHE  lands  of  Minmore  were  tenanted  by  a  family  of  Gordon, 
for  over  two  centuries — at  least  from  1632  to  1840,  when  the 
family  of  Smith,  in  Upper  Drumin,  took  up  the  tenancy.  The 
Minmore  family  is  still  represented,  notably  in  Mr  J.  C.  Gordon,  of 
Drimnin,  Argyllshire,  but  it  hr>s  ceased  t)  be  connected  with  the 
country  of  Glenlivet,  the  nearest  approach  to  a  northern  connection 
being  in  the  ancient  family,  the  Gordons  of  Abergeldie,  who  owe  their 
continuity  of  Gordon  blood  in  the  male  line  to  the  family  of  Minmore. 

The  Minmore  Gordons  trace  to  the  Gordons  of  Knockespock,  in 
the  Aberdeenshire  parish  of  Clatt,  twenty  miles  to  the  north  east  as 
the  crow  flies. 

Alexander  Gordon  of  Knockespock,  son  of  William  Gordon,  who 
was  the  third  son  of  the  famous  "Jock"  Gordon,  of  Scurdargue,  the 
cousin  of  the  lady  who  founded  the  ducal  line — married  "  Ardneedlie's 
daughter,  Bailie,  Lady  Asswanly,  with  whom,"  according  to  the 
Balbithan  MS.,  "  he  begat  four  sons  and  daughters."  The  second  son 
was  Mr  Alexander  Gordon,  burgess  of  Elgin.  The  burgess  married 
Anne  Gordon,  the  laird  of  Strathavon's  daughter,  but  he  also  had  a 
natural  son  "gotten  with  a  gentlewoman  of  the  sirname  of  Stuart, 
called  William  Gordon  of  Menmoir." 

This  bar  sinister  had  nothing  whatever  of  the  stigma  attaching  to 
it  to-day.  The  ducal  line  of  Richmond  itself,  owners  of  Glenlivet, 
are  proud  of  it,  and  the  great  majority  of  the  Gordons  in  the  north, 
including  Lord  Aberdeen's  family,  trace  to  "Jock"  Gordon  of 
Scurdargue,  and  to  his  brother,  "  Tarn,"  of  Ruthven,  who  were  both 
natural  sons. 

WILLIAM  GORDON,  I.  IN  MINMORE. 

rpHE  burgess  of  Elgin  proved  that  he  thought  nothing  of  the 
stigma,  for  he  planted  his  natural  son  William  in  Minmore,  and 
by  a  commonplace  irony  his  legitimate  descendants  have  all  vanished, 
while  the  house  of  Minmore  still  flourishes. 

The  first  reference  to  Minmore  as  associated  with  William 
Gordon  occurs  in  what  is  believed  to  be  the  year  1632.  On  May  7 
and  8  of  a  year  not  actually  stated,  the  Synod  of  Moray,  meeting  at 
Elgin,  ordered  William  Gordon  "  of  "  Minmore  and  others  to  be 
"  processit "  as  "  papists  "  (Cramond's  "  Synod  of  Moray,"  p.  24). 

William  must  have  been  a  man  of  some  note,  for  on  March  28, 
1635,  he  was  commissioned  by  the  Privy  Council  to  arrest  certain 
"broken''  men  (including  twenty-eight  Gordons)  who  were  terrorising 
the  country-side  in  carrying  on  their  fierce  vendetta  against  Crichton 
of  Frendraught,  for  the  death  of  their  chief,  Lord  Huntly's  son. 


A  few  years  later,  Minmore  himself  was  being  hunted  by  the 
Council.  A  staunch  loyalist,  he  appeared  at  the  battle  of  Alford  on 
July  2,  1645,  at  the  head  of  200  "  Straithawine  men,"  and  the  author 
of  "  Britane's  Distemper"  proudly  describes  him  (p.  130)  in  this  connec- 
tion as  William  Gordon  "of  Minimore,  a  waliant  gentleman,  who 
shew  himself  a  loyal  subject  of  his  King,  and  a  faithful  and  constant 
follouer  of  the  house  of  Huntly  in  all  their  expeditions."  He  fought 
in  the  battle  accompanied  by  "three  of  his  sonnes."  His  bravery, 
however,  was  not  proof  against  the  pressure  of  the  reformers,  for, 
according  to  the  same  authority,  he  was  captured  in  1646  by  Middleton's 
Covenanting  troops,  who  sent  him  to  Edinburgh  with  Gordon  of 
Newton,  old  Leith  of  Harthill,  Captain  Mortimer,  and  Thomas 
Stewart  of  Drumin. 

Even  then  his  opponents  did  not  feel  safe,  for  Major  General 
James  Holburn  (as  quoted  in  "  Analecta  Scolica"  1st  series,  p.  247), 
writes  from  Fettercairn  to  the  Lord  Advocate  on  April  27,  1647,  that 
Minmore  and  two  other  officers  werj  "alse  wicked  enemies  as  thir 
kingdom  ever  had."    He  goes  on  to  add  most  significantly  : 

Whatevir  course  you  may  tak  to  spare  their  lives,  yitt 
I  shall  desyre  they  may  never  have  their  liber  tie  while 
you  have  war  in  Scotland  :  for,  besyde  their  most  wicked 
and  malignant  disposition,  they  live  in  such  places  where 
they  have  donne  and  are  able  to  doe,  much  mischeife  ; 
and,  they  being  keept,  those  places  are  queyet. 
The  general   was  quite  right,  for  William  continued   in   his   ways, 
and  on  April,  1658,  the  Synod  of  Moray  ordered  that  William  Gordon  "of 
Minniemore"  and   three  women  should   have  the  sentence  of  excom- 
munication   against    them    for     "  obstinacie    in   poperie,"   intimated 
in  all  the  congregations   of    the   province    (Cramond's  "  Synod    of 
Moray,"  p.  125). 

William  did  more  than  help  his  chief  with  arms.  Be  lent  him 
money,  for  in  November  1632  Lord  Gordon  wadset  to  him  for  £1000 
the  easter  half  of  Lettoch,  and  on  May  24,  1647,  William  Gordon, 
younger  of  Minmore,  and  his  mother  had  sasine  on  Easter  Lettoch 
on  a  charter  by  Huntly,  registered  at  Banff,  May  29, 1647. 

Again,  he  was  one  of  thirteen  gentlemen  commissioned  on 
December  18,  1662,  to  carry  out  the  important  task  of  discovering 
what  lands,  lordships,  and  others  belonging  formerly  to  the  Marquis 
of  Huntly  were  possessed  by  the  late  Marquis  of  Argyll  for  the  five 
years  preceding  his  forfeiture,  and  to  report  thereupon  to  the  Privy 
Council  ("Privy  Council  Register,"  3rd  series,  vol.  i.,  p.  280). 
William  appears  twice  in  the  Inveravon  parish  register  : — 

1638,  August  2. — William  Gordon  of  Minmore  wit- 
nessed the  baptism  of  William,  son  of  Patrick  Camronach 
in  Minmore  and  Isobel  Gordon,  his  wife. 


g 

1642,  April  17.— William  Gordon    in    [sic]    Minmore 

witnessed  the  baptism  of  William,  son  of  William  Gordon 

in  Achnarrow. 

William  Gordon  is  credited  by  the  Balbithan  MS.  with  having 

been  twice  married  to  ladies  of  the  family  of  Grant :  (1)  Janet  Grant, 

whose  parentage  is  not   statsd  ;  and  (2)  "  Grant  of   Auchorachan's 

daughter."     "  Elspet  Gordon,  goodwyff   of    Minimor,"  witnessed   a 

baptism      on   April   7,   1640.     She  seems  to  be   the   "gentlewoman 

(spouse  to  Mr  Gordon  of  Munmore")  who,  when  Huntly  was  captured 

at  Delnabo,  December,  1647,  took  him  word  to  Blairfindy  that  the 

men  of   the  country   would   rescue  him.      ("Illustrious  Family    of 

Gordon,"  ii.,  546.)    The  Balbithan  MS.  assigns  him  four  sons  :— 

1.  Alexander  Gordon.  He  was  born  about  1622,  for,  as 
chamberlain  and  bailie  to  the  lands  of  Glenmuick,  Glen- 
tanner,  Strathaven,  and  Glenlivet  on  the  Huntly  estates, 
he  gave  evidence  in  1662  before  the  Commission  on  which 
his  father  served,  to  ascertain  the  value  of  the  lands  of 
Aboyne,  describing  himself  then  as  "about  the  age  of  40 
years:  maryed  man."  He  is  evidently  the  Alexander 
Gordon,  lawful  son  of  William  Gordon,  who  witnessed 
a  baptism  in  Inveravon  on  March  16,  1637  :  and  also  the 
Alexander  Gordon  in  Minmore,  who  witnessed  the  bap- 
tism of  Alexander,  son  of  William  McCullie  in  the 
Corries,  and  his  wife,  Catherine  Gordon,  on  March  7, 
1644.  As  Alexander  Gordon,  "younger  of  Minimoire," 
he  was  one  of  the  large  number  of  Gordons  whom 
the  Lyons  of  Muiresk  promised  (May  5,  1663)  not  to  harm 
("Privy  Council  Register,"  3rd  series,  vol.  i.,  p.  362),  On 
April  15,  1663,  he  gave  a  bond  of  caution  not  to  harm  the  *  <A- 

Lyons.     He  was,  as  stated,  married,  but  his  wife's  name  \?f*j£3z*f  j 
does  not  transpire.         He   had,    however,   three   natural VVj 
daughters,  as  the  Inveravon  parish  register  shows  :  —       *\j  *TjJ  j-A 

(1)  Janet.         "Alexander    Gordon,     Minimor's    lawfull 

sonne,  his  daughter,  in  fornicatione,  baptised  Jonet,  

August    14,    1642"  :     witnesses,  Thomas  Gordon  and 
Agnes  Mcintosh. 

(2)  Helen.  "Alexander  Gordon  of  Minimor  had  a 
natural  daughter,  Helen,  by  Muriel  More,  baptised," 
August  11,   1644. 

(3)  Marjorie.  "Alexander  Gordon,  Minmor,  his  eldest 
sonne,  his  naturall  daughter  gotten  with  Elspet 
Brabiner,  baptised  Marjorie,"  Jan.  11,  1646,  "Thomas 
M'Innes,  his  broyr,  in  Over  Downan,  witness." 

2.  Captain  Patrick  Gordon  of  Laichie,  the  old  Kirk- 
ton  of  Mortlach,  situate  on  the  banks  of  the  Dullan. 
On  July  14,  1644,  Patrick  Gordon,  the  lawful 
son  of  William  Gordon  "  of  Minimor,"  witnessed  the 
baptism  of  William,  son  of  Alexander  Nelson,  mason  in 
Minmore,  and  Marjorie  Gordon,  on  June  13,  1659.  Com- 
missioned  by    the    Privy    Council,  July  14,    1664,  to  arrest 


10 

rebels,    he  is  called  Captain  Patrick  Gordon.       Patrick 
Gordon     was   clearly    a   man  of  mark,  for  when  Colonel 
Ashfield  wanted  a  man  to  keep  guard  of  those  parts  of 
Banffshire,  lying  near  the  Highlands,  "from  the  incursion 
of  those  looss   people  which   dayly  breake  downe   upon 
them,     doeing    great    spoile    and    carrying    away     much 
goods,"  he  followed  the  advice  of  the  governor  of  Bal- 
venie  Castle   "with  the  gentlemen  in  those  parts  whom 
it  most  concerines  as  to  securitie"  that  Captain  "Petter" 
Gordon  was  a  man  ''fitt  and  able  for  that  charge."     "If 
he  be  thought  soe  by  them,"  wrote  Ashfield  from  Aber- 
deen on  April  30,  1653,   "I   supose  the  rest  of  the  shire 
will  not  opose  :    and  therefore  I  desire   he  may  be  the 
man    imployed    in    that  busines"  ("Scottish   Notes   and 
Queries,"  vol.   ii.,  2nd  series  :    pp.   43-4).         On  May  28, 
1673,  Captain  Patrick  Gordon  of  "Lequochie"  transferred, 
in  payment  of  a  debt,  to  'Robert  Cuming  of  "Ricklettich," 
the    rights    in    a    decreet  which  he  (Gordon)  had  been 
awarded  in  an  action  inithe  Sheriff  Court  of  Banff  against 
Andrew  Rose  of  Lynemore.     Hugh  Gordon  in  Lequochie 
was  one  of  three  witnesses  to  Patrick's  warrant  that  the 
transference  'should  be  registered  in  the  Books  of  Council 
and  Session  (Tarmore  Papers  :   Brit.  Mus.).     He  married 
Jean  Gordon   of   the    Cluny  family.     "Captaine    Patrick 
Gordone,  sone  lawfull  to  William  Gordon  of  Miniemore, 
as  procurator  for  himself  and  for  Mistres  Jeane  Gordone, 
his     spouse,     having     .      .     ane     contract    and    dispositione 
of  wodset,  of  date  at  Westertoune,  3  June,  1659,  granted 
.     .     .     be  Johne,  Anderson  of  Ardbreak,  with  consent  of 
James  Andersone,    his  eldest  lawfull   sone,    to   the    said 
Captain  Patrick  and  Mistres  Jeane  Gordone     ...     of 
fourtie  bolles  victual  payable  of  the  nethermost  pairt  of 
the    toune    and    landes    of    Argathnie.      .      .      ,"     received 
sasine  from  Mr  Alexander  Anderson,   son  lawful  to  the 
said  John  Anderson  (who  married  Anne  Gordon  :    died  1670). 
William   Gordon    "  off    Miniemore"   was   a    witness  to   the 
contract  of  wadset.      Westertoune,  Argathnie,  'and  Ardbreck 
lie  in  the  parish  of  Botriphnie.     Captain  Patrick  had  : — 
(1)  Captain  Charles  Gordon  "in  Pitchaise."     He  is  de- 
scribed in  1692  as  "in  the  Mains  of  Kirdels,"  Knock- 
ando.     On  July  24,   1695,  Patrick  Nairn  of  Morinsh 
gave  a  bond  at  Carron  for  £44  to  Captain  Charles 
Gordon  in  Kirdels  :   registered  May  11,   1697  ("Elgin 
Commissary  Records").  Another  notice  of  him  occurs 
in  the  same  records  :  — "Be  it  kend  to  all  men  be  thir 
presents,  me,  Charles  Mitchell,  writer  in  Edinburgh, 
and  Jean  Blackwood,  my  spouse,  and  I,  the  said  Jean 
Blackwood   for  myself,   for   my   right  I  have  to  the 
same  underwritten  :  Forasmuch  as  upon  the  25th  day 
of  January  1695,  there  was  ane   decreit  obtained  at 
our  instance  against  Captain  Charles  Gordon,  there- 
in   described    in    Pitchash,    now   in    the     Mains    of 
Kirdels,  befor  the  Commissar  of  Murrey,   decerning 


11 

and  ordaining  him  to  content  and  pay  to  us  the  sume 
of  £161  19s  3d  Scots  money  as  principal  1  contained  in 
an  subscribed  accompt  granted  be  him  to  me,  the 
said  Jean  Blackwood,  therein  designed  relict  of 
George  Smellin,  merchant  burges  of  Edinburgh,  dated 
the  24th  of  February  1691,  years  .  .  we  .  .  . 
constitute  .  .  George  Chalmer,  toun  clerk  of 
Elgin,  .  .  our  factor  .  .  Edinburgh,  November 
8,  1695,  before  these  witnesses — William  Gordon  and 
William  Robertson,  writers  in  Edinburgh."  Pitchash 
is  in  the  parish  of  Inveravon,  on  the  opposite  bank 
of  the  Spey  from  Mains  of  Kirdels.  On  May 
26,  1696,  William  Gordon,  brother  to  John 
Gordon  of  JCdintore  notes  that  "  grants  were 
to  have  been  received  from  Charles  Gordon  in  Kir- 
dels, the  soume  of  ane  hundredth  and  two  merks  half 
merk,  Scots  money,  contained  in  a  bond  and  oblig- 
ment,  granted  by  him  as  principall  to  John  Cumming 
in  Tarmore,  Inveravon,  as  cautioner :  and  therefore 
I,  the  said  William  Gordon,  simpliciter,  discharges 
the  said  Charles  Gordon,"  Keith,  September  2,  1696  : 
registered  September  7,  1696.  Charles  shifted  about, 
for  in  August  1699  he  is  described  as  "of  Auchinhar- 
roch,  now  of  Abergeldie"  (Commissary  Court  Books 
of  Moray).  It  has  been  stated,  with  no  very  clear 
proof,  that  he  was  captain  and  adjutant  of  the  Scots 
Guards  in  1688.  Robert  Gordon,  Kirdels,  is  one 
of  the  witnesses  ("Elgin  Commissary  Records").  By 
1698,  Charles  Gordon  married  Rachel  Gordon,  the 
heiress  of  Abergeldie,  Aberdeenshire,  and  founded 
the  existing  Abergeldie  line,  perhaps  the  oldest  land- 
owning Gordon  family  in  Aberdeenshire.  He  was 
made  a  Commissioner  of  Supply  in  1704,  and  built 
the  house  of  Birkhall  in  1715.  He  had  three  sons 
("  House  of  Gordon  ";   (93)-(110),  the  eldest  being  :— 

Peter  Gordon,  XI.  of  Abergeldie  Cdied  1733),  who 
was  three  times  married,  and  had :  — 
Charles,   XII.   of  Abergeldie   (died  1796),   who 
had  seven  sons,  including  : — 

Peter  Gordon,   XIII.   of  Abergeldie  (1751- 
1819). 

David  Gordon,   XIV.    of  Abergeldie  (1753- 
1831).     He  was  the  father  of :  — 
Michael  Francis  Gordon,  XV.  of  Aber- 
geldie (1792-1860). 
Robert     Gordon,    XVI.    of    Abergeldie 
(1796-1869). 

Adam  Gordon  (1801-1839),  who  was  the 
father  of : — 
Hugh    Mackav   Gordon,    XVII.    of 
Abergeldie  (1826-1901). 


12 

Lewis    Gordon,     XVIII.     of  Aber- 
geldie  (1828-1903),  father  of :  — 
Eeginald  Hugh  Lyall    Gordon, 
XIX.     of     Abergeldie,     born 
1863. 

(2)  1  Captain  Alexander  Gordon.  On  March  6,  1699, 
Gethrad  Abraham,  spouse  of  Captain  Alexander  Gor- 
don of  Leachie,  gotisasine  in  liferent,  and  George  and 
Patrick  Gordon,  her  sons,  in  fee  of  the  lands  of 
Leachie,  Tomnan,  Tomnamind,  and  others  ("Banff 
shire  Sasine").  This  Alexander  may  have  been  the 
son  or  the  brother  of  Captain  Patrick  Gordon  of 
Leachie.  The  name  of  his  wife  seems  to  be  Dutch : 
so  he  may  have  been  in  the  Scots  Brigade  in  Hol- 
land, though  this,  of  course,  is  all  pure  guesswork. 

(3)  1  Gordon,  daughter.  According  to  the  Brouch- 

dearg  MS.,  John  Farquharson  of  Inverey,  the  famous 
Black  Colonel,  married  a  daughter  of  "Leacachy." 
She  is  called  Mary  in  the  "Braes  of  Mar."  Accord- 
ing to  the  Boharm  Register,  a  Margaret  Gordon  mar- 
ried John  Farquharson  of  Inverey,  November  18, 
1670.  The  fact  that  she  had  her  son  baptised  (May 
2,  1672)  Patrick  is  suggestive  of  Captain  Patrick  Gor- 
don of  "Leachie"  having  been  her  father  (or 
brother?). 

3.  Harry  Gordon.  He  married  Margaret  Stewart.  There 
was  recorded  at  Elgin  on  June  16,  1653,  a  contract  matri- 
monial "at  Tombreakachie,  7  May  1652,  between  Robert 
Stewart  of  Nevie  and  Arthur  Stewart,  his  eldest  lawful! 
sone,  for  Margaret  Stewart,  the  said  Robert  Stewart,  his 
lawfull  dochter,  on  one  part,  and  William  Gordon  of 
Minmore  and  Alexander  Gordon,  his  eldest  lawfull  sone, 
for  Harrie  Gordon,  sone  lawfull  to  the  said  William  Gor- 
don, on  the  other  part  [for  Harry  and  Margaret]  :  before 
thir  witnesses — Thomas  Stewart  of  Drumine,  John  Grant 
of  Blairfindie,  Patrick  Gordone,  sone  lawfull  to  said 
William  Gordon  of  Minmore,  Thomas  Stewart  in  Tom- 
breakachie, and  Robert  Stewart,  sone  lawfull  to  Robert 
Stewart  of  Nevie."  On  June  14,  1652,  "Harie  Gordone 
in  Auchorachan,"  gives  a  bond  for  £100  to  his  "father- 
in-law,  Robert  Stewart  of  Nevie,  and  on  December  8, 
1655,  Robert  Stewart  of  Nevie  grants  receipt  of  said  £100 
from  "Harrie  Gordon  in  Nevie."  Harry  and  his  wife 
Margaret  had  apparently  been  on  friendly  terms  before 
their  marriage,  for  the  Inveravon  parish  register  records 
under  date  July  15,  1645  :  — "Herie  Gordon,  sonne  lawfull 
to  William  Gordon  of  Minimore,  his  n[atu]rall  sonne 
gotten  in  fornica[ti]one  with  Margaret  Stewart  in  Nevie, 
baptised  James  :  Mr  James  Cuming  in  Thomore,  Alex- 
ander Gordon  in  Minimor,  p[rese]nter  of  the  child  in 
absen  of  the  fayr,  witnesses."  Whether  Harry  was  the 
progenitor  of  the  Gordons  in  Auchorachan  of  a  later  date 
is  not  clear. 


13 

4   John  Gordon  (Balbithan  MS.). 

5.  William  Gordon.  The  William  Gordon,  younger  of 
Minmore,  mentioned  in  a  sasine  of  1647,  may  have  been 
the  son  of  the  second  marriage,  though  he  is  not  men- 
tioned in  the  Balbithan  MS. 

6.  Isobel  Gordon  married  John  Leslie  of  Parkbeg,  in  Mort- 
lach,  son  of  John  Leslie  of  Aberlour  (Macfarlane's  "Gen- 
ealogical Collections"). 

William  Gordon  I.  of  Minmore  seems  to  have  died  in  1674,  for 
the  Mortlach  Session  record  notes,  under  date  September  20, 1674  : 
— "John  Leslie  [probably  in  Parkbeg],  having  borrowed  the  Mortcloth 
to  Minimoir,  and  not  being  a  parishioner,  did  promise  to  pay  a 
rex  dolor." 

LUDOVICK  GORDON,  II.  IN  MINMORE. 
Died  in  1733. 
nPHERE  is  a  difficulty  with  William's  successor,  for  it  is  not 
clear  in  what  relationship  the  next  laird  we  hear  of,  Ludovick 
Gordon,  stood  to  him.  He  seems  to  have  been  the  grandson  of 
William  I.,  or  perhaps  the  great  grandson,  the  son  of  the  latter's  elder 
son  Alexander,  for  an  Alexander  Gordon  "  of  Minmore"  witnessed 
the  baptism  of  Alexander  Catanach,  the  boatman  of  Cromdale,  on 
March  3,  1716.  (Cromdale  Register.)  It  is  most  unlikely  that 
he  was  the  son  of  William,  "  younger  of  Minmore,"  who  had 
sasine  of  Easter  Lettoch  in  1647,  and  who  discharged  the  Lettoch 
wadset  in  1683 ;  but  a  Ludovick  Gordon  got  sasine  in  Minmore  in 
1676,  so  that  this  particular  William  seems  not  to  be  Ludovick's 
father. 

This  Ludovick  had  a  brother  William,  mentioned  in  1676,  who 
seems  to  be  the  William  Gordon,"  lawful  son  to  the  deceast  Minimor," 
and  who  witnessed,  on  February  4,  1692,  a  disposition  of  1000  merks 
by  Robert  Grant  of  Del  more  to  his  spouse,  Barbara  Leslie,  at  Del- 
more,  January  21,  1692  :  registered  February  4,  1692  (Elgin  Com- 
missary Record.)  All  this  is  very  fragmentary,  but  we  know  some 
definite  facts  about  Ludovick  Gordon,  as  follows  : — 

1676,  November  29. — "Ludwick  Gordon  of  Minimoir" 
had  sasine  on  the  lands  of  Minmore  (Banffshire  sasines). 

1681. — Bond  for  100  merks  by  Lodovick  Gordone  of 
Minmore  to  William  Mackphersone  and  Patrick  Mack- 
phersone,  alias  Mackullie,  in  Wester  Corie.  Signed  at 
Minmore,  December  6,  1681,  before  witnesses  William 
Gordon  of  Dunnoone  and  William  Gordon,  brother  ger- 
man  to  the  said  Lodovick :  recorded  April  17,  1693 
(Elgin  Commissary  Records). 

1693,  February  13. — Ludovick  Gordon  of  Minmore 
had  sasine  on  the  lands  of  Over  Dunan  (Banffshire  sas- 
ines). 


14 

1696,  June  1. — Bond  for  400  merks  by  Patrick  Nairne 
of  Morinch  (with  Ludovick  Gordon  of  Minmore  as  cau- 
tioner) to  William  Grant,  chamberlain  of  Knockando. 
Mcrinch,  June  11,  1692  (Elgin  Commissary  Records). 

1699,  October. — Ludovick  Gordon  "of  Minimore" 
signed  a  bond  for  the  peaceable  behaviour  of  his  men 
(seven  in  number),  who  included  his  own  son  William 
and  a  William  Gordon  in  Upperdunan  (Allardyce's  "His- 
torical Papers,"  p.  18). 

1700,  November  5. — Renunciation  of  feu  ferm  of  Min- 
more, by  Lodvick  Gordone  of  Minmore  ;  also  renuncia- 
tion and  grant  of  redemption  of  lands  of  Over  Dunan, 
by  the  same  ;  both  in  favour  of  Duke  of  Gordon  (Banff- 
shire sasines). 

1700,  December  20. — Lodvick  Gordon  of  Muniemore 
and  William  Gordon,  his  son,  had  sasine  of  the  lands  of 
Minmore  (Banffshire  sasines). 

1712,  July  22. — Elspet  Gordon  in  Dounan  had  sasine 

of  the  annual  rent  of  8C0  merks  out  of  the    oxgate    of 

Dounan. 

The  name  of  Ludovick's  wife  is  unknown.     She  may  have  been 

Helen    Grant  (daughter  of  Robert  Grant  of  Tombreakachie),  who  on 

May  1,  1683,  got  sasine  in  liferent  on  Minmore.     Ludovick,  at  anyrate 

had  a  son  who  succeeded  him. 

William  Gordon,  III.  in  Minmore. 

Ludovick  died   in  1733,    for   on   June   1,    1733,  -C3    was  paid  for 
the  mortcloth  to  Lewis  Gordon,  Minmore  (Aberlour  Parish  Register). 

WILLIAM  GORDON,  III.   IN  MINMORE. 

Died  about  1767. 
XXE  was  the  son  of  the  second  holder  of     Minmore,    but    very 
little  is  known  about  him. 

1725,  May  13. — William  Gordon  of  Minmore  was  one 
of  the  witnesses  to  the  Duke  of  Gordon's  bond  in  favour 
of  William  MacWilliam,  eldest  lawful  son  of  Duncan 
MacWilliam  in  Corries  for  5000  merks :  subscribed  at 
Gordon  Castle  (Banff  Sasine  Register). 

1732. — In  this  year  the  name  of  William  Gordon  "of 
Minmore"  appears  in  a  list  of  persons  owing  rent  for 
grazing  in  the  parks  of  Badeglassan  and  Pitchaish.  His 
debt  amounted  to  £4  10s  (Ballindalloch  estate  accounts 
in   the   Tarmore    papers,    Ms.    Department,    British    Mus.). 

1732,  January  19.— The  sum  of  £6  14s  4d  was  paid  to 
William  Gordon  of  Minmore  for  a  boll  and  a  peck  of 
victual,  with  the  straw  furnished  by  him  to  William 
Grant  of  Blairfindy  for  maintaining  Grant's  horse  (ibid.). 

1737,  February  25.— William  Gordon  of  Minmflre  and 
Margaret  Stuart,  his  spouse,  had  sasine  on  Milnlands  of 
Refroish  (Banffshire  sasines). 


15 

1759,  February  1. — William  Gordon  of  Minmore  and 
Patrick  Grant  of  Nevie  are  mentioned  under  this  date. 
William   (Jordon  is  stated  to  have  married  Margaret  Stewart,  by 
whom  be  had 

1.  John  Gordon  in  Minmore. 

2.  Anselm?  In  the  catalogue  of  the  students  at  Ratisbon 
there  occurs  a  reference  to  "  F.  Anselmus  Gordon,  rilius 
Wilhelmi  de  Minmore."  He  was  bom  February  16,  1721. 
He  began  philosophy  under  the  Dominicans  and  theology 
in  October  1739,  under  the  same  teachers. 

William  seems  to  have  died  in  or  about  the  year  1767. 

JOHN  GOEDON,  IV.  IN  MINMORE. 

Died  about  1776. 

TTE  was  the  eldest  son  of  William  Gordon  in  Minmore,  to  whom 
he  was  served  heir  August  24,  1767.  He  was  a  captain  in  the 
Jacobite  army,  and  commanded  Prince  Charlie's  bodyguard  at 
Culloden.  According  to  the  official  return  of  the  rebels,  he  had 
"behaved  discreetly  and  protected  the  houses  of  Sir  Harry  Innes  and 
several  ministers." 

The  following  are  the  dry  facts  of  his  land  transactions  :  - 

1757,  September  24. — John  Gordon,  yr.  of  Minmore, 
is  mentioned  in  a  document  of  this  date  as  acting  as  an 
arbiter  (Elgin  Commissary  Record). 

1767,  December  8. — Sasine  was  presented  in  favour 
of  John  Gordon  of  Minmore  as  heir  to  his  father,  William 
Gordon  of  Minmore,  in  all  and  haill  the  town  and  lands 
of  Minmore  extending  to  eight  oxgate  lands  ;  proceeding 
upon  a  precept  of  clare  constat  granted  by  the  Duke  of 
Gordon.  Sasine  was  also  presented  in  his  favour  on  four 
oxgate  lands  of  Downan,  proceeding  on  a  precept  of  clare 
constat  granted  by  Elspet  Grant,  his  spouse,  to  John 
Grant  in  Downan  with  consent  of  her  husband  (Banff- 
shire sasines). 

1767,  December  26. — He  renounced  the  lands  of  Min- 
more and  DoAvnan  in  favour  of  the  Duke  of  Gordon.     On 
September  24,  1771,  George  Gordon  of  Gight  had  sasine 
on  Minmore  (Banffshire  sasines). 
He  is  probably  the  John  Gordon  in  Alinmore,  for  whose  mortcloth 
18s   was  paid  on   August   11,   1776.       Simila*  sums   were    paid   on 
December      ,  1772,  and   February  18,  1776,  for  mortcloths  to  Min- 
more's  wife,  whi<:h  looks  as  if  he  had  been  twice  married.      He  had: — 

1.  William  Gordon  of  Minmore. 

2.  Lewis  Gordon.  He  started  his  career  as  a  soldier.  In 
a  return  to  the  War  Office  in  1828,  he  states  that  he  en- 
tered the  army  in  1782  at  the  age  of  15  (which  would 
make  1767  his  birth  year)  as  an  ensign  in  the  Northern 
Fencible  Highlanders.     The  regiment  was  disbanded  in 


16 

1783,  but  no  half-pay  was  given  to  the  officers.  He  then 
served  as  a  private  in  the  1st  Volunteer  Corps  formed 
in  Scotland,  at  Edinburgh,  from  August  1794-March  1797. 
He  is  stated  to  have  been  appointed  an  ensign  in  the  1st 
Strathspey  Fencibles,  February  13,  1796  ("London 
Gazette,"  p.  163).  In  his  own  return  he  states  that  he 
was  appointed  lieutenant  in  the  Edinburgh  Royal  High- 
land Volunteers,  March  10,  1797,  receiving  no  pay,  for 
the  officers'  pay  was  spent  on  clothing  the  rank  and 
file.  He  became  captain  and  adjutant  on  August  31  (or 
September  9),  1797,  at  3s  9d  a  day  (again  spent  on  cloth- 
ing for  the  men) :  resigning  in  August  1801.  The  regi- 
ment was  disbanded  in  1802  on  the  Peace  of  Amiens.  On 
November  19,  1801,  he  was  appointed  ensign  of  the  8th 
West  India  Regiment,  and  purchased  a  lieutenancy  in 
the  35th  Foot,  May  27,  1802,  being  placed  on  half-pay, 
October  25,  1802,  upon  the  reduction  of  the  2nd  battalion. 
In  June  1803,  the  Highland  (Edinburgh)  Volunteer  Regi- 
ment was  re-established,  and  he  was  appointed  captain. 
He  then  became  major  of  the  1st  or  Highland  Edinburgh 
Local  Militia,  March  23,  1809  :  it  was  disbanded  in  1814. 
All  this  time  he  had  been  associated  with  the  Highland 
and  Agricultural  Society  of  Scotland,  the  service  of  which 
he  entered  in  1792  (Ramsay's  "  History  of  the  Society,''  pp. 
520-1).  In  1795,  he  was  appointed  depute-secretary,  and 
was  admitted  a  member  of  the  Society  in  1799.  On 
March  22,  1820,  he  wrote  a  letter  to  E.L.  Snee,  secretar;/ 
to  the  Society  for  Bettering  the  Condition  of  the  Poor, 
London,  as  follows  (British  Museum,  Add.  MSS.,  35.652, 
f.  337): — "In  compliance  with  the  wish  of  the  committee 
of  the  Society  for  Bettering  the  Condition  of  the  Poor, 
expressed  in  your  letter  of  17th  inst.,  addressed  to  Mi' 
Macdonald,  I  beg  to  annex  a  list  of  the  local  agricultural 
societies  which  have  been  formed  in  Scotland,  so  far  as 
known  to  me.  It  is  possible  there  may  be  a  few  other 
farmer  clubs  recently  instituted,  of  the  formation  of 
which  the  Highland  Society  of  Scotland  have  not  as  yet 
been  apprised.  It  will  afford  me  peculiar  satisfaction  if 
I  can  at  any  time,  in  the  least  degree  to  promote  the 
highly  important  and  humane  objects  of  your  Society." 
Ill-health  compelled  him  to  relinquish  his  post  in  1821. 
During  his  term  of  office  he  "discharged  the  varied  offi- 
cial duties  of  the  situations  he  filled  in  such  a  mannr- 
as  to  merit  the  uniform  approbation  of  every  member  of 
the  Society.  Few  officers,  in  like  situations,  have  evi- 
denced so  much  zeal,  united  with  so  sound  a  discretion, 
in  the  exercise  of  their  official  duties  as 
Mr  Gordon "  :  and  when  the  state  of  his 
health  obliged  him  to  retire  "to  the  country," 
the  directors  recorded  a  vote  of  thanks  to  him 
and  presented  him  with  a  piece  of  plate  valued  at  £60. 
He  took  up  his  residence  in  Aberdeen,  and  died  there 
unmarried  on  January  23,  1839,  at  the  age  of  72,  and  the 


17 

directors  of  the  Society  recorded  in  their  minutes  "the 
deep  sense  entertained  of  the  great  zeal,  assiduity,  and 
attention  uniformly  evinced  by  him  during  the  long  period 
of  his  connection  with  the  Society,  which  it  was  known 
to  several  directors  present  had  contributed  in  no  incon- 
siderable degree  to  the  extension  of  the  numbers  and 
usefulness  of  the  Society."  He  is  commemorated  by  a 
stone  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Chapel  at  Tombae. 

3.  John  Gordon,  major  in  the  army,  died  1819.     I  treat  him 
separately. 

4.  Harry  Gordon,  said  to  be  a  major  in  the  army.       He  is 
not,  however,  identifiable  in  War  Office  records. 

5.  Sarah  Gordon :  married Reid,  Aberdeen,  and  had  :  — 

(1)  Henry  Reid,  major  in  the  English  army.  "He  was 
one  of  those  who  formed  the  Body-guard  of  Louis 
XVIII.  during  Waterloo"  (Information  from  Miss 
Katherine  M'Cann  Gordon). 

(2) Reid  :    married  at  Edinburgh,  August  1,   1809, 

John  Gordon  (1783-1831),  younger  son  of  William 
Gordon  in  Lettoch.  John  Gordon  was  a  wine  mer- 
chant at  Gibraltar.  He  had  the  following  issue  :  — 
i.  William  Robert  Gordon :  born  September  24, 
1812.  On  the  death  of  his  father  in  1817,  he  and 
his  sister  were  sent  home  from  Gibraltar  to  Aber- 
deen, where  they  were  taken  charge  of  by  their 
grandmother,  Mrs  Reid.  He  was  educated  at 
the  Grammar  School  and  Marischal  College, 
where  he  was  a  Bajan  and  Semi  in  1825-7.  He 
was  apprenticed  to  a  firm  of  solicitors  at  Aber- 
deen, and  in  July  1833,  started  business  for  him- 
self at  Keith.  He  was  appointed  Procurator- 
Fiscal  of  Banffshire,  January  1842  (removing  to 
Banff),  and  held  the  appointment  until  May  1879. 
During  this  period  he  prosecuted  in  upwards 
of  2000  criminal  indictments,  and  there  was  only 
one  libel  which  was  not  sustained,  on  the  ground 
of  relevancy  or  regularity  of  form,  while  convic- 
tions on  the  merits  were  obtained  in  at  least  99 
cases  in  a  hundred.  About  1850  he  joined  forces 
with  Mr  Cameron,  Elgin,  afterwards  with  Mr 
Alexander  Watt,  and  finally  with  his  own  son 
Clement.  On  the  occasion  of  his  retirement  from 
practice  in  1879  he  was  entertained  at  dinner  by 
the  members  of  the  Banffshire  Society  of  Solici- 
tors. For  some  years  after  his  retirement  he 
resided  at  Elgin,  and  ultimately  went  to  Edin- 
burgh, where  he  died  October  16,  1898.  He  was 
four  times  married :  (1)  in  1837  to  Margaret, 
second  daughter  of  James  George,  Haughs, 
Keith  (who  ran  the  Keith  Brewery) — she  died 
leaving  two  sons  and  two  daughters  :  (2)  to  Clem- 
entina Grigor,  sister  of  Dr  John  Grigor,  Nairn — 


18 

she    survived    only    two    years,    leaving  a  son, 
Clement :    (3)  to  Elizabeth  Birks,   his  children's 
governess,  who  died  twenty-two  years  later,  leav- 
ing two  children :    (4)  to   Clarissa,   daughter    of 
James  Hutchison  of  Springfield,  and  widow    of 
James  Gordon,  corn  factor,  Inverness  (by  whom 
she    had    Forrester  Hutchison  Gordon,    marine 
engineer,    Glasgow,    and    James    Gordon,    solicitor, 
Peterhead).      Mr  W.   R.   Gordon   had   issue  by  his 
first  three  wives,  as  follows  : — 
(i.)  James  John  Gordon  (by  first  marriage)  took 
the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Law  at  Edinburgh 
University  in  1859,  and  became  a  solicitor  in 
Banff.     He  wrote  "A  Treatise  on  the  Prac- 
tice   of    the    Criminal    Law    in    Scotland," 
written  for  and  dedicated  to  the  University 
of    Leipzig,    June    30,    1868 :    printed  at  the 
"Banffshire  Journal"  Office  (29  pp.).    He  was 
one  of  the  Procurators  for  the  Poor  of  Banff- 
shire, and  died  unmarried  (in  England  1 ) 
(ii.)  Harry  Gordon  (by  first  marriage).     He  is 

on  a  ranch  in  Australia, 
(iii.)  Clement  William  Robert  Gordon  (by  the 
second  marriage,  through  which  he  heired 
some  of  the  Grigor  money).  He  was  a  soli- 
citor, succeeding  his  father,  whom  he  prede- 
ceased, dying  at  York,  Dec.  1,  1897,  He  was 
twice  married — (1)  to  Isabella  Gilzean, 
daughter  of  James  Petrie,  solicitor,  and  bank 
agent,  Dufftown :  (2)  Mary  Josephine,  daugh- 
ter of  Colonel  Michie  Forbes  Gordon, 
H.E.I.C.,  of  the  Minmore  family.     He  had— 

a.  Clement  Grigor  Gordon  (by  first  mar- 
riage), solicitor  in  Nanango,  Queensland. 

b.  Ludovick  Francis  Joseph  Gordon  (by 
second  marriage),  born  December  10, 
1881.  Apprenticed  to  a  civil  engineer  in 
Inverness,  he  is  now  in  Queensland. 

c.  Alastair  Gordon,  born  May  8,  1888  :  now 
in  (Queensland. 

d.  Hilda  Mary  Stewart  Gordon,  born  May 
13,  1880. 

e.  Beatrice  Gertrude  Gordon,  born  Sept. 
13,  1883. 

f.  Mary  Angela  Gordon,  born  Mary  31,  1885. 

g.  Dorothea  Marv  Josephine  Gordon,  born 
April  4,  1890. 

(iv.)  Francis  Gordon  (by  the  third  marriage). 

He  was  delicate  and  died  young.     He  was  to 

have  been  an  architect, 
(v.)  Louisa  Gordon  (by  the  first  marriage)  died 

May  31,  1904.     She  married  George  Gordon 


19 

(1832-1908),  land  surveyor,  Tullochallum, 
Morfclach,  afterwards  of  Edinburgh.  He  be- 
longed to  the  Gordons  in  Achnarrow,  Inver- 
avon,  who  had  been  connected  with  that  farm 
for  generations.  About  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  they  moved  to  the  farm  of 
Upper  Clochan  in  the  Enzie.  Mr  Gordon's 
grandfather,  John,  succeeded  a  maternal  uncle 
in  the  farm  of  Tullochallum  in  Mortlach  in 
1771,  where  he  also  had  the  hill  grazings  of 
Culraggie,  which  extended  to  the  march  with 
Inchnacape  at  the  water-shed  between  Glen- 
livet  and  Tomintoul.     Mr  Gordon  had  :  — 

a.  Alexander  William  Gordon,  surveyor, 
Inverness.  He  is  married  to  Margaret, 
daughter  of  Andrew  Macdonald,  Sheriff- 
Clerk,  Inverness,  and  has  a  son  George. 

b.  Henry  Gordon,  C.E.,  South  Africa.  He 
is  married,  and  has  a  son  George. 

c.  Daughter :  unmarried. 

(vi.)  Mary  :  married  James  Brand  (eldest  son 
of  Charles  Brand,  railway  contractor,  Glas- 
gow). Mr  Brand,  who  died  on  January  1, 
1909,  aged  77,  had  six  sons  and  five  daughters 
("Book  of  Robert  Burns,"  iii.,  27-8).  The 
sons  were  :  — 

a.  Charles  Joseph  Brand. 

b.  James  Gordon  Brand. 

c.  Henry  Francis  Brand. 

d.  William  Robert  Joseph  Brand. 

e.  David  Guthrie  Brand. 

f.  Clement  Ignatius  Brand. 

(vii.)  Gertrude  Gordon  (by  third  marriage). 

ii.  Louisa  Gordon  :  died  unmarried. 

iii.  Mary  Anne  :  married  at  Aberdeen,  October  1, 
1839,  to  Donald  Gordon  Stuart,  Liverpool,  whom 
she  predeceased.  She  died  October  8,  1855,  aged 
39.  He  was  the  son  of  William  Gordon  of  Inch- 
cape  :  then  of  Scalan  and  then  of  Back  Street, 
Keith,  by  Margaret,  sister  of  James  Stuart  of 
Lower  Thames  Street,  and  he  adopted  the  name 
of  Gordon.  (Stuart's  brother  Gabriel  was  the 
great-grandfather  of  Sir  John  Knill,  now  Lord 
Mayor  of  London).     They  had  no  issue. 

6.  Margaret  Gordon  :  married  Alexander  McNab  of  Wester- 
ton,  Aberdeenshire,  and  had  issue.  A  Margaret  Gordon, 
who  married  Alexander  McNab,  died  February  8,  1844, 
aged  77,  and  was  buried  in  the  Snow  Churchyard,  Old 
Aberdeen. 


20 

WILLIAM  GORDON,  V.   IN  MINMORE. 

Died  1829. 

rpHE  eldest  son  of  John  Gordon,  IV.  in  Minmore,  he  began 
his  career  soldiering,  getting  a  commission  in  the  Northern 
Fencibles  (1778-1783),  the  aeoond  of  the  four  regiments  raised  by  the 
Duke  of  Gordon.  He  entered  as  an  ensign  in  the  Northern  Fencibles, 
September  26,  1778,  enlisting  two  men  for  service  in  the  regiment- 
He  seems  to  have  resigned  his  commission  on  April  16,  1780,  on 
account  of  his  private  affairs. 

According  to  a  statement  made  by  himself  in  1796,  he  had  no 
idea  after  the  reduction  of  the  Fencibles  of  serving  in  the  army,  but 
the  "  London  Gazette  "  seems  to  indicate  that  he  had  connection  with 
the  81st  Aberdeenshire  Highlanders  as  lieutenant  in  February  1780, 
and  later  with  the  133rd  Regiment. 

His  military  ambition  was  rekindled  by  the  raising  of  the  Gordon 
Highlanders,  for  which  Lord  Huntly  got  letters  of  service  on  February 
10,  1794.  Seven  days  later,  John  Gordon,  Coynachie,  wrote  from 
Tullich  to  John  Menzies,  the  Duke  of  Gordon's  factotum  at  Gordon 
Castle  :  "  If  Minmore  apply  for  any  commission  and  it  is  thought 
necessary  to  appoint  one  in  the  country  for  the  sake  of  recruiting,  he 
will  have  the  best  success."  Minmore  duly  applied,  and  was  appointed 
on  the  usual  terms  ;  his  commission  as  lieutenant  being  dated  1795. 
His  connection  with  the  regiment  was  not  a  conspicuous  success.  To 
begin  with,  "  owing  to  his  living  in  a  remote  part  of  the  country,  and 
the  irregularity  of  the  posts,  he  received  his  commission  at  a  time 
when  a  greater  part  of  the  other  officers  had  made  considerable  pro- 
gress in  recruiting."  Then  there  was  trouble  about  the  payment  of 
his  recruits  ;  his  health  gave  way,  and  his  brother  John  got  into 
arrears  with  his  rent  and  left  the  country. 

He  found  much  difficulty  in  getting  recruits  at  all.  Thus  on 
November  1, 1795,  he  wrote  to  Menzies  : — 

I  cannot  say  with  propriety  that  I  can  boast  of  my 
success  in  recruiting  since  I  came  to  the  country.  I  be- 
lieve that  no  bribe  will  induce  men  to  enlist  just  now, 
but  I  expect  to  get  a  few  in  the  course  of  the  winter. 

Just  a  year  later,  (November  25,  1796)  he  wrote  from  Edinburgh 
informing  the  Marquis  of  Huntly  of  his  inability  to  join  owing  to 
ill-health.  The  Marquis  sent  a  rather  stiff  reply,  intimating  that  no 
excuse  would  be  sustained,  either  for  Gordon's  not  joining  the  regiment 
without  delay,  or  for  getting  out  on  half-pay.  If  either  of  these 
alternatives  was  not  adopted,  Gordon  would  be  superseded  in  justice 
to  the  other  officers,  on  account  of  the  daily  complaints  from  the  men 
(whom  Gordon  brought  to  the  regiment)  that  they  had  not  been  settled 


21 

with.  The  Marquis  therefore  hoped  that  Gordon  would  write 
immediately  to  the  paymaster  to  settle  with  the  men  for  all  just 
demands,  thereby  removing  all  future  clamour. 

Gordon  thereupon  sent  a  memorial  to  the  Marquis,  dated  Edinburgh, 
December  3,  1796,  covering  seven  foolscap  pages,  and  running  into 
over  2500  words.  He  maintained  that  the  reports  sent  by  the  recruits 
were  unfounded.  He  declared  that  every  penny  of  the  bounty  and 
subsistence  of  his  men  were  regularly  paid  to  them  previous  to  their 
leaving  the  country.  He  admits  that  two  of  his  recruits,  William 
Gordon  and  Peter  Gordon  (the  nephews  of  one  Stewart),  were  enlisted 
on  a  different  footing,  as  they  were  good  men.  He  offered  William 
20  guineas,  and  his  brother  Peter  25  guineas,  but  William  insisted 
upon  being  made  a  sergeant  ;  failing  which  the  lieutenant  was  liable 
to  him  for  sergeant's  pay,  deducting  what  he  should  receive  from  the 
regiment.  Peter  demanded  a  shilling  a  day,  as  that  had  been  offered 
to  him  on  behalf  of  Colonel  Hay's  recruiters.  The  lieutenant  agreed 
to  these  terms,  in  the  hopes  that  Huntly  would  appoint  one  of  them 
sergeant,  and  he  employed  William  Gordon  in  that  capacity  on 
recruiting  service,  giving  him  a  sergeant's  pay  until  he  joined  at  Fort- 
George,  after  which  the  lieutenant  had  no  opportunity  of  seeing  him. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  Huntly  made  him  a  corporal,  but  owing  to  misbe- 
haviour William  was  reduced  to  the  ranks  while  the  regiment  was  at 
Southampton.  The  lieutenant  further  maintains  that  he  had  paid  £5 
sterling  to  Mr  Allan  at  Huntly  in  satisfaction  of  a  debt  due  by  Gordon. 
When  the  regiment  was  at  Gibraltar,  Gordon  wanted  him  to  pay 
another  sum  of  £10,  due  to  a  merchant  in  Aberdeen,  which  he  agreed 
to  do  on  getting  particulars,  but  these  were  not  forwarded.  In  regard 
to  Peter,  the  lieutenant  gave  him  3  guineas  before  he  left  the  country 
as  payment  of  threepence  three  farthings  a  day  of  deficiency  for  which 
the  memorialist  was  liable  to  him.  He  would  have  done  so  regularly 
if  he  had  been  with  the  regiment.  As  it  was,  he  had  written  Captain 
Gordon  of  Coyuiachie  to  settle  with  the  two  Gordons  in  the  best  way 
he  could,  trying  in  the  first  place  to  get  one  of  them  promoted,  and  in 
the  second  place  to  commute  the  bargain  ;  and  he  was  unaware,  except 
from  gossip,  that  this  had  not  been  done. 

Another  case  was  that  of  a  recruit  named  Johnstone,  enlisted  in 
Edinburgh  on  a  10  guineas  bounty,  five  of  which  were  to  be  paid 
at  the  time  and  five  later  on,  but  owing  to  a  misunderstanding  the 
second  portion  had  not  paid.  In  the  case  of  a  third  man,  named  Innes, 
the  lieutenant  said  that  he  had  rather  too  much  money,  and  suspecting 
that  his  pockets  would  be  picked,  Innes  gave  Gordon  back  a  guinea  of 
his  bounty  for  safety's  sake,  which  Gordon  had  paid  to  the  recruit's 
father.     He  proceeded  to  declare  : — ■ 

Having  stated  this  much  in  regard  to  the  supposed 
complaints  of  the  recruits,    which  the  memorialist    will 


22 

not  hesitate  to  say  one  of  them  would  never  have  had 
occasion,  nor  would  they  have  attempted  to  make,  had 
he  been  on  the  spot  and  whose  conduct  in  making  such 
in  the  circumstances  above  mentioned  the  memorialist 
shall  not  say  a  single  word,  further  than  leaving  it  with 
the  Marquis  of  Huntly,  whose  candour  and  liberality  will 
not  allow  him  to  form  an  opinion  against  any  person,  at 
least  without  hearing  him. 

The  memorialist  shall  now  proceed  to  notice  what  he 
has  hinted  above  as  having  been  reported  to  the  Marquis, 
namely,  that  the  severe  indisposition  which  he  has  had 
the  misfoi'tune  to  labour  under  these  ten  months  past 
was  rather  pretended  than  real.  The  memorialist  must 
confess  that  his  feelings  hardly  permit  him  to  write  or 
speak  upon  this  point  with  coolness  or  precision,  such 
an  insinuation  being  so  inconsistent  with  and  derogatory 
from  the  conduct  and  character  of  a  gentleman.  But  he 
is  happy  to  say  that,  independent  altogether  of  the  testi- 
mony which  the  medical  men,  whose  assistance  he  had, 
have  bore  to  the  fact,  it  was  well  known  and  notorious 
in  the  country  round  that  for  a  considerable  part  of  that 
period  the  memorialist  was  unable  to  rise  out  of  his  bed 
or  put  on  his  cloaths  without  assistance  ;  and,  tho',  when 
he  became  a  little  stronger,  moderate  exercise,  such  as 
riding  on  horseback,  and  in  this  way  making  short  excur- 
sions from  home,  was  recommended  to  him,  yet  the  mem- 
orialist was  then,  and  he  is  sorry  to  say  does  still  con- 
tinue, in  a  very  low  way  ;  and  the  memorialist  will  only 
add  on  this  subject  that,  if  any  person  was  so  malicious 
as  to  insinuate  such  a  thing  to  the  Marquis  of  Huntly, 
they  were  paying  as  little  compliment  to  the  integrity 
and  skill  of  the  medical  gentlemen  whose  certificates  he 
had  procured,  as  they  were  to  the  memorialist's  own 
character. 

But  were  it  all  to  be  supposed  that  the  memorialist 
could  be  capable  of  such  loose  conduct  as  that  which  is 
above  alluded  to,  it  would  have  been  more  likely  that  on 
the  occasion  of  his  being  ordered  to  join  in  November 
1795  [sic],  that  he  would  have  made  the  excuse  of  bad 
health  ;  but  it  is  well  known  to  everybody  concerned  that 
no  such  excuse  was  given.  The  only  reason  the  memor- 
ialist then  or  for  months  after  assigned  for  not  being  able 
to  comply  with  the  orders  he  had  received  was  the  mul- 
tifarious country  concerns  which  at  that  time  had  in  a 
great  measure  unexpectedly  devolved  upon  him  by  his 
brother  John's  departure  [for  the  West  Indies].  Ever 
since  the  memorialist  found  that  his  brother  was  fixed 
on  getting  forward  in  a  rpgiment  of  the  line,  he  has 
wished  for  the  Marquis  of  Huntly's  leave  to  sell  out  or 
retire  on  the  half-pay,  the  latter  of  which  modes  would, 
however,  be  most  agreeable  to  him.     .     . 

Upon  the  whole,  the  memorialist  trusts,  in  the  first 


23 

place,  that  he  has  satisfied  the  Marquis  of  Huntly  that 
it  was  out  of  his  power  to  have  prevented  any  complaints 
which  may  have  been  made  by  the  recruits,  and  that  he 
is  now  ready  and  willing  to  transmit  payment  to  them 
in  such  a  way  as  may  be  pointed  out,  and  also  to  satisfy 
Lord  Huntly  for  whatever  he  may  be  indebted  to  him 
on  account  of  his  commission  or  other  ways.  And  as  to 
the  situation  in  which  he  was  left  with  his  brother's 
matters,  he  presumes  that  is  not  unknown  to  the  men  of 
business  of  the  family  of  Gordon  and  to  the  country  in 
general. 

The  memorialist  cannot  conclude  without  expressing 
a  hope  that,  upon  the  Marquis  of  Huntly's  perusing  the 
above  state  of  fact,  every  unfavourable  impression  will 
be  done  away  with,  which  to  him  is  of  the  greatest  pos- 
sible consequence  and  the  concern  nearest  his  heart. 
And  he  is  still  not  without  hope  that  when  every  circum- 
stance is  considered  that  the  Marquis  will  condescend  to 
permitt  him  to  operate  an  exchange  on  the  half-pay  or 
sell  out,  at  least  in  case  it  shall  not  be  agreeable  to  his 
lordship  to  allow  the  memorialist  to  remain  for  a  little 
time  longer  in  the  country  untill  his  health  is  re-estab- 
lished and  his  affairs  arranged.  At  all  events,  he  humbly 
trusts  that  Lord  Huntly  will  prevent  anything  being  done 
to  his  prejudice  in  the  meantime,  as,  rather  than  incurr 
the  odium  of  being  superseded  in  consequence  of  being 
returned  absent  without  leave  or  otherwise,  the  memor- 
ialist would  most  certainly  give  in  the  resignation  of  his 
commission  to  the  Marquis  of  Huntly,  from  whom  he 
got  it. 
On  December  9,  1796,  Menzies  wrote  from  Gordon  Castle  an- 
nouncing :  — 

I  find  the  Marquis  considerable  soothed  and  disposed 
to  allow  you  to  remain  a  little  longer  at  home,  upon  this 
express  condition  that  you  return  immediately  to  the 
country  [from  Edinburgh]  and  make  every  exertion  in 
your  power  to  obtain  men  for  the  regiment.  His  lord- 
ship has  now  every  reason  to  believe  that  it  will  not  be 
drafted,  and  therefore  he  is  exceedingly  anxious  to  have 
it  compleated  to  the  ffull  establishment.  He  is  much  in- 
debted to  his  friends  by  using  their  influence  so  success- 
fully in  preventing  his  regiment  from  being  drafted, 
which,  you  know,  is  considerably  above  the  number  of 
those  that  are  kept  on  the  establishment,  and,  therefore, 
it  is  incumbent  on  him  to  use  every  means  in  his  power 
to  compleat  the  regiment  to  prevent  the  reflexions  being 
thrown  on  his  friends  and  also  its  being  drafted. 

His  lordship  continues  anxious  that  the  complaints 
exhibited  against  you  by  the  men  you  carried  to  the  regi- 
ment be  enquired  into  and  explained  ;  and  for  that  pur- 
pose desires  that  you  may  transmit  to  the  regiment  your 
own  state  of  effects,  along  with  a  particular  account  of 


24 

the  bounties  and  subsistence  paid  to  each  man,  mention- 
ing any  promises  made  to  them  at  the  time  of  enlisting 
or  afterwards.     ...     I  flatter  myself  that,  considering 
this  additional  indulgence  shown  to  you  by  the  Mai*quis, 
you  will  lose  no  time  in  returning  to  the  country  and  ex- 
erting yourself  for  the  good  of  the  regiment. 
Gordon's     name    is     crossed     out     in     the     MS.     Army     List 
of  1797,  now  in  the  Eecord  Office.     From  half-pay  of  the    Gor- 
dons he  qualified,  in  terms  of  the  Military  Act,  to  be  captain  in  the 
Aberdeenshire    Militia,    May    2,    1803  ("London  Gazette,"  p.  680). 
According  to  the  same  authority  (p.  1174),  he  became  a  lieutenant  in 
the  92nd  again  on  September  10,  1803. 

It  is  clear  that  Minmore  did  not  get  on  well  with  his  fellow- 
officers.  Major  Simon  Macdonald  of  Morar,  writing  to  Lord  Huntly 
from  Morar,  March  19,  1798,  says  : — 

Gordon,  Tombay  and  others  of  that  ffamily  have  been 
officious  with  her  Grace  of  Gordon  and  the  ffamily  in 
regard  to  me.  I  can  truly  aver  I  never  spoke  disrespect- 
fully of  her  Grace  or  ever  spoke  indifferently  of  any  of 
the  ffamily,  and  if  anything  of  the  sort  is  alledged  I  have 
that  confidence  in  your  lordship's  known  character  that 
it  will  not  be  concealed.  Indeed,  Tombay  said  once  to 
myself  at  London  he  would  be  upsides  unless  I  passed 
from  ordering  Minmore  to  join. 

William  Gordon  had  two  families.  By  one  lady,  whose  name  I 
do  not  know,  he  had  Sir  Charles  Gordon.  His  wife  was  Mary 
Stewart,  daughter  of  Robert  Stewart  and  sister  of  John  Stewart,  who 
bought  Belladrum.  She  was  a  Protestant  at  the  time  of  his  marriage, 
adopting  the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  from  which  the  Minmore  Gordons 
have  never  swerved.  She  died  October  1,  1842,  aged  63.  The  issue 
of  William  Gordon,  who  died  Nov.  5,  1829,  aged  74,  was  :  — 

1.  Sir  Charles  Gordon  succeeded  David  Watson  as  recorder 
and  clerk  of  the  Highland  and  Agricultural  Society  in 
1815,  and  was  at  the  same  time  elected  assistant  depute- 
secretary.  He  had  been  regularly  bred  to  business,  hav- 
ing at  the  time  of  his  appointment  been  first  clerk  in  the 
office  of  Campbell  and  Clason,  W.S.  He  was  a  solicitor 
before  the  Supreme  Court,  for  which  he  passed  in  1818. 
In  1819  he  was  nominated  joint  depute-secretary  along 
with  his  uncle,  Lewis  Gordon  ;  and  in  1835  he  succeeded  to 
the  post  of  secretary,  the  charter  iof  1834  having  created 
the  new  office  of  hon.  secretary.  He  purchased  the 
estate  of  Drimnin  in  Argyllshire  about  1835,  in  which 
year  he  joined  the  Society  as  a  member.  On  April  26, 
1837,  he  was  knighted  at  St  James's  Palace 
by  William  IV.  Mr  Ramsav  has,  in  his  history 
of  the  Society  (1879,  p.  521),  stated  that  the 
only  meeting  of  the  Society  he  was  unable  to  attend  dur- 
ing his  secretaryship  was  in  July  1845.     He  died  at  Edin- 


25 

burgh,  September  25,  1845,  aged  52,  and  at  the  first  meet- 
ing of  the  directors  (resolutions  were  passed  recording  the 
regret  with  which  they  heard  of  his  death,  "  bear- 
ing testimony  to  the  very  able  and  upright  mauner  in 
which  his  multifarious  and  ofien  oppressively  laborious 
duties  were  discharged  during  a  period  of  above  thirty 
years  :  to  the  extraordinary  zeal,  patience,  judgment  and 
discrimination  which  he  displayed,  not  only  in  conducting 
the  routine  business  of  the  Society,  but  on  various  occa- 
sions when  difficult  and  delicate  negotiations  with  the 
Government  were  involved :  and  to  the  combination  of 
those  gifts  and  qualities  which  will  render  it  difficult 
fully  to  supply  his  place."  He  is  commemorated  by  a 
stone  in  Tombae  Churchyard.  In  1826  he  married  Helen, 
eldest  daughter  of  John  Fletcher  of  Dunans.  She  was 
born  at  Dunans,  and  died  at  8  South  Castle  Street,  Edin- 
burgh, March  25,  1881  ("Times").  Sir  Charles  had  five 
sons  and  three  daughters  :  — 

(1)  William  M.  Gordon,  "eldest  son,"  born  June  18, 
1828  ;  died  April  13,  1838  ;  buried  in  Greyfriars,  Edin- 
burgh (Brown's  "Epitaphs,"  p.  122). 

(2)  John  Gordon.  He  entered  the  74th  Highlanders  as 
an  ensign,  May  23,  1848  ;  and  became  lieutenant  1850. 
He  was  wounded  during  the  fourth  attack  on  Water- 
kloof  during  the  Kaffir  war,  November  6,  1851,  and 
died  three  davs  later.  The  incident  is  described  by 
Capt.  W.  R.  King,  74th  Highlanders,  in  "Campaign- 
ing in  Kaffirland"  (pp.  150-7).  "After  leading  our 
flank  into  the  bush  in  person  and  giving  his  final 
orders,  Colonel  Fordyce  proceeded  to  the  left  of  the 
regiment  to  direct  their  movements,  against  the  fast- 
ness held  by  the  enemy  from  the  shelter  of  which 
they  kept  up  an  annoying  fire.  At  this  moment  he 
had  advanced  to  the  edge  of  the  bush  in  front  and 
was  in  the  very  act  of  directing  the  attack  upon  it 
when  he  was  shot  through  the  body,  and  fell  to  rise 
no  more.  The  last  and  only  words  of  our  brave  chief 
were  :  'Take  care  of  my  regiment.'  The  regiment 
boldly  and  steadily  advanced  to  storm  under  a  fatal 
fire,  which  told  fearfully  among  our  ranks.  Gordon 
was  mortally  wounded  (November  6)  by  a  ball  which 
passed  through  both  thighs,  and  lodging  in  the  body 
of  a  soldier  close  by,  killed  him  on  the  spot.  .  . 
The  wounded  who  lay  on  their  stretchers  on  the 
ground  received  every  possible  attention.  Poor 
Gordon,  over  whose  head  we  had  built  a  shelter  of 
green  boughs,  suffered  dreadful  agonies  all  night. 
The  doctors,  when  questioned  as  to  his  case,  shook 
their  heads  in  doubt ;  the  ball  had  entered  the  out- 
side of  the  riaht  thigh,  and  passing  through  it,  en~ 
tered  the  inside  of  the  left  one,  fracturing  the  bone 
close  to  the  socket,  and  leaving  two  frightful  lacer- 


26 

ated  wounds.     So  close  was  the  Kaffir  who  fired  it 
that  Gordon  had  attempted  to  seize  his  gun.     The 
next  day  the  bodies  of  the  dead  were  placed  in  a  mule 
waggon  for  burial  at  Post  Relief,  15  miles  across  the 
table-land,  for  which  place  ib  set  off,  accompanied  by 
a  party  of  officers  who  had  obtained  permission  from 
the  General  to  join  this  sad  office.     I  followed  slowly 
after  them,  with  a  strong  escort  guarding  the  woun- 
ded accompanied    by    our   surgeon,    Fraser.        Poor 
Gordon,  from  the  nature  of  his  wounds,  was  unable 
to  bear  the  motion  of  a  waggon,  and  was  carried  on 
a  stretcher  the  whole  distance  by  the  men  of  his  com- 
pany.        Gordon's  suffering  were  very  great,  though 
borne  with  a  fortitude  only  equalled  by  his  courage 
in  the  field ;   his  thirst  was  insatiable.     When  about 
half-way  one  of  the  stretcher  poles  broke  in  two.     We 
had,  however   taken  the  precaution  to  bring  a  spare 
stretcher,  which  was  laid  on  the  ground,  the  other 
placed  gently  on  it,  its  poles  withdrawn,  and  we  went 
on  again  as  before.     ...     At  the  fort,  a  miserable 
barrack-room  with  roughly  paved  floor  and   smoke- 
blackened  rafters  was  hastily  cleared  for  poor  Gor- 
don, into  which  we  carefully  bore  him,   and  adding 
every  obtainable  blanket  or  plaid  to  the  thin  straw 
mattress,  and  doing  all  in  our  very  (limited  power  to 
cheer  him  and  alleviate  his  sufferings,   left  him  for 
the  night  (with  his  trusty  and  attached  servant  Stuart. 
.     .     .     We  visited  Gordon  again  in  the  morning  be- 
fore starting  for  the  camp,  and  assisted  the  surgeon 
to  dress  his  wounds   and   arrange   his  bed,   and  sat 
as  long  as  we  possibly  could,  wiping  his  brow  and 
moistening  his  lips.         On  leaving,   he  begged  us  to 
come  over  as  often  as  we  could  to  see  him  during 
his  probable  long  confinement  in  this  lonely  place, 
which  we  promised  to  do,  but  never  saw  him  again. 
After  three  days  of  excruciating  agony,  the  broken 
limb  suddenly  mortified,  and  he  was  carried  off  in  a 
few  hours.     So   died  this   young  soldier,   alone  in  a 
wild  mountain  fort,   thousands  of  miles   away  from 
home  and  relatives,   and  only  a  servant  to  witness 
his  last  moments.     Poor  Ricketts   of  the  91st,   dan- 
gerously wounded  on  October  14,  in  the  Waterkloof 
.     .     .     died  the  same  day.     .     .     His   death,   which 
occurred   some  hours  the   first,   was  purposely  kept 
from  Gordon,   but  the  sound  of  the  funeral  volleys 
reached  his  ear,  and  in  a  quiet  voice  he  blamed  his 
servant  for  not  telling  him  of  it.     In  two  hours  after, 
a  like  salute  was  fired  over  his  own  grave.     His  loss 
was  sincerely  mourned  both  by  officers  and  men,  his 
honest,  sterling  qualities,  kindly  heart,  and  dauntless 
bravery    in    the    field    having  endeared  him  to   all" 
[Another  John  Gordon,  lieutenant  in  the  91st,  and 
said  to  be  an  Irishman,  was  also  killed  in  the  Kaffir 
War.] 


27 

(3)  Charles  Menzies  Gordon,    born  1831.     He   entered 
the  Society  of  Jesus,  resigning  the  property  of  Drim- 
nin  to  his  brother,   Jose  Clement.       The   "  Catholic 
Who's  Who"  (1908)  says  he  fought  as  a  volunteer  in 
the  army  of  Pius  IX.     He  was  rector  of  St  Aloysius, 
Garnet  Hill,   Glasgow,   for  some  years  prior  to   his 
consecration  in  St  Andrew's  Cathedral,  Glasgow,  on 
the  Feast    of    the    Assumption,   1889,    as  Bishop   of 
Thyatira  and  Vicar  Apostolic  of  Jamaica.     The  nave 
and  Gospel  side  of  the  Church  were  set  apart   for 
members  of  the  new  Bishop's  late  congregation    of 
St  Aloysius's  ;  the  Epistle  side  was  taken  by  mem- 
bers of  the  Cathedral  congregation  and  others.     The 
ceremony  was  performed  by  the  Archbishop  of  Glas- 
gow,  the  Bishop-Elect  having  as  his  assistants    the 
Archbishop  of  Edinburgh  and    the  Bishop  of  Argyll 
and  the  Isles.     On  arriving  at  Jamaica,  he  was  pre- 
sented in  the  steamer  saloon  with  an  address  begging 
the  new  Bishop  to  accept  a  carriage  and  pair  for  his 
special  Episcopal  use.         In  reply  he  isaid  :  — "I  feel 
that  God  has  indeed  blessed  my  mission,   and  that 
my  future  will  be  ia  future  of  happiness  in  His  ser- 
vice, for  whatever  else  may  happen,  if  the  cause  of 
the  Church  proceeds  well,  I  am  quite  happy,  and  I 
am  sure  it  will  proceed  well.        We  do  not  seek  to 
hinder  others.     We  have  only  the  greatest  love  and 
affection  for  all  who  may  differ  from  us,  and  we  will 
never  have  a  word  to   say  against  them.        At  the 
same  time,  we  cannot  forget  our  own  affections,  and 
I  am  certain,  therefore,   that  we  shall  promote  this 
to  the  best  of  our  power,    but  not  in  the   slightest 
degree  to  offend  the  spirit  of  charity  with  regard  to 
others.         I  dare  say  we  shall  find  here,   as  I  have 
found  in  other  places,  that  however  men  may  differ 
from  one  another  in  points  of  faith,  all  agree  in  pro- 
moting works  of  charity,  and  so  far  as  possible    we 
shall  do  our  best  to  aid  our  brethren  in  that,  and  to 
keep    unity    amongst    ourselves   and  them   whether 
separated  from  us  or  not.     Now  I  must  come  to    a 
conclusion.     I  dare  say  you  do  not  feel  the  heat  as 
much  as  I  do.     I  am  not  unsuited  to  heat ;   I  have 
been  in  Africa,  the  land  of  the  sun  par  excellence, 
but  somehow  or  other,   I  ihave  not  got  accustomed 
to    stewing  as  eels  are  said  to  get    accustomed     to 
skinning,  and  last  night  the  heat  was  terrible  in  my 
berth."     He  retired  in  1906,  and  lives  at  Roehampton. 

(4)  Henry  Fletcher  Gordon,  died  January  3,  1836,  in 
his  third  year  (Brown's  "  Greyfriars  Epitaphs"  p.  122). 

(5)  Jose  Clement  Gordon  of  Drimnin  :  born  1838  :  mar- 
lied  1875,  Mary  Teresa,  only  daughter  and  heiress  of 
William  Hoy  of  Stoke  Priory,  Suffolk.     He  has:  — 


28 

i.  Charles  Augustine  Gordon :  bom  1882 :  edu- 
cated at  Stonyhurst :  writer  to  the  signet  in 
Edinburgh. 

ii.  Helen  Mary  Gordon:  graduated  M.B.  :Ch.B., 
Glasgow  University,  1900.  She  was  for  some 
time  clinical  assistant  of  the  City  Asylum,  Bir- 
mingham, and  is  mow  practising  at  22  Greek  St., 
Stockport. 

iii.  Monica  Mary  Gordon,  M.A.,  Glasgow  Uni- 
versity. 

iv.  Elizabeth  iMary  Gordon. 

v.  Clementina  Gordon. 

(6)  Alexander  Gordon,  died,  without  issue,  1868. 

(7)  Margaret  Gordon,  died  unmarried  1860. 

(8)  Helen  Isabella  Gordon,  married  Clement  Philli- 
more  Penny,  Fleet  Paymaster,  R.N.,  and  d.s.p.  May 
20,  1891. 

2.  William  Gordon,  Floors,  Grange,  first  wife  family.    He  had  : 

(1)  Charles  Gordon,   died  unmarried. 

(2)  Donald  Gordon,  married  Catherine  Gordon, 
daughter  of  Alexander  Gordon,  Tullochallum.  1 
am  greatly  indebted  to  Mrs  Donald  Gordon,  who  re- 
sides at  50  Crescent  Lane,  Clapham  Park,  London, 
for  many  details  about  the  family.  Mrs  Gordon  has 
two  sons  and  three  daughters:  — 

Donald  Stuart  Gordon. 
Alexander  Gordon. 
Catherine  Gordon. 
Margaret  Clementina  Gordon. 
Madeleine  Mary  Gardon. 

(3)  Lewis  Gordon,  died  unmarried. 

(4)  Jane  Gordon. 

3.  John  Gordon.  Grant  Stewart,  in  his  "Lectures  from  the 
Mountains"  (1st  series  1860,  ip.  102),  calls  him  the  eldest 
son.  He  was  the  commander  of  one  of  the  East  Inda 
Company's  traders.  He  commanded  the  Hamersjee 
Bomangee.  He  died  at  Singapore,  July  4,  1833,  aged 
27  (tombstone  at  Tombae),  and  his  will  was  proved  at 
Bombay,  September  18,  1834  (India  Office). 

4.  Michie  Forbes  Gordon,  Bombay  Staff  Corps  :  born  1812.  A 
cadet  in  1828,  he  entered  the  11th  Native  Infantry,  2nd 
European  Regiment,  as  an  ensign,  August  24,  1833.  He 
was  adjutant  of  the  Guzerat  Provincial  Battalion,  1836- 
7 :  lieutenant  2nd  Bombay  European  Light  Infantry 
Regiment,  October  8,  1839 :  captain,  January  21,  1846. 
He  was  appointed  assistant  to  the  Commissioner,  South 
Mahratta,  August  18,  1847  (Civil  employment),  remain- 
ing there  till  February  10,  1855,  when  he  became  Com- 
missioner at  Inam.  He  had  political  charge  of  the  Amirs  of 
Scinde.  He  reached  the  (army)  rank  of  major  Nov.  28,  1854, 
still  holding  the  Commissionership  of  Inam  :  and  the  (regimen- 


29 

tal)  rank  and  Staff  Corps,  January  1,  1862.  He  was  lieut.- 
colonel  on  the  Staff  Corps,  July  16,  1863,  and  retired 
July  18,  1864.  He  was  created  Knight  of  St  Gregory  by  Pius 
IX.  in  1854.  He  married  on  November  21,  1844  Jemima 
Catherine  (born  May  3,  1824),  daughter  of  Sir  John  Curnin, 
of  the  Calcutta  Mint.  She  died  Feb.  24,  1893.  Gordon  died 
at  Southport,  March  7,  1894.     He  had  :— 

(1)  William  Gordon,  born  September  24,  1824:  died 
September  20,  1846. 

(2)  Mary  Josephine  Gordon,  born  April  27,  1847.  She 
married  as  his  second  wife,  June  24,  1879,  Clement 
Robert  William  Gordon,  solicitor,  Banff,  son  of 
William  Robert  Gordon  (1812-1898),  Procurator- 
Fiscal  of  Banff,  etc.,  member  of  the  Lettoch  family, 
as  already  noted. 

(3)  Harriett  Plauda  Gordon,  born  July  21,  1848 :  died 
March  29,  1851. 

5.  James  Fraser  Gordon,  born  September  7,  1816.  He  was 
at  Marischal  College,  Aberdeen,  in  1831,  and  was  ad- 
mitted a  W.S.  July  15,  1852.  He  married,  July  27, 
1851,  Eleanor  Sinclair,  daughter  of  Archibald  Leslie  of 
Balnageith,  by  Eleanor  Atlee  (1800-92).  Mrs  Gordon 
died  in  1851.  Gordon  died  at  Reigate,  April  12,  1861, 
aged  44.  A  biography  of  his  mother-in-law  was  written 
by  J.  M.  Stone  for  the  Art  and  Book  Company,  London 
and  Leamington,  1899.  Archibald  Leslie  was  the  son  of 
Rev.  William  Leslie,  St.  Andrews,  Lhanbryd.  He  came 
under  the  influence  of  Father  Clapperton,  in  Edinburgh, 
and  Mrs  Leslie  entered  the  Church  of  Rome  in  1846,  one 
of  her  friends,  Mr  Robert  Aitken  (who  had  run  a  dissent- 
ing chapel  in  Waterloo  Road,  London),  writing  her — ■ 
"  You  will  be  damned,  I  believe,  eternally."  James 
Fraser  Gordon  had  a  son  :  — 

Michael  Fraser  Gordon,  born  1857 :   died  unmarried. 

6.  Lndovick  Gordon  :    died  an  infant. 

7.  Ludovick  Gordon  :    died  an  infant. 

8.  William  Fletcher  Gordon,  was  born  in  Sept.  1826.  He 
was  educated  at  Blairs  College  and  the  Edinburgh  Mili- 
tary Academy.  He  entered  the  Bombay  Infantry  as  a 
cadet,  February  18,  1844.  He  was  second  lieutenant  in 
the  1st  European  Regiment  of  Fusiliers,  December  21, 
1844,  and  first  lieutenant,  June  19,  1846.  He  served  in 
the  Central  Mutiny  Campaign,  1848.  He  acted  as  sub- 
assistant  commissary-general  (at  Hyderabad)  1849-55, 
and  became  deputy-assistant  commissary-general,  Oct. 
4,  1855.  He  went  through  the  Indian  Mutiny  under  Sir 
Hugh  Rose,  being  present  at  the  sieges  of  Jhansi  (where 
Francis  David,  son  of  Michael  Francis  Gordon,  laird  of 
Abergeldie,  was  killed),  Calpee  and  Gwalior,  being  two 
years  under  canvas.  He  served  also  in  the  Persian  Ex- 
pedition  under    Sir    James   Outram,    and   received   the 


30 

medals  for  Central  India,  Mooltan,  and  Persia.  He  be- 
came captain  (still  holding  his  commissary-general  ap- 
pointment), January  17,  1859:  major,  April  26,  1860: 
assistant  commissary-general  at  Gwalior,  December 
1861:  and  as  brevet-major,  retired,  July  18,  1864.  He 
was  made  a  Military  iKnight  of  the  Order  of  St  Gregory 
the  Great  by  Pope  Pius,  July  31,  1860,  and  on  Tuesday, 
September  18,  1860  was  invested  with  the  Order  "as  a 
reward  for  his  bravery  in  the  field  and  for  the  assistance 
generally  afforded  by  fiim  to  the  Christian  community 
during  the  late  Indian  rebellion."  The  ceremony  was 
so  notable  that  the  "Times"  (September  22,  1860)  thought 
fit  to  quote  a  paragraph  from  the  "Caledonian  Mercury" 
about  it ;  while  the  "Tablet"  (September  29,  1860)  gave 
a  column  and  a  half  condensed  from  the  "Glasgow  Free 
Press."  The  ceremony  took  place  at  bt  Margaret's  Con- 
vent, Greenhill  Gardens,  Kdinburgh.  Mass  having  been 
said,  the  Bishop  delivered  an  eloquent  address,  in  which 
he  described  the  origin  of  Christian  chivalry,  its  appli- 
ances in  former  times,  and  the  uses  it  still  serves.  The 
maiden  sword  of  Major  Gordon  was  then  blessed  by  the 
Bishop,  who,  in  handing  it  to  'him,  exhorted  him  to  cany 
it  faithfully  for  his  Queen  and  country,  and  never  to  use 
it  in  the  cause  of  injustice.  A  special  office  for  the  oc- 
casion having  been  read,  the  ceremony  of  investing 
Major  Gordon  with  the  Order  of  St  Gregory  then  took 
place.  "The  gallant  Major  was  accompanied  on  the  oc- 
casion by  two  esquires — [Capain]  A.  Smith  Sligo  [High- 
land Volunteers]  of  Inzievar,  and  another  gentleman 
[Mr  Gray],  a  relative  of  the  Major  [distinguished  for  his 
services  in  India].  They  were  all  dressed  in  full  High- 
land costume.  Two  young  ladies  [nieces  of  the  Major, 
and  pupils  of  the  convent]  carried  silver  salvers,  on 
which  were  placed  the  insignia  of  the  Order.  The  party 
kneeling  at  the  altar,  Bishop  Gillies  formally  invested 
the  Major  with  the  Order,  the  insignia  of  which  consist 
of  a  cross  and  a  riband,  which  were  fastened  on  the 
Major's  breast  by  the  Bishop  himself.  Father  Corry,  of 
the  Society  of  Jesus,  read  the  Latin  rescript  of  the  Pope, 
a  translation  of  which  was  afterwards  read  by  Bishop 
Gillies.  The  Bishop  was  assisted  on  the  occasion  by 
the  Rev.  Mr  O'Donnell,  chaplain  of  the  convent ;  the 
Rev.  Mr  D'Arcy,  Portobello  :  the  Rev.  W.  Gascoigne, 
Edinburgh  ;  and  the  Rev.  Messrs  Mahoh  and  Corry, 
S.J.,  Edinburgh.  The  ceremony  lasted  about  an  hour 
and  a  half,  and  excited  the  utmost  interest  among  those 
who  were  present  A  dejeuner,  in  celebration  of  the 
•event,  afterwards  was  given  at  the  Clarendon  Hotel. 
M->ior  Gordon  took  the  ihead  of  the  table,  with  Bishop 
Gillies  on  his  right  and  the  Rev.  Dr  Marshall  on  his  left. 
At  the  opposite  end  was  James  Gordon,  brother  of  the 
Major.  In  the  early  seventies  he  was  made  a  Knight 
Commander  of  the  Order  of  Pope  Pius  IX.     While  re- 


31 

siding  in  London  he  took  an  active  part  in  many  Catholic 
works,  notably  the  Papal  Defence  Fund,  1870-1,  of  which 
he  was  honorary  secretary.  He  took  a  keen  interest  in 
the  Aged  Poor  Society,  of  which  he  was  for  many  years 
a  member.  In  1889  he  went  to  live  at  Wimbledon.  He 
married,  April  4,  1861,  at  York,  Katherine  McCann.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  Jarrard  Edward  Strickland  of  Loug- 
ghgly  House,  Roscommon  (cadet  of  the  Stricklands  of 
Sizergh  Casfcle,  Westmoreland) :  and  a  descendant  of 
the  Plantagenets  (Ruvigny's  "Plantagenet  Roll,"  315). 
She  had  married,  April  20,  1852,  William  McCann  of 
Booterstoun,  Dublin,  by  whom  she  had  a  daughter,  Anne 
Mary,  who  afterwards  took  the  name  of  Gordon.  Mr 
McCann  died  July  30,  1852.  His  widow  married  (2)  in 
1861,  as  noted,  Major  William  Fletcher  Gordon.  Born 
on  September  1,  1827,  she  died  at  St  Edmond's,  Wimble- 
don, November  10,  1904  ;  he  died  at  St  Edmund's,  Nov. 
28,  1905,  aged  79  ("Times").  Part  of  his  library  was 
sold  at  Put-tick  and  Simpson's,  London,  March  2,  1904. 

9.  Mary :   died  an  infant. 

10.  Anne :  married  James  Petrie,  banker,  Dufftown.  She 
died  on  September  7,  1858,  aged  47,  and  is  commemor- 
ated by  a  stone  in  Tombae  Roman  Catholic  Church- 
yard. The  inscription  over  her  runs :  Expecting  a 
blessed  resurrection,  the  mortal  remains  of  Anne,  the 
beloved  wife  of  James  Petrie,  Esq.,  here  repose  in  the 
fear  of  the  Lord,  which  >is  the  beginning  of  wisdom  ;  in 
faith,  without  which  it  is  impossible  to  please  God  ;  in 
hope,  the  anchor  of  the  soul,  sure  and  firm  ;  in  charity, 
which  never  faileth,  she  placidly  resigned  her  spirit  to 
its  Creator,  7th  September  1858,  aged  47  years. 

Her  children  rise  up  and  called  her  blessed, 
Her  husband  also,  and  he  praiseth  her. 
Favour  is  deceitful  and  beauty  is  vain. 
The  woman  that  feareth  (the  Lord, 
She  shall  be  praised. — (Pro.,  ch.  31). 
Requiescat  in  pace. 
Mrs  Petrie  had  a  son  and  two  daughters,  as  follows  : — 

(1)  Alexander  Petrie  :    died  unmarried. 

(2)  Mary  Peti-ie  :   died  unmarried. 

(3)  Isabella  Gilzean  Petrie  :  married  as  his  first  wife 
Clement  Gordon  (who  married,  secondly,  her  cousin 
Mary,  daughter  of  Michie  Forbes  Gordon) :    and  had 

Gregor  Gordon  :   now  in  Australia. 

11.  Elizabeth  Stewart  Forbes  Gordon :  died  unmarried  in 
the  Convent  of  Mercy,  Glasgow,  April  10,  1854,  aged  32, 
and  is  commemorated  by  a  stone  at  Tombae. 

William  Gordon,  V.  of  Minmore,  died  on  November  5,1829, 
aged  74,  and  is  commemorated  by  a  stone  erected  in  Tombae  Church- 
yard by  his  son,  Major  William  Fletcher  Gordon. 


32 


MAJOR    JOHN    GORDON 
(Died  1819), 

HPHE  career  of  Major  John  Gordon  has  till  recently  been  very- 
obscure,  but  the  remarkable  military  studies  of  Mrs  Skelton 
have  made  it  almost  completely  clear. 

He  was  the  son  of  John  Gordon  IV.  in  Minmore,  who,  having 
been  out  with  Prince  Charlie,  sought  to  regain  lost  ground  by  putting 
his  sons,  William.  Lewis,  and  John,  into  the  army,.  A  good  oppor- 
tunity afforded  itself  in  the  patriotic  regiment  raising  of  the  4th  Duke 
of  Gordon. 

The  Duke  apparently  intended  to  give  John  the  appointment  of 
surgeon  in  the  Northern  Fencibles,  which  he  raised  in  1773,  for  he 
writes  to  Cox  &  Mair,  the  army  agents,  on  October  9  of  that  year  : — 
"  Mr  Gordon,  the  surgeon,  has  been  with  me,  and  as  it  is  not  certain 
whether  he  can  hold  the  surgeoncy  or  not,  being,  as  I  am  iuformed, 
appointed  quartermaster  to  the  48th,  I  beg  you  will  not  take  out  the 
commission  till  you  hear  from  me.''  And  on  December  27,  1778,  his 
grace  wrote  :— "It  is  my  desire  that  John  French,  mate,  be  appointed 
surgeon,  vice  John  Gordon,  who  has  resigned." 

John  seems  to  be  the  Dr.  J.  Gordon,  who  wrote  from  London 
to  the  Duke  on  December  1,  1798  : — "Pardon  the  remissness  of  my 
aot  writing  you  earlier,  just  on  my  arrival  in  London,  after  a  long  and 
tedious  passage.  It  was  believed  we  should  be  immediately  ordered 
for  the  West  Indies,  but  the  unexpected  revolution  that  happened  in 
that  quarter  of  the  globe  by  the  taking  of  Dominique,  in  which  was 
three  companies  of  our  regiment,  and  the  uncertain  situation,  the 
remaining  part  may  be  in.  [came]"  He  asks  Major  Finlason  of  the 
Northern  Fencibles  to  send  him  "  an  order  to  receive  payment  of  the 
regimental  agent  here  for  what  money  may  be  owing  me."  Presumably 
the  "  our  regiment"  to  which  he  refers  is  the  48th,  and  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  he  was  at  the  time  referred  to  in  that  regiment,  it  seems 
curious  that  there  should  have  been  money  owing  to  him  for  service 
with  the  Northern  Fencibles,  to  which  regiment  it  seems  doubtful 
whether  he  was  ever  really  commissioned  at  this  time. 

He  exchanged  in  1784  into  a  regiment,  the  name  of  which  is  not 
mentioned  ;  but  presumably  it  was  the  11th.  Another  reference  in 
the  "London  Gazette"  gives  the  date  of  his  half-pay  as  from  1783,  while 
his  name  appears  in  the  Army  Lists  as  quartermaster  of  the  48th 
until  1786. 

He  returned  to  his  native  district  a  few  years  later  (residing  at 
Tombae),  for  he  was  appointed  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  Banffshire  May 


33 

21,  1792,  and  in  the  following  year  associated  himself  with  the  Nor- 
thern Fencibles,  the  third  regiment  raised  by  the  4th  Duke  of  Gordon. 
Having  enlisted  fourteen  men,  he  was  appointed  ensign  and  lieutenant 
in  the  regiment  March  1, 1793,  and  rose  to  be  captain-lieutenant  June 
7,  1794,  and  captain  November  12,  1794. 

He  was  appointed,  September  15,  1795,  captain  of  a  regiment 
(Lieut.-Col.  Skerritt's  7th  W.  I.)  to  be  raised  in  the  island  of  St 
Vincent  for  general  service  in  the  West  Indies,  being  described,  not 
as  a  captain  of  the  Northern  Fencibles,  but  as  "  Lieutenant  John 
Gordon,  half. pay,  11th  Foot." 

He  seems  to  have  taken  this  step  by  reason  of  his  failure  as  a 
farmer,  for  Menzies,  the  Duke  of  Gordon's  factotum,  wrote  to  John's 
brother,  William  Gordon  in  Minmore.  on  December  9,  1796  : — 

I  have  to  call  your  attention  to  the  arrears  of  rent 
resting  by  your  brother  John  to  the  Duke.  At  settling 
Mr  Marshall's  account  a  few  days  ago,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  his  name  in  the  list  of  arrears  for  upwards  of 
£112,  and  there  is  since  another  year's  rent  fallen  due. 

William,  who  was  in  another  kind  of  difficulty  at  the  same  time, 
in  a  memorial  to  the  Marquis  of  Huntly,  December  3,  1726,  mentions 
his  brother's  affairs  as  one  of  the  causes  of  his  own  trouble.  He 
refers  to  the  "multifarious  country  concerns  "  which  in  November 
1795,  devolved  upon  him  by  his  brother,  John's,  being  under  the 
necessity  of  sailing  for  the  West  Indies — 

[His]  affairs  had  been  awkwardly  and  abruptly  left 
to  be  managed  by  the  memorialist  [William].  Had  the 
memorialist  known  that  his  brother  was  to  accept  of  an 
appointment  on  the  establishment,  and  go  abroad  in  the 
way  he  has  since  done,  he  himself  would  not  have 
thought  of  soliciting  any  appointment  which  might  ren- 
der it  necessary  to  go  on  foreign  sendee. 

John  and  his  brother  were  hand  in  glove,  for  when  William  was 
ordered  to  rejoin  his  regiment,  the  Gordon  Highlanders,  John  seems 
to  have  stuck  up  for  him,  for  Major  Simon  Macdonald  of  Morar 
writing  to  the  Marquis  of  Huntly  on  March  19,  1798,  says  :  "Tombay 
said  once  to  myself  at  London  he  would  be  upsides  unless  I  passed 
from  ordering  Minmore  to  join." 

John  did  not  stay  long  with  the  7th  West  Indian  Regiment,  being 
transferred  on  November  30,  1796,  as  captain  to  the  8th  West  Indian 
Regiments  ("London  Gazette,"  p.  1131).  The  regiment  seems  to 
have  been  raised  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  John  Drew  (of  the  Drews  of 
Drewscourt  family,  Limerick),  of  the  45th  Regiment,  in  which  three 
Drew  brothers  were  officers.  Gordon  got  his  majority  on  August  18, 
1798  ("  London  Gazette,"  p.  769),  but,  according  to  a  witness  at  his 
court-martial,  did  not  join  the  regiment  till  two  years  later.      For  a. 


34 

time  all  went  well,  and  in  Jnly  180',  he  assumed  command  of  the 
regiment  in  lieu  of  Lieut.-Colonel  Wilson,  who  had  come  home  on  sick 
leave,  1801. 

It  is  difficult  to  trace  the  history  of  the  8th,  save  that  on  the 
night  of  April  9,  1802,  the  regiment  mutinied,  killing  one  or  two  of 
the  white  officers.  Many  causes  contributed  to  the  revolt,  and  at  this 
distance  of  time  ,it  is  practically  impossible  to  take  up  the  critical 
position.  In  the  first  place,  the  regiment  and  the  island  fell  under 
the  domination  of  an  extremely  bad  egg,  Andrew  James  Cochrane 
Johnstone  (the  son  of  the  8th  Earl  of  Dundonald),  who  became 
Governor  of  Dominica  and  Colonel  of  the  8th  in  1798.  "  His  rule 
was  marked  by  tyranny,  extortion  and  vice.  He  drove  a  brisk  and 
profitable  trade  in  negroes,  and  kept  a  harem."  He  ended  his  career 
by  being  kicked  out  of  the  House  of  Commons,  and  disappeared  no 
one  knows  where. 

After  the  mutiny  Johnstone  and  Gordon  indulged  in  a  series  of 
mutual  recriminations,  described  in  three  pamphlets  of  unnecessary 
length  and  now  extremely  rare  : 

(1)  "  Proceedings  of  the  General  Court  Martial  in  the  Trial 
of  Major  John  Gordon"  :  printed  for  E.  Lloyd,  Harley 
Street,  1804:   8vo.,  pp.  302. 

(2)  "  Correspondence  Between  the  Hon.  Cochrane  Johnstone 
and  the  Departments  of  the  Commander-in-Chief  and 
the  Judge-Advocate-General"  during  the  period  from 
September  1803.  to  August  1804.  London  :  printed  by 
J.  Barfield,  Wardour  Street,  1805:   8vo.,  pp.  128. 

(3)  "Defence  of  the  Hon.  Andrew  Cochrane  Johnstone,"  in- 
cluding a  view  of  the  evidence  produced  on  his  trial, 
with  the  sentence  and  varied  commentaries  thereon,  by 
the  Judge  Advocate-General :  and  with  a  relative  series 
of  interesting  letters  previous  and  subsequent  to  the  pro- 
secution :  to  which  is  prefixed  a  letter  to  His  Royal 
Highness  the  Duke  of  York  on  the  'present  administra- 
tion of  military  law.  The  whole  respectfully  inscribed 
to  the  general  officers  who  composed  the  Court  Martial 
at  the  said  trial.  London :  J.  Barfield,  Wardour  Street, 
1805  :  8vo.,  pp.  cxix.,  1.,  and  280  (making  in  all  449  pages). 

The  only  account  of  the  actual  mutiny  which  I  have  seen  occurs 
in  a  book  entitled  "  Sketches  and  recollections  of  the  West  Indies,"  by 
"  A  Resident,"  published  by  Smith  Elder  in  1828  (8vo.,  pp.  xii,  300). 
A  copy  now  in  King's  College  Library,  Aberdeen,  has  the  words  "  By 
Hugh  Gordon,  Esq.,"  pasted  on  a  printed  slip  over  "  By  a  Resident." 
This  Hugh  Gordon  may  be  the  Hugh  Gordon,  Esq.,  late  of  Dominica, 
who  was  married  at  Macduff,  Oct.  27,  1807,  to  Catherine,  daughter  of 
Rev.  Thomas  Wilson,  minister  of  Gamrie,  and  who  seems  to  have  been 
the  father  of  the  Rev.  George  Gordon  (1808-1839),  minister  of  Knock- 
ando.     Hugh  sailed  to  Dominica  via  Barbados  from  Gravesend  "  three 


35 

years  after  Sir  Hugh  Christian's  disaster,"  which  occurred  iu  1795. 
On  landing  he  was  enrolled  in  the  St  George's  "Regiment  at  Roseau, 
and  soon  got  a  commission  (p.  34).  He  took  part  (1797)  in  a  fight 
with  a  French  privateer  which  swooped  clown  on  Roseau  and  carried 
off  a  large  sloop  (owned  by  a  captain  of  the  St  George's)  and  laden 
with  sugar  and  rum.  The  privateer  was  chased  by  a  fast  sailing 
armed  schooner  on  whieh  Gordon  sailed  (p.  91).  He  was  in  garrison 
during  the  insurrection  of  Guadeloupe,  1803  (p.  99).  In  1804  he  was 
sent  to  Prince  Rupert's  garrison  (p.  159).  Having  been  exempted 
from  militia  duty,  he  offereduhis  services  as  a  supernumerary  aide-de- 
camp, and  was  despatched  with  orders  for  the  light  infantry  of- the  St 
George's  Regiment  to  take  post  at  the  river  side  and  edge  of  the  ford 
until  further  orders.  He  was  still  in  garrison  at  Prince  Rupert's  in 
June  1805.  He  returned  to  England  the  same  year.  His  book  is 
difficult  to  read  intelligently,  for  it  is  almost  dateless.  It  is  par- 
ticularly tantalising  that,  being  of  northern  origin,  he  does  not  go  out 
of  his  way  to  give  more  precise  information  about  John  Gordon. 
He  deals,  however,  at  length  with  the  mutiny  (pp.  105-116). 

The  regiment  was  stationed  in  a  fort  at  Prince  Rupert's  which  is 
situated  on  a  small  promontory  connected  with  the  mainland  of 
Dominica  by  an  isthmus  mostly  made  up  of  marshy  brushwood,  called 
the  Swamp,  90  acres  in  extent.  This  place  was  supposed  to  have  been 
the  cause  of  the  constant  outbreak  of  fever  which  decimated  the 
regiment,  and  Johnstone  declared  that  he  set  the  men 
to  clear  it  with  a  view  to  reduce  the  dangers  of  malaria. 
According  to  Hugh  Gordon,  "  the  regiment  had  latterly  received  no 
pay,  and  although  the  major  commanding  and  paymaster  had  made 
repeated  applications  on  the  subject  to  Johnstone,  the  governor,  they 
had  been  made  in  vain  ;  two  companies  not  having  received  their  pay 
since  October  24,  and  two  from  November  24,  1801." 

There  were  500  black  men  in  the  garrison,  and  less  than  twenty 
whites.  Hugh  Gordon  gives  a  glimpse  of  the  night  of  the  mutin  y 
April  9:  — 

The  officers  who  escaped  on  the  night  of  the  mutiny, 
and  joined  the  troops  next  day,  were  Major  Gordon, 
Captain  Cassan,  and  Ensign  Greenshields  :  those  taken 
prisoners  were  Captain  Barr,  Lieutenants  Alexander  and 
Allan  Cameron :  and  those  who  unhappily  lost  their 
lives,  together  with  the  artillerymen,  and  every  other 
white  person  in  the  garrison,  with  the  exception  of  Mr 
Barron,  of  the  ordnance  department,  and  a  few  women, 
were  Captain  Allan  Cameron,  'Lieutenant  and  Adjutant 
Mackay,  Lieutenant  Wasteneys,  and  two  others,  names 
forgotten.  The  major  escaped,  through  the  fidelity  of  a 
man  of  Captain  Cameron's  company,  who  save  him 
notice,  a  few  minutes  before  the  work  of  death  began. 
These  officers  determined  to  use  their  personal  influence 


36 

with  the  men.  The  -major  proceeded  instantly  to  the 
barracks  at  the  barrier  ;  Captain  Cameron  went  to  those 
of  his  company,  in  Fort  Shirley.  Captain  Cameron  was 
so  firmly  persuaded  of  their  attachment  to  him,  that  he 
entertained  little  doubt  of  detaching  them  from  the 
mutiny,  and  of  holding  Fort  Shirley,  until  relieved.  His 
company,  however,  instantly  made  him  a  prisoner,  but 
assured  him  of  personal  safety,  and  that  they  would  sacri- 
fice their  own  lives  to  defend  him.  The  work  of  death 
immediately  began.  The  iew  artillerymen  in  the  fort 
were  butchered  in  cold  blood  by  these  savages  ;  and,  in 
other  parts  of  the  garrison,  they  proceeded  to  destroy 
every  white  person  whom  they  could  find,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  three  officers,  who  were  favourites,  and 
saved  by  their  own  companies.  Captain  Cameron's  fate 
was  tragical  in  the  extreme.  After  escaping  in  the  com- 
mencement, he  was  shot  by  a  man  whom  he  had  ordered 
into  confinement  the  day  before,  who  had  now  been  liber- 
ated, an  i  was  not  aware  of,  or  would  not  understand, 
the  favourable  intentions  of  his  own  company  towards 
him.  The  man  was  immediately  put  to  death  by  his 
comradi  s.  The  major's  endeavours  to  stop  the  mutiny 
were  equally  fruitless.  With  difficulty  he  escaped  with 
his  life,  being  pursued  and  fired  at,  and  his  horse  woun- 
ded. Lieutenant  Wasteneys,  a  fine  youth  of  eighteen,  on 
guard  on  the  inner  Cabarite,  was  savagely  bayonetted. 
The  death  of  Adjutant  Mackay  was  still  more  tragical. 
The  monsters,  not  satisfied  with  killing  him,  actually  cut 
his  body  in  pieces.  He  was  one  of  the  stoutest  men  in 
the  army  ;  of  great  talent,  and  undaunted  resolution. 
He  defended  himself  until  entirely  overpowered  by  num- 
bers. Several  officers  and  men  of  the  ordnance,  com- 
missaiiab,  and  quartermaster-general's  departments  ex- 
perienced a  similar  fate  ;  and  the  miserable  women,  who 
fell  into  the  power  of  these  wretches,  suffered  every 
species  of  indignity  and  degradation. 

The  news  of  the  massacre  was  brought  by  express  to  "Roseau,  the 
capital  next  morning,  (April  10),  and  Hugh  Gordon  describes  its 
effect  : — 

So  strong  was  the  apprehension  that  these  proceed- 
ings were  the  first  step  towards  a  general  insurrection 
amongst  the  slaves,  that  the  white  inhabitants  only  whis- 
pered their  terrors  to  each  other,  afraid  to  declare,  in 
the  hearing  of  the  black  population,  all  that  had  taken 
place  at  Prince  Rupert's.  The  Governor,  however,  lost 
not  a  moment  in  summoning  the  Council,  to  whom  he 
declared  his  intention  of  immediately  embarking  '  with 
the  garrison  of  Morne  Bruce  (the  gallant  68th  Regiment) 
and  part  of  the  St  George's  Regiment  of  Militia,  to  at- 
tack the  mutineers  in  their  stronghold,  and  to  send  off 
immediate  expresses  to  the  commander-in-chief  for  rein- 
forcements.    Martial  law  was  instantly  put  in  force  ;  and 


37 

by  ten  o'clock,  the  same  morning,  the  troops  were  em- 
barked and  under  weigh,  with  supplies  of  provisions, 
ammunition  etc.,  sufficient  for  their  use.  Fortunately, 
two  British  men-of-war,  the  Excellent  and  Magnificent, 
of  seventy-four  guns  each,  commanded  by  the  Hon.  Com- 
modore (now  Admiral)  Stopford  and  Captain  Giffard, 
anchored  in  Prince  Kupert's  Bay  the  same  evening  to 
take  in  wood  and  water  ;  and  receiving  immediate  notice 
of  what  had  happened,  the  Commodore  disembarked  the 
marines,  of  both  ships,  to  cut  off  the  communication  of 
the  mutineers  with  the  country,  and  to  confine  them  to 
the  garrison,  of  which  they  had  entire  possession,  with 
a  supply  of  provisions  and  ammunition  for  many  weeks. 
The  mutineers  fired  repeatedly  on  the  men-of-war  from 
Fort  Shirley  and  the  outer  Cabarite,  but  found  that  they 
had  anchored  out  of  reach  of  their  gunnery  ;  and  their 
attempts  to  dislodge  the  marines  and  militia,  which  had 
joined  them  from  Point  Round,  were  equally  unsuccess- 
ful. 

A  French  man-of-war  schooner,  from  Guadeloupe, 
with  despatches,  happened  to  be  at  Roseau  on  the  morn- 
ing when  the  evil  news  arrived ;  and  her  commander 
immediately  offered  to  convey  Governor  Johnstone  and 
his  staff  to  Prince  Rupert's.  He  was,  accordingly,  dis- 
embarked the  same  evening  at  Point  Round,  where  he 
was  joined  by  Commodore  Stopford  and  other  officers. 
The  Magnificent  was  under  weigh,  in  an  hour  afterwards, 
to  bring  part  of  the  Royals  from  the  Saintes,  where  they 
were  in  garrison,  only  a  few  hours'  sail  from  Prince 
Rupert's.  The  68th  Regiment  and  Militia  arrived  from 
Roseau  the  same  evening. 

Johnstone  first  took  a  trip  to  the  village  of  Portsmouth  in  order 
to  interview  Gordon,  who,  he  says,  was  seated  in  a  tavern,  although 
it  was  his  first  duty  to  have  secured  the  isthmus,  so  as  to  prevent  the 
mutineers  from  reaching  the  island.  Johnstone  adroitly  draws  a 
curtain  over  the  method  by  which  he  quelled  the  mutiny,  but  Hugh 
Gordon,  in  his  muddling  way,  goes  into  details  : — 

The  morning  after  the  governor's  arrival,  he  sent  in 
an  officer  and  flag  of  truce  to  the  mutineers,  to  summon 
them  to  surrender  ;  but  they  refused  to  admit  him  within 
the  lines,  or  to  treat  on  the  terms  proposed  by  the  Gover- 
nor, who  wished  to  save  the  lives  of  the  three  valuable 
officers  whom  they  kept  prisoners,  and  who  were  in 
momentary  expectation  of  being  put  to  death,  amidst  the 
contending  opinions  of  the  furious  and  savage  mutineers, 
some  of  whom  were  desirous  to  save,  and  others  to  de- 
stroy, them.  The  mutineers  had  made  repeated  at- 
tempts  to  dislodge  the  marines  and  militia  from  the 
swamp,  which  formed  the  isthmus  between  the  garrison 
and  town  of  Prince  Rupert's,  but  were  always  repulsed. 
They  also  canonaded  the  posts  held  by  the  troops  in  the 


38 

neighbourhood,  but  their  shot  fell  short.  The  return  of 
the  Magnificent,  with  two  hundred  men  of  the  Royals, 
under  command  of  Major  Paxley,  now  determined  the 
Governor  to  attempt  to  storm  the  fortress.  The  68th 
Regiment  was  500  strong,  and  commanded  by  Majors 
bcott  and  Hamilton ;  the  marines  were  150  ;  detachment 
of  Royals,  200  ;  the  St  George's  Militia  and  other  com- 
panies, about  400— in  all  1300  men,  whilst  the  mutineers 
did  not  exceed  450. 

Major  Hamilton  volunteered  to  head  the  attack,  and 
Captain  Blakeney,  and  other  officers,  followed  his  ex- 
ample in  pressing  to  be  entrusted  with  commands.  The 
arrangements  had  been  completed,  and  the  assault  was 
to  be  made  the  same  night,  when  a  flag  of  truce  was 
perceived  coming  from  the  garrison.  On  its  arrival, 
Lieutenant  Alexander  Cameron,  of  the  8th  West  India 
Regiment  [who  died,  a  victim  to  the  climate,  at  Prince 
Rupert's  several  years  after],  proposed  terms  of  surren- 
der. Aware  of  their  danger,  the  mutineers  offered  to 
throw  themselves  on  the  mercy  of  the  Governor,  stipu- 
lating only  that  the  lives  of  the  whole  regiment  should 
be  saved.  This  Governor  Johnstone  peremptorily  re- 
fused ;  but  he  urged  Lieutenant  Cameron  to  remain,  and 
not  again  to  put  himself  in  the  power  of  the  mutineers. 
The  lieutenant's  reply  was  heroic,  as  it  was  impressive. 
"Never  will  I  consent  to  save  my  own  life  at  the  certain 
expense  of  that  of  my  brother  officers,  still  in  their  power 
— I  promised  to  return  ;  and,  whether  life  or  death  shall 
await  me,  I  must  go  back."  The  noble  self-devotion  of 
this  brave  officer,  and  the  state  in  which  he  appeared 
amongst  his  fellow-soldiers,  inspired  them  with  the  de- 
termination to  effect  his  release,  if  spared  until  the  hour 
of  assault,  or  to  die  in  the  attempt.  He  had  come  into 
the  cantonments  without  hat,  coat,  or  shoes,  all  having 
been  stripped  from  him  by  the  daring  and  blood-thirsty 
men  whom  he  had  commanded  only  a  few  days  before. 

After  some  delay,  it  was  unexpectedly  agreed  to  by 
the  mutineers  that  the  regular  troops  should  march  into 
the  garrison  of  Prince  Rupert's  lat  five  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  and  that  the  8th  West  India  Regiment,  drawn 
up  on  parade,  and  placing  themselves  at  the  mercy  of 
the  Commander-in-Chief  in  the  West  Indies,  should  lay 
down  their  arms  on  receiving  the  word  of  command  from 
the  Governor. 

Accordingly,  at  four  p.m.,  the  regular  troops  were 
under  arms,  and,  soon  after,  they  began  their  march,  with 
Governor  Johnstone  at  their  head,  to  enter  the  garrison. 
Several  officers  and  privates  of  the  militia,  with  all  the 
civilians  attached  to  the  army,  followed  unarmed,  anx- 
ious to  be  spectators  of  the  approaching  scene.  Having 
entered  by  the  barrier  gate,  where  the  black  sentinels 
presented  arms  as  they  passed,  the  troops  marched  on 
towards  the  parade  ;  the  detachment  of.  Royal  Artillery, 


39 

under    command    of   Captain,    now    Lieutenant-Colonel, 
JBrough,  halting,    with  their  guns  a  little  to  the  left    of 
the  8th  West  India  Regiment,  which  were  already  drawn 
up  in  line  on  the  parade  ;   the  three  officers  (their  pris- 
oners) standing  in  front  of  their  respective   companies, 
to  the  command  of  which,   it  appeared,   they  had    been 
restored.     The  Royals,  68th  Regiment,  and  Marines  hav- 
ing taken  up  their  ground  in  front  of  the  mutineers,  and 
within  twenty  yards  of  them,  Governor  Johnstone  rode 
up    to    address    them.         Scarcely,  however,  had  he  ex- 
pressed   his  regret  and  sorrow  that  the  corps,  of  which 
he  was  the   colonel,   and  which  had  distinguished  itself 
at  the  capture   of  the  Danish    settlements,    should  have 
so  acted,  when  the  angry  feelings  betrayed  by  the  muti- 
neers led  him  to  wheel  a  little  round  ;   and,  again  front- 
ing them,  he,  without  losing  further  time,  gave  the  word 
for  them  to  order  and  ground  their  arms.     A  few  only 
obeyed  this  order,  and  one  of  their  ring-leaders,  stepping 
out,    called  to  them  "  not  to  lay    down    their    arms,    as 
Governor  Johnstone  would  cheat  them."     At  this  critical 
moment,  the  Royals,  perceiving  that  resistance  would  be 
made,    and    scarcely    waiting    for  orders,  fired  a  volley, 
which  was  followed  by  another  from  the  68th  Regiment 
and  Marines,  who,   directed  by  Major  Hamilton,   imme- 
diately   advanced    at   the    point  of  the  bayonet.        The 
mutineers,  after  a  straggling  fire,  gave  way  on  all  sides, 
scrambling  up  the  sides  of  the  outer  Cabarite,  from  the 
top  of  which  two  or  three  hundred  of  them  precipitated 
themselves  into  the  ssa  down  a  steep,  which,  until  then, 
had  been  considered  impracticable,  and  with  very  little 
loss  of  lives,    a    few    only  being  destroyed  by  their  fall. 
They  left  seventy  or  eighty  killed  and  wounded  on  the 
parade  by  the  fire  of  the  troops,  who  pursued  them  to 
the  top,    killing   or   capturing    all    whom   they   overtook. 
On  the  part  of  the  troops  a  few  men  only  were  killed, 
and  two  or  three    officers    and    a   dozen    men   wounded. 
The  three   officers  of  the  8th  West  India  Regiment  es- 
caped unhurt. 

Parties  of  the  mutineers  (the  guards  of  the  day,  per- 
haps) were  still  occupying  Fort  Shirley  and  the  batteries 
on  the  inner  Cabarite,  and  from  the  latter  a  discharge 
of  grape-shot  was  now  received,  which,  being  aimed  too 
high,  did  no  mischief.  Captain  Brough  immediately 
turned  his  guns  on  the  party  who  were  firing,  and,  by 
his  first  fire  of  grape,  killed  the  greater  part  of  them. 
The  rest  fled  across  the  swamp,  where  some  of  them 
were  taken  and  others  killed  by  the  militia  ;  two  were 
by  this  time  under  arms,  though  not  in  time  to  intercept 
the  main  body  of  the  mutineers,  who  had  fled  over  the 
outer  Cabarite,  and  got  off  into  the  country,  mostly  with- 
out arms. 

A  detachment  immediately  proceeded  to  take  pos- 
session of  Fort  Shirley,   where,   on  the  magazines  being 


40 

opened  and  examined,  a  train  was  found  to  have  been 
laid  for  the  purpose  of  blowing  up  the  assailants. 

The  troops  now  received  the  thanks  of  the  Governor 
on  parade,  measures  were  taken  for  the  pursuit  of  the 
fugitives,  and  the  wounded  on  both  sides  left  on  the 
field  of  contest  were  carefullv  removed  to  the  hospital. 
The  wounded  officers  were  placed  by  the  Governor's 
direction,  in  the  barrack  in  Fort  Shirley,  appropriated 
for  his  own  quarters  ;  and  it  is  but  justice  to  this  now 
fallen  star  to  mention  that  he  was  to  be  seen,  for  several 
following  days,  administering  to  their  wants  with  his  own 
hands.  The  situation  of  the  unfortunate  officers  of  the 
8th  West  India  Regiment,  who  had  lost  all  their  pro- 
perty, also  received  his  early  attention. 

Amidst  our  warlike  operations  and  harrassing  duty 
one  circumstance  afforded  great  and  universal  satisfac- 
tion, viz.,  the  fidelity  of  the  slaves,  who  not  only  evinced 
their  accustomed  subordination  and  obedience  to  masters 
and  managers  at  the  time  the  strong  garrison  of  Prince 
Rupert's  was  in  the  hands  of  the  mutineers,  but  took 
every  opportunity  of  showing  their  abhorrence  of  such 
proceedings,  and  their  desire  to  assist  in  securing  and 
bringing  them  to  punishment.  Many  instances  of  the 
warmest  and  most  devoted  attachment  to  their  masters 
by  slaves  on  this  trying  occasion  might  be  mentioned. 

The  Governor  issued  a  proclamation  congratulating 
the  colony  on  the  suppression  of  the  mutiny,  and  prais- 
ing the  peaceable  and  good  behaviour  of  the  slaves.  The 
thanks  of  the  council  and  assembly  were  at  the  same 
time  voted  to  the  commanding  officers  and  different 
corps,  and  to  the  men-of-war,  including  the  French  ships, 
which  had  rendered  such  important  service  to  the  colony. 
Whatever  portion  of  blame  may  have  attached  to  Gover- 
nor Johnstone  respecting  the  cause  of  the  mutiny,  he 
unquestionably  displayed,  in  the  suppression  of  it,  great 
talents  and  address. 

When  the  garrison  was  a  little  restored  to  order,  and 
the  danger  to  the  state  no  longer  imminent,  we  formed 
ourselves  into  parties,  and  were  allowed  to  make  excur- 
sions to  the  country  ;  but  the  arrival  of  transports,  with 
the  4th  West  India  Regiment,   and  a  detachment  of  ar- 
tillery, soon  relieved  the  68th  Regiment  and  the  greater 
part  of  us  from  farther  duty  at  Prince  Rupert's. 
A  court-martial  was  held  immediately  at  Prince  Rupert's,  when 
seven  of  the  ringleaders  were  tried  and  condemned.    The  Commander- 
in-Chief,   Sir  Thomas  Trigge,  ordered  the  mutineers,  who   were  at 
length  all  accounted  for  as   killed,  wounded,  or  prisoners,  to  be  sent 
to  °Barbadoes,    then    the  headquarters.      They    left   Dominica    on 
April  24. 

A   court  of  inquiry  was  held  at  Fort   Charles,   Barbadoes,  on 
May  24  1802.    The  ringleaders  were  tried  by  court-martial  on  June 


41 

6, 1802,  and  several  of  them  executed ;  others,  who  were  less  impli- 
cated or  left  the  standard  of  rebellion,  were,  with  their  officers,  drafted 
into  other  West  India  regiments,  but  the  greater  part  was  formed 
into  a  corps  of  pioneers,  and  attached  as  labourers  and  servants  to  the 
different  regiments  doing  duty  in  the  West  Indies,  the  8th  being 
finally  disembodied  on  September  24,  1802. 

Gordon  then  came  home,  arriving  in  London  in  February  1803,  and 
taking  lodgings  at  194  Piccadilly.  Johnstone  was  recalled,  and  began 
preferring  charges  against  Gordon,  who  wascourt-martialledat  Chelsea 
Bospital,  January  30-February  14,  1804.  Gordon  was  found  generally 
not  guilty.  Here  are  four  of  the  charges  against  him,  and  the  verdict 
of  the  court  : — 

1.  Having  entered  into  a  co-partnership  with  the 
late  Lieutenant  Mackay,  the  acting  quarter-master,  re- 
lative to  the  baking  for  or  furnishing  bread  of  the  8th 
West  India  Regiment,  and  taking  and  receiving  from 
him  different  sums  of  money  as  the  profit  and  emolu- 
ment arising  therefrom,  contrary  to  his  duty  and  in  de- 
rogation of  the  character  of  a  commanding  officer,  and 
to  the  prejudice  of  the  service  between  the  month  of 
July  1801,  and  the  end  of  the  month  of  April  1802. 

2.  Having  unwarrantably  received  from  Messrs 
James  and  Addison,  auctioneers  at  Dominica,  on  or 
about  the  month  of  April  1802,  the  profits  arising  from 
the  sale  of  flour  and  rice  issued  from  the  King's  stores 
and  stated  by  him,  Major  Gordon,  to  be  the  joint  pro- 
perty of  the  late  Lieutenant  Mackay  and  himself. 

To  these  charges  the  Court  returned  a  verdict  of  not  guilty,  adding  : — 

The  Court  thinks  that  the  Major  has  been  very  irre- 
gular in  not  keeping  an  account  of  the  monies  which  he 
received  on  that  account  as  well  as  of  expenditure,  which 
might  have  enabled  him  to  have  stated  the  same  cor- 
rectly, instead  of  the  vague  distribution  thereof  given 
to  the  Court. 

The  next  charge  had  reference  to  the  pay  of  the  regiment,  Gordon 
being  charged  with 

3.  Having  in  the  pay  lists  of  the  8th  West  India 
Regiment,  certified  by  him  as  commanding  officer,  signi- 
fied that  the  accounts  of  the  men  had  been  settled  and 
paid  to  the  24th  of  December  1801,  which  accounts  were 
transmitted  to  the  War  Office  as  just  and  true  accounts  : 
whereas  two  of  the  companies  had  been  paid  only  to  the 
24th  of  October  and  two  to  the  24th  of  November  1801. 

To  this  charge  the  Court  returned  the  verdict  not  guilty,  adding 

by  way  of  rider  :-- 

But  the  Court  cannot  forbear  observing  that  there 
appears  to  have  been  culpable  neglect  in  having  suf- 
fered the  certifying  of  the  pay  lists  for  the  months    of 


42 

October,  November,  and  December  1801,  to  be  procras- 
tinated until  the  6th  of  April  1802,  which  circumstance 
Major  Gordon  admits  and  on  the  ground  rests  the  truth 
of  the  certificates,  which  would  not  have  been  true  in 
fact  had  the  certificates  been  signed  by  him  at  the  end 
of  those  respective   periods. 

The    last    charge    of  all  was  perhaps  the  most  unpleasant 
brought  against  Gordon,  who  was  charged  with 

4  Having  received  from  the  paymaster  of  the  regi- 
ment at  Barbados,  and,  injuriously  and  contrary  to  his 
duty,  withheld  different  sums  of  money  issued  by  the 
warrant  of  the  Commander  of  the  Forces  in  the  West 
Indies  as  a  compensation  to  the  representations  of  the 
deceased  officers  for  their  losses,  namely,  the  sum  of 
£120  10s  for  the  deceased  Captain  Cameron  ;  £138  10s 
for  the  deceased  Lieutenant  Mackay  ;  and  £60  for  the  de- 
ceased Lieutenant  Wasteneys,  and  having  quitted  the 
West  Indies  without  accounting  to  the  widow  of  the  late 
Lieutenant  Mackay  [adjutant],  as  was  his  duty  to 
have  done,  for  the  above  sum  of  £139  10s  allowed  for 
her  husband's  losses  ;  and  not  having  accounted  for  the 
above  sum  of  money  to  the  officers  of  the  regiment,  the 
War  Office,  the  agent  of  the  regiment,  or  to  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  deceased  officers. 
The  Court  acquitted  Gordon  on  this  charge,  holding  that  it  had  not 
been  established  by  evidence  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Court : — 

It  has,  however,  appeared  to  the  Court  that  Major 
Gordon  did  receive  the  sums  of  money  stated  in  the 
charge  on  account  of  the  deceased  officers  therein 
named  ;  but  he  has  shown  that  the  monies  so  received 
were  applicable  towards  the  payment  of  the  debtB  of 
those  respective  officers,  and  that  he  has  accounted  to 
the  relatives  of  Captain  Cameron  for  the  money  received 
on  his  account,  and  has  paid  several  sums  of  money  on 
account  of  the  other  officers  named  in  the  charge,  viz., 
Lieutenant  Mackay  and  Lieutenant  Wasteneys  ;  but  al- 
though the  Court  does  not  consider  the  monies  in  ques- 
tion as  coming  under  the  description  of  the  first  article 
of  the  19  th  section  of  the  Articles  of  War, 
Major  Gordon  appears  to  have  been  negligent,  and 
to  have  subjected  himself  to  censure  in  not  having  taken 
further  measures  in  order  to  have  accounted  for  the 
whole  of  the  monies  which  he  had  (received  on  account 
of  the  two  officers  ;  and  the  Court  is  of  opinion  that  he 
should  be  called  upon  to  render  a  satisfactory  account 
to  His  Majesty's  Secretary  at  War  of  the  expenditure  as 
well  as  of  the  balances  now  remaining  in  his  hands. 

Gordon  was  placed  on  half-pay  and  never  again  employed. 
In  due  course  he  preferred  charges  against  Johnstone,  who  was 
court-martialled  at  Chelsea,  March  1805,  and  deprived  of  his  rank 


43 

and  government.  Some  extraordinary  statements  are  made  about 
him  in  "Public  Characters"  (vol.  10),  and  in  A.  Mackenrot's  "Secret 
Memoirs  of  A.  Cochrane  Johnstone,"  1814.     Mackenrot  remarks  : — 

The  accusation  of  his  having  caused  a  mutiny  in  one 
of  the  West  India,  i.e.,  black,  regiments  in  garrison  at 
Dominica,  whom  he  wanted  to  work  as  field  negroes  on 
his  own  plantation,  and  of  causing  it  to  be  fired  upon 
by  the  soldiers  of  another  corps,  when  the  blacks  refused 
to  lay  down  their  arms,  is  a  circumstance  perfectly  re- 
concilable with  the  general  atrocity  of  his  character,  aa 
besides  instances  of  his  dealings  in  human  flesh  and 
blood  at  St  Christopher's,  he  and  his  brother  are  guilty 
of  other  malpractices,  usurpations,  and  as  Mr  Brougham 
calls  it,  felonies  against  the  persons  of  natives  of  Africa. 

After  his  retirement  Gordon  farmed  Drumin,  in  Inveravon, 
just  at  the  point  where  the  Avon  and  Livet  join,  and  near  the 
ruins  of  the  old  castle  of  Drumin,  the  seat  of  the  Barons  of  Strathaven 
(Stewart's  "  Lectures  from  the  Mountains  "  1860  :  1st  series  p.  101). 
On  July  1799  he  was  admitted  a  member  of  the  Highland  Society,  of 
which  his  brother  Lewis  was  secretary. 

He  married  on  November  29,  1807,  Magdaline  Cuming,  Kirk- 
michael.  This  marriage  is  the  subject  of  a  big  dossier  at  the  Public 
Record  Office  in  London  for  it  was  never  registered,  and  when  Mrs 
Gordon,  "  in  indigent  circumstances,"  came  to  apply  to  the  War  Office 
for  a  pension  she  had  to  put  herself  to  a  great  deal  of  trouble  to  bring 
witnesses  before  the  Commissary  at  Aberdeen  (July  8,  1819)  to  show 
that  she  and  her  husband  were  habit  and  repute  man  and  wife  while 
residing  in  Upperkirkgate,  Broadford,  and  Frederick  Street,  Aberdeen, 
while  the  Rev.  William  Grant,  the  parish  minister  of  her  native 
Kirkmichael,  forwarded  this  very  interesting  note  : — 

These  certify  that  the  late  Major  Gordon,  of  the  8th 
West  India  Regiment,  and  also  his  relict,  Mrs  Gordon, 
now  residing  at  Tomintoul  in  this  parish,  were  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  persuasion  ;  and  it  has  not  been  custo- 
mary here  for  some  time  past  when  both  parties  are  of 
that  persuasion,  for  them  to  be  married  by  a  clergyman 
of  the  Established  Church,  and  consequently  the  regis^ 
tration  of  their  marriages  has  been  almost  wholly  neg- 
lected. Given  at  the  Manse  of  Kirkmichael,  the  18th  day 
of  August  1819. 

This  letter  satisfied  the  authorities,  for  the  widow  of  Gordon  who 
lived  in  Holburn  Street,  Aberdeen,  in  April  1819,  was  granted  a 
pension  of  £70  from  April  4,  under  a  warrant  dated  November  13, 
1819.  He  had  three  children,  who  were  all  placed  on  the  Com- 
passionate List  on  the  recommendation  of  his  brother  Lewis,  and  the 
Duke  of  Gordon  at  £12  a  year  each,  May  26,  1820.  Mrs  Gordon  was 
living  in  Constitution  Street,   Aberdeen,  in  1823,  having  probably 


44 

gone  into  the  town  to  keep  house  for  her  brother-in-law  Lewis,  who 
also  went  to  Aberdeen  in  that  year. 

Major  John  Gordon's  three  children  were  : — 

1  John  William  Gordon,  born  and  baptised  in  London, 
March  1805.  On  attaining  the  age  of  18,  he  was  struck 
off  the  pension  list  of  1823,  but  as  a  special  favour,  was 
granted  £3  from  December  25,  1822,  to  March  27,  1823. 

2.  George  Henry  Gordon,  born  and  baptised  at  Aberdeen, 
March  1809.  He  is  apparently  the  George  Henry  Gor- 
don, '"  Banffshire,"  who  was  at  King's  College,  Aberdeen, 
in  1823.  He  was  appointed  hospital  assistant  in  the 
army  by  commission,  July  10,  1824,  and  was  on  half-pay 
September  14,  1829-July  1830.  He  was  appointed  staff- 
assistant  surgeon,  July  29,  1830  :  and  assistant  surgeon 
16th  Foot,  October  12,  1830,  embarking  for  Bengal  on 
October  25.  He  arrived  in  England  on  sick  leave  from 
Bengal  in  May  1833  :  was  transferred  from  the  16th  Regi- 
ment to  the  Staff,  December  6,  1833.  He  took  his  M.D. 
at  Glasgow  University,  and  died  at  Tilbury  Fort,  Essex, 
on  June  6,  1834  ("Gentleman's  Magazine,"  vol.  civ.,  part 
2,  p.  443). 

3.  Eliza  Hellen  Gordon,  born  and  baptised  in  London  1807. 
She  was  living  in  Aberdeen  in  1828. 


45 

THE  GORDONS  IN  AUCHORACHAN. 

rpHE  continuity  of  the  Minmore  Gordons  in  the  lands  of  Min 
more  has  probably  been  maintained  by  the  Gordons  in  Auch- 
orachan,  who  married  into  the  family  of  Smith  in  Drumin. 

Auchorachan,  which  is  in  the  parish  of  Inveravon,  was  apparently 
held  by  Harry  Gordon,  son  of  William  Gordon  I.  in  Minmore,  for  he 
is  described  in  1652  as  '*  in  Auchorachan."  A  gap  occurs  in  the  history 
of  the  farm,  but  on  February  23, 1745,  John  Gordon  (died  before  1767), 
son  and  heir  of  the  famous  Jacobite,  John  Gordon  of  Glenbucket 
(died  1750)  had  sasine  on  the  lands  of  "  Auchroachan"  (Banff  Sasines). 
This  seems  to  have  been  the  origin  of  the  belief  that  the  Gordon- 
Smith  family  is  descended  from  the  Glenbucket  line.  John's  son, 
William,  had  sasine  on  December  8,  1767,  on  an  annual  rent  of  £400 
Scots,  "  to  be  taken  partly  of  all  and  haill  the  half  daugh  lands  of 
Auchroachan." 

Curiously  enough,  the  next  Gordon  connected  with  Auchorachan 
is  also  a  William,  but,  so  far  as  is  known,  he  was  not  connected  with 
the  Glenbucket  family.  In  reference  to  this  William,  a  very  interest- 
ing document,  written  by  James  Glashan,  writer  in  Keith,  and 
subscribed  at  Auchorachan,  August  9,  1790,  before  Patrick  McKay, 
servant  at  Auchorachan,  and  the  said  James  Glashan,  was  recorded  at 
Elgin,  July  2,  1793.  It  is  one  of  those  documents  that  does  the 
heart  of  the  genealogist  good,  so  full  is  it  of  the  detail  for  which  he 
hungers.     William  died  at  Auchorachan,  Sept.  8,  1790,  aged  71. 

I,  William  Gordon  of  Bogfoutain  at  Auchorachan 
.  .  .  am  resolved  to  settle  and  destine  my  temporal 
matters  in  my  own  lifetime  so  as  to  obviate  and  prevent 
all  disputes  and  controversies  after  my  death  respecting 
the  succession  thereto  ;  wherefore  and  for  the  love,  favour 
and  affection  which  I  have  and  bear  to  William  Gordon, 
my  fourth  lawful  son,  wit  ye  me  to  have  granted  and 
disponed  .  .  .  with  the  reservation  of  my  own  life- 
rent thereof  and  under  the  several  other  conditions  and 
respective  burdens  specially  after  insert  .  .  to  and 
in  favour  of  the  said  William  Gordon,  my  fourth  lawful 
son,  all  and  whole  my  personal  estate,  means  and  for- 
tune of  every  kind  .  .  ;  as  also  to  have  made  and  con- 
stitute .  .  .  the  said  William  Gordon  .  .  .  to  be 
my  sole  executor  and  universal  intromitter  .  .  but 
under  the  burden  of  .  .  the  following  provisions  to 
my  other  children,  viz.,  the  sum  of  £300  sterling  to  John 
Gordon  in  Tomnavoulan,  my  eldest  lawful  son,  to  whom 
I  hereby  destine,  legate  and  bequeath  the  same  ;  item 
the  sum  of  £200  to  Robert  Gordon  in  Castletown,  my 
second  lawful  son,  to  whom  I  legate  .  .  the  same  and 
that  over  and  above  such  sum  or  sums  of  money  as  he 
may  be  due  and  resting  on  me  at  the  time  of  my  death, 
and  of  which  he  is  hereby  acquitted  and  discharged  :  item 


46 

the  sum  of  £300  to  Alexander  Gordon,  my  youngest  law- 
ful son :  item  the  sum  of  five  shillings  to  Margaret  Gor- 
don, my  second  lawful  daughter,  and  Andrew  Smith  in 
Drumrnin,  her  husband  .  .  item  the  sum  of  five  shil- 
lings to  Jean  Gordon,  my  youngest  lawful  daughter,  and 
William  McAlister  in  London,  her  husband  .  .  :  and 
also  to  make  payment  annually  as  a  yearly  annuity  to 
Elspeth  Gordon,  my  eldest  lawful  daughter,  the  sum  of 
one  pound  sterling :  all  which  provisions  ...  I  de- 
clare to  be  in  full  of  all  bairns  part  of  gear,  portion 
natural,  etc.,  .  .  and  further  I  legate  and  bequeath 
to  Charles  Gordon,  my  third  lawful  son,  to  assist  him  in 
giving  education  to  his  daughter  the  sum  of  £20  over  and 
above  the  other  engagements  incumbent  on  me  by  the 
contract  of  marriage  betwixt  him  and  Helen  Grant,  his 
present  spouse.  .  And  declaring  as  it  is  here  specially 
declared  that  in  the  event  of  the  said  John  Gordon,  my 
eldest  son,  giving  or  attempting  to  give  the  said  William 
Gordon,  my  Disponee  and  Executor,  any  trouble  respect- 
ing a  subsett  executed  by  me  in  his  favour  of  this  date 
foi"  the  remaining  years  yet  to  run  of  my  principal  saish 
or  lease  from  the  Duke  of  Gordon,  the  heritor  upon  the 
lands  of  Auchorachan  and  others  therein  specified,  then 
and  in  that  case  I  hereby  peremptorily  reduce  and  re- 
strict the  foresaid  sum  of  £300  so  provided  to  him  to  the 
sum  of  5s  sterling  money.  [The  special  interest  to  ns 
of  this  extract  is  that  it  suggests  a  probable  explanation 
of  the  rather  puzzling  fact  that  William  Gordon  left  his 
daughter,  Mrs  Andrew  Smith,  only  5s.  The  threat  in  his 
will  to  reduce  his  eldest  son's  portion  to  the  same  amount 
makes  it  almost  conclusive  that  for  some  reason  she  was 
out  of  favour,  and  had  been  practically  cut  off  with  the 
proverbial  shilling  ;  possibly  he  was  dissatisfied  with  her 
marriage.  The  next  extract  also  throws  an  interesting 
light  on  past  events.]  £400  stg.  contained  in  a  bond 
granted  by  His  Grace  Alexander  Duke  of  Gordon  to  the 
said  William  Gordon  of  Bogfoutain,  dated  23rd  March 
1773,  payable  20th  December  1774,  with  interest  at  5  per 
cent.,  etc.  [Two  other  bonds  are  mentioned  ;  one  for 
£600,  the  other  for  £500  ;  nlso  £120  interest  due.  Alto- 
gether the  Duke  seems  to  have  owed  William  Gordon  at 
this  time  over  £1400.  These  bonds  were  ''conveved  by 
the  said  William  Gordon  to  and  in  favour  of  William 
Gordon,  his  fourth  lawful  son."]  Moreover,  I  hereby 
destine,  bequeath  and  mortify  ....  to  the 
poor  of  the  parish  of  Aberlour,  to  be  paid 
in at  the  sight  of  the  minis- 
ter, to  the  treasurer  of  said  parish  of  Aberlour  within 
six  months  after  my  death  the  sum  of  £3  6s  8d  stg.,ancl 
that  besides  one  pound  like  money,  and  two  bolls  of  oat- 
meal to  be  distributed  among  the  poor  of  the  parish  of 
Inveravon  above  the  Cragan  and  such  other  poor  people 
as  may  attend  at  Auchorachan  the  day  of  my  interment ; 


47 

and  further  I  hereby  burden  the  said  William  Gordon, 
my  disponee  and  executor,  with  the  payment  annually 
to  Helen  Orel,  my  spouse,  (1)  of  the  sum  of  £3  sterling  in 
terms  of  the  contract  of  marriage  betwixt  her  and  me, 
and  for  the  payment  of  one  pound  to  purchase  a  mourn- 
ing gown  for  her. 

Helen  Ord  was  Gordon's  second  wife — or  at  any  rate  the  step-mother 
of  his  fourth  son.  The  Knockando  Register  records  that  William 
Gordon,  Inveravon,  married  Helen  Ord,  Knockando,  April  23,  1775, 
William  Gordon  had  a  brother,  Robert  Gordon,  in  Glenrinnes.  He 
himself  had  at  least  five  sons  and  three  daughters  : — 

1.  John  Gordon  in  Tomnavoulin  got  £300  under  his  father's 
will.  Light  is  thrown  on  him  in  a  document, written  by 
Mr  Alexander  Thomson,  schoolmaster  in  Mortlach,  and 
subscribed  at  Hardhaugh,  March  1.  1792,  before  Robert 
Grant  at  Mains  of  Morange,  and  William  Gordon  in 
Lettoch,  and  recorded  at  Elgin,  December  3,  1792:  — 
"The  parties  following,  viz.  John  Gordon  in  Tomna- 
voolan  on  the  first  part,  Robert  Gordon  in  Castletown 
on  the  second  part,  and  Charles  Gordon  in  Achorrachan 
on  the  third  part — all  children  of  the  deceased  William 
Gordon,  some  time  in  Achorrachan,  and  brothers  ger- 
man  of  the  also  deceased  Ensign  William  Gordon,  last 
of  Bogfouton,  considering  that  by  an  agreement  entered 
into  betwixt  them  by  a  letter  dated  at  Achorrachan  the 
eighth  day  of  December  1791,  said  agreement  being  en- 
tered into  and  proceeding  upon  the  assertion  of  the  said 
John  Gordon  in  Tomnavoolan  to  be  supported  and 
proven  by  the  evidence  of  Robert  Stewart  in  Deskie  and 
Gavin  Stewart  in  Dounan,  wTho  were  said  to  be  witnesses 
to  a  communing  betwixt  said  John  Gordon  in  Tomna- 
voolan and  his  deceased  brother  Ensign  William  Gor- 
don relative  to  the  transaction  about  which  this  submis- 
sion is  entered  into  :  we,  the  said  Robert  and  Charles, 
became  bound  to  make  payment  to  the  said  John  Gordon 
in  Tomnavoulin  of  the  sum  of  £2C0  sterling  at  the  term 
of  Whitsunday,  and  that  in  proportion,  to  the  different 
sums  legated  and  bequeathed  to  us  by  the  said  deceased 
Ensign  William  Gordon,   our  brother,  me  the  said  John 

(1)  Very  little  seems  to  be  known  about  the  wives  of  any  of  the 
Anohoracban  Gordons.       William   Gordon  appears  to  have  had 
two — 'Margaret    Stuart  and   Helen   Ord.     Both  are   mere  names,     a 
Some  details  have  reached   me  of  the  wife  of  one  of  hie  pone —     ) 
Ensign    William    Gordon    possibly,    who,  according   to   the   late 
Colonel   John  Gordon  Smith,  married  a  Miss  Farquharson  from 
Glenconglaes.     She  •vme   related   to   the   Fa rquh arsons  of   Inver- 
cauld,  and  must   have   been  one  of   the  Farquharsons   of    Ach-    , 
riachan,  a  small   estate  which   was  for  about   200  years  in  pos-     (■ 
session  of  ia    branch    of    the   Invereauld   family.     This    lady  got 
2  military  pensions  for  the  services  of  her  husband. — I.  G.  R, 


48 

Gordon  always  bearing  a  proportion  of  the  said  sum  of 
£200  offering  to  the  sum  legated  and  bequeathed  to  me 
by  the  said  William  Gordon,  and  the  said  parties  being 
desirous  to  have  the  proportion  falling  to  be  paid  by 
each  of  them  according  to  their  several  legacies  fixed 
and  ascertained  they  .  .  submit  and  refer  to  William 
Grant  in  Tombreckachy  and  the  Rev.  George  Gordon, 
minister  of  Mortlach,  arbiters  mutually  chosen,  and  in 
case  they  differ  in  opinion  to  Lieut.  Thomas  Stewart  in 
Pittyvaich,  oversman  hereby  appointed.  .  .  ."  The 
arbiters  by  decreet  dated  April  30,  1792,  appointed 
Robert  to  pay  £47  12s  6d,  and  Charles  £142  17s  6d,  the 
balance  (£9  10s)  being  John's  proportion.  John  died  on 
July  6,  1831,  aged  92  (stonp  in  Mortlach  Churchyard). 
His  widow,  "Margaret  Gordon,"  died  July  13,  1844,  in 
her  78th  year.     He  had:  — 

(1)  William  Gordon  :  mentioned  in  his  uncle  William's 
will.  His  "  second  cousin,"  the  Rev.  J.  F.  S. 
Gordon  (2)  in  his  edition  of  Lachlan  Shaw's  "Moray," 
says  of  him  (i.,  150):  "He  had  no  great  sympathy 
with  modern  ideas  of  advance.  For  fifty  years  the 
whole  steading  was  of  the  most  primitive  makeshift 
caste.  '  Tamoul,'  as  he  was  called  from  his  farm,  in 
his  garb  was  equally  unadorned,  the  same  tattered 
rags  having  done  duty  for  years.  However,  on  high 
occasions  he  appeared  bon-ton.  While  most  pen- 
urious, when  an  auld  acquaintance  paid  him  a  visit 
at  the  roadside  farm  house  (if  such  it  could  be  desig- 
nated), Tamoul  was  kind  and  hospitable,  setting 
down  bread  and  cheese  and  a  bottle  of  real  Glenlivet. 
He  held  the  appointment  of  collector  of  seat  rents 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  chaoel  at  Tombae,  and  was 
proud  of  the  original  mode  in  which  he  kept  the  roll, 
somewhat  puzzling  to  all  but  the  patentee.     The  con- 

(2)  Rev.  James  Frederick  Skinner  Gordon,  D.D.,  deserves  a 
word  of  ivo'ti"e  here.  He  was  Rector  of  St  Andrews  Episcopal 
Church,  Glasgow,  from  1844  to  1891,  and  appears  to  have  been 
horn  at  Keith  and  educated  at  St  Andrews  and  Edinburgh.  I 
have  failed  to  discover  whose  son  he  was.  As  he  himself  says 
in  hi.i  edition  of  Lachlan  Shaw's  '*  Moray,"  that  he  was/  William 
Gordon,  Tomnavoulin's  second  cousin,  pr-esuimably  he  was  a 
grandson  of  William  Gordon  of  Auchorachan  find  Bogfoutain. 
He  wix>te  several  books,  the  best  known  of  which  are  "  The  Ec- 
clesiastical •Chronicle  for  .Scotland"  and  "The  Chronicles  of 
Keith."  He  appears  to  have  been  something  of  a  bibliophile, 
and  it  is  rather  pathetic  to  find  him  writing  with  reference  to 
a  fire  in  November  1881,  which  ourned  part  of  his  church — 

"  My  antiquarian  library  in  the  vestry  (my  idol)  was  in 
half  an  hour  demolished." 

If  Glenlivet  was  aware  of  Dr  Gordon's  existence,  we  never 
heard  of  him  from  anyone  there :  rather  an  interesting  com- 
mentary on  the  gaps  in  the  history  of  his  family, — I.  G.  R, 


49 

tributions  were  classified  in  three  separate  divisions 
— '  Good,'  '  Bad,'  and  '  Indifferent.'  He  was  a  rigid 
dunner  and  often  persuaded  the  delinquents  with 
foot  and  tongue."  He  died  on  January  30,  1875, 
aged  84,  the  Auchorachan  family  becoming  extinct 
in  him.  "The  popular  mind  of  the  district  magnified 
his  ample  means  into  an  immense  hoard,  which  at 
his  death  amounted  to  about  £7000." 
(2)  Helen  Gordon,  married  Alexander  Anderson,  officer 
of  Excise.  She  died  March  3,  1810,  aged  23,  leaving 
three  children  (stone  in  Mortlach  Churchyard):  — 
i.  John  Anderson,  baptised  July  28,    1806  (Rothes 

Register), 
ii.  Alexander    Anderson,    baptised    April    11,   1803 

(ibid.), 
iii.  Margaret  Anderson,  baptised  February  25,  1810 
(ibid.). 
2.   Robert  Gordon  in  Castletown.     He   got  £300  under  his 
father's  will.     He  married,  and  had  a  son  :  — 

(1)  John  Gordon.     He  appears  in   a  deed,   written  by 
John  Marshall,  advocate  in  Aberdeen,  and  subscribed 
at  Aberdeen,  October  26,  1791,  and  recorded  at  Elgin, 
December  21,  1791: — "Know  all  men  by  these  pre- 
sents me  William  Gordon,   fourth  lawful  son  to  the 
deceast  William  Gordon  of  Bogfouton,  heritable  pro- 
prietor of  the  subject  after  disponed,  for  the  favour 
and  affection  I  bear  to  John  Gordon,  only  lawful  son 
to  Robert  Gordon  in  Castletown,   and  in   considera- 
tion of  the  confidence  I  repose  in  the  Rev.  Mr  George 
Gordon,    minister    of    the    gospel  at  Mortlach,    and 
Robert  Mitchell  at  Parkmore  to  have  disponed     .     . 
.     .     to  and  in  favour  of  the  said  Mr  George  Gordon 
and  Robert  Mitchell,   or  either  of  them     ...     all 
and  whole  the  town  and  lands  of  Bogfouton  lying  in 
the  county  of  Aberdeen  as  described  in  the  writs  and 
title  deeds  thereof.     .     .     for  the  use  and  behoof  of 
the  said  John  Gordon,  his  heirs  and  assignees,  and 
for  other  piu*poses  mentioned,  but  providing  that  the 
said  John   Gordon   himself  shall  not  be   entitled  to 
enter  to  possession  or  management  of  the  same  until 
he  arrive  at  the  age  of  21  years  complete,   at  which 
time  my  said  trustees  are  to   denude  themselves  of 
this  trust     .     .     and  the  said  subject  I  hereby  burden 
with   the    payment    of    the  sum  of  £2  stg.  yearly  to 
Helen  Ord,  my  stepmother,  in  terms  of  her  contract 
of  marriage,  and  £1  sterling  yearly  to  Elspet  Gordon, 
my  sister,  conform  to  my  father's  settlement,  ordain- 
ing my  said  trustees     .     .  to  bestow  the  whole  yearly 
rents  of  the  premises  towards  the  maintenance  and 
education  of  the  said  John  Gordon  after  payment  of 
the  above  sums     .     .     .     excepting  the  sum  of  £14 
sterling   annually,    which   sum     .     .     they  are  to   ac- 
cumulate until  the  majority  of  the  said  John  Gordon, 
when  it  is  to  be  paid  to  him." 


50 

(2)  Jean  Gordon. 

(3)  Margaret  Gordon.      These   girls   are  mentioned  in 
their  uncle  William's  will. 

Charles  Gordon  in  Achbreck.  He  figures  in  a  deed, 
written  by  John  Marshall,  advocate  in  Aberdeen, 
and  subscribed  at  Aberdeen,  October  26,  1791  :  and  re- 
corded at  Elgin,  December  21,  1791: — "Know  all  men 
by  these  presents  me  William  Gordon,  fourth  lawful  son 
to  the  deceast  William  Gordon  of  Bogfouton,  whereas 
the  said  William  Gordon,  my  father,  by  his  subtack  and 
assignation,  dated  August  9  last,  subset  and  let  to  me, 
my  heirs  and  sub-tenants  all  and  whole  the  town  and  lands 
of  Auchorachan,  comprehending  these  parts  called  Chap- 
pelchrist,  Tamachform  and  others  of  whatever  denomina- 
tion .  .  lying  within  the  lordship  of  Glenlivat,  parish 
of  Inveraven  .  .  and  whereas  I  am  resolved  to  settle 
and  dispose  of  the  said  tack  and  farm  in  the  event  of  my 
dying  before  the  expiry  of  the  term  of  years  of  said  tack, 
therefore  to  have  assigned  ...  to  and  in  favour  of 
Charles  Gordon  in  Achbreck,  my  brother  german,  all 
and  whole  the  said  town  and  lands  of  Auchorachan  with 
the  privileges  and  pertinents  contained  in  the  subtack 
and  assignation."  He  married  Helen  Grant,  and  had: — ■ 
A  daughter  (unmarried),  who  got  £20  for  her  education 
under  her  grandfather's  will. 

William  Gordon.  He  seems  to  have  been  his  father's 
favourite,  and  is  described  as  "  Ensign."  He  died  be- 
tween October  1791  and  1792.  He  made  his  will  in  1791. 
It  was  written  by  John  Marshall,  advocate  in  Aberdeen, 
and  subscribed  at  Aberdeen,  October  26.  1791,  and  re- 
corded ab  Elgin,  December  21.  1791: — "Know  all  men 
by  these  presents  me  William  Gordon,  fourth  lawful  son 
to  the  deceast  William  Gordon  of  Bogfouton,  consider- 
ing that  it  is  proper  for  every  person  so  to  arrange  his 
affairs  as  to  prevent  disputes  among  relations  in  case  of 
sudden  death,  and  being  at  present  in  a  bad  state  of 
health  but  sound  in  mind,  memory  and  judgement,  to 
have  made  as  I  hereby  make  my  last  will  and  testament, 
viz.,  I  nominate  .  .  .  the  Rev.  George  Gordon,  min- 
ister of  the  gospel  at  Mortlach,  to  be  my  sole  executor 
.  .  .  for  the  purposes  aftermentioned,  viz.,  I  ordain 
my  said  executor  .  .  to  pay  my  just  and  lawful  debts 
and  funeral  expenses  and  to  retain  for  his  own  trouble 
the  sum  of  £50,  and  thereafter  to  pay  the  following  lega- 
cies .  .  viz.,  to  John  Gordon,  my  eldest  brother,  the 
sum  of  £40  sterling  .  .  to  William  Gordon,  son  to  the 
said  John  Gordon,  the  sum  of  £60,  on  his  attaining  the 
age  of  21  years  .  .  to  Robert  Gordon  in  Castletown, 
my  second  brother,  the  sum  of  £200,  to  each  of  Jean  and 
Margaret  Gordon,  daughters  of  the  said  Robert  Gordon, 
the  sum  of  £150  .  .  to  Alexander  Gordon,  my  young- 
est brother,  the  sum  of  £10 ;   to  the  poor  of  the  parish 


51 

of  Inveraven  the  sum  of  £5  ;  and  the  whole  residue  .  . 
to  Charles  Gordon,  my  brother,  burdened  with  the  pay- 
ment of  £2  10s  to  each  of  Robert  Gordon  in  Glenrinnes, 
my  uncle,  and  Elspet  Gordon,  my  sister  yearly." 

5.  Alexander  Gordon:  benefited  under  his  father's  and  his 
brother  William's  will. 

6.  Elspeth  Gordon  :    got  an  annuity  of  £1  from  her  father. 

7.  Margaret  Gordon  :  married  Andrew  Smith  of  Drumin, 
and  gob  five  shillings  under  her  father's  will.  Her  son 
George  founded  the  famous  distillery  at  Minmore. 

8.  Elspeth  Gordon :  married  William  McAlaster,  London, 
and  got  an  annuity  of  £1  under  her  father's  will. 


52 

THE  GORDON  SMITH  FAMILY. 

rpHIS  family  wa=,- founded  by  Andrew  Smith,     farmer,     Upper 
Druniin,  who  married  in  1776  Margaret  Gordon.  Auchorachan, 
daughter  of  William  Gordon  of  Bogfputain.     The  origin  of  Andrew 
Smith  does  not  transpire  (3). 

Andrew  Smith  and  his  wife  had  five  sons  and  two  daughters. 
1  William  Smith,  born  1777 :  married  in  1806  Christina 
Grant,  daughter  of  John  Grant  of  Mid-Bellandie,  after- 
wards of  Lynbeg,  a  small  farm,  and  Isobel  Macdonald. 
•Her  brother,  Captain  William  Grant,  92nd  Gordon  High- 
landers, fought  at  Waterloo.  She  was  a  first  cousin  of 
Mrs  George   Smith  of   Minmore.     He  had:  — 

(1)  Charles  Smith,  born  1807 :  married  Mary  Turner, 
and  had : — 

i.   George  Smith, 
ii.  Helen  Smith. 

iii.  Isabella  Smith  :    married  Robert  Mackay,   far- 
mer. 

(2)  James  Smith,  born  1809. 

(3)  Isobel  Smith,  born  1811 :  married  in  1830  the  Rev. 
Patrick  Grant,  son  of  George  Grant,  writer,  Edin- 
burgh, and  Christian  Mclnroy,  Edradour,  Pitlochry. 
She  apparently  belonged  to  the  same  family  as  the 
Mclnroy's  of  Lude,  Blair  Atholl,  who  &r<*  saiH  to  be 
a  branch  of  the  Robertsons  of  Struan.     They  had:  — 

i.  Francis  William  Grant,  born  June  20,  1832  :  died 
in  infancy. 

(3).  My  cousin,  Colonel  John  Gordon  Smith  of  Minmore,  told 
me  about  a  year  before  bis  death  that  he  traced  the  Smiths 
back  to  an  armourer  who  lived  about  the  middle  of  the  14th 
o?ntury.  Owing  to  his  occupation,  the  family  came  to  be  called 
"  Go'.v,"  though  their  real  name  was  Macintosh  or  Macphereon, 
more  probably  the  fanner.  He  added  that  their  crest  had  el- 
wajvs  been  the  same  as  .the  well-known  Macintosh  and  Mao- 
pherson  crest:  a  cat  rampant,  and  the  motto,  "Touch  not  the 
cat  bot  the  glove."  Later  the  Gow  was  anglicised  into  Smith. 
They  owned  land  in  Glenrinnes,  which  they  lost  through  neg- 
lecting to  perform  some  obligation  ('probably  feudal)  connected 
with  its  tenure.  After  this,  being  less  prosperous,  Andrew 
Smith  and  his  brother  went  down  to  Glenlivet  and  took  the 
farms  of  Corshellachie  and  Mullochard.  The  name  of  And.'ow 
Smith's  wife  appears  to  have  been  Helen  Grant,  as  the  following 
extract  from  the  Parish  Register  almost  certainly  refers  to  thom 
— "  13th  May  1737 — Margaret,  daughter  of  Andrew  Smith  and 
Helen  Grant,  Corshellachie,  baptised."  His  son  Andrew  was 
born  at  Corshellachie  on  31st  May  1742,  but  the  date  on  which 
the  latter  moved  to  Upper  Druniin  is  not  recorded. — I.  G.  R. 


53 

ii.  George  Grant,  M.B.  He  entered  the  Indian 
army  in  1859,  and  retired  as  brigade-surgeon, 
October  30.  1885.  He  married  in  1874  Amy 
Florence  Hathaway,  eldest  daughter  of  Dr  Chas. 
Hathaway  and  Mary  Cecilia  Barlow,  daughter  of 
Major  Barlow,  9th  Lancers  and  10th  Queen's.  Dr 
Hathaway  traced  his  descent  from  Anne  Hatha- 
way, Shakspeare's  wife.  He  was  the  first  Sani- 
tary Commissioner  of  the  Punjab,  and  Inspector- 
General  of  Prisons  :  afterwards  Private  Secretary 
to  Lord  Lawrence,  Governor-General  of  India. 
Brigade  Surgeon  Grant  has  :—  (&**■  OU-Z"*  «jn) 

(i)  George  Patrick  Grant,  born  September  22, 

sjT  /""/V* 7T    ~^-\1876.     He  entered  the  army  as  2nd  lieutenant 

0><<o*Vc(f:  (J<<r**JZ   Ctn*.-  >m  tne  Border  Regiment,  and  joined  the  ln- 

U^cf  u^cylt^.   CU.       /dian  army   on   August  27,    1901.         He    took 

/  o       •     jpart  in  the  attack  and  capture  of  Nodiz  Fort, 

i  lAt^t    $ij/<i^^"~    ie****vri Mekran,  1901,  and  was  twice  severely  woun- 

^       / /(ecsLlu**.   fZcAlesJx-\de<}.      He  was   awarded    the    D.8.O.      He  i<  at 


/  rrcL  '/   Present    (1909)     Deputv-Assistant    Adjutant-  (eUual&A-^ 

~Yrt.ll-  J'O.    ^ih^Gcneral     Mhow,     Central    Provinces,    India./^,^^^/ ' 
^juM^jfo    Ir**"*-  He    married,    on    December    4,   1909,   Gladys^      ,  „     J 

Q  Constanca  Maud,   only  daughter  of  Macdon-/?Vi^'CW,W 

aid  Beaumont  of  Hylands,   Epsom,   solicitor,  \Ue>c<s   Jow~     \ 
Lincoln's  Inn,  Jvondon/  A  f2cJ*-vdL,Pt*<*\ 

(ii)  Charles  William  Grant:   entered  the  Indian      \M.ec^ Hi- "f/6 
Civil    Service    in    1902,    and  is  (1909)  acing       \ 
magistrate  and  collector,  Lalitpur,  Jhansi,  United 
Provinces.  #-e H*.o**-itcC  su.  ?i~wt  /P?  /<jf/S^  &UeL. 
(iii)  Isabella  Kathleen  Grant :  married  Captain 
Arthur  Wilson  Chitty.  Indian  army,  1904,  and 
has  :  — 

a.  Arthur  Grant  Chitty,   born  1908. 

b.  Isabella  Mary  Amy  Chitty,  born  1905. 
iv.  William  Grant,  C.E.,  born  March  5,  1841  :   died 

October  28,  1894. 
iii.  Christina  Grant, 
v.   Isobel    Jane    Grant:    married    1867   John    Grant 

Robertson    Bengal  Civil  Service,  who  died  Dec. 

1873,   and  has  :  — 

(i)  John  Herbert  Robertson  :  entered  the  In- 
dian Civil  Service  1889.  and  is  (1909)  magis- 
trate and  collector  of  Kurnool,  Madras  Pre- 
sidency. He  married  in  1894  Helen  Rowena 
Simpson,  daughter  of  Rev.  James  Harvey 
Simpson,  late  rectirof  Little  Common.  Bexhill, 
and  Prebendary  of  Chichester.  She  is 
descended  on  her  mother's  side  from  the 
Keiths  of  Dunnottar,  Kails  Matischal,  and 
one  of  her  ancestors  was  Nicholas  Roh-p 
(1674-1718),  dratnaMst  and  poet-laureafp.  He 
has  : — 


/  <\UuS£,    /sruajZ  #y^wv  Q/x^^i 


54 


k'JUL 


\ec*+tJ2- 


ICUA--  I- 


a.  John  Keith  Grant  Robertson,  born  Ausr. 
>JL7    1895>. 

bTlTaraTsh  Gordon  Grant  Robertson,  born 
March  16,  1905. 

c.  Jessica  Macinroy  Grant  Robertson,  born 
April  3,  1897.  £>.  y.  0- 

^■Jf>%Lm>-tf/*>  .      ~~~y-^rJv)  Charles    Grant   Robertson,  .Fellow   of  All 

/n«xw^. if?-  C  lAcju^&X. Mt^riU.  Souls  College,   Oxford,   and  senior  tutor    in 
SA^&    f^dru.   rU*  history    Magdalen  College,  Oxford. 

s(in)  Isabella  Grant  Robertsony^artist. 
^ImithTborn  1812^ 


\CULe,.    /if..    >J<* 


4)  Helen  Hmifch,  born  1812 :  married  William  Gardner, 
Edinburgh,  said  to  be  descended  from  Colonel  James 
Gardiner  (1688-1745),  who  was  mortally  wounded  at 
PifRtonpans,  and  is  commemorated  in  the  "Lite"  by 
Doddridge.     They  had:  — 

i.  William  Gardner:  went  to  Sydney,  New  South 
Wales,  in  1888  :  married  there  1905,  Ada  Taylor, 
widow  (nee  t 'awthorne),  with  one  daughter,  aged 
7,  Greta  Taylor;  has:  — 

Isabella  Helen  Grant  Gardner,   born   January 
1906. 

ii.  Helen  Gardner :  married  Captain  Fraser,  army 
retired,  and  went  to  New  Zealand  with  her  hus- 
band. She  ceased  to  write  home,  and  all  trace 
of  her  has  been  lost. 

iii.  Christina  Gardner :    died  June  1872. 

2.  John  Smith,  born  1782. 

3.  Charles  Smith,  1789,  known  as  "  Camdalmore  "  :  he  mar- 
ried, and  had  issue,  all  of  whom  migrated  to  Canada. 

4.  George  Smith,  born  at  Upper  Drumin,  1792 :  educated 
at  Burnside  of  Deskie.  He  began  his  remarkable  career 
as  a  builder  and  architect,  and  about  1817  became  tenant 
of  part  of  the  farm  of  Upper  Drumin.  In  1824  he  built  a 
legal  distillery  on  the  farm,  much  to  the  disgust  of  his 
neighbours,  who  carried  on  the  business  of  smuggling. 
He  was  so  successful  that  the  distillery  had  to  be  ex- 
tended four  times.  In  1837,  he  took  the  farm  of  *  astle- 
ton  of  Blairfindy,  in  1838  the  farm  of  Nevie,  which  is 
within  a  mile  of  Upper  Drumin  :  and  in  1839  the  fine 
farm  of  Minmore,  with  which  the  Gordons  had  been 
associated  so  long.  In  1850  he  took  Delnabo  above  Tom- 
intoul,  and  carried  on  a  distillery  which  was  upon  the 
farm,  known  as  Cairngorm  In  1858  he  united  his  distil- 
leries by  building  a  large  one  at  Minmore.  In  the 
course  of  his  career  as  a  farmer  he  reclaimed  300  acres, 
and  left  his  son  with  more  than  800  acres  of  arable  land 
and  some  10,000  to  12,000  acres  of  hill  pasture.  He  was 
famous  as  a  breeder  of  Highland  cattle  and  shorthorns. 
A  very  handsome  presentation  of  silver  plate  was  made 
to  him  by  an  influential  body  of  subscribers  in  the  county 


55 

in  recognition  of  his  ability  and  public  spirit. 
He  married  in  1817  Ellen,  daughter  of  Lieut.  Stewart, 
1st  Royals,  who  fell  at  Aboukir  while  serving  under  Sir 
Ralph  Abercromby,  and  died  November  1871.  An  ex- 
cellent account  of  him  appeai'ed  in  the  "Elgin  Courant," 
December  1,  1871.  He  was  buried  in  Tombae  Catholic 
Churchyard,  December  2.  He  had  two  sons  and  a 
daughter :  — 

(1)  William  Smith,  born  1817.     He  farmed  Nevie,   and 
died  unmarried  in  1846. 

(2)  John  Gordon  Smith,  born  at  Upper  Drumin,  June 

22,  1822  :  educated  at  Blairs  College,  Aberdeen.  He 
began  his  career  in  the  Caledonian  Bank,  Elgin,  and 
then  entered  the  office  of  John  Shand,  W.S.,  Edin- 
burgh, staying  there  until  1846,  when  the  death  of  his 
brother  brought  him  home  to  farm  Nevie  and  assist 
his  father.  A  few  years  later  his  father  took  him 
into  partnership  in  the  distillery,  the  firm  becoming 
G.  and  J.  G.  Smith.  He  took  the  keenest  intei'est  in 
farming,  and  established  a  fine  herd  of  polled  cattle 
at:  Minmore  (dispersed  in  1891),  and  later  a  herd  of 
shorthorns.  He  joined  the  6th  Volunteer  Battalion 
of  the  Gordon  Highlanders  at  its  inception  on  April 
10,  1867,  and  rose  to  Lieut.-Colonel,  retiring  on  Dec. 

23,  lc91.  He  bought  the  estate  of  Delnabo  from  the 
Countess  of  Seafield  in  1891,  and  the  estate  of  Auch- 
intoul  (long  associated  with  a  branch  of  the  Gordon 
family)  from  the  Duke  of  Fife  in  1899.  He  also  took 
a  prominent  part  in  the  life  of  the  county.  His  por- 
trait, painted  by  Horsburgh,  was  presented  to  him 
by  the  Regiment,  as  a  mark  of  esteem  and  in  recog- 
nition of  his  services.  He  died  unmarried  at  Delna- 
bo, September  1901,  being  buried  at  Tombae. 

(3)  Margaret     Smith     (1820-1880):      married     William 
Grant,  Ruthven.     She  had  :  — 

i.  George  Smith  Grant,  AnHiorachan  (now  also  of 
Minmore  and  owner  of  the  Glenlivet  Distillery). 
1867  he  joined  the  6th  Volunteer  Battalion  Gor- 
don Highlanders,  and  gradually  rose  to  he 
colonel.  On  the  17th  of  August  1909,  he  was 
presented  with  his  portrait,  "  in  recognition  of 
his  personal  work  and  public  service.  The  pre- 
sentation was  made  bv  the  Duke  of  Richmond 
and  Gordon,  on  behalf  of  many  subscribers.  The 
portrait,  which  represents  Colonel  Smith  Grant 
in  his  uniform  as  a  deputy-lieutenant  of  the 
county,  is  a  striking  likeness.  It  was  painted  by 
the  well-known  Scottish  artist,  J.  H.  Lorimer. 
He  married  in  1891,  Miriam  Hill.  Stalybridge, 
Manchester.  She  is  the  daughter  of  Henry 
Cheetham   Hill  (by  his  wife,    Elizabeth  Mellor), 


whose  father,  James  Hill,  married  Mary  Cheet- 
ham.  The  Mellors  and  the  Cheethams  are  Lan- 
cashire families,  cotton  spinners.  The  (1909) 
Member  for  Stalybridge,  Mr  John  Frederick 
Oheetham,  is  a  second  cousin  of  Mr  Henry 
Cheetham  Hill.  Both  Mr  J.  F.  Cheetham  and 
his  father  had  long  Parliamentary  careers.  One 
of  the  Mellors,  the  late  Thomas  Mellor,  repre- 
sented Ashton-under-Lyne  for  many  years.  Mrs 
fcmiith  Grant  received  a  beautiful  silver  salver 
at  the  same  time  (August  17,  1909)  and  from  the 
same  friends  as  presented  Colonel  (Smith  with  his 
portrait,  which  was  reproduced  on  a  small  scale  in  , 
the  Christmas  issue  of  the  "  Northern  Scot,"  JilginJ  n<M^.*"^ 
1909.  Colonel  Smith  Grantjias  : —  /fj^  SmiyL.- s^  ^  Jk*L^  &<u*J» 
""(i)  J^mn~Trordon~Smith  Cheetham,Grant,(borri\  fas*j*^  $>y* 

ft..  Jh.  J-,  k.UUcL  LnjUvuM    (u)  George  Gordon  Hill^rant,  born  1894  -J died)  ^^^  /ty^, 

1894.  ,-    •  ,  /'"'__. —      *<*c-i  • 

(iii)  William  Henry^Gran^born  1896.]^2*tL^£l^*^ 
(iv)  Ellen  Stuart  MiriamXlrant,  born  1897. 

.  Isabella  Margaret  Grant :  married  Dr  Robert 
Macpherson,  Stalybridge,  Manchester  :  born  in 
Inveravon,  Dec.  27,  1847  :  died  Feb.  11,  1895.  He 
had  :— 

(i.)   James   Macpherson,   born  Nov.  29,  1874,  M.P., 

CM.,  Aberdeen,  1895:  married  Margaret  hlaton  : 

died  Dec  23.  1907,  and  had  :— 
Margaret  Macpherson,  who  died  in  infancy. 
(ii.)  John  Gordon  Smith  Macpherson  born  August 

23,  1876,  M.B.,  CM..  Aberdeen,  1898.  SxiA  **1  5W*~ 

CM. 
(iii)  George  Macpherson    engineer:    at  present 

(1909)  in  British  Columbia.    (?*fiJk^-  J^^m^JL^L 
(iv)  Robert  William  Macpherson,   M.B.,   Ch.B. 
aldock,  HertSy  %+t*>  te^-Jl*.^  a^u^  <R.  a.  lu.Q- 

(v)  Margaret  Isabella  Macpherson. 
(vi.)  Alexina   Ann    Macpherson   :     married    April 
1907,       George       Chalmers,       M.B.,       CM., 
D.P.H.,  Beeston,  Notts,  and  has:  — 

Isabella  Margaret  Chalmers,  born  May  1, 
1909. 
.  Ellen  Stuart  Grant:  married  Dr  Abater 
Cameron,  "  The  Falls,"  Glenlivet,  who  died  1902  : 
now  Mrs  Gordon  Smith  Cameron  of  Delnabo  and 
Auchintoul,  also  of  Ravensdale  Corpach,  Inver- 
ness-shire. 


77 


•?Myj-*-tte-«»o 


5.  Andrew  Gordon  Smith:    farmed  Turielan 
had  issue. 


married  and 


57 

6.  Gordon  Smith  :  went  to  America.  (4) 

7.  Helen  Gordon  Smith,  born  1780. 

8.  Margaret  Gordon  Smith,  born  1785  :    died  young. 

(4)  This  entry  is  from  my  brother's  notebook.  It  is  practically 
all  I  have  heard  of  Gordon  Smith  since  the  days  of  my  child- 
hood, when  I  used  to  pause  in  dressing  my  dolls  to  listen  to  the 
anecdotes  of  his  wit  which  my  father  and  mother  were  both 
fond  of  recalling'.  My  father  seemed  particularly  to  delight  in 
these  recollections  of  him,  and  I  gathered  the  impression  that 
"  Gordon  "  invariably  kept  whatever  company  he  was  in  in  ut6 
of  laugih'ter.  Another  impression  that  remains  is  that  he  was 
in  the  Gordon  Highlanders  at  one  time,  but  as  I  was  only  a 
child,  I  may  have  confused  him  in  this  connection  with  some 
other  Gordon  relative  of  my  mother's. — I.  G.  B. 


!<J 


58 


SOME  OF  THE  PLACES  IN  THIS  BOOK 


Aberdeen, 

...     16,19,43,55. 

Inchnacape, 

19. 

Abergeldie, 

..       7,  11,  12. 

Inverey, 

12. 

Achbreck,... 

..     50. 

Ardbreck,... 

..     10. 

Kirdels, 

10. 

Argathnie, 

..     10. 

Knockespock,. 

7. 

Auchinharroch,    . 

..     11. 

Auchintoul, 

..     55,  57. 

Laichie, 

11-12. 

Auchorachan, 

..     12,  45-51,  52. 

Lettoch, 

8,  13,  17,  29. 

Auchroachan, 

..     45. 

Lynbeg, 

52. 

Badeglassan, 

..     14. 

Minmore, 

7-44,  52,  54. 

Banff, 

..     17,  29. 

Bellandie, ... 

...   52. 

Nevie, 

12,  15,  55. 

Blairfindy, 

..     9,  12,  54. 

Bogfoutain, 

..     45-9, 52. 

Parkbeg, 

13. 

Pitchaise, 

10,  14. 

Camdalmore, 

.     54. 

Castletown, 

..     45,  47,  49,  55. 

Refroish, 

14. 

Delnabo 

..     9,  54,  57. 

Scalan,  

19. 

Dominica,... 

..     32-34. 

Drimnin,  ... 

..     7,  24,  27,  28. 

Tombae, 

17,  25,  31,  55. 

Drumin, 

.     8,  43,  46,  52. 

Tombreakachie, . 

12,  14. 

Dufftown, 

..     31. 

Tomnamind,.   ... 

12. 

Dunan,     

.     9,  13,  14,  15. 

Tomnan, 

12. 

Dunans,     ... 

..     25. 

Tomnavouiin,  ... 

46. 

Tullochallum,  ... 

19,  28. 

Glenbucket, 

.     45. 

Glenmuick, 

.      9. 

Weste      une,  .-- 

10,  20. 

Imprinted  by 

Joseph  Dunbar 

at  Hunt';/,  N.B. 


THE  GORDONS  AND  SMITHS 

AT  MINMORE,  AUCHORACHAN,  AND 
UPPER  .  DRUMIN   IN   GLENLIVET. 


JOHN    MALCOLM    BULLOCH 


PRIVATELY  PRINTED 
1910