The origins of the surname Drysdale

[Ronald Drysdale]

In a previous post I gave some background information on the Barony and lands of Dryfesdale:

https://douglashistory.ning.com/group/drysdale-a-douglas-sept?comme...

In another publication I recently came across a further reference to the Barony of Dryfesdale:

Ref: An inquiry concerning the Boss family and the name Boss
https://archive.org/details/inquiryconcernin01boss/page/184/mode/2up

This reference also highlights the Coat of Arms of 'Lord Boyis of Dryvisdaill of Auld' and the family's link to the Bruces of Annandale:

".....In these early times to which I have referred the Bruce family were Lords of Annandale’ and the Bois family were among their feudal vassals; the Bois arms are the same as the Bruce, with a difference in color to distinguish them, and are What are called feudal arms....."

The image below shows the arms of a number of early families with links to the Lords of Annandale:

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

Referring now to the origins of the Surname Drysdale;

There are a small but significant number of early Drysdales scattered around Scotland and England in the 13th-15th centuries; however the first major grouping of Drysdales was only revealed in the  1480 - 1513 editions of the 'Exchequor rolls of Scotland'.

In these volumes, 4 or 5 distinct Drysdale families were recorded as being tenants in the Tillicoultry' villages of Drummy, Coalsnaughton, Elistoun, Harviestoun & Shannock Hill. See attached pdf:  

Drysdales Tillicoultry tenants - The Exchequor rolls of Scotland 14...

Note It would appear that the confiscation of local Douglas Lands (Tillicoultry) by the Crown at that time resulted in rent dues from individual Tillicoultry tenants being officially recorded as Exchequor income & that's why these early official records exist.

The principal controversy  around the genesis of the name 'Drysdale'  is the so called '1503 document', in which it is claimed that the very first Drysdales were in fact Douglases who changed their names to Drysdale, to avoid capture by the King, and then moved from Dryfesdale to Dollar in 1503.

This is obviously incorrect - due to the existence of many people called Drysdale before 1503, the inconsistencies in the document itself and the lack of corroborating evidence. However there may still be some truth in the outline of the story, but this would imply that there were at least two separate branches in Clackmannanshire with the Drysdale family name - Drysdales descended from De Bois of Dryfesdale (say) and Drysdales who were really Douglases!

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Some notes on Dollar - the land was owned by the Campbell family

The first mention of the [Campbell] Castle is in a Papal Bull of 1466: ‘a certain dwelling with a tower of the place of Glowm situate in the territory of Dolar, diocese of Dunkeld.’

Colin Campbell, the first Earl of Argyll, acquired the Castle by marriage and changed its name to ‘Castle Campbell’ in 1489.  The Earl’s tenants in Dollar owed duties in kind: for example, to supply oatmeal, barley, poultry and beer to the Castle and to fetch coals from Sauchie.

The first recorded joint mention of Drysdale & Dollar appears in the Regality of Dunfermline Court book where on 10-1-1537, William Drisdaill, his son Robert Drisdaill & Margaret Kirk were in dispute with Archbald Betoun about land on the banks of Dolor,
Then in the "Registrum de Dunfermelyn. Liber cartarum Abbatie Benedictine S.S. Trinitatis et B. Margarete Regine de Dunfermelyn" - in 1557 a tack of "three bovates of the Mains of Dollar" was granted by the monastery there to an Agnes Dryisdaill and her husband Andrew Vannan.
Then in the NRS Court of Session Register of deeds, indexes & calendar entries for the period 1553-1578, there are  entries for - Alexander, George, James & William Dryisdall [where William was the son of James Drysdale of Lochleven fame]

From 1600 onwards the Campbell Papers show that there are a multitude of Drysdales in Dollar.

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All of what I have suggested above is not new, the same information has been laid down previously in the The Clan Douglas Association of Australia Newsletter February 1989 however what this post is doing, perhaps, is reinforcing some of the tentative suggestions that were made within the 1989 article - here are some quotes from this article:

.....it is well known that the Drysdale name, or at least a similar name, existed in the Clackmannanshire area before the documented incident of 1503. These instances occur in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in the parish of Tillicoultry (which is adjacent to Dollar ) , between 1480 and 1513 when several 'Drisdale ' or 'Dryisdale' families are recorded as tenants...........

......Perhaps it could be that the Tillicoultry Drisdales or Dryisdales are a different family from those descended from the Douglases who settled in Dollar.......

......According to the Heraldry of the Douglases by Harvey Johnston, James II divided up the forfeited Douglas lands between his own supporters, and Annandale was shared between the Carlyles, Maxwells and most  important of all the Johnstons. It is clear from the information above that any Douglases living in Annandale may have been in great danger after 1455......

Comment

The Drysdales living in Tillicoultry were historical tenants of old Douglas lands & any outlawed Douglases from Annandale would know that a few new 'Drysdales' appearing in Clackmannanshire (Dollar) would not be out of place as the name was already well established there. They could also perhaps look for support from their local  Drysdale brethren.

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

NRS Court of Session Register of deeds, indexes & calendar entries for the period 1553-1578  -  

Alexander, George, James & William Dryisdall in Dollar [where William was the son of James Drysdale of Lochleven fame]:

Best regards

[Russell Lynn Drysdale]

Well done Ronald !

[Robert Wang]

Thank you Ronald Drysdale for a very interesting and informative piece. I would agree with your suggestion that there must be at least two groups sharing the surname Drysdale within the Clackmannanshire area.

[Ronald Drysdale]

Of interest in this document is the fact that Joke [Joaquim, Jacob or Jake?] is said to be of Drivisdaill i.e. an owner of land in Dryfesdale, and the crime is committed in Tillicoultry sometime before September 1492.

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

Of interest in the document below is the fact that Drisdaill, Crichton, Kirkpatrick & Boys family members were sitting together, as upstanding members of the Community in Sanquhar, in 1548. Sanquhar is in Dumfriesshire & not far (25 miles) from Dryfesdale.

- why would any member from the outlawed Douglas/Drysdale family return to the area?
Ref - Folk lore and genealogies of Uppermost Nithsdale

Also

In 1585 there were two John Drysdales listed as being Maxwell’s men (tenants) in Blackshaw, Caerlaverock in Dumfriesshire (12 miles from Dryfesdale):
https://www.rps.ac.uk/search.php?action=print&id=10520&file...

On 6th August 1592, one Annus Dhrisdaile married a Patricke Muncke in Holm Cultram in Cumberland (20 miles from Dryfesdale)

The proximity of these individuals' locations to Dryfesdale, rather than Clackmannanshire, indicate origins other than Tillicoultry or Dollar.

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

In addition to the errant Drysdales above, and also the Stafford Drysdalls mentioned here:

https://douglashistory.ning.com/group/drysdale-archives/forum/topic...

There is a significant grouping of early Drysdale (Dridell, Drydall etc) families within Yorkshire that cannot be readily linked to the Clackmannanshire Drysdales - some examples:

Robert Drydaile baptism 1561 Thomas Drydaill burial 1567 - Yorkshire Kirkleatham - Parish Registers - 1559-1812

Robert Drydaile Baptism 1562 Kirkleatham, Yorkshire, England

Leonard Dridell baptised 29-3-1593 Father Xpofer Dridell at Stokesley Yorkshire

William Drusdall of Cloughton (Scarborough) will dated 15-4-1562 - Yorkshire. Wills in the York Registry

Could it be that these Yorkshire Drysdales are leftover descendants from the times when the Bruce family had large estates in Yorkshire?

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

The estates of De Brus circa 1260:

http://www.pickeringsofyorkshire.com/related-families/medieval/de-b....

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

Drysdale - Holm Cultram - Bruce

Best regards

[Ronald Drysdale]

Another errant Drysdale family that may not have Clackmannanshire origins

- Saffron Walden Drysdales circa 1600

Best regards