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 sorted into two distinct lines: 1) the descendants of his eldest son John, and 2) the descendants of his youngest son Micum Jr. Daniel, Micum’s middle son, did not marry, and we know of no children he may have engendered. So if you are a descendant of Micum McIntire, you’re either a “John” or a “Micum Jr.”

John McIntire & Susannah Young

Micum’s oldest son was John McIntire, born about 1677. John was probably named for Dorothy’s father John Pierce, who had been very supportive of Micum and other early Scottish settlers, and to whom Micum referred to in his will as “my father Pierce,” generating a lot of early genealogical confusion in the process.

John McIntire married Susannah Young around 1706. John was about 29 and Susannah was about 28. Susannah was the grand-daughter of English immigrant Deacon Rowland Young Sr., who had come over in the 1630s, and arrived in York, Maine by 1636. Rowland Sr. made a living fishing around the Isles of Shoals and obtained a land grant in York. Rowland’s son, Rowland Jr. (Susannah Young’s father) fished and farmed on the family property in York.

In 1669, Rowland Young Jr. married Susannah Matthews (Susannah Young’s mother), daughter of Walter Matthews and Mary Ward. Walter’s father Francis Matthews had immigrated in 1634 and had been involved in building the Great Works mills at Newichawannock at which numerous Scottish prisoners had worked. Both Francis and his son Walter lived for a time on Smuttynose Island in the Isles of Shoals. Walter Matthews was born there. So was his daughter Susannah Matthews.

Susannah Young was born to Rowland Young Jr. and Susannah Matthews about 1678. When she was about 20, Susannah had a relationship and a child with York settler Henry Simpson. Henry had a short, difficult life—the frontier was a dangerous place. Along with two other siblings, Henry had been kidnapped as a child by a “degenerate” settler, but was rescued quickly. During the January 1692 Candlemas raid in York, Henry (age 21) was captured and taken to Canada by the Abenaki for ransom. He escaped or was redeemed in 1695, returning to York. Two years later, on July 4, 1697, he was killed in York during a raid. He was 26.

Susannah married John McIntire around 1706. John Mcintire and Susannah Young’s first child, Joseph, was born March 25, 1707 in York. John and Susannah eventually had six children—Joseph, Susanna, John Jr., Hannah, Ebenezer, Daniel, and Samuel. All six of their children married and themselves had children.

Daniel McIntire

Daniel McIntire was the middle son of Micum McIntire and Dorothy Pierce. He never married, and had no known children. In addition to other household goods and land, Daniel inherited his father Micum’s very first land grant in Newichawannock (South Berwick, Maine). When Daniel died, he had no will. Disposition of his estate was overseen by his nephew, John McIntire Jr.

Micum McIntire Jr. & Jane Grant

Micum’s youngest son, Micum Jr., was married July 9, 1708, to Jane Grant, in what is now Dover, NH. Jane was the daughter of William Grant, who was in turn the son of Peter Grant (another Dunbar prisoner), and the grandson of James “the Drummer” Grant Sr., a prisoner of the Battle of Worcester, which occurred a year after Dunbar, and from which over 200 Scots prisoners were transported to New England. James Grant Sr. was in York by 1662. Peter Grant was one of the Dunbar prisoners who worked at Hammersmith, the early iron works in Lynn (now Saugus), MA. Peter later moved to Berwick, where in 1664 he married Joanna (Ingersoll) Grant, widow of his brother James Grant Jr. (also a Dunbar prisoner).

Both James Sr. and son Peter Grant were founding members of the Scots Charitable Society, the oldest surviving charitable organization in the United States. So the descendants of Micum McIntire Jr. and Jane Grant are descended from three separate early Scottish prisoners of war—Micum McIntire, James Grant Sr., and Peter Grant, and are related to a fourth, James Grant Jr.

Micum Jr. and Jane’s first child, Alexander, was born June 9, 1709. They had three children—Alexander, Keziah, and Mary. Mary died childless. Both Alexander and Keziah married and had children.All told, eight of Micum McIntire’s nine grandchildren married and themselves had children. It is from these early generations that the Micum McIntire “clan” arose, who today number in the thousands.If you need help determining whether you are a “John” or a “Micum Jr.”, post a question here, or you can leave a request at the MMCA here on our website.

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The most definitive and comprehensive current source for information on MacIntyres in general is the “Clan MacIntyre: A Journey Into the Past,” Martin L. MacIntyre, Regent Press, Berkeley, CA, 2018, second edition.  Copies may be purchased by contacting the author at martin.macintyre@juno.com .

The definitive genealogy is “Descendants of Micum McIntire,” Robert Harry McIntire, revised edition, 1983, Bookcrafters, Chelsea, MI.  This is often referred to as the “Red Book” among Micum descendants because of its bright red cover.  New copies may be obtained through the Gift Shop on this website:  https://micummcintireclanassociation.org/shop/?product-page=2.  Used copies can still be obtained from time to time through online booksellers.

Those interested in pursuing their own genealogical connections to Micum McIntire may submit question through this website at:  https://micummcintireclanassociation.org/micum-mcintire-genealogy-questions/