An E-mail From Derek Wray Townshend about the Stewarts
Dear Mr Forshaw,
Thank you for a very informative website. I have found very valuable
information on the following page: http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~iforshaw/Mag35/page11.html
I would like to ask you a few questions about it.
The second last paragraph I do not understand at all. Can you explain it
to me. It reads, "Mary, stated to be unmarried in 1740 was the only one of
the family to remain in Scotland. She married about 1765 the Rev.George
Robertson whose presentation in 1766 to the Lowland Kirk by the Duke of Argyll
against the wishes of the members was the occasion of the secession of most of
the congregation and the setting up of the Relief or Longrow Kirk." The
connection of these Stewarts to the Duke of Argyll interests me a great deal. Is
there a general connection between these Stewarts and the Duke of Argyll? (Does
"Kirk" mean "church"? The Dutch word for church is
"kerk")
My second question is about the cousin of Robert Stewart, Dugald Stewart,
Mathematician and Philospher Professor. He must be the Dugald Stewart that
writes the 1793 biography of the very very
famous Scottish philospher and economist, Adam Smith. Am I correct about this?
(I am sure you know who Adam Smith is - the man who wrote "The Wealth
of Nations", the intellectual father of capitalism, regarded by some as the
most influential man in recent history)
Now let me explain the significance of your webpage.
I am a descendant of Peter Stewart, Chief Justice of Prince Edward Island,
through his daughter Flora Stewart who married Hon William Townshend (b.1762),
Collector of Customs of PEI (and later acting governer too). I am on a quest to
establish his exact family connection to all the other big Townshend names.
Without going into too much detail, I have many facts and common family
friends connecting William Townshend with George Townshend (1724-1806, 1st
Marquess Townshend) and also his cousin Thomas Townshend (1733-1800, 1st
Viscount Sydney). These facts are numerous enough for me to know that he fits
into this Townshend family. However, the facts, although numerous, are all
circumstantial and do not prove anything conclusively. For the past 7 months I
was convinced that William was more closely connected to Lord Sydney as I had
established 5 common friends between William and Sydney. However, I now have
facts that point to Lord Sydney's cousin, George. This is where the Scottish
connection becomes important.
Firstly, George, 1st Marquess Townshend marries the daughter of Sir
William Montgomery, the Lord Advocate for Scotland. I have heard that Lt.Col.
Robert Stewart used Sir William Montgomery to help his brother, Peter to get the
position of Chief Justice of PEI. This was needed because Peter Stewart had a
background in Scottish Law and not English law as was required. Can you confirm
this? George Townshend recieved Lot 56 on PEI for his services in taking Quebec
and ending the 7 years war. William Townshend bought the property adjacent
to his (Lot 43).
Secondly, George's brother, Rt Hon Charles Townshend (1725-1767, of Tax
Act Fame) married Caroline Campbell, daughter of the Duke of Argyll. Charles T
also had many Scottish friends; David
Hume and Adam Smith for example. In fact he hired Adam Smith to tutor his
step-son, the Duke of Buccleuch. Adam Smith knew the Duke of Argyll too.
Lastly, there is my Hon William Townshend whose family connection still
needs to be established. He became Collector of Customs of PEI soon after
arriving on the island in 1783. He arrived
when Adam Smith was Commissioner of Customs for Scotland (1777-1790). I am
still trying to find out whether Adam Smith had a hand in his position and
whether this is routed to Smith's connection to Rt Hon Charles Townshend.
Thanks to your information I know that William Townshend's father- in-law,
Peter Stewart was a cousin (-in-law) of the Professor Dugald Stewart that wrote
the biography of Adam Smith. This is obviously a step in the right direction for
me. Furthermore, William Townshend brought Scottish Dumfries to Prince Edward
Island and might have indeed have had to deal with Adam Smith directly.
Funnily enough, William Townshend, Charles Townshend and George Townshend
are the only ones that have very distinctive Scottish ties. All other
Townshends, such as Lord Sydney, Baron Bayning do not appear to have any
Scottish connections whatsoever.
I hope this is of interest and that my few queries can be answered. The
Adam Smith Foundation was not able to answer my family/history questions
regarding William Townshend and Adam Smith. They were quite intrigued
though. I will be telling them of the Peter Stewart/Robert Stewart/Dugald
Stewart connection to Adam Smith (which possibly leads to William Townshend's
connection to
him too).
Best Regards
Derek Wray Townshend
(PS - Sir Cecil Wray, patron of William Townshend and friend of Lord
Sydney, owned Lot 37 on PEI at one time. This land was later owned by
"Hellfire Jack" John Stewart, political partner and brother-in-law of
William Townshend. That area on PEI is now known as
Mt. Stewart)
I replied to Derek as follows:
Hello
Derek,
Thank you for your e-mail. I'm sorry I took so long to get back to you but I
don't check my KintyreMag address as often as I should.
Your e-mail certainly did pose a number of questions which, I'm sorry to say, I
am not qualified to answer. The Magazine was never intended as a genealogical
forum, and I am certainly no expert on the subject.
I can do two things for you though. Firstly, I can tell you that the Scots' word
'kirk' definitely means church and, secondly, I can post your query in the next
online Magazine - hopefully in September.
I'm sorry that I haven't been of much help but, of course, if you have anything
to say, or any questions, you are very welcome to use the Mag.
Ca' canny,
Ian
Wee Drams - E-mails, comments, queries and enlightenment from around the world.
Page 3: More correspondence with Mr John Wallace
Page 4: A Wee Tour of Kintyre - Part 2
Page 5: The Campbeltown Aurorae The Campbeltown Aurorae
Page 6: An E-mail From Derek Wray Townshend about the Stewarts
Page 7: Children of the Home Front