Scottish Bishop to Colonial Patriots and a Frontier Blacksmith: Our Boyd Lineage

This family begins in the turbulent world of Reformation Scotland with The Right Reverend Andrew Boyd, a natural son of the noble Boyd of Kilmarnock lords. Rising through the Church despite his birth, Andrew became a respected bishop in the remote diocese of Argyll. He raised a large family amid the religious and political storms of the early 1600s—his son James even took up arms for the Royalist cause under Montrose. Though the exact link from Bishop Andrew’s son Adam (d. 1649) to the Rev. Adam II of the next generation is unproven in primary records, the Boyd name carried forward through Presbyterian clergy and landowners in Renfrewshire and Stirlingshire.

By the late 1600s the family had joined the great Scotch-Irish exodus. Robert Boyd left Airth, Scotland, for the promised lands of Pennsylvania, carving out a life as a tailor and landowner in Chester County’s Sadsbury Township among fellow Presbyterians. His son George Sr. followed, only to die young in the “Compass” settlement. George’s sons—Patrick Harrison (“William Boyd—Hopalong Cassidy—ancestor”) and John—pushed south into Virginia’s expanding frontier in the 1730s–1740s, settling in the newly formed counties of Lunenburg, Halifax, and Bedford. Here the Boyds became quintessential backcountry farmers and militiamen, clearing land, raising families, and defending against Native American raids during the French & Indian War.

The Revolutionary and early American eras saw them rooted in Bedford County. William Boyd (my DNA match) raised a family there; his son James (1757–1791) and grandson James (1783–1854) bridged the Revolution and the War of 1812. By the 19th century the line had diversified: Valentine Boyd worked iron as a blacksmith, a vital trade in were had migrated to in Ohio and later Iowa. His daughter Sophia Boyd married into the Bailey family, carrying the bloodline into the post-Civil War Midwest. Through David Jackson Bailey and finally our grandfather Franklin Jackson Bailey (1886–1968), the family witnessed the transformation of America from agrarian republic to modern nation—spanning horse-and-buggy days to the automobile age.

This is the story of a family that began with Latin poetry and bishop’s mitres in the Scottish Highlands and ended with blacksmith hammers and Virginia soil. It embodies the classic Scotch-Irish journey: faith, resilience, migration, and quiet contribution to the building of America. 

Our Boyd genealogy traces a fascinating arc from 16th-century Scottish nobility and the Church of Scotland to colonial American frontiersmen, Revolutionary-era settlers, and 19th–20th-century pioneering families. 

It connects ecclesiastical prominence in the Scottish Highlands to Scotch-Irish migration and pioneer life in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and later to Ohio and Iowa. 

• The Right Reverend Andrew Boyd, Bishop of Argyll (c. 1567–21/22 Dec 1636): Confirmed born Eaglesham, Renfrewshire; died Dunoon, Argyllshire; buried in Dunoon Church. He was the natural (illegitimate) son of Thomas Boyd, 6th Lord Boyd of Kilmarnock (d. 1611)—not “Sir Thomas Robert Boyd” exactly, though the title and parentage align with Boyd of Kilmarnock lineage.  Educated at University of Glasgow (M.A. 1584), he served as minister of Eaglesham from 1589 before elevation to Bishop of Argyll (and Lismore) in 1613. Contemporary accounts describe him as “a good man, and did much good in his diocese, where he always resided.” He had a literary side, publishing a Latin poem addressed to King Charles I in 1633. Spouse Elizabeth (Bessie) Cunningham (c. 1561–1623) was daughter of Adam Cunningham of Auchenharvie (and widow of Thomas Boyd of Pilton). Their known children (per Fasti and contemporary records) were: Thomas (minister of Eaglesham), Andrew (Archdeacon of Argyll/minister of Lochgoilhead), George, James (of Rachrie/Rathlin Island; Royalist who joined Montrose and was excommunicated in 1646 during the Covenanting wars), Adam (Master Adam Boyd, b. ~1599, d. May 1649 in Glasgow), Hugh (alive 1633), and Elizabeth (m. Rev. Andrew Hamilton of Kilbarchan). 

• The Adam Boyd discrepancy our “Captain Adam Boyd 1623–1649” and “Adam Thomas Boyd 1599–1649”): This is a very common error in unsourced Ancestry/FamilySearch trees. The Bishop’s actual son Adam (~1599–May 1649, Glasgow) is our “Adam Thomas.” He is not known to have left issue that continues our line. The separate “Captain Adam Boyd” (sometimes dated 1623 or later, occasionally linked to Ireland) is chronologically impossible as the Bishop’s son and belongs to a different Boyd family.  Our Rev. Adam II (1650–1722) is consistently shown in genealogies as grandson of the other Captain Adam line (not the Bishop’s son), so the direct descent from Bishop Andrew breaks here. Many researchers have noted this mix-up for over a decade. 

• Rev. Adam II Boyd (1650–c. 1722, Renfrewshire/Paisley area): Likely a Presbyterian minister (the “Rev.” title and timing fit the post-Restoration era). Married Agnes Forsythe (1655–1679). Our later line from here onward is a documented Scotch-Irish Boyd branch, even if the link to the Bishop is unproven. 

• Robert Boyd “immigrant” (1669/1678–Apr 1743, Airth, Stirlingshire to Sadsbury Township, Chester Co., PA): Born Airth; died Sadsbury. He was a tailor (per 1736 Chester Co. deed). Arrived in Pennsylvania c. 1730 (some records say earlier). Married Elizabeth Jennet Johnston (1670–1705). Settled among early Scotch-Irish Presbyterians in the Octorara/Chester County area.

• George Sr. Boyd (b. bef. 31 May 1691 Airth, d. 1731 Compass, Chester Co., PA): Lived in what is now modern Chester County (“Compass” area). His listed children include Patrick Harrison Boyd (“Hoppy Ancestor,” 1711–1762) and John Boyd (c. 1712–1757). George’s sons migrated southward into Virginia’s backcountry (Lunenburg/Halifax/Bedford Counties), typical for Scotch-Irish families seeking land after the 1730s–1740s.

Later Generations (Virginia Line) – Additions and Context

• John Boyd (c. 1712 Lunenburg Co., VA – 10 May 1757 Halifax Co., VA) and wife Margaret Lawson (1700–1764): Early settlers in what became Bedford/Halifax Counties. These were frontier farming/militia families during the French & Indian War era.

• William Boyd (c. 1720 Bedford Co., VA – 27 Jan 1794): Our noted DNA match. Lived in Bedford County; married into local families (some trees link to Mason/Lawson lines). Typical yeoman farmer/militia service in colonial Virginia.

• James Boyd (1757–1791) and James Boyd (1783–1854, War of 1812 veteran): The younger James served in the War of 1812—common for Virginia Boyds in that generation.

• Valentine Boyd (1811–1870, blacksmith): Occupational shift to tradesman; blacksmiths were essential in rural 19th-century Ohio and later Iowa were he emigrated to.

• Sophia Boyd (1836–1908) → David Jackson Bailey (1865–1949) → Franklin Jackson Bailey (1886–1968, our maternal grandfather): The Boyd surname ends with Sophia; the Bailey line continues into the 20th century. This reflects the common pattern of daughters carrying the family story forward.

Thank you to Grok xAI for helping me sort out some of the Sixteenth Century inconsistencies and setting the record straight. -- Drifting Cowboy