Clan Moffat UK Homepages

Clan Moffat UK was formed in June 2000. Our aims are to achieve recognition of the role played by Moffats in the history and culture of Scotland and encourage research into those families bearing the Moffat surname, however it is spelt, through the mutual exchange of information and to give assistance where possible.

The group is open to anyone with Moffat ancestors: not only those bearing the name.

We produce a newsletter twice a year –in October and April – which is circulated to all ‘paid-up’ members. In this we keep you informed of events that may be of interest to you so that you may plan them into your diaries for the following six months and perhaps have articles about family histories, places or churches of interest to our members.

Clan Moffat UK is a non-profit making association and any surplus funds will be used to expand membership, purchase books or records of importance to the family historian and maintain a presence at relevant events.

To join, please complete the Membership Form and Pedigree Chart and send them together with your subscription to the Membership Secretary.

Internet Membership Form 2010

We look forward to hearing from you.

The clan will be having a stall at the Border Family History Conference in Melrose 9th October 2010.

To find out more go to

http://www.bordersfhs.org.uk/BFHSConference.asp

Clan Members may be interested to know that Steven Moffat has taken over from Russell T Davies as the producer of the hugely successful and long running BBC T.V. Series Dr Who.  There is an interview published with Steven on the Scotsman’s website. Steven who was born in Paisley in 1961, has already written a number of scripts for Dr. Who including “Blink” and “The Girl In The Fireplace”.

This isn’t the only Moffat link with the program as Actor Peter Davison (born Peter Moffett) played the fifth doctor between 1981 and 1984.

Recently actor Darren Morfitt played Marco in the episode Time of Angels.

Links:

StevenMoffat.net

Wikipedia Article

We’ve updated the clan web site to run on the Wordpress content managment system. Hopefully this should allow more flexibility and a better web interface. The site now has a forum although only clan members can contribute, to register follow the link on the right.

A Moffat Symposium has been announce for 7th August 2010.

Moffats with significant new material are, for example:

• Bertha Moffat (1880-1966) who married Caesar Kind

• The family of John Moffat and Mary Douglas, Galston, Ayrshire.
• The extended family of Robert Moffat (1842-1927), police officer, Newcastle upon Tyne, and his wife Mary Ann Stokoe, including their son John James Moffat (1881-1964), maker of scientific and electrical instruments, and grandson Noel Moffat, Durham Light Infantry, who died in Burma, 1943.
• I’ve also included material from the Old Churchyard in Moffat, after the inscriptions were published by the Dumfries FHS.

By Jeff Benson, Minneapolis, MN USA

This article is reproduced from the Clan Moffat Newsletter Autumn 2009 (Vol 3 Issue 7)

There’s no telling the surprises that may be lurking in one’s family history. This narrative tells how I came to discover a 17th century Scottish ancestor named Robert Moffat in… Sweden?!

My parents were always proud of their respective ethnic heritages and made of point of passing that information on to their children. I have thus long known that my mother was half German, half Norwegian and my father’s ancestors all came from Sweden. My mother knew a couple distant cousins in Norway and one of them even came to visit us in America. The idea of maintaining a living link to distant relatives in another land fascinated me. While I knew very little about my great-grandparents, I decided that someday I was going to find out more about these ancestors. Read more »

The death was announced on Friday 4th September 2009 of Mary Stewart Moffat. She was born in Glasgow, and graduated from Glasgow University with a Masters Degree in History. However, she never warmed to the big city, and preferred to spend her life in the smaller town of Dumfries. She also had a cottage in Southerness on the Solway Coast, which she visited as much as she could in order to write in peace and quiet. Mary was a noted author of historical adventure stories aimed at a readership of older children. Typically, her novels are set in South West Scotland, the geography of which she had an intimate knowledge, and she researched the historical documentation for authenticity. Read more »

A recent innovation is the Clan Moffat Roll of Honour, honouring Clansmen and Clanswomen who, by their works great or small have brought honour to the Moffat name, or who have contributed to the general good of Clan Moffat. John “Jock” Moffat has agreeed to become its first member. He was part of the team that disabled the steering mechanism on Bismarck,enabling her eventual sinking by the Task Force. John will receive his full membership at our 2010 AGM.

Many Clan Members will know of the deep cleft in the Moffat Hills known as the Devil’s Beef Tub. Here, so I’m told, our Moffat ancestors hid the cattle they had stolen from the neighbouring clans. The Beef Tub is part of Corehead Farm, an area of about 1500 acres that also includes Hart Fell, the highest hill in Dumfriesshire.

On Friday 29th May Borders Forest Trust triggered the legal option to buy Corehead and the deal has now been concluded. The Trust expects to take ownership of Corehead in early July 2009.

The Trust’s focus now turns to the management of the site, with plans to create a mosaic of habitats across the rolling hills of Corehead, whilst retaining elements of low intensity farming, such as hill grazing by cattle, and hay and wet meadow management. The Trust are delighted to announce that a conditional grant of £200,000 for management of Corehead has been received so far from the Tubney Chariitable Trust.

Bringing Corehead into conservation management is a vital part of the Trust’s vision of restoring the Ettrick Forest. Many thanks for helping to make this happen. www.bordersforesttrust.org