February is Black History Month, and McIntire history has contributed to it. In his July 1776 will, shipbuilder Captain John McIntire Jr. of York, Maine (one of my ancestors) directed that upon his death, his “servant [slave] woman named Dinah, who hath been a faithful servant, shall be set at liberty and be free from any further servitude.” As it turned out, Dinah was either not set free, or she had no other option forLearn More

By Jonathan Tucker Today (June 10, 2022) is International Heraldry Day. Below are the arms of Donald Russell Macintyre, chief of Clan Macintyre, as drawn and awarded by the office of the Lord Lyon. The clan motto “Per Ardua” (Through Difficulty) is at the top. The hand with a dagger (not a sgian dubh or dirk) is the clan crest symbol that all clan members are entitled to wear–the entire coat of arms belongs to,Learn More

By Jonathan Tucker The Maxwell-McIntire Garrison may have been built as early as 1645. Alexander Maxwell, the first former Scottish prisoner from the battle of Dunbar to settle in York, acquired the building as early as the late 1650s or early 1660s. It may have been first built as a single-story frontier cabin and later renovated—possibly during or in response to King Philip’s War (1675-76)—as a fortified garrison. Maxwell occupied it as his principal residenceLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker As noted, Micum McIntire and Dorothy Pierce had three sons we can confirm—John, Daniel, and Micum, Jr. We will describe each of these men and their spouses in turn. There is a persistent but unverified account of a fourth son, Alexander, who may have died young, if he existed. More about him later. But first, are you a “John” or are you a “Micum Jr.”?? The descendants of Micum McIntire are sortedLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker It took just under six weeks (5 weeks and 5 days) for the merchant ketch Unity to cross the North Atlantic. The Unity set sail from London on November 11, 1650 its hold full of cargo and about 150 Scottish prisoners from the battle of Dunbar, and arrived at the dock in Charlestown on December 21, 1650. That winter, it had already been snowing heavily in New England, and the weather somewhatLearn More

By Jonathan Tucker Where Did Micum McIntire Live? The structure most often associated with Micum McIntire and his descendants is the Maxwell-McIntire Garrison located on Route 91 (Cider Hill Road) in Scotland District.  It has survived to the present day, against all odds, thanks to the careful stewardship of the McIntires and Davises who have owned the land since 1707.   A great deal has been written about this remarkable building, and pictures of itLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker This is the 28th article about the life and descendants of Micum McIntire. This is the third article in a series that reviews and addresses a selected number of the popular myths, legends, and misconceptions about the life of Micum Mcintire. As was noted in the previous article, much of the “history” about Scottish clans and individual ancestors was ‘discovered’ or written during the Colonial Revival Period in the late 1800s andLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker This is the 27th article about the life and descendants of Micum McIntire. This article reviews and addresses a selected number of the popular myths, legends, and misconceptions about Dunbar prisoners and the life of Micum Mcintire. Much of the “history” about Scottish clans and individual ancestors was ‘discovered’ or written during the Colonial Revival Period in the late 1800s and early 20th century. It is often heroic, involves dramatic, melodramatic, orLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker This is the 26th article about the life and descendants of Micum McIntire—the first of two articles about popular myths, legends, and misconceptions. This article will review and address a selected number of myths and legends about Clan Macintyre. Second and third articles will review and address some of the myths about Dunbar prisoners and Micum’s life. Much of the history of Scottish clans and individual ancestors was ‘discovered’ or written duringLearn More

by Jonathan Tucker As they did in all previous and subsequent conflicts, the descendants of Micum McIntire participated in one of the most difficult and wrenching conflicts in American history—the Civil War.  Not surprisingly, given our geographic origins, most fought for the Union (we can’t find any who didn’t, but you never know—a few lived or worked in the South).  For reasons of brevity, the participants will be listed under the state of their birth rather thanLearn More