How far back is too far?

[Karl R]

So how far back is too far? Should I stick with Douglas, being the nearest, even though they're the branch I have the least information about?

I'm dealing with a similar situation. My great great grandfather emigrated from Scotland to Canada. His name was William Brown. There is a Clan Brown ... but the Browns are also septs of Clan MacMillan, Clan Lamont, Clan Douglas, Clan MacDonald, and Clan Boyd (and maybe other clans). Finding a William Brown in Scotland is easy. Finding the correct William Brown in Scotland based on records from the mid 1800s ... well ... most haystacks are smaller than that.

On the other side of the family are the Renwicks. Renwick is a place name, after the village of Renwick in Cumberland. That village has about 20 buildings in it. The Renwicks aren't a clan, but the Renwicks have a family tartan that dates back to at least the 1800s. I'm probably not descended from the people who had the family tartan, but it's almost guaranteed that we share a common ancestor (somewhere) in the borderlands.

I also have Scots-Irish ancestors. I can trace them back to Ireland, but their surnames are clearly Scottish. For example, William Brown married my great great grandmother Isabella Miller from Tyrone County, Ireland. We have no idea when the Millers emigrated from Scotland to Ireland, but there's some indication that she identified as both Scottish and Irish.

Choosing a kilt:
Personally, I tend to place more weight on what I can prove, rather than the closeness of the relationship. My grandfather Arthur Brown (William Brown's grandson) immigrated to the U.S. from Canada. I'm 100% certain of that. Therefore, I'm strongly considering the Maple Leaf tartan (a Canadian district tartan) for my "high quality" kilt tartan. My grandmother (on the other side) was born a Renwick, so I'm strongly considering that tartan. I'm also considering the Tyrone County tartan and the Brown modern tartan.

There are some tenuous links to other clans or districts (Thompson, MacMillan, Douglas, Boyd, MacFarlane, Glasgow, Galloway, Argyll, Lamont, Wicklow), some of which are rather close ties ... if they're correct.

But what if one of the family genealogists discovers some information that proves that those clans or districts definitely aren't correct? Do I really want to invest several hundred dollars into a kilt, then discover a few years from now that it's definitely the wrong kilt?

And let's not overlook the importance of aesthetics. When choosing my high quality kilt, I'll pick a tartan that I like the look of.

Applying for clan membership:
Seriously, I'm not in a rush. Just based on my initial research, both Clan Brown and Clan MacMillan would likely accept me as member based on my great great grandfather William Brown (and a few of the other clans might as well). But if I'm going to affiliate myself with one of those clans, I'd rather not be arbitrary about it. I would rather meet members of the clan, and then let that guide my decision.

Or to put it another way, I'm not going to petition to join a "family" unless I've decided that I really like the people.