My family Crest

[Steven Meyer]

Hello,

About a year and a half ago I came across this site and did an ancestral search on my family, the topic which is still in this forum is titled "Clan Maclea/Livingstone and O'Niell Connection?" The farthest back we traced my family to the early 1600s in Aberdour Parish, Fifeshire, Scotland, there was a possibility that there could have been a connection between my ancestors and the Aristocratic Callendar Livingstones. The question was never solved but my grandmother who passed away a year and a half ago left me this crest which is a drawing of the Callendar Livingstone's coat of arms and under it is written "Livingstone Coat of Arms, Sir Alexander Livingstone Regent of Soctland. 1437" I was hoping to get some thoughts on this.


Thank you!

Steven Meyer

[Steven Meyer]

Here is a picture of the crest...

[Canadian Livingstone]

Hi Steven,
Thanks for sharing that with us.
The Aberfour Parish records for the Aberfour Parish Livingstons dont actually go farther back that a James Livingston and Janet Brown who were married there in 1763. However it is clear that Scots going by the name Livingston or resided elsewhere in Fife County where Aberfour Parish for a very long time. The earliest marriage records clearly show that Livingstons in Fife County resided in Dunfermline Parish in the 1660's. Other info has come to light which indicates that an old Livingston family of some wealth and property resided at Fordell which I believe is near to Dunfermline Parish in Fife County. The Fordell area Livingston family records go back I think as far back as the mid 1400's. That does not however mean that all Livingstons who went by the Livingston name in later centuries in Fife County Scotland were related to these early families. Some may some may not. The fact remains that Livingstons do in fact go back as far as the 1400's in FIfe County. One would assume that a Livingston family with any property or importance in the 1400's or 1600's in Fife County might be connected to old aristocratic Callendar and Linllithgo Stirlingshire Livingstons whose ancient coat of arms displays among other things a figure armed with a club. I am wondering what the connection is or if there is a connection between the original FIfeshire Livingston family that dates back at least to the 1400's or earlier and the aristocratic Callendar and Linlithgo Livingston family. Certainly knowing that there have been persons going by the name of Livingston in the County of FIfe for several centuries makes one suspect they have might be somehow related to the old Callendar and Linlithgo Livingston family in the COunty of Stirlingshire. I really dont know for certain but I will take a look around and see if there is any research regarding this. Definitely a mystery that someone needs to solve. Whether or not your Fifeshire Livingstons are direct descendant of the original FIfeshire Livingston family who acquired land and property apparently in the 1400's in Fifeshire may never be known for certain as some Scottish families, several centuries ago may have adopted the name of the LIvingston family as their family name.

I have to refresh my memory a bit but I think you were descended from a James Livingston son of Hugh Livingston and his first wife Cecilia Henderson. Hugh Livingston and Cecilia Henderson married in Aberfour Parish, Fife County November 25, 1825. Dont know the name of the village they were married in but by the Scottish census of 1841 Hugh, Cecilia and family are residing in Wester village where Hugh is a laborer. The 1841 census records Hugh as being born abt. 1806 or 1805 and from the 1851 census it indicates he was born abt. 1805 in Aberfour Parish. I am not 100 percent certain its him but a birth record from 1804 indicates that a Hugh Livingston was born in Aberfour Parish on October 16, 1804 the son of JOhn Livingston and Agnes Black of Aberfour Parish, FIfe County. I did not however find a marriage entry for John Livingston and Agnes Black for FIfe County.

Refreshing my memory, Hugh Livingston and Cecilia Henderson's son James was born abt. 1835 in Aberfour Parish, Fifeshire according to the 1881 Census of Cambusnethan Parish, Stirlingshire where Jame Livingston and his wife Margaret Hastie are residing in the year 1881 with their children including their son, your ancestor James Livingston born October 5, 1871 in Cambusnethan Parish, Stirlingshire. This is the James that later went to America. So your Livingstons resided in Stirlingshire but as far as the earliest records of your family they were actually in the County of FIfe. But before that we can only speculate.


regards,

Donald

[Canadian Livingstone]

Hi Steven,

There is no doubt that persons going by the name of Livingston were in FIfeshire as early as the middle ages. One of the oldest Livingston families were the aristocratic Livingstons of Wemyss, Fifeshire who are said to have descended from the Callendar, Stirlingshire Livingston family. It is however important to note that this particular aristocrat Livingston family branch of the Callendar family became extinct in the 1500's. Still the name continued elsewhere in FIfeshire. Ordinary folk must of have adopted the name as one finds coalminers in fifeshire who were unlikely of aristocratic origin with this name a few centuries later. I am hoping that someone from Fifeshire with knowledge of old families can shed some light on the possible origins of these Livingston miners.

regards,

Donald

[Bachuil]

Steven

Sorry for the late reply. In our clan booklet I have written some of the history of the lowland families - who descend from the Highland line.

Sir William de Livingston’s younger son, Sir William Livingston of Callendar was given the Barony of Callendar for service to King David in 1345. He strengthened his hold by marrying Christian, the heiress of the forfeited laird. In 1362 he was also granted the lands of Kilysth which had historically been in his wife’s family. They remained in Livingston hands until forfeited in 1716. As a result of this marriage the Livingstons of Callendar quartered their Livingston arms with those of Callendar.
In his Complete Guide To Heraldry Fox-Davies says ‘The constant occurrence of the cinquefoil in early rolls of arms is out of all proportion to its distinctiveness or artistic beauty, and the frequency which it is met with the cross crosslet points clearly to the fact that there is some illusion behind, if this could only be fathomed.’ The cross crosslet fitchée has a special significance as it represented an evangelist, and the cross crosslet fitchée as used in the West referred to St Moluag which is why it is in the arms of the Livingstones of Bachuil.
Sir William Livingston, accompanied King David II in his invasion of England in 1346 and was captured, with the king, at the battle of Neville’s Cross outside Durham. He was one or the four commissioners appointed by the Estates of Scotland to treat with England for the ransom of the king, and also for peace between the two nations.
His eldest son. Patrick, was one of the hostages for King David II in 1357 and, predeceased him.
His second son, Sir John Livingston of Callendar, was killed at the battle of Homildon Hill in 1402 when the Scots under the Earl of Douglas were defeated by Sir Henry ‘Hotspur’ Percy. He had four sons by his first wife. The eldest, Sir Alexander, succeeded him. The second, Robert, was reputedly the ancestor of the Livingstons of Westquarter and Kinnaird. The third, John, was reputedly the ancestor of the Livingstons of Bonton;
His second wife was Agnes, daughter of Sir James Douglas of Dalkeith. Their eldest was a natural idiot, and their second, William, became the progenitor of the Kilsyth branch.
Sir Alexander Livingston of Callendar, the eldest son, the celebrated guardian of James II. in his minority, was one of the jury on the trial of Murdach, Duke of Albany, in 1424. On the assassination of James I. in 1437, he was appointed keeper of the young king’s person. He was Regent of Scotland during the 1440s. In 1440 the sixth Earl of Douglas was inveigled into the castle of Edinburgh by Crichton, and beheaded there. In 1445, when the Douglases were at the height of their power, Sir Alexander was denounced a rebel, and in the following year he was imprisoned, but released on paying a large sum of money. However, Alexander, the younger of his two sons, was tried and beheaded He was ancestor of the Livingstons of Dunipace, one of whom was named in 1550 an extraordinary Lord of Session.. In 1449 Sir Alexander Livingston was again received into favour, appointed justiciary of Scotland, and sent as ambassador to England. He died soon after.

You will see the similarity to the ars of Livingston of Callendar - differenced as expected

[Steven Meyer]

Hello, I apologize for taking a very long time responding to this post, my final year of college had kept me very busy. I have asked some of my relatives about the coat of arms drawing that I acquired from my late grandmother and unfortunately they could provide no information as to what it means or where it came from. All that could really go along with this coat of arms is the crest that is in the bottom left hand corner of the drawing matches the crests that I was able to acquire from my great grandmother and my grandmother. I attached a photo of obe the crest, both of these crests are identical.

[Steven Meyer]

Here is the crest, I apologize for the size of the photo.

[Kyle MacLea]

That's the traditional "lowland" crest badge of the Livingstons, with a backing of the WR1003 Livingston tartan.

I know the Scottish Lion in North Conway, NH, sold those shields for years. My family has one.

It's very common, the crest badge you will generally see for our Clan (at least available for purchase)

The new "Highland" Livingstone badge is available through the Chief's own shop:

http://www.clanlivingstone.info/acatalo ... Badge.html

That is the crest you see at the top of the page.

But we consider the two families to be 'kin' according the 1743 Account of McLea:

http://kitenet.net/~kyle/family/wiki/ne ... aclea.html

"It is very ordinary for the McLea's to call themselves 'Livingston" when they come or go to the low country.(9) What is or hath been the occasion of this, I cannot well tell, but it is very ordinary for the 'Livingstons' in the low Country to be very kind to the 'McLeas', and to reckon themselves to have come of the 'McLeas' in the Highlands, and it is alledged upon the Highlanders that for ordinary they have two names, as the McLea's have -- that of 'McLea' in the Highlands, and 'Livingston' in the low country"

Kyle