Scots Irish

How many people can be named Robert Young or Elizabeth Wilson in one region of the US by the year 1800? That’s a question you might find yourself asking while shaking your head if you’ve ever tried to build back your family tree but found yourself at a brick wall of a Scots Irish ancestor. Or perhaps you are interested in applying to a lineage society, and oral tradition provides that your Scots Irish ancestor was a Revolutionary War veteran, but there are seemingly dozens of men with his name in the records you’ve found and you’re not sure which is your own great-grandfather.

Living in a region settled first by Scots Irish immigrants, and descending from Scots Irish immigrants to both Pennsylvania and the Carolinas, I am familiar with how murky the waters can be when trying to follow these early pioneers. But you needn’t feel like you’ve you’re standing on quicksand when you hit this point in your research. Close analysis of a variety of record types and careful methodology will be my foundation in identifying your ancestors.