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Introduction

This is a collection of rambling, loosely conceived, and assembled thoughts of Lewis L Orcutt put together in random fashion for the purpose of informing my future generations of the nature of my existence and my cohabitation with Carol M. Michael/Orcutt on this glorious and wondrous planet given to us by our Lord and Savior who by his grace assigned us as caretakers for the short time we are here. Keep in mind while we read and digest this information that although the mind rambles and can sometimes fade, the stories of walking 5 miles to school in 2 feet of snow at 20 below zero uphill in both directions, are all 100% true and verifiable. After all you may giggle when I mention the one room school with 8 grades all together in one room as there was not a kindergarten yet and you didn't even start 1st grade till you were 6 or maybe 7 like I attended, or chuckle at the fact we had no electricity only kerosene lamps and my brother an I had a bedroom with a dirt floor or the fact we had no TV. You might even laugh out loud when I say we had no phone till I was about 14 and and our ring was two longs and a short and the Cell phone was unheard of. To use it you turned a crank in the combination of longs and shorts to reach the party you wanted and every one there on the line could pick up and listen. Many of the early years are rambling memories and things that happened to me and my family until we reach the Sunday journals which were written every Sunday morning from then on. These were the thoughts and things during the week that took place as we grew and aged and hopefully will let my kids and grandkids know of the things in our life that we found of some importance and meaning. My father wrote faithfully in a journal that I would greatly like to read but it has disappeared over the years and I never got a chance to read it so this will maybe keep that from happening to my following generations.

I am including the following thoughts and findings from previous data I found that has since disappeared from the web. Through these findings and research and contrary to all Urquhart postings, DNA testing and disbelief I feel we are direct descendents of the Urquhart clan of Urquhart Near Cromarty in Scotland. I believe we descended from William Orcutt of Fillongley England whose ancestors were of the Urquhart clan from Scotland. I have no proof positive at this time and if you find some I would willingly add and post it. My belief stems from the facts I found in the late 1960's through a genealogy search and the findings by Nancy L. Halbert on the Orcutt Coat of arms and our name as listed on Pages 1 thru 5 of the Lewis L. Orcutt Lineage. Also on some Getz genealogy I found on the internet in the late 80's early 90's that has since disappeared by Frederick Scott Orcutt Sr. who compiled the most extensive Orcutt Genealogy to date as written on the Orcutt page at that time, and it came from his book by way of Florence Mae (Orcutt) Getz. In these writings they state that genealogy data for the Orcutt name has them as the clan Urquhart, living in northern Scotland around Loch Ness and that religious persecution moved some of the Urquhart family to Warwickshire, England and eventually over to the United States. You can then see the Orcutt line starting on page 5 through the 9 generations in America to finally arrive at our generation being the 10th here. As you study this and more you can see many findings I got from the 1960's shows up in the Urquhart lineage on the web today and is identical in nature. There is much more clan information on the web if you care to further research these findings and our heritage.

Enjoy and God bless. Dad/Papa.

Urquhart Castle overlooking Loch Ness

The Ruins Of Urquhart Castle in Scotland

Loch Ness although probably best known for its legendary monster is also home to one of Scotland's largest fortifications, Urquhart Castle. Standing on a promontory jutting into the loch the castle was built on an ideal site for defense as it commands the views Northeast and Southwest of the main axis of the Great Glen. This was a vital consideration to the castles royal owners in the middle ages, because it gave them a visible presence in an area which, at the time, was effectively with the control of the Scottish kings. Due to the sites strategic importance it was almost certainly inhabited long before the first recorded occupation date of the early 13th century, when the castle was granted to the Durwards, a powerful Anglo-Norman family. During the next three centuries the castle was besieged and occupied by various warring factions, who were quick to realize the the importance of a prominent power base at Glen Urquhart. In the last major attack in 1545 the castle was plundered and looted of many of its possessions. Restorations were undertaken in the 16th and 17th centuries, but it finally fell into a state of disrepair from which it never recovered. Archaeological excavations have unearthed many objects including a bronze ewer, weapons, jewelry, and pottery. The castle was both self sufficient and self contained with private halls and bedrooms, complete with fireplaces and plaster walls for the lord and his family. There was also accommodations for servants, a kitchen, smithy, dovecot and chapel. Now under the care of Historic Scotland, Urquhart Castle has become one of Scotland's major tourist attractions drawing people from all over the world.

Urquhart Modern tartan from Lochcarron of Scotland

Urquhart Tartan

Urquhart Clan Badge =Wallflower

Urquhart Clan Motto = Meane weil speak weil and doe weil

Clan Crest Badge

All Clansmen are entitled to wear this distinctive insignia which consists of a lady from the waist upward issuing from a crest coronet and brandishing in her right hand a sword and in her left hand a palm sapling, encircled by a strap and a buckle bearing the motto, "Meane Weil, Speak Weil, and Doe Weil." The clan crest badge identifies those who use it as members of Clan Urquhart and signifies their loyalty to the The Urquhart, Chief of the the Clan, whose crest and motto are embodied in the badge.

Urquhart is a Highland Scottish clan. They traditionally occupied the lands in the district and town of Cromarty, a former Royal Burgh with an excellent natural harbor on the tip of The Black Isle. Chiefs of the Clan were Barons and hereditary Sheriffs of the county for hundreds of years. Today the Clan is an international body organized in part by the Clan Urquhart Association, with Clan members in Scotland, England, Wales, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and America. The current Chief, Kenneth Trist Urquhart of Urquhart, is one of four Scottish Highland Chiefs that are American citizens.

The home of the family Urquhart was near Cromarty. William Urquhart was sheriff of Cromarty in the 14th century, and his son, Adam became hereditary sheriff. Sir Thomas Urquhart is said to have had 25 sons, of whom seven were killed at the battle of pinkie in 1547.Probably the best known member of the family is Sir Thomas Urquhart, Famous as a writer in the 17th century. His most notable work was the translation of Rabelais. He compiled his own genealogy and claimed to be the 143rd in direct succession from Adam & Eve.

History Of Clan Urquhart

Clan Urquhart is of ancient Celtic origin. Associated during most of its history with the northeast of Scotland, the Clan derives its name from Glen Urquhart and Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness. Traditional history traces the descent of the Urquharts from Conachar Mor, scion of the Royal House of Ulster, a mighty warrior and hunter who ruled over the territory around Urquhart Castle during prehistoric times. Hero of a Gaelic legend, Conachar Mor killed a wild boar of extraordinary fierceness from which no man had ever escaped. Mor's descendant, William de Urchard, the first Chief of the Clan whose name appears on written Scottish records, was a staunch supporter of Robert the Bruce. Adam de Urchard, second Chief, became Baron and Sheriff of Cromarty about 1358, and for over three hundred years, the Chiefs of the Clan held the Barony of Cromarty as their principle seat. There they erected an imposing castle overlooking Cromarty Firth. Younger sons of the family acquired extensive land holdings of their own, establishing themselves as Lairds of Meldrum, Byth, Craigston, Craighouse, Kinbeachie, Newhall, Braelangwell, and Burdsyards.

From 1741 until 1898, the seat of the Chief of Clan Urquhart was the Barony of Meldrum in Aberdeenshire. The last Chief of the Meldrum line was Major Beauchamp Urquhart, an officer of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, who was killed in action. The Chiefship passed to his cousin, Urquhart of Braelangwell. In 1959, Wilkins Fisk Urquhart was recognized by the Lord Lyon as Chief of the Name and Head of Clan Urquhart. He was succeeded in 1974 by Kenneth Trist Urquhart of Urquhart, 27th Chief of Clan Urquhart. The seat of the Clan is Castle Craig, the ancient Urquhart fortress on the Cromarty Firth, which will be restored as a center for the clan.

Lewis L. Orcutt Lineage

The Orcutt Coat of Arms illustrated above was drawn by an heraldic artist from information officially recorded in ancient heraldic archives. Documentation for the Orcutt Coat Of Arms design can be found in Moncreffe and Pottinger's Scotland of old. Heraldic artists of old developed their own unique language to describe an individual Coat Of Arms. In their language, the Arms ( shield ) is as follows:

" Or three boars" heads gules, armed argent, tangued azure."

When translated the arm description is:

"Gold: three red boars heads, armed silver, tongue of blue

Above the shield and helmet is the crest which is described as:

"Out of a ducal coronet or a lady from the waist upwards holding in her dexter hand

a dagger point upwards and in her sinister a palm tree, all purr."

A translation of the Crest description is:

" Out of a gold crown, a lady from the waist upwards holding in her right hand a

dagger point upwards in her left hand a palm tree in natural color."

Family mottos are believed to have originated as battle cries in medieval times. The Motto recorded with the Orcutt Coat of Arms is:

"Meane Weil, Speak Weil and Doe Weil"

(Mean well, Speak well, and Do well )

Individual surnames originated for the purpose of more specific identification. The four primary sources for second names were: occupation, location, fathers name and personal characteristics. The surname Orcutt appears to be locational in origin, and is believed to be associated with the English meaning, " dweller at, or near the slope or incline. " The supplementary sheet included later is designed to give you more information to further your understanding of the origin of names. Dictionaries of surnames indicate probable spelling variations. The most prominent variations of Orcutt are Ocut, Orcut, Orchute, Orcute and Orcutts.

Census records available disclose the fact there are approximately 1100 heads of households in the United States with the old and distinguished Orcutt name. The United States Census Bureau estimates there are approximately 3.2 persons per household in America today, which yields and approximate total of 3520 people in the United States carrying the Orcutt name. Although the figure seems relatively low, it does not signify the many important contributions the individuals bearing the Orcutt name have made to history.

No genealogical representation is intended or implied by this report and it does not represent individual lineage or your family tree

Nancy L. Halbert

Until about 1100 AD most people in Europe had only one name. (This is still true in some primitive countries today). As the population increased it became awkward to live in a village wherein perhaps 1/3 of the males were named John, another sizeable percentage William, and so forth.

And so to distinguish one John from another a second name was needed. There were four primary sources for these second names. They were a man's occupation, his location, his father's name, or some peculiar characteristic of his. Here are some examples.

Occupation: The local house builder, food preparer, grain grinder and suit maker would be named respectively: John Carpenter, John Cook, John Miller and John Taylor.

Location: The John who lived over the hill became known as John Overhill, the John whom dwelled near a stream might be named John Brook or perhaps John Atbrook.

Patronymical: (fathers name): Many of these surnames can be recognized by the termination---son, such as Williamson, Jackson, Etc. Some endings used by other countries to indicate "sons" are: Armenian's---ian, Dane's and Norwegian's---sen, Greek's---oulos, Spaniard's---ez, and Pole's---wiecz. Some prefixes denoting " son " are the Welsh---Ap, the Scot's and Irish---Mac, and the Norman's Fitz. The Irish O' incidentally denotes grandfather.

Characteristic: An unusually small person might be labeled Small, Short, little or Lytle. A large man might be named largfellow, Large, Lang, or Long. Many persons having characteristics of a certain animal would be given the animal's name. Examples: a sly person might be named Fox, a good swimmer, Fish, and a quiet man, Dove; etc.

In addition to needing an extra name for identification, one occupational group found it necessary to go a step further. The Fighting Man. The fighting man of the middle ages wore a metal suit of armor for protection. Since this suit included a helmet that completely covered the head, the knight in full battle dress was unrecognizable. To prevent friend from attacking friend during battle, it became necessary for each knight to somehow identify himself. Many knights accomplished this by painting colorful patterns on their battle shields. These patterns were also woven into cloth surcoats, which were worn over a suit of armor. Thus was born the term, "Coat Of Arms."

As this practice grew more popular, it became more likely that two knights unknown to each other might be using the same insignia. To prevent this, records were kept that granted the right to a particular pattern to a particular knight. His Family also shared his right to display these arms. In some instances, these records have been preserved and/or compiled into book form. The records list the family name and an exact description of the "coat of arms" granted to the family.

Interest in heraldry is increasing daily. This is especially true among people who have a measure of family pride and who resent attempts of our society to reduce each individual to a series of numbers stored somewhere in a computer. In our matter of fact day and age, a "coat of arms" is one of the rare devices remaining that can provide an incentive to preserve our heritage. We hope you will agree that it is much more than just a wall decoration. If you are interested in a more in depth study of the subject of this paper, may we suggest you contact the genealogy department of any fair sized public library. We especially recommend " The Dictionary of American Family Names" published by Harper And Faw and also " The Surnames Of Scotland" available from the New York Public library as excellent sources on the meaning of surnames.

Nancy L. Halbert

From Then to now

Born in England and died on September 14 1693 in Bridgewater, Mass. and buried in a cemetery in Bridgewater, Mass. William Orcutt; Elbert E. Orcutt, New London, CT gives the first authentic record of William Orcutt, Father of the Orcutt families in America. On January 24 1663 in Hingham, Ma. he married Mary Lane, daughter of Andrew and Tryphena Lane of Hingham, MA. and a granddaughter of William Lane of Dorchester, MA. Legend handed down by John the second son of William Orcutt says William Orcutt came from England as a cabin boy on the second ship to Plymouth, MA. This indicates that possibly he had chosen as his life career that of a sailor. Another indication would be that there is no record of him or the birth of his children in any of the towns around Hingham MA. except that of Susannah Orcutt, born 1685 at Bridgewater MA. The family completely disappears for 3 or 4 years after his marriage. The next authentic record is the baptismal records of ten of there children in the second church of Scituate, located east of Hingham MA. On these records William Orcutt gave his residence as Marshfield, MA., a ship harbor and port. The last authentic records of William Orcutt found as of 1996, are his death record and that of the inventory of his estate. Also, the Plymouth Probate Records upon the administration of estate. The most authentic record of his death appears on the inventory of the estate the following: William Orcutt, deceases ye 14th, of September 1693. The inventory of the estate was taken 11 October 1693, by John Field and John Leonard, and presented to the court 11 December 1693, by William Orcutt, eldest son of William the deceased, 119 lbs 11 shillings.

Descendents Of William Orcutt, Sr

Generation No. 1

William Orcutt Sr. Was born December 18, 1618 in Fillongley, Warwickshire, England, and died September 24, 1693 in Bridgewater, Plymouth County MA. He married Mary Martha Lane January 24,1663/1664 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA., daughter of Andrew Lane and Tryphena Lane. She was born August 16, 1646 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA. , and died between 1685 - 1735.

Children of William Orcutt and Mary Lane are;

William Orcutt Jr.

Elizabeth Orcutt

Generation No. 2

THOMAS ORCUTT was born October 02, 1677 in Scituate, Plymouth County, MA. , and died between 1722 - 1769. He Married Jane Emerson June 29, 1703 in Concord, Middlesex County, MA, daughter of Joseph Emerson and Mary ??. She was born 1679 in Concord, Middlesex County, Ma , and died between 1722 - 1780.

Children of Thomas Orcutt and Jane Emerson are:

THOMAS ORCUTT, Jr.

Generation No. 3

THOMAS ORCUTT, Jr. was born July 03, 1707 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA., and died 1764 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA. He married Thankful Jenkins January 17, 1733 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA. She was born 1712 in Hingham, Plymouth County, MA., and died Between 1741 - 1744. He Married Margaret Ray, May 15, 1744, daughter of James Ray and Elizabeth Roster.

Children Of Thomas Orcutt, Jr. and Thankful Jenkins are:

Generation No. 4

EDWARD ORCUTT was born May 06, 1736 in Cohasset, Norfolk County, MA., and died January 06, 1801 In Goshen, Hampshire County, MA. He married Mehitable Hudson, Daughter of Joseph Hudson and Martha Lincoln.

Children Of Edward Orcutt and Mehitable Hudson are:

Generation No. 5

QUARTUS ORCUTT was born March 20, 1769 in Chesterfield, Hampshire County, MA., and died November 11, 1821 in Rome, Oneida County, NY. He married Mary ??. She died April 05, 1813 in Rome Oneida County, NY.

Children of Quartus Orcutt and Mary ?? are :

Mehitable Orcutt

Generation No. 6

FRANCIS ORCUTT was born March 30, 1806, and died August 07, 1874 in Rome, Oneida County, NY. He married Margaret Bidell. He Married (2) Caroline Glass February 22, 1835. She was born October 12, 1811 and died February 24, 1860 in Rome, Oneida County, NY.

Children Of Francis Orcutt And Caroline Glass are :

FRANCIS LEWIS ORCUTT

George Jay Orcutt

Delia Caroline Orcutt

Norman Glass Orcutt

Generation No. 7

FRANCIS LEWIS ORCUTT was born May 27, 1836 in Rome Oneida County, NY and died July 16,1887 in Sheridan, Tama County IA. He married Roxy Brainard March 03, 1859. She died December 08, 1877. He married Anna Hartzell June 01, 1879.

Children of Francis Lewis Orcutt and Roxy Brainard are:

DeEtta Caroline Orcutt

FRANCIS EDWARD ORCUTT Newspaper Clippings

Charles Stanley Orcutt

Generation No. 8

FRANCIS EDWARD ORCUTT was born August 07, 1867 in Grinnell, Powshiek County, IA. , and died between 1947 - 1952. He married Sarah Stocking March 06, 1887. She died 1903. He married (2) Matilda Theadora Hansen November 19, 1909. She was born May 06, 1881, and died between 1950 - 1955.

MATILDA THEODORA HANSEN Newspaper Clippings

Children of Francis Edward Orcutt and Sarah Stocking are:

Clifford Francis Orcutt

Children of Francis Edward Orcutt and Matilda Hansen are:

CHARLES FRANCIS ORCUTT Newspaper Clipping

John Edward Orcutt

Blanche Lena Orcutt

Ella Irene Orcutt

Generation No. 9

CHARLES FRANCIS ORCUTT was born April 15, 1910, Wheaton, Traverse County, Mn. and died in 1981. He married Myrtle Belle Clark

Children of Charles Francis Orcutt and Myrtle Belle Clark are:

Thomas Francis Orcutt

LEWIS LEROY ORCUTT Dedication Photo Album

Ellen Mary Orcutt

Elaine Marie Orcutt

DeEtta Blanche Orcutt

Visit Our Stories from the past

Generation No. 10

LEWIS LEROY ORCUTT was born April 03, 1942 in Wheaton, Redpath township, Minn. He married Carol Marie Michael November 10, 1962. She was born May 04, 1945 in Tacoma, Wash.

Children of Lewis LeRoy Orcutt and Carol Marie Michael are:

TAMMRA MAE ORCUTT

MATTHEW BRYON ORCUTT
BRADLEY ALLAN ORCUTT

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