Angus Kennedy and Helen McPherson

The above is the marriage entry for Angus Kennedy and Helen McPherson, who were married in the County of Kingussie and Insch on 17 November 1720. Their son John was born on 22 March 1725. Here is the birth entry:-


I haven’t been able to decypher the placename.

John settled in Pitmean, which was in the heart of MacPherson territory and married Christian MacPherson. It seems that the area belonged to Alexander MacDonell of Glengarry, who owned huge tracts of land, most of which he mortgaged to cover his extravagant lifestyle. The ordinary people were very poor and the rents kept going up to pay the mortgage interest.

Prior to 1745 MacPherson of Cluny had decided to back the British Government, but following a visit from a representative of the Camerons he went over to the Jacobites and raised a force of 400 men. They took part in a skirmish at Clifton Moor in 1745, but he didn’t manage to get his force to Culloden in time for the battle, so his men survived the massacre. In fact very few Kennedys were involved in Culloden. Ewan MacPherson of Cluny went into hiding and eventually fled to France in 1755. This was lucky, as John was clearly of fighting age.