Clan / genealogy question

[macwilkin]

I have recently gathered the little remaining family info on my paternal grandfather in hopes of starting to trace the family tree. I really don't know much about genealogy searches and I know nothing about my grandfather other than that he was born in Scotland in 1886. I'm only 38, granddad was nearly 50 when my dad was born and he died when dad was only 12 so my dad really doesn't remember much and apparently neither ever thought it important to record any family history.

While picking up the bag all the paperwork is in, a copy of his obituary fell out. I was surprised to read that he was a member of "Clan MacDonald, No.33, Order of Scottish Clans at Brooklyn." Our last name is Dickson which I only see associated with Clan Keith. I vaguely remember as a child, attending a Scottish festival and being told Dickson was a sept of MacDonald but nothing I could find now indicates that that is the case. The MacDonald website lists a huge number of septs but no Dickson. Anyone have any ideas? Do the clans associations keep membership records or genealogy info?
I found that the Order of Scottish Clans no longer exists so I'm not sure what became of their records.

Another interesting find from the obituary was that he was a Freemason. Member of American Lodge No.132, F.&A.M. of Bridgeport, Conn. We have no indication that he ever lived in Conn. but then who knows?

Funny you should ask about the Benevolent Order of Scottish Clans:

http://www.scottishtartans.org/BOSC.htm

I have not contacted the Foresters yet to see if any records remain from the BOSC, but the Daughters of Scotia, the BOSC's ladies auxillary, are still around. I need to contact them as well.

Each BOSC lodge chose the name of a Scottish clan; hence the reference to "Clan MacDonald No. 33" in the obituary. I would bet this your connection to the MacDonalds. Matt has a similar story of a gentleman who belong to a BOSC lodge named after the MacGregors, even though he wasn't one himself.

Some clan societies and associations do maintain genealogical & archival information; some have stored their files at the Odom Genealogy Library in Georgia:

http://www.electricscotland.com/fami...about_odom.htm

I'll PM you about the masonic genealogical aspects.

Regards,

Todd

[sirdaniel1975]

The only other possible connection I have found for "DICKSON"(which is probably iffy) is Clan Chattan.

http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/spellings.htm

All these spellings are something to consider when researching your name:

"Dick Dickason Dickeson Dickie Dickison Dickson Dicsoun Dikiesoun Dikkyson Dikson Diksonne Dikyson"

There are all kinds of reasons for different spellings; signed name differently, mis-spelled on occassion, etc...

The Scottish Tartan Museum used to have a book by an author of the last name "Black" I think, all about Scottish surnames, there origins, etc. The book is out of print and not for sale there. Worth asking Matt about.

Obviously Dickson probably means "Son of Dick", find out origin of the two names...

look into the 1890 census in Scotland, to find your grand dad and his parents. You'll need to know the city to have any luck.

[gilmore]

I would not at this stage pay much attention to "belonging to a clan," since the clans quit being relevant to Scots society and culture several hundred years ago, other than the tartan and kilt merchants selling things to Americans of course. Trying to do genealogy via a clan and the BS that is written about them will generate much more confusion, false leads and false information than will help. Any discussion of being in a clan or clan membership or a sept is at best a clue that needs to be verified IME. Rather, in doing genealogy one starts with the present and works one's way back one generation at a time, via the paper trail.

Some online Scots resources are:

http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/

http://www.fraserclan-cal.net/genealogy.html

http://www.nas.gov.uk/

http://www.scotsfamily.com/parish.htm

http://www.safhs.org.uk/

and if you need to pay some one there to do the research: http://www.scotsfamily.com/prices.htm

You might also think about subscribing to www.ancestry.com's online service. They have some UK records. Unfortunately, the Scottish government actually charges you money to research its online records, and does so in a system that is quite expensive, that is, you pay for searches in such a way that you can never use them.

Ancestry.com has US census records up to 1930, where you could probably find information on your grandfather's naturalization, if he became a US citizen. The naturalization papers may have helpful information about more exactly where he came from. Before 1905 or 1906 or so naturalization was done by the states, so you would have to look to state records for them, rather than federal.

I came across this person on Ebay http://myworld.ebay.com/heritagegenealogy who says she can do online genealogical research at a cheaper rate than the UK government charges. I can't vouch for her, never having used her.

Don't be discouraged. My grandfather was born in 1865, during the Civil War, and was 45 when my father was born. Nonetheless, we have traced his patrilineal ancestry to the 1720's in Virginia, and are optomistic about going back further. It has taken a couple of decades, but genealogy isn't something that you can do overnight....with one recent exception: DNA testing. In the last 5-6 years Y chromosome DNA testing has become available to the public at reasonable prices, and can be a useful tool in researching patrilineal ancestry, although at this point it is more helpful in ruling out lines that will not be fruitful to look at, rather than just throwing your DNA into the database and expecting to have your family tree all printed up and ready for you to download. If you do this, be prepared for anything. It is said that 3.7-4% of births in the US and Europe are non-paternal events, that is, the putative father is not the biological father. 3.7% is not a large number, but over the generations it accumulates. See www.ftdna.com and click on their surname projects and their FAQ. They have the largest database of Y chromosome test results by far.

[Cawdorian]

There are some free sources out there go to www.rootsweb.com and do a search with the information you have and see if you can find a match. If you have any information on your grandfather's sisters and brothers try a search for their names. There are also some surname message boards at rootsweb, take a look at their boards for the Dickson name.

Go to www.electricscotland.com and look up the Clan Keith and Clan Chattan websites, there are some of the clan societies who have quite a few genealogical records, some have clan genealogists who can help you.

The important thing is to try and trace your family back to Scotland and the areas around the clan lands. On the Electric Scotland website you will find Clan and family histories, these histories will give you an idea of the geographic locations of the family and clan lands.

Also do a google search and see if the Dickson's have a family association, these associations can be a tremendous help, many have transcriptions of old deeds and wills, I have found much information on some of my ancestors from a family association. If you know what county and state your Grandfather resided in try to find a historical association for that county, many have good records. Another direct approach that sometimes works is to do a google search for your ancestor, this sometimes works quite well and can provide links to other websites that have family information.

Beware genalogy is very addictive ! Good Hunting !