Cunningham
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Cunningham Surname Genealogy
The Scots name Cunningham was derived from the place-name Cunninghame in northern Ayrshire. There are many different theories as to the origin of Cunninghame.
Scotland. A Cunningham family can trace their ancestry back to Wernebald, a vassal of the Norman nobleman Hugh de Morville, who obtained the manor of Cunningham from his feudal superior in the early 12th century. One story has the Cunninghams appearing earlier, at the time of Macbeth. The first recorded spelling of the name was Richard de Cunningham in 1210. Alexander Cunningham was made Lord Kilmaurs and the first Earl of Glencairn in the late 15th century and assumed Finlaystone castle as the family seat.
The early history was full of clan warfare, in particular against the Montgomeries. The Montgomeries destroyed clan Cunningham's Kerelaw castle in 1488 and their feud continued for the next two centuries. The Cunninghams were Royalist during the English Civil War and British Government supporters during the Jacobite uprising. It was Captain Cunningham who commanded the British artillery at Culloden which fired grapeshot at the advancing Jacobites.
Some Ulster Cunninghams acquired their surnames differently. There had been a small sept of MacDonegan in county Down, one of whom, John Donegan or MacDonnegan, was Bishop of Down from 1395 to 1412. The spelling of this surname got corrupted in some cases to Cunningham in imitation of the Scottish settlers. However, their pronunciation was closer to "Cuineagan." The Cunningham name also cropped up in the Connacht counties of Galway and Roscommon. Their original Gaelic forms were O'Cunnigan and MacCuinneagain, which became as well Cunningham.
The Scottish influx, together with a considerable number of Irish Cunninghams, made the Cunningham surname common and widespread throughout Ireland.
America. John Cunningham had come to Virginia in 1681 from Scotland seeking religious freedom. Robert Cunningham of this family moved to South Carolina in 1769 and became a wealthy plantation owner. He was a Loyalist during the Revolutionary War, lost his lands, and departed for the Bahamas. William Cunningham, known as "Bloody Bill" for his rough fighting on behalf of the British, was deported to Cuba. Another brother Patrick was able to stay and his descendants held the Rosemont plantation until 1930 when it burned down.
Cunninghams in America are more likely to be Irish than Scottish in origin. Early Cunninghams have included:
Robert Cunningham from county Tyrone in Ireland set out for the Canadian West Coast in 1862 as a missionary for the Anglican Church Missionary Society. He became an entrepreneur there and founded the town of Port Essington in British Columbia. Another Robert Cunningham, although this time from Scotland, arrived in Canada in 1868 and also headed west, to Manitoba. He ran a local newspaper in Winnipeg, the Manitoban, and became involved in the local politics.
Another Scot, Andrew Cunningham, had bought land along the Murrumbidgee river in NSW in 1848 and his family raised sheep there. His grand homestead there, Lanyon House, was the center of a large sheep-raising enterprise. The colorful story of this family was told in Jennifer Horsfield's 2004 book Mary Cunningham, an Australian Life.
Select Cunningham Miscellany
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William Cunningham was briefly Lord High Treasurer of Scotland in 1526.
John Cunningham was an 18th century Irish actor, playwright and poet.
Sir Arthur Browne Cunningham (ABC) served as Commander in Chief of the British Mediterranean fleet during the Second World War.
Merce Cunningham was an American dancer and choreographer, considered one of the greatest creative forces in American modern dance of the late 20th century.
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The Scots name Cunningham was derived from the place-name Cunninghame in northern Ayrshire. There are many different theories as to the origin of Cunninghame.
Select
Cunningham Resources on
The
Internet
- Cunningham Clan. Cunningham clan website.
- Clan Cunningham Society of America. US Cunningham clan website.
- Cunningham Family. Cunningham genealogy.
- The Cunningham Family. Cunninghams from Ireland to Pennsylvania.
- The Cunningham Family. Pioneers of Washington county, Tennessee.
Scotland. A Cunningham family can trace their ancestry back to Wernebald, a vassal of the Norman nobleman Hugh de Morville, who obtained the manor of Cunningham from his feudal superior in the early 12th century. One story has the Cunninghams appearing earlier, at the time of Macbeth. The first recorded spelling of the name was Richard de Cunningham in 1210. Alexander Cunningham was made Lord Kilmaurs and the first Earl of Glencairn in the late 15th century and assumed Finlaystone castle as the family seat.
The early history was full of clan warfare, in particular against the Montgomeries. The Montgomeries destroyed clan Cunningham's Kerelaw castle in 1488 and their feud continued for the next two centuries. The Cunninghams were Royalist during the English Civil War and British Government supporters during the Jacobite uprising. It was Captain Cunningham who commanded the British artillery at Culloden which fired grapeshot at the advancing Jacobites.
James Cunningham, the 14th Earl, was a great
supporter and friend of the poet Robbie Burns. A Cunningham
family who lived near the Burns establishment in Dumfriesshire
contained two men who became poets, Thomas and Allan, and their brother
Peter who became a naval surgeon.
The 1891 census showed the Cunningham name mainly in Ayrshire and
neighboring Lanarkshire. The numbers at that time probably
included many Irish
Cunninghams in Glasgow.
Some Ulster Cunninghams acquired their surnames differently. There had been a small sept of MacDonegan in county Down, one of whom, John Donegan or MacDonnegan, was Bishop of Down from 1395 to 1412. The spelling of this surname got corrupted in some cases to Cunningham in imitation of the Scottish settlers. However, their pronunciation was closer to "Cuineagan." The Cunningham name also cropped up in the Connacht counties of Galway and Roscommon. Their original Gaelic forms were O'Cunnigan and MacCuinneagain, which became as well Cunningham.
The Scottish influx, together with a considerable number of Irish Cunninghams, made the Cunningham surname common and widespread throughout Ireland.
America. John Cunningham had come to Virginia in 1681 from Scotland seeking religious freedom. Robert Cunningham of this family moved to South Carolina in 1769 and became a wealthy plantation owner. He was a Loyalist during the Revolutionary War, lost his lands, and departed for the Bahamas. William Cunningham, known as "Bloody Bill" for his rough fighting on behalf of the British, was deported to Cuba. Another brother Patrick was able to stay and his descendants held the Rosemont plantation until 1930 when it burned down.
Cunninghams in America are more likely to be Irish than Scottish in origin. Early Cunninghams have included:
- Thomas Cunningham who came to America from county Donegal in Ireland around 1737 and settled in Frederick county, Virginia. His descendants emigrated west to Ohio in the early 1800's.
- James Cunningham, also Scots Irish, who came with his brothers to
Virginia in 1752. James settled in Augusta county and died there
in 1763. His sons held land in Beverley manor. Later
Cunninghams of this family were Presbyterian pioneers in Washington
county, Tennessee. Dr. Samuel Blair Cunningham of
this family led the building of the East Tennessee and Virginia
Railroad.
- another Scots Irish was Barnett Cunningham who came from
Ulster province
and settled in York county, Pennsylvania sometime in the 1750's.
His son Barnett was the first ruling elder in the Tyrone Presbyterian
Church in nearby Cumberland county.
- meanwhile William Cunningham who had come to Albemarle county,
Virginia in 1785 as a young boy, married there, and brought his family
to Kentucky in 1818. His grave at the Cunningham cemetery in
Twigg county is marked by a twelve foot monument erected by his
descendants in 1936. The family genealogy has been covered in
Bertie Gingles' 1957 book History
and Genealogy of William Cunningham.
Canada. Cunningham's Inn had become a well-known establishment in Gloucester township near Ottawa by the 1830's, being a stop on the passing stagecoach route. It was run by John Cunningham from Ireland and his wife Catherine.
Robert Cunningham from county Tyrone in Ireland set out for the Canadian West Coast in 1862 as a missionary for the Anglican Church Missionary Society. He became an entrepreneur there and founded the town of Port Essington in British Columbia. Another Robert Cunningham, although this time from Scotland, arrived in Canada in 1868 and also headed west, to Manitoba. He ran a local newspaper in Winnipeg, the Manitoban, and became involved in the local politics.
Australia. The first
Cunningham in Australia was a bit of a firebrand. Phillip
Cunningham, a veteran of the Irish rebellion in 1798 and the mutiny of
the convict transport ship Ann, led a convict rebellion against
the British colonial authority in Australia. The mutiny was
eventually put down and Cunningham was executed.
Peter Miller Cunningham from Dumfries in Scotland was a surgeon and
supervisor on convict ships. He wrote a highly informative
account of convict life in Australia in his 1827 book Two Years in New South Wales.
Another Scot, Andrew Cunningham, had bought land along the Murrumbidgee river in NSW in 1848 and his family raised sheep there. His grand homestead there, Lanyon House, was the center of a large sheep-raising enterprise. The colorful story of this family was told in Jennifer Horsfield's 2004 book Mary Cunningham, an Australian Life.
Select Cunningham Miscellany
If you would like to read more, click on the miscellany page for
further stories and accounts:
Select Cunningham Names
William Cunningham was briefly Lord High Treasurer of Scotland in 1526.
John Cunningham was an 18th century Irish actor, playwright and poet.
Sir Arthur Browne Cunningham (ABC) served as Commander in Chief of the British Mediterranean fleet during the Second World War.
Merce Cunningham was an American dancer and choreographer, considered one of the greatest creative forces in American modern dance of the late 20th century.
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