Every family tree has its quiet giants—men and women whose grit laid the groundwork for everything that came after. On our MacDonald branch, Findlay MacDonald (1750–1844) stands as a towering figure who bridged two worlds, taking the maritime heritage of the Scottish Western Isles and turning it into a thriving coastal life on the red shores of Prince Edward Island.
From the Ashes of the 78th Highlanders
Born in 1750 in Inverness-shire, Findlay came into the world during one of the darkest chapters in Highland history. His father, Captain Donald MacDonald, was a proud officer in Fraser’s Highlanders (78th Regiment of Foot)—a regiment of former Jacobites who fought for the Crown in the Seven Years' War. When Captain Donald fell in North America in 1757, young Findlay was raised in an era when the ancient Gaelic clan system was being dismantled by high rents and landlord clearances.
Rather than bending to circumstance, Findlay turned to the water. Learning the tides and winds of the western firths, he became a skilled coastal boatman, buying his own vessel to transport goods, timber, and cattle along the rugged Scottish coast.
THE MACDONALD-TO-MCNEIL LINE
Capt. Donald MacDonald (1720–1757)
[Fraser's Highlanders, 78th Foot]
│
FINDLAY MACDONALD (1750–1844)
[The Boatman of Point Prim, PEI]
│
Mary MacDonald (1769–1845)
[m. Donald Bell in Argyll, Scot.]
│
Mary Bell (1791–1878)
[m. Duncan McNeill; Pioneer in Bruce, ON]
│
Duncan McNeill 1821–1882
│
Allan McNeil (1865–1927)
│
Annie Margaret McNeil (1892–1964)
[Paternal Grandmother]
Sailing on the Dykes (1803)
By 1803, the urge for permanent independence led Findlay, his wife Mary "Jessie" MacKinnon, and their children to join Thomas Douglas, the 5th Earl of Selkirk, in his grand vision to settle displaced Highlanders in British North America.
In August 1803, the family boarded the Dykes—the second of Lord Selkirk’s three famed ships—bound for St. John's Island (Prince Edward Island). While many emigrants were strictly farmers bewildered by the Atlantic crossing, Findlay was right at home among the ropes and timber.
When the Dykes dropped anchor off the Orwell Bay peninsula, the settlers looked out at a dense wilderness of pine, spruce, and striking red soil. They named their new home Point Prim.
The Skipper of Orwell Bay
Land was surveyed, trees were felled, and homesteads were built, but the early Selkirk colony faced a critical problem: there were no roads through the thick forest to Charlottetown or Belfast.
This is where Findlay’s expertise came into its own.
Drawings upon his years as a Scottish boatman, Findlay acquired and fitted out a sturdy coastal boat—a heavy, timber-rigged trading vessel capable of navigating the shallow, tide-ripped waters around Point Prim. For years, "Findlay the Boatman" served as a vital lifeline for the peninsula, hauling:
- Timber and Shingles cleared from the pioneer farms.
- Barrels of Salted Fish & Produce bound for markets in Charlottetown.
- Essential Supplies, Tools, and Mail brought back to the isolated families of Point Prim.
While others cleared the forest with axes, Findlay worked the oars and sails, keeping the colony connected to the broader world.
A Century of Change
Findlay lived at Point Prim for over forty years, passing away around 1844 at the age of 94. During his nearly century-long life, he saw Point Prim transform from a quiet landing site into a prosperous agricultural and fishing community—crowned in 1845 by the construction of the iconic, round brick Point Prim Lighthouse, built on the very headland where he had landed decades earlier.
Through his daughter Mary MacDonald, his granddaughter Mary Bell, and down through the McNeils of Bruce County, Ontario, Findlay’s lineage carried that same resilient, water-faring spirit all the way into our modern family history.
Biographical Notes on Findlay MacDonald (1750–1844) & His Descendants
1. Findlay MacDonald (1750–1844) — 5th Great-Grandfather
- Highland Origins & Military Heritage: Born in Inverness-shire, Findlay was the son of Captain Donald MacDonald, a officer in Fraser’s Highlanders (78th Foot) who died in North America in 1757, and Flora MacCuish. Orphaned of his father at a young age, Findlay was raised in the shadow of the post-Culloden Highland Clearances.
- The Coastal Trader & Boat Owner: According to local Lord Selkirk settlement traditions and Maritime histories, Findlay was not merely a subsistence farmer; he was a skilled mariner. In Scotland, he operated coastal craft along the western firths and lochs, carrying livestock and trade goods.
- The Dykes Voyage (1803): In August 1803, Findlay, his wife Mary "Jessie" MacKinnon, and their family boarded the Dykes—the second of Lord Selkirk’s famous three ships carrying Highland emigrants to St. John's Island (Prince Edward Island).
- Maritime Pioneer at Point Prim: Settling at Point Prim along Orwell Bay, Findlay put his nautical experience to work. He built and operated a small coastal vessel (often referred to in island lore as a schooner or heavy trading boat). He hauled timber, agricultural produce, and salt fish between Point Prim, Belfast, and Charlottetown, serving as an indispensable lifeline for the early Selkirk colony long before roads connected the peninsula.
- Patriarchal Longevity: Findlay lived to the extraordinary age of 94, dying around 1844. His long life spanned the fall of the Clan system, the Napoleonic Wars, the War of 1812, and PEI’s growth into a thriving maritime province.
2. Mary MacDonald (c. 1769–1845) — 4th Great-Grandmother
- The Scottish Bridge: Born in Scotland to Findlay and Jessie, Mary spent her early life in Argyll (Kilcalmonell and Kilberry).
- Marriage to Donald Bell: She married Donald Bell (1764–1791). Following Donald's early death, Mary maintained the family's ties between the Scottish mainland and the emigrating branches of the family, passing down the MacDonald and Bell heritage to her daughter, Mary Bell.
3. Mary Bell (1791–1878) — 3rd Great-Grandmother
- Highland Roots to Canadian Frontier: Born in Kilcalmonell and Kilberry, Argyll, Mary married Duncan McNeill (1786–1841).
- The Migration to Bruce County, Ontario: After Duncan’s death, Mary joined the great westward migration of Scottish families from Argyll and the Maritimes into the newly opened Huron District of Ontario. She settled in Paisley, Elderslie Township, Bruce County, where she lived to age 86, surrounded by children and grandchildren who cleared the dense Ontario timberlands.
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