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David Tennant was born and raised in Paisley, but he always knew that there was Irish blood in his veins. His maternal grandmother, Nellie Blair, was born in Londonderry. Nellie married a Scottish footballer, Archie McLeod, who had moved to Ireland to play for Derry City.
Archie’s family were farmers from the Scottish highlands, living on the estate of the local landlord. Evicted from their home during the Highland Clearances at the end of the 19th century, the McLeod family were forced to move south to Glasgow to earn a living.
Nellie Blair’s parents were Protestants, and signed the Ulster Covenant in 1912 protesting against the plans for Home Rule (devolution). When the First World War broke out, William Blair, Nellie’s father, joined the Royal Army Medical Corps and was involved in the Battle of the Somme. When he returned to Ireland the conflict between the British Army and the Irish Republican Army was well under way. The resulting divide left William and his family just within the newly created Northern Ireland province.
For birth, marriage and death certificates relating to Scottish ancestors, your first point of call should be Scotland’s People
. Registration indexes for births from 1855 to 1905, marriages from 1855 to 1930, and deaths from 1855 to 1955, can be searched online on a pay-per-view basis. Scottish census returns from 1841 to 1901 and wills from1500 to 1901, can also be viewed online.
Later records of births, deaths and marriages can be found at the General Register Office in Edinburgh. You can also find Old Parish Registers for Church of Scotland parishes here from 1553 to 1854 here. You should note that names with the Mac or Mc prefix are usually indexed separately, so always search under both variations.
Surviving taxation records for Scotland, including Hearth, Poll and Assessed Taxes, are held by the National Archives of Scotland. The National Archives of Scotland also holds Church of Scotland Kirk Sessions records and other Scottish church registers, although these may not be available online.
You can find records of army and navy service at The National Archives, Kew.
Gathering the Clans: Tracing Scottish Ancestry on the Internet
