Lillian Frazer - Tracing Footsteps: The Frasers of Scotland to Frazers of Virginia and West Virginia

TRACING
FOOTSTEPS

The Frasers of Scotland to Frazers of Virginia and West Virginia

LILLIAN SISSY CRONE FRAZER

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Copyright 2021 Lillian Sissy Crone Frazer. All rights reserved.

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Published by AuthorHouse 02/25/2021

ISBN: 978-1-6655-1740-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-1739-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021903312

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CONTENTS

The past is never dead, its not even past.

William Faul kner

JE SUIS PREST

I AM READY

The name Fraser became well-known for those who followed the Outlander, the fictional and historical television drama series starring the well-educated, tall, handsome and natural leader, Jamie Fraser. James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser, the fictional dashing character and warrior, entered our homes wearing his Scottish kilt, becoming one who many of us loved instantly. Although this Jamie Fraser and family were historical fiction, the Fraser family was a true family of the Scottish Highland Clan Fraser of Lovat and ancestors of our Frazer family. The Frazers of Colonial America may have not worn kilts, but many were handsome, well-educated, prominent and courageous men, fighting for their country and making homes for their families. Gallantry continued in America.

The Scottish Highland Clan Frasers of Lovat have been documented with stories shared in numerous writings. They are strongly associated with Inverness and the surrounding area since the 13 th Century. The family members were historically dynamic and dominating in local politics and major military conflicts in Scotland history, known for their fighting spirit. Even today it is said, Fraser remains the most prominent family name within the Inverness area.

Perhaps the most notorious Clan Chief and rebel was Simon Fraser, the 11 th Lord Lovat, known as The Fox. Simon Fraser has been described as a clan chief, spy, traitor, philosopher, and one who changed allegiances. My mother-in-law, Emily Francis (Fran) Cole Frazer, wife of Oscar Wallace Frazer, Jr., described Simon Frazer as a paternal ancestor to my children, which meant he was a family member and a father. His ambition and wit led him into the thick of politics, and he became a legend of his time. Simon Fraser, The Fox, was the last of the rebel Scottish lords to be executed for treason against the Crown after the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. At age 80, his sentence was carried out and Simon Fraser was beheaded on April 9, 1747.

While vaguely listening, I recall my childrens grandparents speak of the Scottish Highland Fraser ancestors and their descendants as they visited libraries and museums and gravesites, meticulously tracing family lineage. They were adamant about their discoveries but with no computers nor internet nor on-line sources available to them, searches were frequently futile.

One day while visiting us, Fran, then in her senior years, handed over a thin, leather-bonded folder containing several typewritten sheets of paper, the results of her ancestor searches. A smile lightened a compassionate face with spiderweb wrinkles around soft eyes. Short, aged arms wrapped protectively around Nikki, my young pretty and freckled-faced, reddish-blonde-haired daughter, as Fran said primly, Maybe someday you or John Michael or Nikki will pick up where I left off.

Accepting the papers out of self-preservation, my initial thought was, No, no way! as I grimaced at the horrors of dredging through old papers and files and shuddered as I thought of the endless hours of tedious paperwork. I hoped my thoughts were not translated with body language as I loved Fran, who was always inherently kind and thoughtful and far from the dreadful character that is habitually attached to a mother-in-law. In my defense, I was a young mother with two youngsters, and day to day living was a challenge that I cherished. My thoughts were of each day and possibly tomorrow, but yesterday and the prospect of digging up old graves and uncovering family roots were not among them and had no place in my current life. As much as I enjoyed piecing together puzzles and learning local history, I loved my life as it was and had no desire to fill it with yesterdays and tracing footsteps of aged and departed relatives.

As I glanced up at the pure and sweet face of my daughter and the anxious awaiting face of Fran with her polished manners and charm, my original thought faded as I absently echoed her statement, Perhaps someday.

In years to follow, I recollected comments made of the Frazer family by my mother-in-law, Fran. I had stashed those tidbits in the far recesses of my mind or so I thought. Many, many years later with children grown and now grandchildren, I scanned through Frans notes, which prompted me to research and seek additional material. The more I explored and probed, the more I wanted to know and to share with my grandchildren and other young generations and friends of the Frazer family.

When at long last, opting to research the Scottish roots of my children and grandchildren after my pivotal indecisiveness, I speculated if my decision was premature. I had no idea the magnitude of history the family had encountered and actively participated in throughout the years, not only in Scotland but in Colonial America. Knowing the availability of what little personal time after years of work that I could carve out would be engulfed in research, laborious tasks, accumulating documents, and traveling to little towns and cemeteries played a major role in that uncertainty.

With my mother-in-law and my children in mind, dutifully, I decided to plunder ahead and explore as I dove head-first into the overwhelming discovery of family, resolving that I would concentrate on the Frazer family of Colonial America. The commitment was there, and the curious nature was abundant so with an unrelenting pace I was determined to learn all I could of this notable family, good and bad, and the threads of history that bind us. The Motto of Clan Fraser of Lovat is Je suis prest, meaning I am ready. This became my motto for this writing.

The Frasers, now known as Frazers continued their fighting spirit in these new lands of America. It is from the Fraser ancestors of Scotland that William Frazer came to America, settling in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The many lives of the Frazers in this writing descended from this one man and his wife Frances. As in all families, the characters are human with strengths and weaknesses. Throughout the research and writing, I was astounded at the number of historical events in which the family participated, not as bystanders but as active contributors.