Wigton Walkers

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The Wigton Walkers trace their descent from John Walker I and Jane McKnight of Wigton, Scotland. See Index for other Wigton Walkers, and Quick Wigton Walker Index for males in the first few generations. The primary source for this family, especially its history prior to about 1740, is Descendants of John Walker of Wigton Scotland, by Emma Siggins White, 1902

Sources

Source:White, 1902
Ancestry of John Barber White, White, 1913 includes an update of Source:White, 1902

Related

Walkers Creek Line
Natural Bridge Line
Letterkenny Line
Wigtownshire Pages]

The Wigton Walkers

Image:Wigton, Geograph.jpg The Wigton Walkers is a by-name used for persons who trace their descent from John Walker and Jane McKnight of Wigtown, Scotland. Their lineage is largely defined by the genealogy "Descendants of John Walker of Wigton Scotland, by Emma Siggins White. A son of this couple, John Walker II immigrated first to Newry, Ireland c1710, and then to America c1726. He settled on the Nottingham Lots. In addition to his own family he is said to have also brought the children of his brother Alexander. The family later moved to Old Augusta in Virginia, settling most notably along Walkers Creek on Borden's Grant in modern Rockbridge County. From there, branches of the family spread out to North Carolina, Southwest Virginia, Kentucky, the Ohio River Basin, and points south and west of Old Augusta.

The Split

YDNA evidence seems to show that the traditional grouping of the Wigton Walkers (as defined by White, 1902) is in fact, composed of two independent lineages who coincidentally lived in Old Augusta, VA, prior to the Revolution. The two lines intermarried, and by the 1840s it seems that the family had lost sight of the fact that their ancestors were not related to each other. When White gathered information for her book, she apparently accepted the received genealogy at face value and identified the Walker-Walker marriages as marriages between cousins. Her resulting lineage is now viewed as a "composite" ancestral lineage in which members of both families are intermixed as "brothers and sisters" of each other.

For convenience, the two lines of Walkers are identified as the "Walkers Creek Line", and the "Natural Bridge Line". The latter is the more clearly defined group and traces their descent to Samuel Walker=Jane Patterson, who settled at Natural Bridge in Old Augusta around 1750. The "Walkers Creek Line" settled on Walkers Creek in the northwestern portion of Borden's Grant around 1740. Some members of the Natural Bridge line may have settled here as well, but it is unclear whether their presence on Walkers Creek is due to their intermarriage with the Walkers Creek group or to independent settlement. This is an area that continues to require additional examination.

Mail List

A private mail list available for persons interested in Wigton Walker genealogy. If interested, please contact WMWILLIS

Articles of Interest

Wigton Walker Migration Route
Analysis. Wigton Walker YDNA
20 Wigton Walker Questions
Wigton Walker Descendancy

PhotoGallery

Wigton Walker PhotoGallery

Bibliography

Robert Cowan developed a list of reference works of interest to Wigton Walker researchers. This list was originally placed on Don Erickson's Wigton Walker Website. Don has asked me to find a home for this and other materials. The annotated bibliographic is placed at Wigton Walker Annotated Bibliography by Robert Cowan