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Individual:
NOTES BY BILL POLK, KANSAS CITY, MO.:
The following (to the ----------) is taken From "Polk Family and Kinsmen," 1912, William Harrison Polk:
"William Polk, the second son and child of Capt. Robert Bruce Polk and his wife Magdalen (Tasker-Porter) Polk, was born about 1664-7, in the County of Donegal, Ireland, a short distance from Londonderry and Coleraine. It was in the vicinity of the latter place that the first Pollok emigrants from the South of Scotland settled when James, after the death of Elizabeth, planted strong Scotch colonies in the country in order to nullify the warlike enterprises of the Catholic hosts in that quarter which had, under Hugh O'Neil and other active leaders, so long defied the repressive efforts of Queen Elizabeth." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Did Sir Robert Pollok of Ireland actually exist? I do not think he did.
Sir Robert supposedly received a grant of lands (1605-1608) in County Derry, in or near Coleraine, in what is now Northern Ireland (ref: Burke's Presidents, 1981, second edition, under "Lineage of President Polk"). However, There are NO Pollok/Pollock names shown as undertakers or servitors in the various lists published in "The Scotch-Irish," by James Hanna, 1902. If Robert Pollok received a land grant, then his name should appear on a list of grantees, somewhere. This researcher (Bill Polk, Kansas City, MO., July 1998), believes that Robert Pollok may have gotten land in Ireland, but perhaps as an unnamed person, under an undertaker or a servitor, perhaps in the plantation of one of his kinsmen, Hamilton or Montgomery, who started bringing people from Scotland to Counties Down and Antrim in 1606.
Also, the question begs, was Robert Pollok a Sir, that is, a knight? This researcher has doubts that the Robert Pollok who supposedly went to Scotland and received a grant c1605-1608, was a knight. He may have been a soldier fighting the Irish, and he may have gotten some land (as mentioned above), but there is no proof that he was a knight. Over time, family historians may have confused the Robert Polloks of Ireland with the various Roberts in Scotland (some who were Sirs) and perhaps this is how this knight thing was started (all this is specualtion, of course).
It is interesting to note that about the same time as Robert Pollok was supposedly receiving his land grant, his grandson Robert's future father-in-law, Roger Tasker, was serving in the military in northern Ireland. Quoting from Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, pg. 1350: "Thomas Keyes served in the war in Ireland from 1578, first as Assist. to the "Trenchmaster," Sir Richard Hansard. Hansard was sent back to England to raise a Company, which he took to Ireland in 1601, and was joined by Thomas Keyes and his son, John. Hansard was eventually appointed Gov. of the Liffer, and consolidated his hold on the fords across the Foyle River by building a fort at Lifford [NOTE: Lifford became Ballindreat, county Donegal, per pg. 372 of "The Scotch-Irish," Vol. II, by Hanna, 1902]. Thomas Keyes, who was then Hansard's Capt., was granted a plot of land ("one sesiagh") in the vicinity on which to build a house. His son John, and Roger Tasker, who were Hansard's Lieuts., were given similar plots to build fortified houses to guard another ford at Ballindrait. Hansard's officers did not participate in the distribution of escheated lands on the "Plantation" of Ulster; but Thomas Keyes and Roger Tasker took up and developed land included in Clonleigh, originally granted to the Bishop of Derry. Thomas Keye's property was Clonfade (afterwards Glenfade) and Roger Tasker's was Cavanacor. Thomas Keyes settled in Derry, where he became Sheriff in 1623, and made over Clonfade to his son, John Keyes, who settled there, and had a son, John Keyes, m. Barbara, dau. and heiress of Roger Tasker, to whom her father assigned Cavanacor, which estate henceforth became their principal residence."
Pg. 511, "The Scotch-Irish," Vol. II, Charles A. Hanna, 1902, shows that Sir Richard Hansard, Knt., in 1610, received 1000 acres as a servitor, in the precincts of Doe and Fawnett (now Kilmacrennan). In this same reference, pg. 523, there is additional information about Sir Richard Hansard and the "Town of Lyffer." Additionally, in this same reference, pg. 542, the 1000 acres of Sir Richard Hansard now (1619, per Nicholas Pynnar's Survey of 1619), is in the possession of "Sir William Stewart (transferred from Sir Richard Hansard);...."
According to William Harrison Polk, Col. Tasker's seat was "Castle Hill," near the village of Ballindrate, commanding a view of the river Dale. It would appear that the Lieut. Roger Tasker above eventually was promoted to be a colonel and acquired more estates in the same general area as his "Cavanacor." W. H. Polk shows on pg. 6 of "Polk Family and Kinsmen" that Col. Tasker gave his oldest daughter Barbara Keyes, wife of Capt. John Keys, "Castle Hill," (which had been the Colonel's seat), and his youngest daughter received "Moneen," described as "lying in the parish of Lifford, near Strabane, on the river Foyle, consisted of six hundred acres."
Page 13 of "Polk Family and Kinsmen," shows that Col Tasker, of Donegal County, Ireland, possessed two fine estates lying near the river Foyle, above Londonderry, "Broomfield Castle," and "Moneen Hall." The first was a famous estate, and according to a statement received by William Harrison Polk, "one of the finest old castles in Ireland." So, it is possible that Col. Tasker had several estates or he may have changed the names of them at some point. The various texts clearly show that the eldest daughter was given "Castle Hill," "Broomfield Castle," and "Cavanacor," while the only estate left to the younger daughter was "Morning Hall," or "Moneen Hall," or "Moneen," all names used for the estate at one place or another in various genealogies. Refer to the additional notes and questions on the Polk ancestry at D:\GENEALOGY\FTM TEXT CONTINUATION FILES\Polk Ancestry, Ireland and Scotland, Notes, for information on Cavanacor.
William Harrison Polk seems to have gotten the Pollok line mixed up at times, but on page 4 of his "Polk Family and Kinsmen," 1912, he writes a statement which clearly shows that he believes the split between the Pollok line of Scotland and the one in Ireland must have occurred with the sons of John Pollok and Janet Mure. He states: "In 1646, Sir George Maxwell, of the Nether Pollok, was married to Lady Annabella Stuart, lineal descendant of King Robert 3d, and their granddaughter, Annabella, married her cousin, Sir Robert Pollok of Upper Pollok, grandnephew of Sir Robert of Ireland, whose nephew, Ezekiel Stuart, married Debora Annerly." First, a correction (which has no bearing on what follows): Annabella Maxwell was the daughter, not the granddaughter, of George Maxwell (see Burke source under Annabella Maxwell). Secondly, Sir Robert Pollok of Upper Pollok (in Scotland) and Sir Robert of Ireland, do share a common ancestor, their ggrandfather John De Pollok, whose two sons (Sir Robert Pollok of Ireland, and John De Pollok of Scotland) being brothers, would be the granduncle of any grandchildren of the other. Burke's Presidents, 1981, second edition (see above) follows this thinking in its lineage from President Polk back to John De Pollok/Janet Mure. Burke's Presidents does point out that the line is not proven from John De Pollok to Robert Bruce Pollok, but is very probable.
As to who the Ezekiel Stuart mentioned above (and his wife Debora Annerly), nephew of Sir Robert of Ireland, is, the answer to that question could well lead to figuring out the details of the line in Ireland. Was Ezekiel a son of a sister of Sir Robert (I) (said sister having married a Stuart male)?
In addition, although she, too, seemed to have mixed up the Pollok line somewhat, Mary Winder Garrett, shows, on pg. 378 of "The American Historical Magazine," Vol. II, No. 4, October, 1897, that she believed the Pollok line in Scotland continued with John de Pollok (she shows this John De Pollok as the son of Robert De Pollok, said Robert also having a younger son, Robert de Pollok, who inherited the estate in Ireland). She writes (quoting from written communication to W. R. Polk, from Mrs. W. H. Polk, wife of W. H. Polk, brother of ex-President Polk): "This Sir Robert's oldest son, Sir John, inherited the hereditary estate in old Scotland. And the present heir [timeframe here is 1873-1900 or so] is Sir Hugh Crawford Pollok, and the family seats are 'Pollok Castle,' 'Newton Mearum,' Glasgow. The ancient Arms of Pollok, I have seen stated, were legalized in 1595, to Sir John de Pollok, first baron Nova Scotia, and to these were added upon the marriage of Lady Robina Pollok, the heir of the Regal house of Crawford, the honor supporters." See Robina Pollok m. to Hugh Crawford in database.
William M. Polk (son of Leonidas Polk), in his 1893 biography of Leondias Polk, entitled "Leonidas Polk Bishop and General," provides still another slant to the ancestry of the Polk family. Quoting from pages 2 and 3 of that biography: "The branch of the Pollock family from which Leonidas Polk traced his descent was represented in the reign of James, Sixth of Scotland and First of England [James' reign was 1603-1625], by John Pollock, a gentleman of some estate in Lanarkshire, not far from what was then the small but important cathedral city of Glasgow. Those were troublous times in Church and State, and John Pollock, who was an uncompromising Presbyterian, left his native land to join the new colony of Protestants which had been established in the north of Ireland. It was a hazardous adventure; for although the last of the numerous petty kings of Ireland had professedly submitted to the English arms at the beginning of King Jame's reign, the Irish people cherished a vindictive hatred of their conquerers, and while the king's writ ran throughout the length and breadth of the island, the Scotch and English colonists were often compelled to maintain peace by drawing and using their good swords. Little more is now known of John Pollock than that he lived to a good age, and that he had a son of true-blue Presbyterian principles and of a strenuous temper like his own."
"Robert Pollock, a son of John Pollock, served as a subaltern officer in the regiment of Colonel Tasker in the Parliamentary army against Charles I., and took an active part in the campaigns of Cromwell. He married Magdalen Tasker, who was the widow of his friend and companion in arms, Colonel Porter, and one of the two daughters of Colonel Tasker, then Chancellor of Ireland, of Bloomfield Castle, on the river Dale................."
If the above quoted text is accepted, then Robert Bruce Polk's (of Maryland) father was Thomas Pollock of Lanarkshire, near Glasgow. No source is given for this lineage and it definitely differs from the lineage provided in other sources, especially as to who the father of Robert Bruce Polk is supposed to be, that is, Sir Robert Pollok II, of Ireland, son of Sir Robert Pollok I, son of John Pollok and Janet Mure of Scotland.
"The Surnames of Scotland, Their Origin, Meaning and History," by George F. Black, Ph.D., 1946, shows on page 669 (under heading of "POLLOCK, POLLOK), (my IRN P-26) the following: "The name has become Polk in the United States, the eleventh president of which was James Knox Polk, a great-great-grandson of Robert Polk or Pollok who emigrated from Ayrshire to the American colonies. The place name on Pont's map of Renfrewhire is spelled Pook, and that is the pronunciation in common speech." As I interpret this information, it is stating that Robert Polk came directly from Ayrshire, Scotland, to America. Also, this source does not use the lineage of James K. Polk as provided in various publications, that lineage being Robert Polk of Maryland, William I, William II, Ezekiel, Samuel, James K. Polk. The lineage presented by Black would have skipped one of the generations in the heretofore accepted genealogies, thus, the Black lineage would be Robert, William, Ezekiel, Samuel, James K. Polk. Black's lineage is not without merit if one considers that not one document has been found (to my knowledge) that ties Robert Polk of Maryland to the William Polk of Pennsylvania, who moved to North Carolina c1750, and who is considered the progenitor of the so called "Southern Polks." Might it be possible that a Robert Polk came from Scotland directly to Pennsylvania, in the early 1700s, fathered William (plus others, I imagine), then the family moved on to North Carolina?
Since the exact lineage of the Polks from the Scotland Polloks, through the Irish Polloks/Pollocks and to Robert Bruce Polk of Maryland has not been proven, any and all bits of information about the possible lineage need to be given due consideration. William M. Polk is the only family historian or writer (known by this researcher, Bill Polk, as of 10 Dec 1998) thus far who has introduced the above lineage, and he has provided no source of information for such lineage, it is met with some skepticism as to reliability. HOWEVER, Robert Bell, in his 1988 publication, "The Book of Ulster Surnames," shows on pg. 24, the following: "....POLLOCK....The name first came to Ulster after the Plantation. One family, the Pollocks of Newry, Co. Down, is thought to descend from John Pollock, a lieutenant-of-foot, serving in Ireland, son of Robert Pollock of that Ilk, Renfrewshire, in the mid-seventeenth century." Are the two John Pollocks the same individual; if not, what is their relationship to each other and the other Polloks?
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- Title: Pogue/Pollock/Polk Genealogy As Mirrored In History
Author: Lloyd Welch Pogue
Publication: Gateway Press, Inc., 1001 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD., 1990
Call Number: Lib. Congress Card Cat. #84-73111; ISBN 0-9622395-0-X
Media: Book
Page: pg. xxiii
- Title: Burke's Presidential Families of the United States
Author: Burke's Peerage
Publication: Burke's Peerage Limited, 1975, London; distributed in America by Arco Publishing Co., Inc., NY, NY.
Call Number: Unknown
Media: Book
Page: pg. 243
- Title: Polk Family and Kinsmen
Author: William Harrison Polk
Publication: 1912, by Bradley and Gilbert Inc. of Louisville, KY.
Media: Book
Page: pg. 5
Text: ROBERT DE POLLOK Who became Sir Robert de Pollok of Ireland, and who received from King James 2d, (about 1440) the great land grant of 'Vetus Scotia,' or 'New Scotland,' as Ireland was then called. T
his Sir Robert's eldest son, Sir John, inherited the hereditary estates in Old Scotland. Sir Robert's younger son, Robert inherited the estates in Ireland, and became Sir Robert." Also: "In 1646, Sir George Maxwell, of the Nether Pollok, was married to lady Annabella Stuart, lineal descendant of King Robert 3d, and their granddaughter, Annabella, married her cousin, Sir Robert Pollok of Upper Pollok, grand nephew of Sir Robert of Ireland, whose nephew, Ezekiel Stuart, married Debora Annerly." Actually, Annabella Maxwell was the daughter, rather than granddaughter of Sir George Maxwell and Annabella Stewart (per Burke's Peerage, "Maxwell," pg. 1631).
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