Alexander McClay

Alexander McClay (aka McClea) born 1804 Ardmore, Cullin, Londonderry, Ulster.

This family may descend from the Baron McLea of Lindsaig as proposed in McClay/McClea Family Charts of Ivan McClay at PRONI in Belfast.

Extract of letter from Ivan McClay to family member:-

I am descended from a branch of your family in the north west.  The surmame originally was MAC AN LEAGH 'son of the physician’ ,  they being a hereditary medical family.  The last Barron McLea had 3 sons, who settled in Ulster during the reign of Charles 1.  In Northern Ireland the name was spelt McClea ,  McLea, McKlea, McClay and once McLeagh.  The two brothers lived opposite one another on the banks of the river Foyle, in 1630 John McClay yeoman to Sir John Wilson of Wilsons Castle, Ballindrait and Andrew McClay yeoman to Sir George Hamilton of Mountcastle, Donaghedy. During the 1641-9  revolution they went to Londonderry, like a lot of Scots families in the north west. After the war John McClay, your  ancestor,  settled in the Waterside, Glendermott Parish.  The family belonged to Glendermott Presbyterian Church and also  in later years Donaghedy Presbyterian Church.

   The other sibling of your ancestor, Andrew McClay yeoman, after the 1641-49 war, got the lease of a townland in  Fahan parish in Innishowen and there was no Presbyteraian church there until later years, so they were Church of  Ireland or protestent. 

   The surname in Scotland is spelt McLay and MacLay, so where you see the surname spelt McClea and McClay, you know they come from Northern Ireland,  descended from the three brothers.  A branch of our family in Donaghedy Parish spelt their surname both ways, McClea and McClay.  A number went to America, but descendants in the female line are still there.  One family who inherited a McClea/McClay farm showed me letters which were written by girls in Philedelphia about 1840.  In one letter they would spell the name McClea and in another McClay.  One went to New Zealand and he wrote a number of  poems and signed them McClay and his family out there spell it McClea.  A branch of the Fahan family went to the goldfields  in Australia and settled in New Zealand and changed their name to McClea there.  .  Most surnames, one can spell a number of ways.

Added by Ian Ross**.