William Finlay Robb and his wife Susanna (nee McCullough) arrived in Melbourne on the sailing ship “Albinus” in 1853. They were married in May 1851 in County Down,  Ireland. Their eldest son, Thomas Alexander, was born at sea during the three month journey it took to sail from Liverpool in England. They initially settled at Epping just north of Melbourne before selecting land “just over the bridge” at Rubicon in North East Victoria.

ROBB HISTORY PRIOR TO IRELAND

The following introduction is purely a summary of my collective reading and is only to give direction for those wishing to delve deeper.

My earliest knowledge of the Robb name is associated with Scotland and the Clan MacFarlane, one of the “Clans of Loch Lomond”. The other clans being, Buchanan, Colquhoun, Lennox and Macgregor.

Map of Loch Lomond

In the 12-14^th Century most of the land around the Loch belonged to the Earls of Lennox. This powerful family owned Balloch Castle, which is still visible to this date within the present castle grounds. They also owned castles at Inchmurrin and at Boturich. As was customary, the Earls granted lands to favoured families – Arrochar and the north-west to the MacFarlanes, Luss and the south-west to the Colquhouns. The Buchanan and Grahams had land on the eastern side, and the MacGregors held sway to the north-east of Loch Lomond.

 

The MacFarlanes, on the rough northern land, were given to night raids on their southern neighbours cattle – hence the moon was referred to as “MacFarlane’s lantern”.

Their castle at Inveruglas was destroyed by Cromwell, and another built on Eilean I Vow ( Gaelic: Eilean a’ Bho – “Island of the cow’), where ruins can still be seen today.

LOCH LOMOND

Loch Lomond is 23 miles long and 4 miles across at its broadest point. This large expanse of water is interspersed with picturesque and mysterious islands, which boast a wealth of history, and the surrounding scenery provides magnificent views in every direction. No visit here would be complete without taking to the water.

ISLAND I VOW – ‘The Island Of The Cow’

The northern most Island of Loch Lomond lies in one of its narrowest parts.

It is likely that the name Island I Vow was derived from the Gaelic translation of ‘Island Of The Cow’ and that this name owed something to the professional interests of its inhabitants.

The MacFarlanes, who were notorious cattle thieves, built another stronghold here after their earlier castle had been destroyed. The ruins of the castle remain today and steps still lead down to the dark, dank dungeon below.

INVERUGLAS ISLE – ‘The Isle At The Mouth Of The Black Stream’

The black stream is the Inveruglas water which flows from Loch Sloy and enters Loch Lomond just south of the village of inveruglas.

This wooded islet lies in the bay just in front of Inveruglas village and should not be confused with Wallace’s Isle, which is right in the river mouth nearby.

Hiding amongst the high pines near its eastern shore is the ruin of a castle, which was once the residence of the chiefs of the clan Macfarlane and was destroyed by soldiers of Oliver Cromwell during their occupation of Scotland in the seventeenth century.

Among the ruins of the castle, an old sword and keys have been discovered.

BELOW: I visited this area in August 2006 and below is a photo of me with the Scottish laddie and his bagpipes on the shore in front of Eilean I Vow [right]. My sister Janet Donahoo (nee Robb) had also visited about a year previously and below are her  pictures [left, centre] of the castle ruins, invisible from the shore.

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Next, in the Presbyterian Church Records, we find “William, son of Alexander and his wife Ann, Ballybeen, born 13^th October 1822 and baptised 26^th November 1822 by the Rev. William Finlay. Alexander, his father,  was now 46 years of age.

 So, in summary, at this point it is not known how Alexander Robb ( 1776 - 1852 ), a younger son came to be living at Ballybeen. His father, Alexander Robb ( 1734-1808) was in Ballysallagh as was his older brother, Daniel ( 1759 and still alive in 1831 )  Probably the farm at Ballysallagh was not large enough to support two families, but it is not known how Alexander managed to obtain a lease at Ballybeen.

 

All this above information has been obtained from Mrs. S.N. White of Bangor in the middle to late 2004 who is descended from yet another Alexander Robb ( 1800-1887 )

This Alexander Robb ( 1800 - 1887 ) was the son of the abovementioned Daniel Robb and it was he who acquired the lease of Ballybeen farm on the death of his uncle - Alexander Robb ( 1776 - 1852 )

 

Ballybeen House and farm remained in the Robb family until the 1960’s when it was then taken over for housing. Interestingly, two more generations of Alexander Robb’s were involved. Alexander Robb ( 1839 - 1910 ) took over in 1880. He was Mrs. S.N. White’s maternal grandfather. Finally her uncle, Alexander Robb ( 1888 - 1965 ) purchased the freehold in 1928.

 

Mrs. S.N. White knew Ballybeen farm very well as she was born in 1920, her parents having been married at Ballybeen on 11^th June 1919 and then was married herself at Ballybeen on 24^th September 1941. Her own children holidayed at Ballybeen in 1959 and 1962 from Canada.

 

It was at Ballybeen House that family papers existed and were obtained by Mrs S.N. White. Copies of these papers are in the Public Record Office in Belfast and Mrs. White’s 1^st cousin, John Robb now has the originals. There were not many papers but one was the will of Alexander Robb ( 1776 - 1852 ) and in it he named his family. His son William was mentioned getting 50 pounds on the condition he left the country for America or one of the British colonies within six month of his father’s death.

We now know William did leave for Australia in April 1853, thus fulfilling the requirement.

 

BELOW: Christopher and Maureen Robb met with John Robb and his wife, Sylvia at the Royal Court Hotel near Portrush, Co Antrim overlooking the Irish Sea in August 2006. John is a first cousin of Helen White ( nee Robb ). We spent a lovely 2 hours over dinner. I am holding the walking stick of John’s grandfather which is 170 years old. The “white sheath” around it in the photo is John’s genealogy charts he also had brought along. John is a retired surgeon and has two sons that are surgeons.

It is not known the circumstances or when Alexander moved to Dundonald but the Tithe Applotment Book, Dundonald, 1833 has Alexander Robb at 57 years of age listed as farming 39 acres and 3 roods. Further to these land records quoted, church records have Alexander Robb in Dundonald as early as 26^th March 1811 as signatory to St Elizabeth’s Vestry Book, Dundonald at age 35. It was noted Alexander signed his name as Rabb and the old tombstone of his father in Bangor Abbey churchyard [ref. photo below] also gave that spelling. It was thought to be a mistake of the stonemason but it has been discovered that some of the family used “the old spelling”. The tombstone is still in place and readable.

BELOW: Here I am with my 4^th cousin once removed, Helen White at Bangor Abbey at the headstone of my great, great, great, great grandfather, Alexander Robb [Rabb] 1734 – 1808. This is the common ancestor of Helen and I and a most unique and moving experience for me. ( August 2006 )

BACK TO 1600….

The border with England proved particularly hazardous with Scottish 'Border Reevers' repeatedly raiding across the border and making life miserable for the local English population.

 The first organized movement of Scots to the north of Ireland was started by two enterprising Scottish lairds, Hugh Montgomery and James Hamilton. In 1605 they had aided the Irish chieftain Conn O'Neill in escape from his imprisonment in Carrickfergus castle and arranged for him to obtain a Royal Pardon. In return, O'Neill granted Montgomery and Hamilton substantial tracts of his land in the north Irish counties of Antrim and Down. Montgomery and Hamilton immediately began settling the land with Scottish Presbyterians from the Ayrshire and Galloway regions of Scotland.

 The success of this enterprise did not escape the notice of the King, James I of England (James IV of Scotland). English attempts to pacify the north of Ireland had so far proved unsuccessful. His solution to the problem was to settle Scots in the area. This had the effect of putting in place a tough Scottish population who were Protestant (mainly Presbyterian) to counter the troublesome Irish Catholics. Many of those Scots living along the Scottish border who had previously terrorized the English were now forcibly repatriated throughout Ulster.

These Scots proved to be hardy frontiersmen and soon flourished where the English had previously failed. This second plantation saw the Scots assume the position of tenant farmer to English landowners

 An estimated 80% + of the Protestant settlers in Ulster were Scots, the rest being English along with smaller numbers of French Huguenot, Welsh, Manx, German, Dutch and Danish. These other planters were eventually absorbed into the Ulster-Scots ethnic mix.

While the Scottish in general did not intermarry with the native Irish Catholics, there were certainly some Irish converts to Presbyterianism. Often for an Irish convert to become 'Scottish' it was a simple matter of dropping the 'O' prefix from his surname and replacing it with a 'Mac'!

The religion of the Scots at this time was generally Presbyterian, while that of the English landowners was Episcopal (Church of England). The Episcopal Church of Ireland (the Church of England in Ireland) was the church of the establishment and the English administration persecuted the Scottish Presbyterians whom at times they regarded as more troublesome than the Irish Catholics.

 Dissenter Presbyterian ministers were only allowed to preach within certain limits and could be fined or imprisoned. Marriages carried out by Presbyterian clergy were not legally binding and Presbyterians could not hold public office.

 In addition, in 1639 the 'Black Oath' was introduced and required all Protestants living in Ulster to bind them selves to obey all Royal commands. The 'Black Oath' was designed to prevent the Presbyterian Scots in Ulster from aiding their kin in Scotland in any confrontation with England.

 While a number of Scots converted to the Episcopal Church of Ireland and a number returned to Scotland, the vast majority remained in Ulster and maintained their Presbyterian faith.

 In 1641 the Irish launched a rebellion against the Protestant population of Ireland. The Ulster-Scots were in a hopeless position, having been gradually disarmed by the English to prevent them from aiding their Covenanter kin in Scotland against England.

 The Catholic clergy declared all Protestants to be devils and should therefore be destroyed. The outnumbered Ulster-Scots Presbyterians, including women and children suffered all manner of cruelties as they were murdered by the Catholic Irish hordes. An estimated 200,000 Protestants were slaughtered in this uprising. While the horrific stories told of torture, mutilation and murder are no doubt exaggerated to a certain degree, so great was the impact of these atrocities that they are still part of Ulster Protestant folklore today.

 The Irish were led by Phelim O'Neill. P. O'Neill is the name still used by the IRA today to verify to the press when they are responsible for the murder of Ulster-Scots Protestants or members of the Security Forces.

 General Monroe's 10,000 strong Scottish Presbyterian army arrived in Ulster in 1642 to supplement the Ulster-Scots Protestants and tip the balance back in their favour. Monroe's army introduced Highlanders to Ulster for the first time, many of whom chose to remain.

 The 1680's saw renewed migration of Scottish Presbyterians to the north of Ireland to escape the 'Killing Times' in the south west of Scotland. The final large scale movement of Scots to Ulster happened in the 1690's following King William's victory in the Battle of the Boyne when whole new towns and villages sprang up as Scots moved across the Irish sea to avoid famine in Scotland.

 There were no more wholesale plantations after this period as economic conditions in the north of Ireland were no better than Scotland, although there was still regular smaller scale movement between Ulster and Scotland.

 

Thus in summary, formal plantation of Ulster began in 1610. However, Co Antrim and Co Down both close to England and Scotland did not form part of the official plantation because their ownership had already been redesigned beforehand in the years from 1603.

 In the southern part of Clandboye, which includes Bangor and Newtownards, two lowland Scots, Sir James Hamilton and Sir Hugh Montgomery, both minor courtiers to James I , received massive estates. The former O’Neill chieftains of Clandboye were restored to about a third of this area at the same time.

 

 So it is in this political and social climate of the 17^th century that it is assumed our forefather came from the Ayrshire district to Co Down in Northern Ireland possibly outside the jurisdiction of the formal plantations in Ulster.

 

 The first reference to the Robb name in Northern Ireland is in an agreement, dated December 1633 made between Rt. Hon. Lord Viscount Montgomery and others in which John Robb of Carrowreagh, ( townland next to Ballybeen ) in the Parish of Dundonald was appointed as one of the assessors in connection with the division of certain lands.

 Also, in Burkes “ Landed Gentry of Ireland” under Robb, it is stated a James Robb settled at Ballysallagh in the Parish of Bangor in 1660. This James Robb was the Chief Mason of the Kings works. It is assumed the several Robb families in and from this area are descended from James although there are no written records to prove this.

 Thus Daniel Robb born c. 1700 and the first name appearing on genealogical records prepared by the Robb family in Ireland since the late 1800’s ( namely by Samuel White Robb 1848 - 1877 and Ellen Jane Robb 1841 - 1928 ) is most probably descended from James and is possibly a grandson. Further family records state Daniel married a Miss Sinclair and reportedly had six children.

 Alexander Robb ( 1734 - 1808 ) is the only child of Daniel and Miss Sinclair that is known and is the first of the family with an official record. His tombstone is located in the Bangor Abbey Graveyard. It reads, “ Here lieth the body of Alexander Rabb of Ballysallagh who departed this life March 11^th anno 1808 aged 74 years”

Family records state he farmed at Upper Ballysallagh.

Alexander Robb ( 1734 - 1808 ) married Jenny Carr ( 1737 - 1800 ). Jenny died the 1^st January 1800 aged 63 years.

This family is recorded as having 8 children but only two are mentioned with any detail, namely, Daniel Robb, born 21^st July 1759 and lived at Lower Ballysallagh and Alexander Robb born 1776 at Ballysallagh and died 24^th December, 1852 at Ballybeen.

 

This is the Alexander Robb ( 1776 - 1852 ) who is the father of William Finlay Robb ( 1822 - 1896 ) who immigrated to Australia in 1853.

 

William Finlay Robb ( 1822 - 1896 ) was born in the townland of Ballybeen in the Parish of Dundonald . His father, Alexander Robb ( 1776 - 1852 ) who leased Ballybeen House and surrounding farmland was born in the townland of Ballysallagh in the Parish of Bangor. This parish is just north of Dundonald and separated by the parish of Newtownards.

Below are the Parish’s of Dundonald and Bangor: NB: Ballybeen and Carrowreagh Townlands side by side

and the smaller Church Quarter townland above Ballybeen. Also NB: Ballysallagh Major and Ballysallagh Minor.

THE SCOTTISH PLANTATION OF IRELAND

Now by the start of the 16th century, Ulster ( Ireland comprises of 4 provinces, with the province of Ulster situated in the north) was sparsely populated after more than 50 years of war.

Lowland Scotland ( down to Ayrshire where our ancestor(s) reputably came from ) at this time was unable to support its growing population, many of whom turned to cattle rustling, kidnapping and other thievery to support their families.

Ailsa Craig [photo below right] is a craggy island off the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland, it is known locally as "Paddy's milestone".   The island is now uninhabited but on the East side there is an automatic lighthouse which was manned at one time.  It is also famous for the amount of seabirds who live there. Just beyond this to the south west is the coast of Co Down and Co Antrim of Northern Ireland. I drove along this beautiful coast and farmland in August 2006 wondering if my ancestors looked upon this volcanic plug rising out of the sea as I did. Below left is the lovely farmland I encountered.