John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
My gg grandfather, John Fyfe, was born somewhere in Scotland about 1799, according to the 1841 Census information. Around 1830, he was hired to work as an agriculturalist (farming methods advisor) on Lord Gosford's Arva(gh) Estates in County Cavan, Ireland.
Apparently Lord Gosford's agent, William Blacker, hired several Scottish farmers for the Gosford Estates in Ireland.
Does anyone have any information which might help me narrow down the part of Scotland where my ancestor is likely to have been born? I have no information on his siblings but it is likely that his family were farmers.
His children were John, Andrew, George, Samuel and Isabella. These names appear frequently in the family history so it is likely that the same names were used in earlier generations.
Any help or suggestions welcome.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
I also have a John Fyfe born in 1790. As far as I can tell, most Fyfe's are from the shires of Angus and Lanark (around Glasgow), but strangely enough, not so many from Fife? They are also generously distributed throughout the rest of Scotland. Lots of farmers in the mix, but a great many weavers as well. And in EVERY family the names repeat. Jane, Janet and Jean are used interchangably, just to make things a little more interesting. Do a search of "Scottish Naming Pattern" and you'll see why. Good luck.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
Thank you for the suggestion to look up Scottish naming patterns. I hadn't realised that there was such a systematic use of names by Scottish families. It's one more piece of information to use in attempting to trace my line of Fyfe back to Scotland.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
William Fyfe emigrated to Australia from Lanark.He and father Matthew (B1777 or 1781) were born in Ireland. His grandfather was John.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
I too am researching Fyfe's. My family immigrated from Ireland between 1836-1845. My great grandfather David Fyfe was a ropework labourer, his father James was a weaver. So far, I have no information on their whereabouts in Ireland, they lived in Port Glasgow from about 1851-1871.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
I don't have any David or James Fyfes in my family until the 1970s and 80s in Australia.
Since my original posting, I've discovered that my gg grandfather, John Fyfe, may have come from the Banff region of Scotland. Apparently Lord Gosford's agent liked to hire farmers from this area to work as Agriculturalists on the Irish Estates. Irish Civil Registration index records show John was 71 when he died in 1868, implying that he was born about 1797.
FamilySearch baptism records show a John Fyfe, son of John Fyfe and Isabel Reid, was baptised in Fordyce, Banff, Scotland, on 22 Jul 1797. I have not yet been able to prove or disprove that this family were my ancestors.
My gg grandfather, John Fyfe, moved to Arva, County Cavan, Ireland, around 1830, when he was hired by Lord Gosford's agent to work as Agriculturalist on Gosford's Arva estate. He is mentioned in the Gosford papers in Feb 1832. He married Margaret Crawford about 1833 (1841 Ireland Census). Their oldest son, also John Fyfe (15 Jan 1835-3 Apr 1909), emigrated to the USA in 1849 (1900 US Census), and was living in Cincinnatti, Ohio, when he became a US citizen on 13 Oct 1856. I have not yet found his name on a passenger list.
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Re: John Fyfe, Scottish/Irish farmer
Thanks for your prompt reply, I will keep searching for the Port Glasgow Fyfe's. I found your writing on agriculturists very interesting. Happy tracing, Sheila
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