William Douglas's Blog (618)

At the Clan Maclean Gathering, held on the Isle of Mull, I attended a ceremony which was part of the Sunday church service during which various members of the clan were invited to introduce the tartan that they were wearing, saying what it was and where it came from. Once all variations of Maclean tartan were presented, others were asked to introduce the tartan…

British triple jumper Nathan Douglas says he is "heartbroken" after revealing he is almost certain to miss this summer's 2012 Olympic Games.

Oxford-born Douglas got injured in his first competition of the year in Hengelo, the Netherlands, last month.

The 29-year-old former European silver medallist will miss this weekend's trials and in all likelihood will not…

Father, ex-frogman, businessman, builder. Born Aug. 25, 1926, in Rothéneuf, France, died April 21, 2012, in Vista del Lago, Mexico, of prostate and bone cancer, aged 85.

John spent the first seven years of his life in Brittany, France. A rich uncle paid for him to go to boarding school in England after his father ran off with the family maid. He never saw his father…

Congratulations to Dr Anne Regina Douglas, who was awarded an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for services to the Health of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Glasgow.

Dr Anne Douglas, a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, leads a multi-disciplinary mental health team within Compass, a unit of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.  Compass is dedicated to building the capacity of mental health services to provide culturally-sensitive healthcare for asylum seekers and…

On this day in 1329, Robert the Bruce died at Cardross, near Dumbarton, at the age of 54. Before his death, Bruce had requested that his heart be taken on Crusade after his death and his wish was fulfilled, with Sir James Douglas, the 'Black Douglas', taking the heart on an ill-fated trip to Spain to fight the Moors, during which he was killed.... "Onward braveheart, Douglas shall follow thee or die"

I have just received details of a Bannockburn Dinner, to be held on 23rd June in Brisbane, Australia.

Sadly, I will be working on the Isle of Mull that day - helping out the Macleans!

I hope those attending have fun.

Nobility, Bloodlines, Kings and Queens… All this and more at the tap of a screen. The Peerage App contains the largest iOS based collection of British Peerage & European Royalty lineage information in the world.

Fourteen years of research, refined and presented with a simple interface allow you to quickly begin your adventure into tiered world of the Peerage. Reveal the vast web of connections to and from Nobility.



Features:

- Over 1000 Years of Records

-…

Two of our members are researching the descendants - and seeking the ancestors of - Donald Douglas and Jean Haswell.

Their grandson, James, was a noted cattle breeder.

Among the finest judges and cleverest feeders who have been distinguished among the Shorthorn breeders of Scotland was Mr. James Douglas, of Athelstaneford, near Drem, East Lothian.

He had a rare eye for form, did not like great size, but preferred a type which may be described as wide and low; he…

No - I don't know who he is either, but apparently he is important to DNA researchers.

Andrew Mceachern and Anatole A. Klyosov are conducting research into 'Scotlands r1a1 Highland Clansmen', and have a particular focus on the Douglas family, amongst others.

I was interested in how this was progressing, in the light of an enquiry in the Douglas DNA Project group. My interest was aroused by a question relating to the  I1a group, which one of its members is tested to.  Now, if I…

Pat Douglas will be speaker at the regular monthly meeting of the Polk County Genealogical Society, in Bolivar, Missouri,  at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 3. Douglas will share an old family Bible that was returned to his family last December.

The Bible was returned by a gentleman from Georgia. The existence of this Bible, belonging to Sidney Albert and Melinda Graham Douglas, Pat’s great-great-grandparents, was unknown to the family. It contains a wealth of family history with newspaper…

I have received an enquiry as to whether Lady Gertrude Douglas, founder, in 1891, of The Dogs Trust, the UK's largest dog welfare charity, has any descendants.

Lady Gertrude Georgina Douglas, 1842-93) was a daughter of the seventh Marquis of Queensberry (1818-58) and an older sister of Lady Florence Dixie.  She wrote under her male pseudonym, George Douglas,  Scottlsh regional fiction aimed at the 1870's library market, mainly publlshed by Tinsley.

The tone of her novels is…

When the boiler exploded aboard the steamer Sultana on April 27, 1865, more than 1,700 people lost their lives. Most of those aboard were recently released Union prisoners from Confederate prisons in Cahaba, Alabama, and Andersonville, Georgia. They were en route from Camp Fiske in Mississippi to Camp Chase, Ohio, but the explosion occurred only a few hours into the journey.

In addition to the…

Robert Douglas (1727–1809) was a Scottish-born soldier who replaced Ludwig Ernst von Brunswick-Lüneburg-Bevern as governor of the garrison city of 's-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands in 1784. He was major-general from 1778 and commander of the city from 1780 to 1794.

His biography is now available in our Book Store.…

Peter Douglas, longtime executive director of the California Coastal Commission who spent a career fighting to rein in development along one of the world's most alluring coastlines, has died. He was 69.

Douglas died Sunday at his sister's home in the desert resort town of La Quinta, about 115 miles east of Los Angeles. He had battled lung cancer and stepped down from the helm of the commission last November because of his declining health.

"He was a remarkable person and a…

Letters My Grandfather Wrote Me: Family Origins

By Bryan Crawford

Remarkable research endeavour enables author to trace the roots of his family back to 300 B. C. revealing a rich history and an unexpected…

Piping Live!, the Glasgow International Piping Festival will be back from 6-12 August. 

We’re looking for Douglas pipers to join the World’s Biggest Pipe-a-long!

Watch the video of Roddy MacLeod  to give you details of playing ‘When the Pipers Play’.

All we need you to do is film yourself playing…

I have just acquired a copy of Charles Henry Douglas's 'A Collection of Family records, with Biographical Sketches and other memoranda of various families and individuals bearing the name DOUGLAS, or allied families of that name,' published in 1879.

Can anyone tell how accurate they think the book is?…

Need photos of your American grandparents or great-grandparents? A great source of 20th century photos is the U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 database from Ancestry.com.  It is not going to work for everyone but if your ancestors lived in the United States and either immigrated in the 20th century or had the means to travel abroad you just may be in luck.

United States Passport…

7 September 1795 - The Scots Magazine.

The Circuit Court of Justiciary was opened at Dumfries on Monday last, by the Right Hon. Lord Justice Clerk and Lord Craig.

The Court, at nine o'clock on Tuesday morning, proceeded to the trial …