Great Scot

I'm sure you're familiar with interjection that forms the title to this post, especially if you've seen or are a fan of the Back to the Future movies, because it's a favorite exclamation of one of the principle characters, Dr. Emmett Brown. 

As best as I can tell from a few minutes of Internet research, the phrase as we know it first shows up in the 1800s and appears to be linked to General Winfield Scott, commander of American forces in the War with Mexico and briefly one of the generals appointed to lead Union forces during the Civil War -- until President Lincoln decided he wasn't up to the job.

So what has that to do with the title? You remember my saying that my wife, who was born a Reagan, wondered whether she was related to John H. Reagan, for whom Reagan County in Texas is named. When I looked him up and established the relationship -- he married one of Sharon's relatives -- I was given a brief genealogy listing that showed how he got into the tree.

The common ancestor from whom all the branches flowed is William Graham, 2nd Earl of Montrose. And Montrose lies on the coast of the North Sea in Scotland, of all places. We'd already discovered a strong link to French ancestors and a pretty good link to Dutch ancestors. And the Reagans who came to the states were indeed from Ireland. (I have mentioned before, but I'll repeat that without more information, Sharon has a much better Irish pedigree than I appear to have, despite my name.)

Turns out that a branch of Sharon's tree running through her mother and maternal grandmother's side, runs solidly into Scotland and Scottish history, including some big names I'll haul out in a later post. 

The Graham clan in Scotland goes way, way back, with some notable members of the family earning recognition in the 13th century. In fact, the clan gained acclaim in the book, The Grahams, by John Stewart, published in 1958. 

He writes: "It is remarkable that the early Grahams were one and all exceedingly capable men. (I'm sure the women were as well, but he was a guy writing in the '50s.) In an age when the reputation of many great public figures, alas that of most of the Scottish nobility, were sullied by deeds of violence, and often deeds of blackest treachery, it is refreshing to fin that the Grahams stand out as loyal and true to the causes they espoused. Their story is not one of rapid rise to power through royal favor, or even at the expense of their peers, but rather a gradual steady rist based on their undoubted ability and worthiness which seems to have endured from one generation to another."

William and his clan were deeply involved in the Scottish struggle for independence from England, an issue that has not gone away. And William found his life entwined with a famous name from Scottish history: Mary Queen of Scots. We'll begin looking at that history next time. 

Image: Coat of arms for the dukes and earls of clan Graham. Downloaded from FamilySearch.org