Tartan for Me, Reliability?

[figheadair]

I suggest you send an email to the Scottish Tartans Authority (STA) at

admin@tartansauthority.com

and ask them about a McElmurry tartan. The author of "Tartan for Me!" (Dr. Philip Smith) is a past President of the American Branch of the STA. They may know, and if not, they might forward your query to Dr. Smith.

There's not a McElmurry tartan and the fact that Phil Smith is a past President of the US branch of the STA is rather academic, or perhaps not so in this case

The problem with Tartan For Me! is that people tend to use it without reading the rather hefty introductory material, which includes specific disclaimers about what the book is and is not. It is not a "clan sept list." The author recommends tartans for names, which is something different than saying a name is part of a clan.

The other problem is that there is no supporting documentation to say why a particular tartan was recommended.

So I would caution people to do further research to see if the connection can be supported. Otherwise, treat it simply as one man's opinion. It's a good place to start, but it shouldn't be the only resource you use.

Couldn't agree more Matt. I remember Phil Smith doing some of his research by going through Scottish phone books and recall my father being agast at some very peculiar (non-scottish) names coming under Clan Campbell by virtue of having been listed in the Argyll phone book.