Boston Public Library - Electric Scotland

THE ESTATE OF CAIRNDUFF. 21
And to elaborate this subject more fully I will say, —
Alister, or Alexander of Loupe, the elder of the two sons
of AugusMore (Donald, Ronald or Reginald, Souierled), married
a daughter of John or Ewen of Lorn, but joined the Lord
of Lorn against Robert the Bruce. He surrendered to the
king, and died a prisoner in Dundonald Castle, Ayrshire, in
1309. He had several sons. His second son, John Mac-
Alister, with a few followers, fled to Sir Winter de Hamilton
of Hamilton. He and the}" were placed in Cairnduff, Avondale,
where his name was changed from the Highland Alister
to the Lowland name Alison. He was settled in Cairnduff,
Avondale, in 1310. Upon this estate one could have walked
for five miles. From 1310 to 1630, or thereabouts, there is
but little reliable information. But in the Covenanting times
we find from published documents that there were Alisons
on the farms previously mentioned, and the Alisons of Cairnduff"
gradually came into historical prominence. About 1630
these Alisons became greatly dispersed, caused by the persecutions
of Charles the First, the intolerance of Archbishop
Laud, the introduction of the English Liturgy into the Scottish
Church, and the formation of the Solemn League and
Covenant, with the attending consequences.
After James VI of Scotland fell heir to the English throne
and was accepted as king under the title of James I, the
Presbyterian Church became unpopular with the Royal Court.
During his reign and that of the Charleses that succeeded
him, the great design of Parliament was to abolish Presbyterianism
in Scotland and establish Prelacy in its stead. By
making the religions of England and Scotland the same they
imagined that they would unite the two countries more
closely together. So oppressively did they pnsh this measure
that a revolution took place and Cromwell seized the
reins of goverimient, and so conquered the Royalists that he
was crowned as Protector of Great Britain. During the
reign of the Charleses the whole Scottish nation was greatly
moved, and was often on the brink of revolution. This was
more especially the case in Avondale and many of the sur-
rounding parishes. It was about 1630 that the Alisons of
Cairnduff in Avondale were disturbed in their homes. It
was then that the threatenings of Archbishop Laud and his
coadjutors began to be realized. It was then that William
and Michael Alison escaped to England and found their way
to America, the land of the Pilgrim Fathers It was then
that Thomas Alison, when a mere youth, went to the sea as
a sailor, and in 1645 sailed to America in the ship called