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    The Clark Surname  


CLARK, CLERK etc: These names evolved largely from the Latin clericus, a term which had almost universal usage describing a person in holy orders, a scholar or a scribe. From the custom of identifying a person by his first name and occupation the name proliferated, but only after 1400 did it become an inherited family name. When translated into Gaelic it becomes Chleirich, resulting in Mac a'Chleirich - son of the clerk (surviving mainly in McCleary, or MacChlery, often anglicised to Clarkson). Families of Clarks/Clerks attached themselves to several clans, first no doubt, as men-of-business to the chiefs. The Clan Cameron in Lochaber, and the Clans Mackintosh and MacPherson in the Confederation of Clan Chattan in and around Badenoch all recognise them as septs. In the latter kindred the Clarks of Clan Chlerich are said to trace descent from Gillemichael vic Chleric, the personal servant of Malcolm, 10th Chief of Mackintosh during the 15th century. At Durness in Sutherland a family named Clarke can be traced to the 17th century. Richard Clark, a native of Montrose in Angus, became vice-admiral of Sweden in 1623, and a Hans Clerck (of a different family) rose to be an admiral in the same service, - the name still exists in Sweden and Finland in the form Klerck. In 1783, the exploration and settlement of the lands north-west of Ohio in the USA, was carried out by a a Scot, George Rogers Clark. Through the widespread use of charter Latin it must be appreciated that the occupation which gave begat the name was widespread and this undoubtedly gave rise to many other lines of Clarks, Clerks, Klercks etc., and so, unless a definitive ancestral links can be traced to Scotland, such ancestry should not be claimed on evidence of name alone. Furthermore, unless ancestral links can be traced to lands associated with the above named clans it is not appropriate to claim a septual kinship. It is also possible that many had long association with other clans, such also being determined by the residence of one's forebears. With respect to Clarkson, it has a long tradition of widespread use in Scotland.

TARTANS: Clark - a modern variant of the 'Clergy tartan', or, if links can be traced to Lochaber or Badenoch, such patterns as are associated with Clans Cameron and Chattan - or that of any other clan to which links can be traced.

   Electric Scotland                                16 Aug 2003



   The Blair Surname

(Please note.  I am not sure if the surname was Blair or Blain.  This is a case of hard to decipher handwriting. -- csj)

The BLAIR surname, unlike many others, has a fairly well established origin. Although there is some question as to who was the "First Blair", it is generally accepted that he was an heir of Jean Francois, a Norman, granted Barony of Blare by King William, between 1165 and 1200.

There were two principal Blair families in Scotland; the Blairs of Blair in Ayrshire and the Blairs of Balthyock in Fife and Perthshire. The ancestor of the Blairs of Blair in Ayrshire was William de Blair, who was mentioned in a contract dated 1205. William is believed to be the son or grandson of Jean Francois. The ancestor of the Blairs of Balthyock was Alexander de Blair, who received a charter of lands about 1214. There are some who believe that Alexander is a direct descendant of Jean Francois, either a brother or nephew of William de Blair (Blairs of Blair in Ayrshire). Others believe that these families were not related.

These may have been the "Original" Blairs but the Blair name was adopted by many others with no blood connection throughout history. Every Blair that adopted the name started a new line.

  Blair Genealogy                    16 Aug 2003



 Ayrshire, Scotland

(16 Aug 2003: I have determined the settlement of Blair is in Ayrshire County, just 3 or 4 miles southeast of Dalry, Ayrshire County, Scotland.  -- csj)

DALRY

The town and parish of Dalry takes their name from 'Dail righe' meaning 'the field of the King', which is located above an important crossing point on the River Garnock.

Eighteenth century writers noted that Dalry had long been noted for the excellence of its dairy, and the attention that had been given to improve the tillage and practice of agriculture in the parish. The rich peaty soil was excellent for agriculture.

Bibliography
"Dalry Remembered" published by the Dalry Local History Group in 1985.

Parish News Letter of St. Margaret's Parish Church, Dalry published Autumn 1987.

Church History
The churches to be found in the modern town of Dalry include:

St Margaret's Church, in the central square, built in 1871-3, whose spire is a distinguishing feature. The church interior was gutted by fire in the 1950s and has been sympathetically restored.

Trinity Church, built in 1857.

The Mission Halls, North Street, built in 1876.

The following notes describe some earlier churches.

Dalry is first mentioned in 1226 as a "chapel of Ardrossan". If the parish was not formed at that date, it surely was by 1279 when a certain "Henry, Rector of the Church of Dalry" appears in the Register of the Diocese of Glasgow. There appear to have been two places of worship in the parish by the late 13th century. One was on the east bank of the River Garnock at Kilcush, and th other on the west, situated near to ground called 'the Old Glebe'. The latter appears to have been the main, or parish church; although it would have been a small simple building probably with an earthen floor, thatched roof and a few windows. This church building was almost certainly dedicated to St Margaret of Antioch, a virgin martyr of the 3rd or 4th century.

"The church of Dalry was one of those belonging to the monastery of Kilwinning, and the monks as a matter of course enjoyed the factorial tithes and revenues, a vicarage being established for serving the cure. At the Reformation, the monks received £100 yearly for the rectorial tithes of the church, which were levied for the payment of the annual rent. The lands which belonged to the church were acquired by the Earl of Eglinton after the Reformation. Before the year 1610, the patronage of the church was acquired by John Blair of Blair, the proprietor of the adjacent barony of Blair. His son, Bryce Blair, obtained in 1616, a lease of the tithes of the church of Dalry from Archibald Spottiswoode, who was then the Commendator of Kilwinning."

The first church after the Reformation stood about half a mile south-west of the existing one, while the first church on the present site was erected in the year 1608 and rebuilt in the year 1771. Two stones bearing the dates mentioned may be seen in the west wall of the new church. The present parish church is of Gothic architecture, built from designs by David Thomson, Esq., an eminent Glasgow architect, and cost somewhere about £6,000. The foundation stone was laid with full Masonic honours, by Colonel Muir of Caldwell, Provincial Grand Master Mason of Ayrshire, on 10th May, 1851. The clock by which the spire was graced was the gift of G. Fullarton, Esq., of Kerelaw, and the bell was presented to the parish by James M'Cosh, Esq., of Merksworth.

"Ayrshire Nights Entertainment: A Descriptive Guide to the History, Traditions, Antiquities of the County of Ayr" by John MacIntosh of Galston, Ayrshire, published in 1894, by John Menzies & Co. of Kilmarnock, Dunlop and Drennan.

The Dalry register of births and marriages commences in 1683, but was not regularly kept until 1724. By the acts of the Kirk Session, the observance of the Sabbath was strictly enforced, and the usual strict measures were pursued against those guilty of immoral conduct. However the session minutes do not go back far enough to record those strange cases of witchcraft for which Dalry was somewhat infamous.

There were other non-conformist churches at different times. Such records are usually held in the Scottish Record Office in Edinburgh.

Description and Travel
Dalry is a relatively large rural parish in the north-east of the county in the Garnock Valley, centred on the small town of Dalry. The parish is about ten miles long and varies from three to eight miles in breadth and includes the villages of Blair, Burnside, Drakemire, Southfield and the Den. The Garnock valley is the distinguishing feature of the parish. The valley is both fertile and beautiful. The River Garnock flows through the parish for about seven miles, in the course of which it is joined by the Caaf and Rye, and several other tributaries. Dalry was non-existent as a village until a "kirktoun" grew up around the new parish church, built in 1604. That kirk essentially made the village. By 1700, the inhabitants of Dalry numbered barely 100.

The whole Garnock Valley area until the 1830s was a successful rural economy based on the rich peaty soil which was excellent for both arable and dairy farming. The town was reinforced by developments to provide housing for wealthy Glasgow businessmen and the like. But the opening of various limeworks, a number of coal pits and what became the Glengarnock Steel Works in Blair in the 1840s, wholly changed the character of the parish of Dalry. It became an increasingly industrial area peppered with iron mines to provide the ore and coal pits to fuel the blast furnaces.

The decline and end of the iron and steel industry has allowed the Garnock valley to return to something of its earlier rural state, but with evidence of pit workings still scarring the landscape.

South-east of the village lies the impressive mansion Blair House, set in its own great park. The Barony of Blair in Dalry, Ayrshire was granted by King William in the mid-12th century. Sir Bryce Blair was an adherent of Sir William Wallace but was executed by the English at the Barns of Ayr in 1296. His brother's son, Roger, was knighted by King Robert the Bruce for his services before and during the Battle of Bannockburn. Blair House was occupied continuously by the family between 1202 and 1980.

An 1837 description of the parish, including a listing of the key personalities of the town, is given in this extract from Pigot's Directory for Ayrshire. The transcript was provided by Keith Muirhead from the Sunshine Coast of Queensland.

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Page created by Iain Kerr.
[Last updated: 4th March 2003 - Brian Pears]
"(c) Gazetteer for Scotland, 1995-2003"
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 "Used with permission from the Gazetteer for Scotland"
  As of 21 Aug 2006 the page regarding Dalry is no longer available on the internet. But, the website still exists.



  Clark Family Crest

Origin:  Scotland

The distinguished surname Clark is Anglo-Saxon in origin.  It is derived from the Old English "clerec," which is itself derived from the Latin "clericus," meaning "priest."  The term "clerec" originally denoted a member of a religious order; however, as these were the only people who were taught to read and write, the term eventually came to refer to any literate man.  Thus, the name Clark may refer to a scholar, a scribe, a secretary, or a member of a religious order.