A name firmly rooted in North East Scotland.
We know from our father, Ian Pirie, and from our researches, that our family were fishermen involved in the herring industry. In the Scottish censuses 1851-1901, the occupations of four generations of our Pirie family are recorded as either 'fisherman' or 'whitefisher' in the fishing village of Portknockie overlooking the Moray Firth, midway between Aberdeen and Inverness.
According to the UCL Surname Profiler, 1881 census data indicate that the highest concentration of the surname 'Pirie' was to be found in North East Scotland with the second highest concentration on the East coast, whereas data from the 1998 electoral register show the surname dispersed across the whole of Scotland; the highest concentration still in the North East, but the second highest in the Orkney and Caithness area. The dispersal of the Pirie surname from North East Scotland to the Orkney and Caithness area is consistent with the development of the herring industry and its ports in the North East and North of Scotland.
Work on our family history was started in 1998 by Neil's brother, Cameron Pirie, tracing five generations of our Pirie line.
Neil then set about collecting documentary evidence from photographs, censuses, statutory registrations of births, marriages and deaths, and then Old Parochial Records (OPRs) using the research centre of the Aberdeen and North East Scotland Family History Society (ANESFHS). In doing so, the Pirie line was extended and documented. More recent work has seen an expansion to include ancestors on both Neil's and Rachel's sides.
All our research contained in 'The Master Genealogist' (TMG), the excellent genealogy package from Wholly Genes Software. The presentation of our family history data on this website was realised using 'Second Site 2' by John Cardinal.
Obviously the information provided is not exhaustive. Where possible we have referred to original sources of information to make sure that lines of decent are 'proven' and that events have been recorded in TMG as accurately as we can. As work progresses further, we will periodically add new information and photographs to the site.
For guidance on using this site, please refer to the Getting started page.
On the Charts page you can explore the drop chart of our great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather George Pirie and his descendants, as well as drop charts for other families related to Neil and to Rachel.
The Boat Index allows you to find fishing boats of various types mentioned on Person Pages.
Thanks
Welcome to Diana Powell of Ontario, Canada, for providing information about her Pirie "Dod" ancestors.
Thanks also to:
- Meredith Greiling, Assistant Keeper of Maritime History at Aberdeen Maritime Museum, for providing the German-English translation regarding the sinking of the ST Beathwood.
- Edward and Louvine Kemp of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada for providing information about their Mair ancestors.
- Ian Will of Onkaparinga Hills, South Australia.
- Alison Durkin of Houston, Texas.
- Anand Prasad of Mull, Scotland for providing information about his Ironside and McArthur ancestors.
- Bill Wood of Victoria, Australia, for providing information about his Wood "Park" ancestors.
- Carole Dillon of Nottingham, for providing information about her Wood "Park" and Mair "Shanker" ancestors.
- James George Mair of Findochty for providing information about his Mair "Shanker" ancestors.
- George Findlay of Dumfries for providing information about his Findlay "Toper" and Findlay "Knab" ancestors.
- Bob Senior of Butleigh for providing access to his research on the Families of Butleigh, including the Look family.
- Marlene Wilson of Findochty for providing information about her Allan and Mair ancestors.
- Mary Laing for providing information about her Mair "Saucy" ancestors.
- David Clark for providing information about his Mair "Bobbin" ancestors.
- John Crawford of the Buckie and District Fishing Heritage Centre for providing a photograph and infomation about Harbour Master James Mair "Slater".
- Dr Guy Barnicoat for providing information to help link individuals to the Wood "King" chart.
- Barbara Southward for providing information about Haylock Lanchester and her husband's Bursill ancestors.
- Carolyn Hatt for providing information about her Pirie "Buxer" ancestors.
- Lynda McHardy for providing information about James Mair and his Mair "Bobbin" descendants.
- Bob Mair and Betty Burton for providing information about William and Catharine Mair, née Pirie, and their Mair "Shavie" descendants.
If you have any comments or queries, or you if you have ancestors shown on our site, we'd love to hear from you. You can either click the Neil Pirie link at the bottom of any family history page to create a new e-mail message, or use one of the Contact us links on the main site.
Family History data were last updated on 7 February 2010.