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| Yours Truly reading and photographing the Aghadowey Session Book at the NEHGS library in Boston |
James McGregor was born about 1677 in Magilligan in the
parish of Tamlaghtard in northwest County Londonderry, in Northern Ireland. He graduated from the University of Glasgow,
and was in Ulster by 1701. It is claimed
that Rev. James McGregor was at the
siege of Londonderry as a boy.
After the siege, the Presbyterians were living in a land
surrounded by Catholics, and the Crown was not protecting the rights of the Presbyterians. Three ministers: Rev. William Boyd, Rev.
James McGregor and Rev. William Cornwall decided to migrate. In 1718 Rev. Boyd was sent to Boston to
petition the Royal Governor Samuel Shute (1662 – 1742) of Massachusetts. This document was signed by over 300 people
and nine ministers. All but 13 signed
their own names. This document is in the
State House at Boston.
Rev. James McGregor replaced Rev. Thomas Boyd at Aghadowey,
and was there from 1701 to 1718. Upon deciding to migrate, he preached a
farewell sermon at Coleraine from Exodus
33: 15 “If they presence go not with me carry not up hence”and he spoke of
avoiding oppression, persecution and idolatry.
Five ships left Northern Ireland in the summer of 1718. Rev. MacGregor arrived on the brigantine
“Robert” which left Glasgow for Belfast and then arrived in Boston on August 4th
along with the ship “William”, which had left Coleraine in April or May. According to the first book of town records of
Londonderry, New Hampshire, they anchored “at the little wharf at the foot of State (then
King) Street, Boston, New England, August 4, 1718”. Eventually he ended up at Nutfield, New
Hampshire with some of his flock the next year.
The Aghadowey Session Book from 1702 – 1725 was transcribed
in 1905 by J. W. Kernohan, the Secretary of the Presbyterian Historical Society
in Belfast, Ireland. These session records
record meetings of the ministers and elders at Aghadowey. The story of how NEHGS acquired this session
book is available online at their website www.americanancestors.org and also
from the book Scotch Irish Pioneers in Ulster and America at http://www.archive.org/stream/scotchirish00boltrich#page/118/mode/2up
The New England Historic Genealogical Society has made a
digital version of the Aghadowey Session book available on line at the link: https://www.americanancestors.org/search/databasesearch/445/ireland-session-book-of-aghadowey-1702-1725 You must be a member to see this link. The best way to read the book is to browse
the pages, but it is also searchable for names. The pages are very legible since J. W.
Kernohan’s handwriting is very clear on the scanned images. McGregor and many members of his flock are
in these session books, which cover the time period up until he left for Boston
in 1718.
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| A page of the Session Book |
Presbyterian
Historical Society of Ireland http://www.presbyterianhistoryireland.com/
26 College Green
Belfast
BT7 1LN
Northern Ireland
Belfast
BT7 1LN
Northern Ireland
Tel. 028 9072 7330
Email: phsilibrarian@pcinet.org
An essay about the importance of the Aghadowey Session Book
http://www.lynx2ulster.com/ScotchIrishPioneers/007.php
Photo courtesy of Barbara Poole
--------------------------
Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Aghadowey Session Book at NEHGS", Nutfield Genealogy, posted September 27, 2012, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2012/09/aghadowey-session-book-at-nehgs.html: accessed [access date]).
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