The Blair Family
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The Blair Family who came from Scotland in 1803 to Cornwall, Ontario, Canada The name Blair has its origin in the Gaelic word "blar" meaning a meadow or an open area with no trees. It is said that there are two main branches of the family; the Blairs of Blair, Ayrshire and the Blairs of Balthayock. In the12th century the Barony of Blare was given by Richard I to Jean Francois, the grandson of one of the Norman warriors of William the Conqueror who had captured England in 1066. The Scots finally gave in and King Malcolm III paid homage to William in 1072 at Abernethy, Perthshire. Norman warriors remained in Scotland to protect the peace. The descendants of Jean Francois took on the name de Blare / Blair and the Blair family lays claim to this history. Fred Blair Genealogist and Historian Fred Blair has been publishing "The Ebenezer Blair Family History Newsletter" from his home in Orillia, Ontario since 2000. Fred took over the role of the Blair family history compiler from the late Don Blair who began the task many years ago. To date he has published 36 Newsletters which contain a wealth of information on the various branches of the Blair Family descended from Ebenezer Blair. Much of the research was been done by a team of cousins over many years. You can Contact him to be put on his mailing list of Blair Cousins and contribute to his collection of information on the family. Using Wiki tree he has published his research on the War of 1812 and the 2nd Regiment of York Militia. He has also done extensive research on the Blair Family Descendants of Ebenezer Blair and Janet Young, Ebenezer Blair was born in Glasgow, Scotland about 1778 and in 1803 emigrated to Cornwall, Upper Canada (source: 1824 Land Petition). His occupation is stated to be a Cabinet Maker. In 1812 he was in the York Volunteers and is said to have been at the Battle of Lundy's Lane. There are also Notes on Ebenezer’s Parentage at the end of the Biography of Ebenezer Blair. Other Links to Blair Family History, Research and Genealogy Blair Family surname history Blair Genealogy The Clan Blair Society Blair DNA Project |
