James Edgar Genealogy Homepage

The lower two trees are the "best-guess" genealogy of two families, both originating in Northern Ireland - James Edgar (I1) near Newry, Co. Down and Robert Edgar (H) near Newry, Co. Armagh, the two counties separated by the River Clanrye, which runs through the town and into Carlingford Lough. James and Robert aren't related, each being of a different Haplotype.

For James Edgar, I've made guesses about names and "whose father was who" away back in the early 1700s, trying to tie four different families together:
Jackie Edgar of Kilkeel, NI; Mel Edgar of Cincinnati, OH, USA; Bill Edgar of Melbourne, Australia; and myself, James Edgar. Search for "(DNA)" to find us all on the tree.
Our DNA tests show we're all descended from one person around the same time, so the challenge is putting all the pieces together.
If we don't have the correct names or dates, please help us out. If you can prove us wrong - please do - we'd love to see the proof!!

For the Robert Edgar - H tree, this is data from several families now connected to Steve Edgar of Weston, Crewe, LAN, England. Again, more guesswork, joining together the families of Steve; Donald Edgar; Jack and Jim Ruffer; and Sharon Whitney.

For Adobe Reader software www.adobe.com

Important note: all information contained on this site is reserved for the owner,
unless written consent to use is requested and received

back to the top

Hourglass Tree

An "Hourglass Tree" looks a bit like an hourglass, with ancestors above the subject and descendants below. In my case, it's pretty lopsided, because the descendants are few and ancestors many! Any living person has their details shown as "Private." Click on the link to the PDF to view (get the Adobe Viewer at the link above, if you can't read the file). This PDF is quite wide, but still searchable, so you can look for a specific name, date, or location.

James Edgar Hourglass Tree

Edgar Family DNA Project

The extended Edgar family have initiated an opportunity to confirm or discover ancestral links by participating in a DNA Profile analysis. If any Edgar male who is not already participating wishes to obtain more information, contact the coordinator, Steve Edgar, at the following email address, or contact him by telephone in Weston, Cheshire, England at: (Codes from Canada) 011-44-1270-588-737 email address steven-edgar@sky.com

back to the top

Edgar Events Newsletters

In mid-2006, Steve Edgar of Crewe, England, and James Edgar of Melville, Canada, started a newsletter to distribute to Edgars around the world — "Edgar Events." The idea is to keep everybody informed about our DNA Project and to spread some of our individual stories around as well. All the issues are available here as PDF files.

Project Results Excel Spreadsheet Ver 4

back to the top

Family Stories

Surviving stories from our Edgar and Somerville history in Canada involve some immensely interesting history.
Wooden Ships tells of how my Edgar ancestors came to Canada the first time.
Alex Edgar served in the NorthWest Mounted Police - read his obituary.
James Edgar, deaf as a post, was run over by a train - another obit.
William Edgar, at age 23, piloted bomber missions over Germany.
Caribou Cameron was a colourful adventurer in the early days of British Columbia. When his wife died, he shipped her home to Cornwall in a whiskey-filled coffin! His second wife, Christianne Woods, is my 2nd cousin, three times removed.
Lucknow was originally named West Wawawnosh; it received its present name from James Somerville, my great-granduncle. He and my gr-grandfather, Thomas Bennett Somerville, helped establish the community.
John Bethune Ritchie, helped settle the Greenock Township of Bruce County, Ontario, after arriving in Canada in 1848.
Walter Swanston, my gr-gr-grandfather was one of the pioneer settlers of the Guelph, Ontario district. Also read the obit of Elizabeth Fielding, his wife of 65 years.
Andrew Swanston, my gr-grandfather the Nightwatchman of Walkerton, Ontario for twenty years (long before they forgot how to purify water). Two obits.
Norma Giffen (nee Swanston) Somerville, my grandmother.

Wooden Ships	Farquhar Alexander Edgar	James Edgar
William Edgar	Caribou Cameron	Lucknow History
John Bethune Ritchie	Walter Swanston	Andrew Swanston
Norma Somerville	Monthly Skies Article	Next Month's Skies

Some pictures to match the stories (and then some).

Edgars first

Then Ritchies, Swanstons, and Somervilles

These pictures may or may not be Adam and Catherine Ritchie. Their authenticity has yet to be definitely proven. I welcome information and photos from descendants of Adam and Catherine Beaton Ritchie and/or John Bethune and Martha Giffen Ritchie.