The Ethnic Roots of Shacie RaeAnn Myers Rankin

This assignment has been a recurring one in my life. Each time I start out excitedly searching to uncover my roots. Each time, I end up uncovering more skeletons than ancestors. Upon embarking on this journey this time, I took a different route. I looked up surnames rather than specific people and this turned out to be much more profitable. I will begin by telling this story as it was told to me.

Maternal Grandmother: Wanda Marie Clements Myers

My maternal Grandmother, Wanda Myers was born in Waterflow in 1921. Her parents were Corilla Jane Stallings and Lucius Francis Clements. Lucius had a twin brother and they went by the names of Biggie and Littly. Lucius was Littly. She told me that her entire family emigrated here from Kentucky. I do realize that Kentucky is not a country, and since they are not Native Americans, they had to have come from someplace else so I ask her, but she maintains they are from Kentucky. I have searched extensively for their country information.

My cousin is a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and searched their Genealogy records for our ancestors. He came up with pages and pages of ancestors. It seems that for generations, every member of this family had ten or more children so our ancestors are many. And it seems that they may have originated in Kentucky. Though the information goes back several generations, her history seems to have ended in Kentucky. This most interesting thing we found about the generations of poor farmers was a bizarre will left by a great great great great uncle. He left each of his young children their beds and his older children inherited his debts and were to pay five dollars each to his younger children. How thoughtful.

My Grandmother says that her paternal Grandmother moved here with her children in 1915 after her husband and several children died in a typhoid epidemic. She had extended family to help her, but her oldest son, Joe took over the role as breadwinner.

There were ten children in my Grandmother’s family and their father worked as a seasonal laborer for farm families in the community. They frequently moved within the area, typically living in a shack at the farm currently employing them. All of the children attended Sacred Heart Catholic School in Waterflow, which has been defunct for decades. Her three brothers joined the service during World War 2, and never returned to the area. Her six sisters each married a serviceman and never returned, either.

My Grandmother’s best story of her childhood is the time she locked the nun who cooked for the school (it was a boarding school) in the pantry and all the children had to miss lunch until they found her.

Eventually Corilla and Chet left the area to live with a daughter Winnie in Tuba City, Arizona. She died in 1951. Lucius died in 1963 of Parkinson’s disease.

Through Internet research, I have learned that both surnames Clements and Stallings were of English origin. Her grandmother’s last names were Coomes and Heady

The Origin and History of...
Clements

The Clements family name originated in Oxfordshire, located in England.

The Clements family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin.

*Description of the CLEMENTS Family Coat of Arms*

	CLEMENTS Shield:	*Two Wavy diagonal stripes, and a red stripe at the top with three gold circles.*
	CLEMENTS Crest:	*A hawk.*
	CLEMENTS Motto:	*"Patrilis Virtutibus"*

The CLEMENTS family can trace their ancestors back to the ancient territories of between the 11th and 12th centuries.

The CLEMENTS family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin, and first appeared in ancient medieval records in Oxfordshire. From very early on the CLEMENTS family not only held lands and estates in but also was actively allied with other influential families. They also branched out into other territories and holdings, before taking the long voyage to the new world.

The Origin and History of...
Stallings

The Stallings family name originated in Norfolk, located in England.

The Stallings family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin.

*Description of the STALLINGS Family Coat of Arms*

	STALLINGS Shield:	*Black with a chevron between three crosses.*
	STALLINGS Crest:	*None.*
	STALLINGS Motto:	*None*

The Origin and History of...
Coomes

	The Coomes family name originated in Sussex , located in England. The Coomes family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin
*Description of your COOMES Family Coat of Arms*

	COOMES Shield:	*On an ermine background three red lions.*
	COOMES Crest:	*A hand holding a shield.*
	COOMES Motto:	*None*
The Origin and History of... Heady

	The Heady family name originated in Norfolk , located in England. The Heady family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin.
*Description of your HEADY Family Coat of Arms*

	HEADY Shield:	*Three black unicorns heads on a silver background.*
	HEADY Crest:	*A unicorn's head.*
	HEADY Motto:	*"Study Quiet"*

Maternal Grandfather: Chester Arlington (Arley) Myers, Jr.

My Grandfather is Chester Arlington Myers, Jr. His parents were Chester Arlington Myers, Sr. and Jeanetta Ann White. Chester was born in 1887 and grew up in Nebraska. Jeanetta was born in 1889. My Grandfather does not know where. His mother remains a mystery as my Grandfather never met her parents and does not even know their names. They came to this in 1908 area because she had an uncle who owned a trading post somewhere on the Navajo Reservation. They worked there at first, however, Chet as he was called, was a blacksmith by trade, and set up the county’s first blacksmith shop in Fruitland. The nearest one up until then was south of Cuba. This was quite a profitable venture.

Chet and Jeanetta had three children, Florence, Arley, and Bess. Grandpa tells me that their family was the first in the county to own a radio, have indoor plumbing, and own a car. They were considered to be wealthy, however, they were still very poor by our standards. Grandpa was born in 1921 and spent much of his childhood in the Great Depression.

Grandpa’s mother had been married before and had a son. Grandpa tells a story of the time he met his half-brother Bob. Grandpa was about fifteen when Bob turned up looking for his mother. He was in his mid-twenties, and married. He was employed as a “ball player”. He was either a professional or semi-professional baseball pitcher, Grandpa can’t really remember. Anyway, Grandpa was on Kirtland High School’s baseball team and they had a game the afternoon Bob showed up. Bob volunteered to be the pitcher and for some reason, that was not against the rules. Bob struck out every batter again and again, so the other team began to put up a stink. Bob then volunteered to pitch for their team as well. He pitched a no hitter for that side as well. Grandpa says that Bob was the only one who played ball that day, other than a few guys standing there with a stick who never even swung. Grandpa was quite proud of him, though he never saw him again. At some point, Bob died of cancer. His parents both died in 1966.

Grandpa doesn’t know much about his ancestry. He thought his name was of German decent, however he says he is Scotch. He says this not because it is a fact, but because he believes it to be a fact because he is extremely frugal, which of course, means he is Scotch.

My Grandparents met in 1939 even though they had lived near each other since birth. My grandmother and her cousin Irene were at a community dance and Grandpa was the most handsome boy there. She told Irene that she would like to meet him, but didn’t have enough courage to approach him. Irene took care of that by shoving my grandmother into him as he and his friend Harold Kennedy walked by. This knocked both of them down. My Grandma says rather than knocking her off of her feet, Irene knocked them both off of their feet. That’s how they met.

They were married May 12, 1945 and had four children, Arla Jean, Gretchen Marie, Peggy Ann (my mom) and Charles Kipling. They built a business together, Myers Equipment, which was a John Deere Dealership. They sold it when I was nine, but my Grandpa to this day, still farms a few hayfields and keeps us all supplied with vegetables in the fall.

The Origin and History of...
Myers

	The Myers family name originated in Cheshire, located in England. The Myers family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin. The Myers family name also originated in Southern Bavaria, located in Bavaria. This branch of the Myers family traces their ancestral roots back to Teutonic origin.
*Description of your MYERS Family Coat of Arms*

	MYERS Shield:	*Silver with a black ancient three masted vessel.*
	MYERS Crest:	*A mermaid combing her hair.*
	MYERS Motto:	*None*


*Description of your MYERS Family Coat of Arms*

	MYERS Shield:	*A blue and silver shield displaying a lion and a tree*
	MYERS Crest:	*None*
	MYERS Motto:	*Semper paratus.*

The MYERS family can trace their ancestors back to the ancient territories of between the 11th and 12th centuries.

The MYERS family traces their ancestral roots back to Anglo Saxon origin, and first appeared in ancient medieval records in Cheshire.

The Origin and History of...
White

	The White family name originated in Durham, located in Scotland. The White family traces their ancestral roots back to Norman origin.
*Description of your WHITE Family Coat of Arms*

	WHITE Shield:	*Silver with a black griffin.*
	WHITE Crest:	*A griffin's head.*
	WHITE Motto:	*"Virtus Omnia Vincit"*

Clan Information Through the centuries the WHITE family was affiliated with many different clans through marriage. The clan LAMONT claims the WHITE family as a sept or directly affiliated family, entitled to clan rights including the use of the clan tartan.

White Family References in the Harleian Manuscripts
The Harlein Manuscripts are the records of the "Visitations" (the investigation of heralds) of English and Welsh families. The manuscripts were complied from about 1530 to the close of the 17th century. Over 30,000 families registered their lineage which are now housed in the British Museum in London. The White family name was recorded in the following counties, which can be used as a starting point for further investigation into these records held in the British Museum.

Lamont Family Tartan

Main County	Branched to	Branched to
BERKSHIRE	HAMPSHIRE
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
CORNWALL
DERBYSHIRE	DORSET
DEVONSHIRE	NORFOLK
DORSETSHIRE
DURHAM
HAMPSHIRE
KENT	CORNWALL
LONDON	NORFOLK	WILTSHIRE
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE	SUFFOLK
STAFFORDSHIRE
SURREY
SUSSEX
WARWICKSHIRE
WILTSHIRE
YORKSHIRE

Paternal Ethnic Roots

My father is Donald Arthur McDougall, Jr. He was an Air Force Bomber pilot. He improved upon the old adage of a “woman at every port” by having a “family on every base”. Each time he was transferred, he remarried and had a new family. I was his first child, but he didn’t contribute much to my upbringing. He went on to have three other children and four other wives.

He claims to be able to trace his lineage back to well before King Robert the Bruce, and actually tries to maintain the old clan feuds. His father was Donald Arthur McDougall, Sr. and his mother was Byra something also Scottish. He claims that his line has never and will never be “tainted” with blood other than Scottish. However, his third wife was German, and his fifth wife was from Columbia, and my mom is not actually Scottish, so I don’t actually think he can claim to be purely Scotch, either. Because I have not had much contact with his side of the family, I don’t have much other information to offer about that side of my family.

Based upon the family name research, I have come to the conclusion that I am 3/8 English and 5/8 Scottish.

	The Origin and History of McDougall
.		The McDougall family name originated in Galloway, located in Scotland. The family traces their ancestral roots back to Dalriadian origin.
MCDOUGALL Shield:			*Blue with a silver lion with a gold crown and a gold border charged with six frasies.*
MCDOUGALL Crest:			*A lion holding a cross.*
MCDOUGALL Motto:			*"Fear God"*

The McDougall family can be genealogically linked with the following Castle(s) and/or Stately Homes.

Castle	County	Head of Family
CAEN WOOD TOWERS	MIDDLESEX	BROOKE

MCDOUGALL Tartan

The MCDOUGALL family tartan is the background shown here on the left. Read on to learn more about the fascinating MCDOUGALL family history, starting about the 1100's, an ancient and illustrious family.

Clan Information

Through the centuries the MCDOUGALL family was affiliated with many different clans through marriage. The clan MACDOUGALL claims the MCDOUGALL family as a sept or directly affiliated family, entitled to clan rights including the use of the clan tartan shown here.

From The MCDOUGALL History

The notable MCDOUGALL family is shown in the ancient manuscripts and cartularies as tracing their ancestry to Dalriadian origin. The most ancient MCDOUGALL family Coat of Arms was recorded between the 12th and 15th centuries.

MacDougall

Gaelic Name:	MacDhùghaill
Motto:	Vincere vel mori (To conquer or die)
Badge:	Bell heath
Lands:	Lorn
Origin of Name:	Gaelic, Dughall (Black Stranger)
Pipe Music:	Caisteal Dhunolla (Dunolly Castle)

History
A Gaelic generalization when describing the Viking invaders was by coloring, Finn Ghall for fair stranger and Dubh Ghall for a dark stranger. Dubh Ghall was the descriptive name given to the eldest son of King Somerled.

Somerled’s father-in-law was Olaf, King of man and when Somerled died in 1164 Dougall became senior King of Dalriada. Duncan MacDougall of Argyll was mentioned in records of 1244 so by this time the name had established into a clan.

Chiefs descending from Dougall built themselves the two great castles on the shores of Loch Linnhe in Lorne, Dunstaffnage and Dunollie. Also on the mainland they built Duntrune. On the islands they built Aros, Coeffin, Dunchonnel and Cairnburgh.

They also built Ardchattan Priory, burial ground of the MacDougall chiefs until 1737. It was Ewan who endorsed most of these constructions.

Ewan had chosen to keep his island possessions from his King in Norway and his properties on the mainland he tried to keep from the King of the Scots. When King Haakon of Norway arrived with a huge fleet off the coast of Oban for a planned invasion in 1263, Ewan declined to help but surrendered his islands to him.

Then, knowing that to remain neutral would be a bad position however the battle ended, he chose to attack some of the Norse fleet. After Haakon’s defeat in the sea-battle of Largs his fleet were in disarray and he died in Orkney, trying to return home. Three years later Norway returned all the Hebrides to Scotland.

Alistair MacDougall married the sister of John Comyn, Scotland’s most powerful man. John’s son, the Red Comyn, was next in line as King of Scotland after the Balliols.

But this was the time when Bruce made his bid for the Crown. Bruce slew the Red Comyn at the altar rails in Dumfries and the MacDougalls entered into the feud which ended in the utter destruction of the Comyns and the loss of the MacDougalls' islands to Bruce.

MacDougall Tartan & Crest

Map of MacDougall Clan Holdings

Rankin Family Ancestry

I am married to Sean Christopher Rankin. He was born in 1973 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. His father is John Shelton Rankin, Jr. His paternal grandparents are John Shelton Rankin, Sr. and Ruby Camolea MacDavid. His mother is Mary Anne Farmer. Her parents were Levin Farmer and Nettie Merle DeLatin. His grandparents are all deceased. I had the opportunity to meet Nettie Merle before she died. She told me her parents had immigrated from Belgium before she was born.

The Origin and History of Rankin

The Rankin family name originated in Artier, located in Scotland.

The Rankin family traces their ancestral roots back to Dalriadian origin.

*Description of the RANKIN Family Coat of Arms*

RANKIN Shield:	*Red with three silver boar’s heads, and in base a crossed lance and axe.*
RANKIN Crest:	*A silver lance.*
RANKIN Motto:	*"Fortiter Et Recte"*

RANKIN Tartan

Clan Information

The RANKIN family is distinguished as a Clan in it's own right with a rich extensive history. Did you know, that in ye old days a family could not qualify for clan status unless they had the proven ability to put 250 armed men ahorse within one hour to defend their clan, lands and properties. As well as providing a fighting men for their liege lord and king. The notable RANKIN family is shown in the ancient manuscripts and cartularies as tracing their ancestry to Dalriadian origin.

Rankin Family Tartan

The Origin and History of MacDavid

The MacDavid family name originated in Leinster, located in Ireland. This was documented and authenticated by our historians using the utmost reliable resources, which accompany each Family History Scroll.

The MacDavid family traces their ancestral roots back to Irish origin, with a more in depth account available on the MacDavid Family

MACDAVID Shield:		*Silver with a red rampant stag with three silver stars on a green stripe at the top.*
MACDAVID Crest:		*None*
MACDAVID Motto:		*None*

The Origin and History of...
Farmer

The Farmer family name originated in Essex, located in England. The Farmer family traces their ancestral roots back to Norman origin.

*Description of your FARMER Family Coat of Arms*

	FARMER Shield:	*On a silver background with a black horizontal stripe between three lions' heads.*
	FARMER Crest:	*A leopard.*
	FARMER Motto:	*None.*

Farmer Family References in the Harleian Manuscripts

Harlein Manuscripts are the records of the "Visitations" (the investigation of heralds) of English and Welsh families. The manuscripts were complied from about 1530 to the close of the 17th century. Over 30,000 families registered their lineage which are now housed in the British Museum in London. The Farmer Family name was one of the names that were registered. The Farmer family name was recorded in the following counties, which can be used as a starting point for further investigation into these records held in the British Museum.

Main County	Branched to	Branched to
LEICESTERSHIRE
LONDON	LEICESTER
MIDDLESEX	LEICESTER
NORFOLK
NORTHAMPTON