John McAllister & Elizabeth Mckenzie

I have some evidence that John McAllister & Elizabeth McKenzie were the parents of James McAllister and would therefore be my wife's 3rd great grandparents.  I believe there was little doubt that they were from Northern Ireland, probably from Tyrone county.  An internet reference claims that they lived on a farm in Tyrone and then moved to Banbridge in Co. Down.  James was married in Banbridge so that is quite possible.  At the time of John's birth (1798), Northern Ireland, which is also known as Ulster was part of the Kingdom of Ireland. 3 years later in 1801, Ireland and England were united to form Great Britain.

The parents of Margaret Todd, James Mcallister's wife are unknown.  Her father's name may have been William.

McAllister is a surname from Scotland and northern Ireland that is the anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Alasdair, meaning son of Alasdair. Alasdair is the Gaelic form of the first name Alexander. According to [ancestry.com], as of 1920, it was most prevalent in the northeastern, southern and western parts of the United States. In the United Kingdom, it was most prevalent in northern Scotland as of 1891.  The Mc Alisters for the greater part owe their ancestry to the Scottish clan of the Mac Donalds. The name is derived from the personal name Alexander. The Mc Alisters arrived in Ulster as Gallowglasses at the invitation of the MacDonnell's. Today the greatest numbers of the name are to be found in counties Antrim, Londonderry, Fermanagh, and Dublin, otherwise the name is widely dispersed.

McAllister Family Crest

James Mcallister

James Mcallister was born in Glaskermore, Co. Down, in Northern Ireland in 1824.  In the early 1800's neither Ireland nor Northern Ireland existed as separate countries.  The "Kingdom of Ireland" and the "Kingdom of Great Britain" had been merged into the "United Kingdom" on January 1, 1801 under the "Union Act".  The counties in and around present day Northern Ireland were known as Ulster.  County Down in on the eastern side of  Northern Ireland and includes parts of Belfast.

James lived through the Great Famine of the 1840's when One Million people died and another million emigrated, primarily to America, Canada, and Australia.  He stuck it out in Ireland.

James lived on farms in Moy, Co. Tyrone around 1860, and moved to BanBridge, Co. Down around 1878.  He married Margaret Todd in 1859 and they raised several children including John Henry (b. Jan 21, 1860) who emigrated to San Francisco in 1881 then Spokane, Washington, James (b. Oct 18, 1876) who emigrated to the United States (he lived and worked with John Henry in Spokane from 1897-1902), Samuel James (b. Jul 9, 1871) who also lived with John Henry in Spokane in 1893, William (b. 1862) who stayed in Ireland, Mary Jane (b. Dec 16, 1866), and Esther (b. May 13, 1869).  They also had another son, Samuel, who was born in 1864 and died two years later.

I have seen a statement from a distant relative of James that he was a devout Presbyterian.  I have no way of corroborating this statement but it makes sence because the Mcallisters likely originated in Scotland, as did a large number of Ulster residents.  Presbyterianism primarily originated in Scotland.  The photo above is of the First Presbyterian Church of Banbridge and would likely be where James and Margaret (and the children) worshiped.

James died sometime before 1921.

Here is the evidence:

• John Henry reports his father's name to be James Mcallister (deceased) on his passport application in 1921.
• John lived with two brothers in Spokane, James and Samuel, who have birth records showing their father to be James and mother to be Margaret (Todd).
• A land record from county Down states Samuel is the son of James and Margaret (Todd)
• The marriage record for James and Margaret in registered in 1859 in Banbridge.
• John Henry and his Daughter, Dora, traveled to Ireland specifically reporting they were going to visit relatives in Banbridge.

Relationship Key:

Phyllis Allen ---> Jeanie Mcallster ---> John Henry Mcallister --->James and Margaret Mcallister