from Millicent Craig

Following the articles in the August 2003 Issue of "Daltons in History",  "Understanding Your DNA Results", and "Genealogical Time Frame, English Descent Daltons",  this discussion builds upon the concept of the genealogical time frame when applied to those Daltons whose ancestors lived in Ireland.  One can argue that the English concepts can be similarly applied to the Irish situation but there are some different underlying facts as shown in the historical data below and for which we are indebted to DGS Archivist, Michael Cayley.

Descendents of Walter De Aliton
The legendary Walter is often referred to as the founder of the Meath/Westmeath line of Daltons
yet at the present time there is no available evidence as to when Walter arrived in Ireland.   He is loosely described as coming with Henry II of England about 1135.

If we are to take stock in the pedigrees of Walter's line,  we must acknowledge that the son of Walter was Philip and that his son was Nicholas.  The first mention of a Philip and Nicholas in Meath appears in a historical document of 31 July 1299, " when Nicholas acknowledged responsiblity for a debt of 9 marks owed by his father to  Jordan Muck".  If correct, then Walter's appearance in Ireland occurred over 100 years later than the legendary account or around 1250.  By this time, surnames were in vogue both in France and in England and it would appear that he brought the surname with him.  It is believed that the Dalton village in Meath was so named after he arrived and not before.

A more serious question arises as to whether he brought his surname from English roots or from French/Norman roots and hopefully it will be resolved by the DNA of descendents from this line.  Historians state that the Daltons who migrated  from Westmeath to Argentina have the purest Norman blood and we hope that one or two will participate in the DNA study so that we may learn whether they match others in the study and can reinforce this belief.

Other Early Dalton References
Additional historical references place Daltons in various parts of Ireland at the end of the 13 th C. and beginning of the 14 th C.  This suggests that other Daltons may have migrated to Ireland either
before and almost certainly after Walter.

"In 1296  Rose Dalton forfeited chattels to the value of one mark to the Sheriff of Dublin."  Who was Rose?  Was she related to Philip and Nicholas?  Were there Daltons in Ireland before Walter?

"In 1298, a William Dalton was in the entourage of the Archbishop of Dublin on his visit to Rome".

In 1303 and 1306, Thomas Dalton appeared in the Justiciary Rolls of Ireland and was slain at Rowlandeston in 1307.

In 1313 Henry Daletoun was fined for not serving on a jury. In County Louth 1313, Richard de Alletoun committed suicide and his brother Geoffrey de Alletoun is mentioned in the forfeiting of chattels.  Whether these are variants of Dalton are still in question.

In 1375 Thomas Dalton of Cork and William Lumbard of Waterford granted fishing rights in Limerick to William Ilger.

Extensive references to Daltons appear in all parts of Ireland from the 15th C. onward.   In the waves of English migration to Ireland, undoubtedly there were Daltons of English descent, particularly in the cities of its eastern coast. Traffic between Scotland and Ireland was also significant and the distance between Ireland and the Scottish Isle of Islay is minimal. (Is there a connection between the 12th Century Celtic Cross in the church graveyard of Islay where 17 Daltons were buried?)

Descendents of Roger Dalton of Waterford
Another likely father of a line of Daltons in Ireland was Sir Roger Dalton from Yorkshire.  After selling his properties in England he settled in Waterford where he had extensive land holdings and properties through his wife, Allison. Roger Dalton died in 1597 and left  several  children of whom the oldest was Roger.  He also left at least one other son.  Young Roger died young and left several children.  It is quite possible that the issue from Roger and his sons have left a trail of descendents in Ireland.   It is important to locate descendents of this line as they may bear the same  DNA as the Daltons of Kirkby Mesperton in Yorkshire and may help to bridge the ancestral chart gaps.

Conclusions
From the little we know about the early recorded history of Daltons in Ireland, we can conclude that there is diversity in their ancestry.  This is borne out by the first DNA tests. Out of four tests one matching pair has emerged. It will take a large pool of DNA  to obtain more matches and more tests are underway.

With this paucity of early historical data, a genealogical time frame for Daltons whose ancestors lived in Ireland is currently contingent upon the genealogical time frames of England and France and begins in the 14th Century.  For those who have researched their lines, generally their time frame for all practical purposes begins in the 17th Century.  If you are a Dalton of Ireland you are welcome to participate in this once in a life time study.  As more individuals participate in the study,  patterns will emerge that may be contrary to traditional ancestral beliefs and may also alter the preliminary conclusions of this article.

from K. T. Mapstone

Prior to the Annual Dalton Gathering and Meeting in Wales,  DGS members Dan and K. T. Mapstone visited Ireland to pursue research that had begun in the USA.  K.T. is descended from the Daltons of Kilcash, Tipperary and she describes a bit of her visit and search.

"Two years ago Mary Dalton Ryan, from Temple-etney, was proven sister to my ggrandfather Patrick Dalton.  Barbara McDonald and myself, ggranddaughters of Mary and Patrick, met for the first time in May 2003.

We drew a six miles radius about Kilcash and began our search for Daltons.  The ruins of an ancient RC church stand in Temple-etney.  John Donovan and others from the Kilcash and Kilsheelan parish reclaimed the graveyard.  At the end of August, each year, Mass is celebrated.

Within this graveyard lie the bodies of Oliver Dalton and his son James.  The large, upright tombstone reads: Erected by Elizabeth Dalton in memory of her husband James Dalton who departed this life 23rd December 1816, aged 56.  Also, her father-in-law Oliver Dalton who departed 11th January 1777 aged 76 years. James and Elizabeth wed around 1785 and their grandchildren would have married circa 1835.  Mary Dalton Ryan and Patrick Dalton are children of this generation.

County Tipperary, County Kilkenny and County Waterford all gather at the River Suir. There is a grand Heritage Centre nearby and we turned to them for records.  The building is a former Church of Ireland.  Believe the County Kilkenny forbears of another DGS member exchanged vows here.

Tom Walsh is a Research Assistant at the Heritage Center.. He performed a "Dalton" search for a U.S. patron and who never claimed the results. Their loss was our gain".

The Carrick-on-Suir Heritage Centre is located on Main Street.  One of the many items this Centre houses is a 1799 Carrick-on-Suir Census.  Tom Walsh extracted the Daltons in this Census and the data has been deposited in the Dalton Data Bank and in the Archives of the DGS in England. Click the Ireland Home page and then the 1799 Census.

Our appreciation is extended to K. T. and Dan. We  anticipate that an in-depth article about  findings on their trip will appear in a forthcoming DGS Journal.

from Millicent Craig

Prior to statehood in 1792, Kentucky  was the far western county of Virginia.  It was natural therefore that some Daltons in the early censuses were listed as born in Virginia.  From the time the Cumberland trail was blazed in 1791, the outflow of Daltons from Virginia was significant. How significant can be seen in the 1880 Census of Kentucky where the birthplaces of the parents of Kentuckians are entered.

Daltons were primarily listed as farmers with the first land grant to Carter T. Dalton in 1815.  Lands in the grants averaged 70 acres and were generally near a creek or river that provided irrigation and water for the distilleries.  Tobacco was a cash crop.  Corn, wheat and rye were also principal crops of our Dalton farmers and the mash from these products was the basis for the distilleries (legal and otherwise) and led to  the foundation of the spirits industry in Kentucky.

When lands became availble in other states, young  Dalton farmers were on the move.  For genealogists tracking their ancestors this presents a challenge. In the 1880 Census of Kentucky, over 625 Daltons, inlcuding extended families were enumerated.  In the same Census, the out migration of Dalton males from Kentucky accounted for families with members numbering about 450.  Missouri was the favored state followed by nearby Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Tennessee, and Texas.  Not a single family returned to Virginia and only one family returned to West Virginia.

Farm  families ranged in size from six to twelve children  among those Daltons who remained in Kentucky and among those who migrated and earned their livelihood from the land in other states.  Children as young as five years of age worked on the farm. Locating all of the descendents of these farm families is indeed a challenging task.

Variants of Dalton
The principal variants of Dalton were Daulton and Dolton.  When  traced over time, quite often names that began as one of the above three changed into forms of the other two.  There were more Daultons in the state than in any other state.  In some cases the spelling was brought from Virginia.

DGS member Franklin Daulton states the spelling resulted from the different pronunciation in the new land of his Virginia ancestors. Daulton was common in the counties of Pulaski, Mason, Gallatin, Owsley, Jackson and Magoffin. Daultons migrated from Kentucky into Missouri (four families) Ohio and California. The Dolton variant was also quite common as seen in the earliest records.  Doltons were present in most counties and migrated into many states.

Naming the Children
The traditional sequence of naming children is most visible among those Dalton parents who were emigrants from England or Ireland in the 20 years prior to the 1880 Census.  As in West Virginia, there is a uniqueness in naming children that makes it easier for those tracing a family.  In some cases the given name appears only once in the master Dalton index, thus somewhat insuring identification.

Enumerations visibly show that single mothers who were Daltons had given the Dalton surname  to their children rather than the surname of  their father. The Census also shows that a large age gap between children indicates a possble break in the line, particularly if the wife of the head of the household was beyond child bearing age when the younger children were born. If either situation exists in a Dalton line it  becomes an impediment to a Y chromosme DNA test where continuity from son to son to son is a requisite.

Note: For extensive data on Kentucky Daltons, browse or search the Kentucky file in the Dalton Data Bank.

The latest DGS Journal contains an outstanding 16 page article by Michael Cayley, DGS Archivist. entitled "Revisiting the Early Daltons".  Michael has assembled  historical references to the earliest English  Daltons and it is a "must" for your reading and for saving in your library.  If you are not already receiving the Journal, you are missing a valuable source of Dalton genealogical history.  There is no other comparable publication of international Dalton interest. New members (and others) please note that if you have not received Journal 38, notify your local DGS secretary.
 

 Contents