ALCORN, John; SCT > ARM,NIR; 1610-1710
Dewaine Alcorn
Family "history" passed down through several branches of the Alcorn family
indicates King James V of Scotland (r. 1528-1542) came upon a family
Robertson's residence while hunting. The man entertained the King and his
retinue and turned the King's horses into his granaries. The King,
impressed with his wealth, conferred on him the name "All Chorne." The key
points of this story remain constant across several branches' versions of
the story but nowhere is there any indication of sources for this "name"
story. I don't have any idea where this took place except that it might
relate to the location(s) of the Robertson family in Atholl or Strowan.
The account also indicates the relationship of De Atholia, Celtic Earl of
Athol and the succeeding Robert (Robert's son) De Atholia in becoming the
founder of the Robertsons.
(Sources supporting the Robertson information:
Robertson, J.A. Comitatus de Atholia. Printed for private circulation,
Murray and Gibb, Edinburgh, 1860, LC CS479.R6; and
Robertson, A. Robertson: The History and Martial Achievements of the
Robertson's of Strowan. Edinburgh, 1785; LC PR3669.R18.)
A John Alcorn, said to be the first of three brothers to become planters in
Ireland, was born 1610 in Scotland and died 18 Feb 1710 in Armagh. (Or
Derry or Tyrone; this is where the various editions of the "history" of the
Alcorns breaks down. Perhaps the tombstone was moved (:-).) I will be
traveling in Scotland and NIR (attending the Ulster Historical Foundation
Conference) this September and have found Blair Atholl on a map of Scotland
but have not found Strowan (or Strawn). I will be looking also for records
in PRONI and the National Archives in Dublin and Edinburgh. Any suggestions
as to where else to look for verification of this information would be
appreciated.
Dewaine Alcorn <dal...@unl.edu>
Gordon Johnson
Dewaine Alcorn <dal...@unl.edu> wrote:
Black's "Surnames of Scotland" disagrees. He reckons the name is
derived from the placename Alchorne in the parish of Rotherfield,
Sussex, England.
Supporting his contention is the fact that the surname predates
your family story of the king in the mid-1500s. Black notes several
references from the century before that.
From my copy of the Register of Cupar Abbey:
Rentals: Mill of Kethyk.
"At pentecost, A.D. 1446, the mill of Kethyk is let to John Awldcorn
for seven years along with the land assigned to it, ......."
By the way, your Strowan is probably Struan, in the parish of
Blair-Athole.
Regards,
Gordon .
KinHelp - Scottish historical and genealogical services.
E-mail: kin...@wintermute.co.uk
Website: http://www.web-ecosse.com/genes/genes2.htm
Alcorn
I've come to the conclusion that the "history" of the Alcorn family
name that you mentioned is just a story that someone invented but has no
truth in it. I've heard the story many times with the King being any from
King John to King James V. The book, Rotherfield - The Story of Some
Wealdon Manors, by Catherine Pullein, Couring Printing and Publishing
Company, Ltd., England, 1928, gives a very good account of the probable
origin of the name, being from the name of a tract of land in Rotherfield
Parish, Sussex which later became known as Alcorn Manor.
According to Henry Harrison in his book, Surnames of the United
Kingdom, 1969, "the name Allcorn is English, believed to come from
Alchorne, a parish in Sussex County; The name may be from the Old English
words ALH, meaning temple, plus HORN (or HYRNE) meaning a corner of land."
What Harrison says fits very well with what Pullein says and the
location of Alcorn Manor did extend away from church lands located in
Rotherfield Parish in Sussex County. The land is listed as Al-si-horne is
the Domesday Book, 1086. The earliest record of a person with the surname
is a Peter de Alchehorne, who in A.D. 1262 was one of twelve local men who
swore to the extent of Rotherfield Manor on the occasion of the Inquisition
Post Mortem of its lord, Richard de Clare. A William Alchorne is alxo
mentioned in 1450.
Obviously, if the name were in existence in 1262, its origin could
not have begun with King James V (1528-1542)
Secondly, anyone who know and cares about horses would not "turn
them loose in a granary." You would have some horses with very sore
stomachs the next day, or they would be dead, and a very upset King.
M. Alcorn
>Re: ALCORN, John; SCT > ARM,NIR; 1610-1710
>
>Dewaine Alcorn <dal...@unl.edu> wrote:
>
>>ALCORN, John; SCT > ARM,NIR; 1610-1710
>>
>>Family "history" passed down through several branches of the Alcorn family
>>indicates King James V of Scotland (r. 1528-1542) came upon a family
>>Robertson's residence while hunting. The man entertained the King and his
>>retinue and turned the King's horses into his granaries. The King,
>>impressed with his wealth, conferred on him the name "All Chorne." The key
>>points of this story remain constant across several branches' versions of
>>the story but nowhere is there any indication of sources for this "name"
>>story. I don't have any idea where this took place except that it might
>>relate to the location(s) of the Robertson family in Atholl or Strowan.
>>The account also indicates the relationship of De Atholia, Celtic Earl of
>>Athol and the succeeding Robert (Robert's son) De Atholia in becoming the
>>founder of the Robertsons.
alc...@ariel.met.tamu.edu (Alcorn)
Alcorn
Alcorn
Dewaine Alcorn
Thank You, M. Alcorn for your response to my query on rootsweb! I suspected
it was made up when I received the "Family Name History" from the
Historical Research Center, Inc. I have lost the address of the HRC that
sent me the Verification of Authenticity signed by Delaney in 1991. The
certificate did not give any source of their information, however. They
claim a copyright for all the information, printed or typed on the
document... under the copyright laws of the U.S.A, the United Kingdom,
Ireland, etc. They do mention, as you did, the place name Alchorne in
Rotherfield, Sussex but added some other recordings of the name in the the
Hundred Rolls of 1273 in Oxfordshire and Kent.
To the other Alcorns who read this, take that copy of "Alcorn History" that
mentions any King bestowing this name and label it "Fantasy." Just because
James Rusk Alcorn, Governor of Mississippi, whose family came here in 1721,
had the same information, "only a little more elaborate," does not make it
any more valid than the response I had from a person whose husband's folks
came to Nova Scotia "had a similar story."
>X-Message: #3
>Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1998 07:29:57 -0700
>From: alc...@ariel.met.tamu.edu (Alcorn)
>To: SURNAMES-...@rootsweb.com
>Message-Id: <1998081714...@bl-12.rootsweb.com>
>Subject: Re: ALCORN, John; SCT > ARM,NIR; 1610-1710
>______________________________