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Morrison Family History & Genealogy

65,773 biographies and 172 photos with the Morrison last name. Discover the family history, nationality, origin and common names of Morrison family members.

Morrison Last Name History & Origin

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Summary

The Scottish History of the Morrison Origins
 
“There was, not surprisingly, a certain coolness from some who felt their illusions had been shattered and some who had vested interests in ‘clanship’”.
Gordon Donaldson (1995) p 89.
 
 
 
I am a Scot, but what does it mean? Scottish people have evolved from an amalgamation of Picts (northern Scotland down to the borders), Gaels (Ireland and Western Isles and coast), Britons (from the south moving north across the border country) as well as Norse Vikings and Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons. Later on in history the Romans and Normans had a significant influence. Then there were the European traders who brought further ethnic mixes into the equation. Modern Scots are therefore like the crystals in a kaleidoscope, the more you turn the viewer the more the pattern changes.
There were periods in Scottish history when Norway held suzerainty over the Orkneys and the Western Isles, including the Hebridean Isle of Lewis. Perhaps the most fluid ethnic ebb and flow came across the lowland borders where successive waves of Angles, Romans, Normans and English swept into what is now Scotland attempting to either tame the “savages” or claim sovereignty. 
 
So who were the Morrisons? Trying to find the definitive origin out of the blend of Scottish history and folklore is akin to playing the children’s game of apple dunking blindfolded (Apple dunking involves trying to pluck a floating apple from a tub of water with your teeth). 
 
Many Morrison clusters have been identified throughout Scotland including Lewis/Harris, Sutherland, Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, Fifeshire, Midlothians and Clackmannanshire. There are strong associations in Ireland and England. Today the name Morrison is recorded as about the twentieth most common name in Scotland, and is prominently seen throughout the UK via the Morrison chain of supermarkets and fuel distributers which were established in Yorkshire by an English Morrison family.
 
This essay attempts to dispel the myth that all Morrisons come from a single source which is often cited in a clan society fable and commercial “the origin of the name” publications. It further demonstrates that the name Morrison itself is derived from many sources, that the idea of a “clan” is a commercial artifact, the history behind the Morrrison tartans has been embellished, and the present badge is a marketing concoction.
 

History

The Fiction of the Morrison Fable
 
Clan societies, particularly those founded overseas, have become something akin to cult groups. Reading modern literature one is forgiven for believing the Morrison “clan” is derived from a real event in the early 13th century of the history of Scotland. Folklore surrounding the origins of the Morrisons on the Isle of Lewis include this gushing account from the Clan Morrison website:
 
Eight centuries ago a Norse ship struggled in heavy seas off the Scottish island of Lewis. A proud Kintyre noblewoman named Lauon stood on deck cradling her newborn infant son, Gillemorrie, in her arms while her husband, Olaf the Black, shouted orders to the crew. Despite his Herculean efforts the ship foundered. Olaf, Lauon and their son plunged into the frigid waters and clung to a piece of driftwood near their sinking vessel. Fortune smiled upon the stoic trio, and they were deposited safe but wet upon the stony Lewis shore. 
This fable is about an event that is supposed to have occurred about 1217 after Olaf’s [Olaf the Black, 1177-1237] half-brother Reginald granted him title to Lewis during the reign of Alexander 11 of Scotland. This account of the Morrisons of Lewis has fatal flaws that should be aired. The above fable has been copied relentlessly without any acknowledgement by Morrison societies and followers as though it was fact. 
Whilst it is acknowledged that there is no definitive account of the reign of Olaf the Black a number of historians have examined the available accounts, particularly some who have investigated the origins of the MacLeods. One of the disputed theories about the origins of the MacLeods was that their lineage could be traced to Leod, son of Olaf the Black. Interestingly, not one of these scholars associated Olaf as having a son named “Gillmorrie”.
As a short digression some of the history of Olaf might be useful. When Olaf’s father Godred 11 (Godred The Black) died in 1187 the Kingship was passed to his illegitimate son Reginald because Olaf was only 10 years old. According to the Chronicon Regum Manniae (1158-1223), Reginald assigned Lewis to Olaf, but Olaf found it to be unsatisfactory and complained. Reginald had him imprisoned by the Scottish King William and it wasn’t until William died in 1214 that Olaf was released. He then went on a three year pilgrimage to St James of Compostella in the North of Spain.
This takes us to about 1217 and Olaf made peace with Reginald. According to Alick Morrison (1986) Olaf seems to have been married “before he was imprisoned in Scotland, to a ‘lady of Kintyre’, a cousin of the Queen of Man and the Isles [The Chronicon Regum Manniae suggests it was “Lanon”, the Queen’s sister]. According to Canon Roderick MacLeod, Leod, progenitor of the MacLeods, was a son of this marriage, in this particular, the Canon departs from MacLeod traditions (eg, Manuscript Memorial of 1767, the Talisker Manuscript and the Bannatyne Manuscript), which claimed that Leod was a son of Olaf’s third marriage with Christina, daughter of Farquar, Earl of Ross. Some time after his return to Lodhus [Lewis], Olaf decided to marry again in 1218 to ‘Jauon’ (ie, Joan) a sister of the Queen of Man. Reginald [the son of Olaf’s sister], the Bishop of the Isles, now took action and convening the Synod, demanded that Olaf must divorce his wife on the ground that she was cousin germain to his first wife. Olaf complained that his first marriage was not confirmed: Bishop Reginald was adamant: Joan had to go. In 1222, Olaf married his third wife, Christina daughter of Farquar, Earl of Ross, with issue four sons, Harold, Reginald, Magnus and Godfrey” (Godfrey died as a child).
MacKenzie’s (1903) detailed “History of the Outer Hebrides” makes no mention of Olaf having a troubled landing with his “illicit” bride Lauon (who Reginald had arranged). MacKenzie states that Olaf died in 1237 and left three sons, Harald (the eldest), Reginald and Magnus. (W C MacKenzie, History of the Outer Hebrides, 1903, pp 29-39). Again no mention of a  “Gillemorrie”! 
There is considerable debate amongst historians about Olaf, including one suggestion he had three wives (Alick Morrison, 1986) and many children, but all agree there was no “Gillemorrie”. Note also that the MacLeods originally claimed their decent through Olaf the Black from a child by Lauon named “Leod”. The McLeod history claims that Olaf was forced to “divorce” Lauon and marry Christina. Depending on which account you subscribe to, Lauon was a relative of Reginald’s Queen (either a sister or cousin), and the Queen attempted to have Olaf murdered by her son for the treachery against Lauon.
MacLeod (The Ancestry of Leod, 2000) cites the Manx Chronicle which names the four sons of Olaf noting there was no “Leod” (or for that matter, “Gillemorrie”) and writes that “By the end of the thirteenth century, legal claims to the Isle of Mann were being pursued on behalf of daughters of the family, implying that the (legitimate) male line from Olaf the Black was then extinct”. If this is the case then it further substantiates the proposition there was no Morrison male line that could be traced to Olaf the Black because if there was then the Morrisons would have had legal claim over the Isle of Man.
As for the Morrison plant emblem being driftwood (a direct reference to the fable), given the nature of the coastline, wrecks were common, and driftwood plentiful. The antiquaries manuscript of 1876-78 (Traditions of the Morrisons [Clan Mac Ghillemhurie] by Capt FWL Thomas) states ”I am told the that the badge of the Morrisons is ‘drift-wood’ of which a great quantity is driven upon the west coast of Lewis (p14)”, but there is no mention in his account of the Morrison traditions of the above fable. Rather than supporting the shipwreck story Thomas quite rightly makes the observation that because driftwood is so plentiful on Lewis it was natural to associate driftwood with the early Morrisons on Lewis. 
One has to remember that a fable is not a fact, and stories about shipwrecks could be told about any number of similar incidents along Scotland’s rugged coastline. I have been unable to find any reference to who wrote the above fable about the shipwreck, but serious Morrison researchers would be well advised to keep to credible historical records and family documentation. 
Captain Thomas (1876-78) quotes John Morrison of Bragar (also known as the “Indweller”) writing around 1678: “The first and most ancient inhabitants of this countrie [Lewis] were three men of three several reaces, viz, Mores, the sone of Kennanus, whom the Irish historians call Makurich, whom they make to be naturall son to one of the kings of Norovay, some of whose posteritie remains in the land to this day. All the Morrisons in Scotland may challenge their decent from this man.. (p5)”. The other two “reaces” Morrison refers to were Iskair Mac Aulay from Ireland and Macnaicle [MacNicol] who decended from the king of Norway. This is a fascinating account written by a Morrison who was so to speak, on the spot, but remember this was written in 1678, some 550 years after the fable was supposed to have occurred.
Thomas points out what he considers to be a curious omission in John Morrison’s account: “Of the Morrisons, it is strange that the ‘Indweller’, himself a Morrison should have ignored what he would have called the “Irish” name of his his clan, which is from Gille-Mhuire, ie, servant of Mary; from Gille, ie, a servant, & and More, ie, Mary. A Morrison in Gaelic is Mac Ghillemhuire, sometimes shortened to Gillmore, Gilmour; or translated Morrison, Maryson; or reduced to Milmorer, Miles or Myles. The Morrisons are numerous in Lewis, where, in 1861, they numbered 1402, or one-fifteenth of the whole population; in Harris there were 530, equal to one-seventh of the inhabitants (p7)”.
So we are left the intriguing incongruity: there was no child of Olaf named “Gillemorrie” and the “Indweller” claims Norse decent from “Mores”. The name “Gillemorrie” is of Gaelic origin. Therefore the conclusion has to be that there is no definitive origin to the Morrisons of Lewis, but somewhere in the mix there is every likelihood of some Norse genetic infusion into the Gael stock. The conclusion after examining the extensive academic debate is that neither the Morrisons or the MacLeods descend from Olaf the Black, yet there is a general uncritical acceptance by many writers that claim this Morrison origin.
There is one further Norse connection that is sometimes mentioned in the origins of the Lewis Morrisons and that is the reference to the 12th Century Norse-Gaelic warrior Somerled, self styled King of the Hebrides, who is said to have a connection to the MacDonald clan. There would appear to be little detailed research on this theory to warrant examination in this discussion paper.
Bain (The Clans and Tartans of Scotland, 1938, p240) wrote the Morrisons were of Norse origin and many were forced to flee Lewis in 1597 with up to 60 families relocating to the highland area of Sutherland in MacKay territory. Note  that those Morrisons left on Lewis after the intervention of the “Fife Adventures” and Neill MacLeod’s treachery between 1598-1607 lost their entitlement to hereditary brieveship in 1613. Are we to believe that from this 1597 exodus that the Morrisons spread all over Scotland? Hardly.
After the founding of a Clan Morrison Society in 1909 it took until 1965 to elect a “Chief”. This went to a Morrison who was associated with the Harris Morrisons of Pabbay, and recognised by the court of the Lord Lyon as the rightful “clan” under John Morrison (Lord Ruchdi). What we therefore have is the acknowledgement of a family group whose geographic isolation on Lewis and Harris has made them distinctive, and quite probably sharing a common descent over a number of generations.
The Morrisons of Lewis and Harris fit the modern definition of a clan, defined as a unit “often consisting of several lineages in which common descent is assumed but cannot necessarily be demonstrated (Fox, 1967)”. However, David Moody (Scottish Family History, 1988) warns that “there is the problem that the clan system of today is primarily an invention of nineteenth-century romantics and astute businessmen bent on the exploitation of a myth (p99)”.
Moody’s cautionary warning is appropriate to the prevailing idea of a general clan Morrison. If you accept the idea of there being a clan Morrison then there is the requirement of a common descent. There is no common descent for the holders of the name Morrison. This fact is set out below as both a function of the many possible derivations of the name Morrison multiplied by the various geographical family clusters mentioned above.
This Morrison “clan” history has taken on a whole new persona since the Lord Lyon approval, embellished and decorated with all the trimmings of a Scottish tourist shop. It is backlit by the romantic vision of Scotland portrayed in the Waverley novels of Sir Walter Scott where larger than life clan chieftains stood proudly bedecked in tartan, claymore in hand, among the castle ruins and scenic lochs. More recently the filmic depiction by Mel Gibson of the heroic Sir William Wallace have given rise to a clan industry that plays on the more than 30 million people of Scottish origin living abroad. This is not to say that todays Scots themselves don’t enjoy the trappings of this romantic vision as witnessed by Highland gatherings, clan parades and Scottish national tartan fervour over international football fixtures. 
The serious side is trying to determine what if anything apart from the name can unify all Morrisons, either by origin, tartan or badge. Everything that I have read and studied about Scottish kinship has cautioned me to approach the subject with a great deal of scepticism. The Scottish History of the Morrison Origins
 
“There was, not surprisingly, a certain coolness from some who felt their illusions had been shattered and some who had vested interests in ‘clanship’”.
Gordon Donaldson (1995) p 89.
 
 
 
I am a Scot, but what does it mean? Scottish people have evolved from an amalgamation of Picts (northern Scotland down to the borders), Gaels (Ireland and Western Isles and coast), Britons (from the south moving north across the border country) as well as Norse Vikings and Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons. Later on in history the Romans and Normans had a significant influence. Then there were the European traders who brought further ethnic mixes into the equation. Modern Scots are therefore like the crystals in a kaleidoscope, the more you turn the viewer the more the pattern changes.
There were periods in Scottish history when Norway held suzerainty over the Orkneys and the Western Isles, including the Hebridean Isle of Lewis. Perhaps the most fluid ethnic ebb and flow came across the lowland borders where successive waves of Angles, Romans, Normans and English swept into what is now Scotland attempting to either tame the “savages” or claim sovereignty. 
 
So who were the Morrisons? Trying to find the definitive origin out of the blend of Scottish history and folklore is akin to playing the children’s game of apple dunking blindfolded (Apple dunking involves trying to pluck a floating apple from a tub of water with your teeth). 
 
Many Morrison clusters have been identified throughout Scotland including Lewis/Harris, Sutherland, Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, Fifeshire, Midlothians and Clackmannanshire. There are strong associations in Ireland and England. Today the name Morrison is recorded as about the twentieth most common name in Scotland, and is prominently seen throughout the UK via the Morrison chain of supermarkets and fuel distributers which were established in Yorkshire by an English Morrison family.
 
This essay attempts to dispel the myth that all Morrisons come from a single source which is often cited in a clan society fable and commercial “the origin of the name” publications. It further demonstrates that the name Morrison itself is derived from many sources, that the idea of a “clan” is a commercial artifact, the history behind the Morrrison tartans has been embellished, and the present badge is a marketing concoction.
 

Name Origin

The multiple origins of the Morrison surname 
The complexity of the puzzle is based on the question “can we determine where the surname Morrison came from that gives us the suggestion of a Clan Morrison”? If one looks at all the evidence then any proposition that the Morrison ”clan” came from a single source is quite erroneous. There are in fact several Morrison groupings identified above but they have somehow been subsumed under one umbrella “clan”. Setting aside all the modern day Clan Society fable, are there any factual references on which we can nail a definitive answer? Probably not for the following reasons:
David Moody sums it up this way. Quoting Donaldson (1995) on the subject of surnames Moody suggests “casual assumptions or guesses about kinship and descent based solely on surnames are no substitute for serious research into ancestry” (p86). Further, he agrees with Donaldson’s major point regarding the “unwarranted assumption ... that individuals sharing a surname have, or at some time had, blood relationship with one another (p87)” is a false assumption. 
The key here is the difference between genealogy (the study and tracing of lines of descent) and etymology (the origin and meaning of names). That is, just because your name is Morrison does not mean you are related or that your early ancestors were Morrisons. This is further distorted by the origins of the name which suggests a variety of sources based on both etymology and geographical origins of human migration (that is for example, Pict, Gael, Germanic, Anglo-Saxon, Norse, Roman or Norman just to name a few!).
Moody (p87) identifies at least four classes of origin for Surnames: (1) Place Names, (2) Parents’ names or patronymics, (3) Occupation, and (4) Personal Characteristics.
In addition to people taking a name from their location such as “Sutherland” or “Argyll”, a name was sometimes adopted from land ownership, that is, a landowner may have had workers under him who took on his name even though they were not related. Thus someone who might have been one of the Morrisons from Lewis who fled to Sutherland might have taken on the name MacKay.
Patronymics (see Moody, p88) is even more convoluted: A man called John whose father’s name was Morris would rightly be called Morrison and his son James should be called Johnson. His son Andrew would be named Jameson. You can see from this it becomes a lottery as to who became a Morrison at the time surnames became fixed.
Both patronymic and occupational names (such as Weaver), or even personal characteristics such as a “strong arm” (Armstrong) “became detached from their descriptive meaning and took on a life of their own as what we call a surname, which is passed from father to son” (Moody p88).
At this point it is worth quoting the full text from The Internet Surname Database: “Recorded in several spellings including Morrison, Morrieson, Morison, and Moryson, this is an Anglo-Scottish surname, which is almost equally popular in Ireland. It is the patronymic form of the surname Maurice or Morris, deriving from the Latin "Mauritius", and meaning swarthy, from "Maurus", a Moor. The popularity of the name was due in part to the fame of St. Maurice, martyred in 286 A.D. The given name Morris was introduced into Britain by the Normans, among whom it was popular. The personal name was recorded circa 1176 when one "Mauricius de Edligtona" was mentioned in the "Social and Economic Documents of London". It first appears as a surname in England in the 14th century (see below) in England, whilst Andreas Morison, a licenciate in law at St. Andrew's in 1463, was according to the church register of Brechin, the first recorded namebearer in Scotland. Other examples of early recordings include those of Nicol Morysone of Ruchtven, Scotland, in 1501... The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Morisson. This was dated 1379, in the Poll Tax records of Yorkshire, during the reign of King Edward 1st, 1272 - 1307. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.” (

)
This is but one of many linguistic analyses of the Morrison name and implies it is Anglo-Scottish and the Morrisons from the Lowlands were probably the original bearers of the name in Scotland, complete with their crest of three Moor’s heads, not the Norse/Gaels from Ireland or Lewis/Harris. 
According to Moody (1988, p19) surnames only became fixed in the Highlands in the eighteenth century. Donaldson clearly makes the point that surnames are not an infallible guide to family relationship and pedigree: “The distinction between a Highland and Lowland origin has often been effaced when a Gaelic name has been translated into English... MacGille-mhoire becomes Morison which means that they are added to the host of unrelated patronymics spanning the whole country and with no affinity among them” (Gordon Donaldson quoted in “Scotland's History: Approaches and Reflections”, ed. James Kirk, Edinburgh, 1995, pp. 89-94). 
Therefore if these groups of Morrisons are so different in origin they really cannot be one clan. When discussing the clan badge below reference is made to an 1880 American work by Leonard Morrison. Given the nature and content of this work it is a reasonable assumption to suggest that it is his theory that has clouded the judgement of the Clan Morrison Society into believing all Morrisons descend from the Norse influence in Lewis. Whilst it is a fascinating account it lacks the overall sophistication of more recent academic research.
The importance of the inheritance law of primogeniture which had evolved by the thirteenth century (Fiona Watson, 1998, p116) became vital for feudal property owners and titled lairds because it gave a clear and unambiguous naming line. Previous to this, clan chiefs as such were not necessarily replaced by their own flesh and blood, and given the complexity of patronymic naming a person from a different family origin could take over. For example, on Lewis this meant a MacLeod could have taken over as a Morrison.
If this seems complicated for the upper echelons of Scottish society then it is even more so for the ever so ‘humble everyday Scot’. It is therefore at best tenuous to claim a family line deep into the times when ‘clans’ were developing and forming because of the shifting naming and heredity practices. The ‘humble everyday Scot’, usually illiterate, married on the basis of cohabitation and carrying a name based on any one of four possible derivations did not become readily traceable until the introduction of civil registration in 1855.
To make this complex picture even more intricate, consider the layer of “incomers” from far and wide who add to the mix. ‘Lewis’ Morrison legend claims Norse roots which is feasible because along with the Isles of Orkney, the Norwegians held suzerainty until 1469 (it was 1266 for the Hebrides). Some DNA researchers are keen to sell testing that shows this link. 
In reality all DNA testing can show is some level of breeding structure within defined areas, but one thing it will not show is a common Morrison “clan”, something we already know without DNA testing. So why do it?. How much better does it make you feel when a result shows you have some vague ethnic affinity with someone born 700 years ago but there are no intervening links to show what the lineage is? There are no ‘Norwegian Morrisons’, all the DNA tests might show is that in some time past there was an infusion of DNA from Nordic menfolk into the overall population, in just the same way Roman and Norman DNA found its way into population of the United Kingdom. Remember also that the Vikings settled in Normandy well before 1066. Norse origins can be found all over Europe. Hence the Normans also carried Norse genes into Britain in 1066.
The Morrison Clan Society of North America has a DNA project and has so far identified Morrisons who have participated with origins from all over Scotland, Ireland and the USA. The results show that there are people with the name Morrison who carry a variety of gene markers. It most certainly doesn’t establish a “Morrison Clan”. Quite the reverse, it establishes a heritability of markers from a variety of regions demonstrating there is no common Morrison gene. This strikes me as a bizarre use of DNA, an attempt by some to identify with all the folklore surrounding the Isle of Lewis, an issue of genealogy attempting to prove fable.
Conclusions about the name Morrison
 We can therefore draw the following conclusions:

There is no single Morrison clan as such because there is no common lineal descent line, but there is a common but unconnected Morrison name. The so called “Clan Morrison” to which many overseas Scots subscribe is really a large conglomerate of people who share a common name derived from a variety of linguistic and geographical subsets with no relational connection. The idea of a “clan” is a commercial artifact represented by one family who have been granted a ceremonial title ‘Chief’ by the Lord Lyon.
The name Morrison can be demonstrated to have come into use in Scotland from a diversity of geographical areas identified in this article such as the   West Coastal islands of Lewis and Skye, the Highlands of Sutherland, the Lowlands of Aberdeen, Fife or Perth, as well as England and Ireland.
The first record of the name Morrison in Scotland is in Fife in 1463.
The name Morrison can be derived from at least one of any four classes of Surname: (1) Place Names, (2) Patronymics, (3) Occupation, and (4) Personal Characteristics.
The name Morrison is about the 20th most popular surname in Scotland.
People interested in their Morrison family lineage can be reasonably sure of Scottish records that came into existence in 1855, reasonably unsure of documents before this date and certainly family researchers should not trust any family trees they have copied that go beyond their own known and recorded ancestors.

Spellings & Pronunciations

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Nationality & Ethnicity

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Famous People named Morrison

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Early Morrisons

These are the earliest records we have of the Morrison family.

Robert Morrison of Australia was born in 1786 to James Morrison and Kate Warren Morrison. He had siblings Robert William Brown Morrison, Jane Morrison, Elizabeth Morrison, James Morrison, James Morrison, Alfred Morrison, Ethel Jane Morrison, James Edgar Morrison, Jane Morrison, Alexander Morrison, James Morrison, Annie Morrison, James Morrison, John Morrison, Frederick Morrison, and James Edgar Morrison. Robert Morrison died at age 67 years old in 1853.
Jane Morrison of Australia was born in 1787, and died at age 87 years old in 1874.
Peter Morrison of Australia was born in 1787 to William Morrison and Annie Elsie (Mcrobert) Morrison. He had siblings Scott Morrison, Julia Morrison, Mary Kath Morrison, William Alfred Morrison, William Morrison, and Scott Morrison. Peter Morrison died at age 75 years old in 1862.
Anne Morrison of Australia was born in 1791, and died at age 75 years old in 1866.
Henry Morrison of Australia was born in 1794, and died at age 80 years old in 1874.
James Morrison of Australia was born in 1797 to John Morrison and Ann Morrison. He had siblings Ann Morrison and Elizabeth Morrison. James Morrison died at age 82 years old in 1879.
Jane Morrison of Australia was born in 1797 to Telford James Morrison and Mary Roy Morrison. Jane Morrison died at age 79 years old in 1876.
John Morrison of Australia was born in 1797, and died at age 78 years old in 1875.
Andrew Morrison of Pakenham Australia was born in 1799, and died at age 85 years old in 1884 in Pakenham.
Isabella Morrison of Australia was born in 1800 to Mcphall John Morrison and Agnes Morrison. Isabella Morrison died at age 70 years old in 1870.
Alex Morrison of Euroa Australia was born in 1800, and died at age 98 years old in 1898 in Euroa.
Margaret Morrison of Australia was born in 1801 to Robert Morrison and Margaret Sim Morrison. She had siblings Christina Morrison, Elizabeth Morrison, Robert Morrison, Euphemia Morrison, John Stewart Morrison, Ellen Morrison, Robert William Morrison, Margaret Jane Morrison, Mary Isabella Morrison, George Henry Morrison, Emily May Morrison, Castina Morrison, George Morrison, George Morrison, James Morrison, John Sims Morrison, and Euphemia Craig Morrison. Margaret Morrison died at age 62 years old in 1863.

Morrison Family Members

Surnames: Morrione - Morrows

Morrison Family Photos

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Morrison Family Tree

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Most Common First Names

Updated Morrison Biographies

Kathleen Olive Frances (Kearney) Morrison of Hawthorn, City of Boroondara County, VIC Australia was born on September 2, 1886 in Melbourne to Arthur James Kearney and Gertrude Alice (Gill) Kearney. She had siblings Edith Alice Kearney, Florence Marie Gertrude Kearney, Cecil John Kearney, and Ernest Arthur Stringer Kearney. She married Roy White Morrison in 1917, and had a child Neil White Morrison. Kathleen Morrison died at age 82 years old on February 22, 1969 in Hawthorn.
Reginald John Morrison of Nhill Australia was born on January 31, 1919 in Nhill Australia to Edward Silas Thomas Morrison and Elizabeth Willis Morrison. He had siblings Muriel Agnes Morrison and Robert Silas Morrison. Reginald Morrison died at age 93 years old on November 29, 2012 in Nhill, Hindmarsh Shire County, VIC 3418, Australia.
Thomas Otway Morrison of Nhill Australia was born on June 12, 1831 at Dumbarton, Dumnbartonshire, Scotland. He married Mary Hughan Hughan in 1851 at Free Presbyterian Church Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in Victoria. He also married Mary Ewing Morrison, and they had a child Thomas William Morrison. Thomas Morrison died at age 81 years old on August 4, 1912 at Perenna, Nhill, Victoria, Australia.
Marion (Clark) Morrison of Creswick, VIC Australia was born in 1897 in Dean, Hepburn Shire County to Mary Jane Walkin (Vanstone) Clark and William Clark. She had siblings Herbert Clark, Margaret Clark Beattie, Allan Clark, Dorothy Irene Clark, Ethel May Clark, William Harold Clark, and Edwin Thomas Clark. Marion Morrison died at age 86 years old on March 22, 1984 in Creswick.
Gioia Adele (Morrison) Begraft was in a relationship with Gioia (Ferrante) Begraft, and has a child Amber Lee (Begraft). Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Gioia Adele Pheonix Ferrante Morrison .
James Morrison was born on December 8, 1943, and died at age 77 years old on July 17, 2021. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember James Morrison.
Doris Katherine (Owen) Morrison
Doris Katherine (Owen) Morrison was born on May 2, 1934 in Halifax, Virginia United States to Gladys (Murphy), and had siblings William Irvin Owen and Ray Murphy Owen. Doris Morrison died at age 81 years old on May 1, 2016 in Pensacola, FL. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Doris Katherine (Owen) Morrison .
Violet Juanita (Morrison) Kenihan of Sale, Wellington Shire County, VIC Australia was born on June 5, 1910 in Traralgon, Latrobe City County, and died at age 92 years old on May 13, 2003 in Sale, Wellington Shire County.
Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison
Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison was born on November 22, 1936 in Biddeford, Maine United States to Helena May (Callan) Guiney and Jeremiah Robert "Jere" Guiney, and had siblings Jeremiah Robert Guiney, Philip Daniel Guiney Sr., Nancy Patrice (Guiney) Grant, and Catherine Helena (Guiney) Warner. She married John Thomas "Tom" Morrison on March 24, 1956, and they were married until John's death on January 18, 2005. She had a child Catherine Ann (Morrison) Lilienthal. Margaret Morrison died at age 79 years old on January 3, 2016 in Biddeford. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison.
Vera Mildred Eisenbach
Vera Mildred (Eisenbach) Morrison of Lakeside, Coos County, Oregon United States was born on January 8, 1900 in Pandora, Putnam County, OH, and died at age 71 years old on May 18, 1971 in Lakeside, Coos County, OR. Vera Morrison was buried at Sunset Memorial Park 63060 Millington Frontage Rd, in Coos Bay.
Anne Morrison was born to Ethel Mae (Longbon) Kranek. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Anne Ellen Kranek Morrison.
Judith (Hargett) Morrison of Wilmington, New Hanover County, NC was born on March 7, 1950, and died at age 54 years old on April 1, 2004 at 161 Lafayette St, in Wilmington, Pender County.
James Edward Morrison JR. was born on July 26, 1969 in Rutherfordton, North Carolina United States to Judith H Morrison and James Edward Morrison, and has a sister Michelle Blankenship. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember James Edward Morrison JR..
James Morrison of 161 Lafayette st, in Wilmington, North Carolina United States. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember James Edward Morrison.
Beverly Jean (Connors) Morrison was born to Morton D Connors and Norma Helen Connors, and has siblings Gary Douglas Connors, Ronald A. Connors, and Stephan A. Connors. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Beverly Jean (Connors) Morrison.
Clyde Leonard Morrison was born on August 20, 1884, and died at age 52 years old on March 4, 1937. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember clyde leonard morrison.
Nina (Morrison) Eason was born on March 3, 1933. Nina Eason was in a relationship with James L. Eason, and has children Curtis D Eason, Steve Eason, Mike Eason, and Susan Eason. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Nina Eason.
Elizabeth Ann (Peterson) Morrison was born in 1924 to Floyd Russell Peterson and Violet Peterson, and had siblings William Peterson, Ray Peterson, Russell Peterson, and Charles Peterson. She married Frank J Morrison, and they were married until Elizabeth's death on January 10, 1965. She also married Frank J Morrison on February 5, 1944 in Washington, District of Columbia County, District Of Columbia United States, and they were married until Elizabeth's death on January 10, 1965 in Fair Lawn, Bergen County, New Jersey United States. They had children Brian Peter Morrison, John Morrison, Ross Morrison, and Gary Ray Morrison.
Frank J Morrison of Ocala, Marion County, FL was born on October 3, 1923 in Huntington, Suffolk County, New York United States, and died at age 76 years old on October 10, 1999 in Ocala, Marion County, FL. Frank Morrison was buried at Good Shepherd Memorial Gardens 5050 SW 20th St, in Ocala.
Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Lynda Lyness.

Popular Morrison Biographies

Mary Ann (Morrison) Steeples
Mary Ann Morison (always spelled with one 'R') was born October 20, 1847 in New Haven, No. Leith Parish, Scotland. She was born to Andrew Low Morison and Hellen "Ellen" Simpson Doig. At the time of her birth, her father Andrew was a grocer in New Haven. New Haven was a small 'burgh' near the port of Leith, Scotland. Her family is listed in the 1851 Scottish Census: Living at #3 Maitland St., New Haven, North Leith; living in household: Line: 9 Roll: CSSCT1851_187 Household Members: Name Age Andrew Morrison 36 Grocer Helen Morrison 35 Andrewina Morrison 9 Helen Morrison 7 Mary Ann Morrison 4 Jean ( Jane) Morrison 2 Sarah Galloway 14 yr old servant Burnistland, Fife Andrew's brother, John, was listed at Maitland Place, No. Leith, with his family in the Scottish 1841 census. In 1855 the family emigrated to Melbourne, Australia. Several of Mary Ann's maternal uncles had previously gone to Australia as the building business was booming there at that time. Unassisted Immigration to Victoria, Australia Index of Inward Passenger Lists for British, Foreign and New Zealand Ports 1852-1923 Family Name First Name Age Month Year Ship Port Fiche Page MORRISON ANDREW 39 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON HELEN 38 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON ANDREWINA 12 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON HELEN 9 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON MARY ANN 6 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON JANE 4 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 MORRISON ROBERT 2 APR 1855 VENILIA B 091 001 In 1858 the family was living on Patrick St., Hobart, Tasmania Tasmania Directory 1866 MORRISON, Andrew St. John Street , Launceston, Tasmania Also in 1866, the family lost their only son, Robert Wilson Hedderick Morison. Robert died from "irritation of the brain" on December 14, and was buried in the Presbyterian Scotch Cemetery - High Street, Launceston The Morison family were in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia until 1868, when they returned to Edinburgh, Scotland. Mary Ann's sister, Andrewina Morison, remained to marry Henry Heald, Jr. The couple had 9 children, and Andrewina died in 1891 in Launceston, Tasmania. The family resided at #22 St. John Place when they settled back in Edinburgh, which is located off the 'Royal Mile'. Mary Ann's father Andrew, at that time, was noted as a 'Vinter of Spirits' ...his brother John Morison was a licensed dealer with 18 employees at that time, so it may be that Andrew worked with his brother. Mary Ann's father died in December, 1871, and Mary Ann moved into her own apartment at 15 Bristow St., Edinburgh. It was around this time that Mary Ann met her future husband, Francis 'Frank' Oliphant Steeples. Marriage Certificate: Name: Francis Steeples Marriage Date: 8 May 1872 Marriage Place: Edinburgh Parish,Edinburgh,Midlothian,Scotland Spouse: Mary Ann Morison FHL Film Number: 6035516 Marriage cert from GRO in Edinburgh (# 74266) Mary Ann is listed as a 'spinster at time of marriage, with usual residence "15 Bristow St." Edinburgh. Father, Andrew Morison, listed as deceased 'joiner' at time of Mary Ann's marriage, and mother listed as Hellen Doig Morison. Minister listed as an R.R. Robertson, witness's names: 'J. Morison and and 'T. Grant, the other is David Steeples, brother to Francis. The night of their marriage, the couple boarded a ship to America. Per marriage license, Francis' father and mother were both deceased at the time of his marriage. His father, William, was a house painter, and his mother was listed as Isabella Oliphant Steeples. At time of marriage, address was given as "10 Society St., Edinburgh".
John Wayne - Marion Robert Morrison
John Wayne - Marion Robert Morrison was born on May 26, 1907. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember John Wayne - Marion Robert Morrison.
Jessie G Morrison was born on December 27, 1920 in Seattle, Washington, USA to parents John Morrison (1867-1925) and Minnie Millington (1879-1926). She had siblings Kenneth Elwood Morrison (1900-1968), James Henry Morrison (1901-1957), Ethel Minnie Morrison (1904-1985), Nellie B Morrison (1906-1989), Robert Millington Morrison (1910-1968), Lorena Lavinia Morrison (1914-1916), and Donald J Morrison (1917-1972). Jessie married Leo Fred Sicklebower (1918-2020) on August 7, 1943 in Seattle, King, Washington, USA. Together the couple had 3 children together Linda, Carol Ann, and Leo Jr "Sunny". Jessie and Fred were married until her death in 1986. She was an amazing woman, with a lot of friends, family who loved her - and miss her to this day. My sister and I (Linda) started a company named after her: Jessie Georgina. She was spirited, strong, independent and a leader.
Ella was born to Paul Teuber and Wilhemina (Mina) Carolina Muerrle Teuber 25 September 1898. Her parents were married 16 January 1898 in Manhattan New York. She had 1 sibling Gustave Louis Teuber
George Edward Morrison Sr was born on March 17, 1897 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey United States. He was in a relationship with Ella Pauline (Tueber) Morrison, and had children Dorothy May (Morrison) Stagg and Bernice L Van Horn. George Morrison died at age 71 years old on May 29, 1968 in Passaic, Passaic County. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember George Edward Morrison Sr.
Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Diane Morrison.
Vera Mildred Eisenbach
Vera Mildred (Eisenbach) Morrison of Lakeside, Coos County, Oregon United States was born on January 8, 1900 in Pandora, Putnam County, OH, and died at age 71 years old on May 18, 1971 in Lakeside, Coos County, OR. Vera Morrison was buried at Sunset Memorial Park 63060 Millington Frontage Rd, in Coos Bay.
Elizabeth (Morrison) Mounts
Elizabeth (Morrison) Mounts was born on August 21, 1964 in Saint Albans, Kanawha County, West Virginia United States to Jerry (Morrison) Morrison and Nancy (Winter) Morrison. She married Kevin D Mounts at Court house in Birmingham, AL, and they were married until Kevin's death on March 25, 2010 at 145 Davis street, in Huntington, Cabell County, WV. She had a child Megan Jo Mounts. Elizabeth Mounts died at age 55 years old on December 7, 2019 in Huntington, Cabell County, WV. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Elizabeth (Morrison) Mounts.
Thomas D Morrison
Thomas D Morrison was born on February 14, 1860. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Thomas D Morrison.
Betty Jane Ellison was born on May 14, 1932 in Illinois to parents William Ellison (born 1930) and Fannie Mae Deberry (1907-1952). She had a sister, Alice Viola Ellison (1934-1987). They grew up and lived in Chicago, Cook, Illinois. On July 21, 1950 she married LC Morrison (1930-1987) in Cook County, IL. They had daughters together, Jacquelyn and Katherine Morrison. She was also married to Rufus Jenkins and they had a son together, Rufus B Jenkins Jr (1956-2014)
Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison
Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison was born on November 22, 1936 in Biddeford, Maine United States to Helena May (Callan) Guiney and Jeremiah Robert "Jere" Guiney, and had siblings Jeremiah Robert Guiney, Philip Daniel Guiney Sr., Nancy Patrice (Guiney) Grant, and Catherine Helena (Guiney) Warner. She married John Thomas "Tom" Morrison on March 24, 1956, and they were married until John's death on January 18, 2005. She had a child Catherine Ann (Morrison) Lilienthal. Margaret Morrison died at age 79 years old on January 3, 2016 in Biddeford. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Margaret Ellen (Guiney) Morrison.
Nancy Hope (Mason) Morrison of Brighton Australia was born in 1903 in Shepparton, Victoria, and died at age 70 years old on October 23, 1974 in Brighton, City of Bayside County, VIC. Nancy Morrison was buried at Springvale Botanical Cemetery 600 Princes Hwy, in Springvale, City of Greater Dandenong County.
Nancy Morrison died in 2000 in Saint Albans, Kanawha County, West Virginia United States. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Nancy (Winter) Morrison.
Jerry Morrison was in a relationship with Nancy (Winter) Morrison, and has a child Elizabeth (Morrison) Mounts. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Jerry (Morrison) Morrison.
L C Morrison was born on June 4, 1930 in Kemper Co, Mississippi, USA. He is the son of Melvin Morrison (born 1893) and Cornelia Anderson (born 1900) with older siblings Jean, Lucy, Vera, and PH as well as younger siblings Delmon and Pencola Morrison. They grew up living in Moscow, Kemper, Mississippi. He married Betty Jane Ellison (1932-1982) on July 21, 1950 in Cook County, IL. The couple lived in Chicago, IL and had daughters Jacqueline and Katherine Ellison.
Monte Ray Morrison was born on June 23, 1959, and died at age 53 years old on August 3, 2012. Monte Morrison was buried at Miramar National Cemetery Section 9 Site 400 5795 Nobel Drive, in San Diego, Ca. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Monte Ray Morrison.
Robert Morrison
Robert J Morrison was born on April 8, 1866. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Robert Morrison.
Margery Ross (Campbell-Morrison) Ower of Pinelands, Cape Town County, Western Cape South Africa was born on December 29, 1922 in Cockermouth, Cumberland County United Kingdom, and died at age 77 years old on October 26, 2000 in Pinelands, Cape Town County.
Robert Francis Morrison was born in 1918. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Robert Francis Morrison.
Joyce B Morrison
Joyce B Morrison of 15415 Elk River Mills Rd, in Athens, Limestone County, Alabama USA was born on February 21, 1942 in Tennessee United States, and died at age 67 years old on July 7, 2009 at AL-251, in Athens, AL. Joyce Morrison was buried circa July 9, 2009 at Prospect cemetary in Prospect, Giles County, TN.

Morrison Death Records & Life Expectancy

The average age of a Morrison family member is 71.0 years old according to our database of 48,529 people with the last name Morrison that have a birth and death date listed.

Life Expectancy

71.0 years

Oldest Morrisons

These are the longest-lived members of the Morrison family on AncientFaces.

Herman W Morrison of Imperial, Imperial County, CA was born on February 8, 1885, and died at age 113 years old on March 23, 1998.
113 years
Mary Morrison of Chicago, Cook County, Illinois was born on December 7, 1870, and died at age 110 years old in December 1980.
109 years
Gertrude M Morrison of West Roxbury, Suffolk County, MA was born on July 28, 1884, and died at age 108 years old on October 12, 1992.
108 years
Linnie A Morrison of Globe, Gila County, AZ was born on June 11, 1883, and died at age 107 years old on April 14, 1991.
107 years
Eva M Morrison of Haworth, Bergen County, NJ was born on July 25, 1891, and died at age 107 years old on April 11, 1999.
107 years
Ella B Morrison was born on November 12, 1883, and died at age 107 years old on January 21, 1991. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Ella B Morrison.
107 years
Esther L Morrison of Abington, Plymouth County, MA was born on July 30, 1896, and died at age 107 years old on January 10, 2004.
107 years
Hazel A Morrison of San Jose, Santa Clara County, CA was born on November 22, 1890, and died at age 107 years old on February 2, 1998.
107 years
Gertrude E Morrison of Tucson, Pima County, AZ was born on April 7, 1897, and died at age 108 years old on April 8, 2005.
108 years
Lillian G Morrison of Mayville, Chautauqua County, NY was born on September 27, 1904, and died at age 106 years old on March 24, 2011.
106 years
Ada Morrison of Pollok, Angelina County, Texas was born on December 6, 1902, and died at age 106 years old on November 9, 2009.
106 years
Charlotte M Morrison of Lakewood, Los Angeles County, CA was born on January 4, 1892, and died at age 106 years old on August 8, 1998.
106 years
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Doris Morrison married and worked at a shirt factory in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania and had 4 children married to William D. Eck.
My Great Great Grandfather REV SIMPSON GABRIEL MORRISON was born about 1813 in I think Co DOWN NORTHERN IRELAND.

About 1835 he started his PRESBYTERIAN Ministry in First ARMAGH Presbyterian Church.Northern Ireland.

In 1845 he moved to DUBLIN and became minister of PLUNKETT STREET Presbyterian Church where he stayed until PLUNKETT STREET chuuch united with one of the other churches in the city.

Simpson married a CATHERINE (Nee HANBIDGE) and they must have had a big family as they were known to have 80 grandchildren.

I wonder if there are any of his Great Great Grandchildren around somewhere.

There was ELIZABETH MORRISON who married Henry Godden,
CATHERINE MORRISON who married JOHN ANGUS
ADA MORRISON Whe Married Rev Dr William Corbett TAIT
JOHN HANBIDGE MORRISON
BENJAMIN MORRISON,
SIMPSON GABRIEL MORRISON (junior)

I wonder were there others? Can you help.

Please contact me.

Thanks, Heather
Around 1952 there was an Indian wrestler who was known as "Don Eagle",who we all watched on TV.Don Eagle had what we would to day call a Mohawk hair cut. My brother William got his hair cut this way(he was only 10 years old). Strange stuff in 1952.Down the street from our house was an Elks Club that marched in all of the local parades.They took my brother,now almost always called Eagle,as their mascot.When the Elks marched in local parades their competiton was a club known as the Eagles.And yet the Elks had "the Eagle".Everyone from then on until his death in 1988 knew my brother as EAGLE. Except in Pittsburgh we all say Iggle.

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