Thomas Adair b. ABT 1680 Antrim County, Ireland d. ABT 1750 United States

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Birth	Abt 1680	Antrim County, Ireland [2]
Gender	Male
Died	Abt 1750	United States
Person ID	I0050	J. Purifoy Adair8
Last Modified	12 Aug 2012

Father	Alexander Adair, b. 1657
Relationship	Natural
Mother	Unknown
Relationship	Natural
Family ID	F08	Group Sheet

Family Margaret Henart(?)

Children

1. Joseph Adair, Sr., b. 1711, Antrim Co., Ireland

, d. Abt 1789, Duncan's Creek Presbyterian Cem., Laurens Co., S. C.

Family ID F07 Group Sheet

Notes

THE COMPENDIUM OF AMERICAN GENEALOGY, VOL VI, page 714
Thomas Adair (b. Antrim, Ire.; son of Alexander, and gson of Rev. Patri
ck Adair, who m. his cousin, Jean,dau.of the 1st Sir Robert Adair, of C
o. Antrim). Came from North of Ire., 1730; settled in Chester Co., Pa
.; to S. C. ca. 1750; to develop the Adair Grant, nr. The Waxaw Colony, (n
ow Laurens Co., S. C.) m. in Ireland.

From the book "Touring Guide To Ireland."

A poem "Beside the Fire" by T. W. Rolleston:

Where glows the Irish hearth with peat
There live a subtle spell -
The faint blue smoke, the gentle heat,
The moorland odours tell

Of white roads winding by the edge
Of bare, untamed land,
Where dry stone wall or ragged hedge
Runs wide on either hand

To cottage lights that lure you in
From rainy western skies;
And by the friendly glow within
Of simple talk and wise.......

Also, in this same book:

Adare, Ath Dara:
Ford of the Oak, Limerick
Sited on the River Maigue, this delightfully tranquil village of careful
ly thatched cottages and broad, tree-lined streets owes its unique qualiti
es to Edwin, 3rd Earl of Dunraven. He lived during the 19th century and w
as considered one of the best "improving" landlords; he was also an author
ity on early-Irish architecture.

The community's story starts in the 13th century, when the occupying Norma
ns found themselves confronted by a formidable castle built by the O'Donov
an family. This was rebuilt in 1326 by the Earl of Kildare, enlarged a
nd strengthened at various times by his successors, and finally dismantl
ed by Cromwellian troops in 1657. During its turbulent history it suffer
ed assault by both native and foreign forces. Surviving remains inclu
de a ruined square keep surrounded by a battlemented rampart with semi-cir
cular bastions. Access to the south gate was by drawbridge across a fos
se which may have formed part of a ringfort. The castle's Great Hall stan
ds near the river and displays interesting 13th century windows. To the ea
st of this are the remains of a second, more recent hall, including trac
es of a 15th century kitchen and bakery.

The friary was founded by the 7th Earl of Kildare in 1464, and the reasona
bly complete remains include a nave, choir, and south transept of late Iri
sh-gothis origin. The friary was restored by the Earl of Dunraven in 1875
.

In the village, close to the fine 14-arch bridge which spans the Maigue, a
re the remains of an Augustinian friary which was founded 1316.

In the center of the village is the Trinitarian Monastery, founded by Loa
rd Ossory in 1230. This now serves as the present parish church and is t
he only dedication to the Trinitarian Canons of the Redemption of Captiv
es known to have survived in Ireland.

Adair Manor has been the family home of the Earls of Dunraven since the m
id 17th century. The present neo-gothic building stands on the si
te of a smaller Georgian house and was begun by the 2nd Earl of Dunrav
en in 1832.

From the same book:

Ballymena, An Baile Meanach
The Middle town, Antrim
Ballymena stands on land received by William Adair of Kinhilt (in Scotlan
d) from Charles I. In the 18th century the Adair and Hickey families intr
oduced a linen industry which ensured the town its continuing importance a
nd prosperity. In 1798 a body of United Irishmen battled through the stre
ets with English forces and held the community for a full three days.

Where was Adair's port of entry to U.S.? If it was Baltimore, which was t
he most popular destination for emigrants. Many such emigrants soon we
nt on to Pennsylvania, Virginia, or the Carolinas.

The social ladder at that time was made up of the gentry, represented by t
he 1 or 2 percent of the heads of household whose names were accompani
ed by a title - captain, major, or esquire. These people of their class d
id not do manual labor was obvious from their clothing; gentlemen attir
ed themselves in linen waistcoats and shirts with ruffled lace cuffs, a
nd genteel women wore dresses of silk or fine linen. By contrast, did t
he Adairs wear clothes made from coarse, practical fabrics - canvas or rou
gh wool - and had small estates?

Although they emigrated from Ireland to America, , ethnically they were Sc
ottish? Their ancestors had gone to Ulster, Ireland, in the early and mid
dle 1600s as colonists in England's effort to subdue Ireland by populati
ng it with Protestants. This "plantation of Ulster," as the colonizati
on of northern Ireland was called, was, of course only one migration amo
ng many in which English and Scottish people participated in the 1600s.

In the early seventeenth century Ulster was no less a frontier than New En
gland. Ulster Scots initially lived in shelters every bit as primiti
ve as the American pioneers' log cabins. The Ulstermen also had to transp
lant Presbyterianism, the religion of the Scots, to a new land and wrest c
ontrol of the Irish countryside from hostile natives. This latter task w
as no easy enterprise. The native Irish, driven from their lands into swa
mp and forest retreats, were just as much a menace to the Scots on the Uls
ter frontier as the Indians were to whie pioneers in North Americ
a. As a result the Scotch-Irish migrants to the American colonies in t
he seventeenth century came as experienced homesteaders who skills in anti
-guerrilla warfare were readily adaptable to the American frontier.

Betweeb 1717 and 1776 an estimated quarter of a million Ulster Scots join
ed the transatlantic migration. Deteriorating conditions in Ireland - ris
ing rents, religious and polical discrimination against Presbyterians, a
nd economic disasters - provided the main impetus. Severe droughts and ye
ars of poor harvests accounted for a pattern of especially heavy migrati
on during five peak periods: 1717-18, 1725-29, 1740-41, 1754-55, and 1771
-75. The chief drawing power of England's North American colonies was t
he availability of cheap land, and as the location of the most readily ava
ilable cheap land shifted, so did the ultimate desitnations of the migrant
s. Before 1740 the most accessible inexpensive land was in Pennsylvani
a, a colony whose proprietor, William Penn, was tolerant of the Scots' Pre
sbyterian convictions.

"Immigrants to New World 1600-1800's (CD Fbg. Gen. Lib.)
Scotch Immigrants in New York 1774-1775" was listed William Adair 1740; di
ed in 1763. In 1738, Captain Lauchlin Campbell of Isla, brought over a num
ber of Scotch Highlanders, who were followed in 1739, 1740, 1742 by othe
rs - State Hall, Albany. Shipped at Stranraer on 5/16/1774 on board the "
Gale" of Whitehaven bound for New York. Henry Jefferson was Master.

Also on same CD as above was noted: "Emigrants to Penn. 1641-1819, Servan
ts and Apprentices Bound and Assigned before James Hamilton, Mayor of Phil
".: William Adair, servant to Wm. Campbell, of Chester Co., Pa. with cons
ent of master goes as servant to Wm. Clymer of Phil., mariner, for two yea
rs. Consideration 8 lbs. 15 pence(?) and customary dues.

Some say that that Thomas Adair was born in 1680 in Ulster, Antrim, Northe
rn Ireland and died aft. 1775 at Duncans Creek, Laurens Co., S. C. Also t
hat he was married in 1703 in Portpatrick, Wigtown, Scotland. They also s
tate that his wife was Margaret Henert, born abt. 1680 in Dublin, Antri
m, Ireland. Their children are listed as William, b. 1705 in Portpatric
k, Wigtown, Scotland; Thomas Adair, b. 1707, Antrim, Ireland; James Robe
rt Adair b., 1709, Antrim, Ireland; Joseph Alexander Adair, b. 1711, Antri
m, Northern Ireland, died 1801 at Duncans Creek, Laurens Co., S. C.

There is also listed the following in Pennsylvania Marriages Prior to 1790
:
Dec. 21, 1774
Thomas Adair m. Eleanor Jones (Marriage records of the Swedes' church (Glo
ria Dei) Penn. 1750-1810

Sources
[S22321] Adair: History and Genealogy by James Barnett Adair 1924.

[S23756] The Compendium of American Genealogy, Vol. IV, page 63 and 714.

Thomas Adair[1] Abt 1680 - Abt 1750

Thomas Adair^[1]
Abt 1680 - Abt 1750