In 2007 a Senior United States Congressman was in Lismore to see for himself the place from which two branches of his family left in the late 1700s to settle in North Carolina. Douglas Carmichael McIntyre 2, known as Mike, was visiting Argyll with fellow congressmen as part of the Friends of Scotland Caucus which promotes links between the two countries.
U S Congressman Douglas Carmichael McIntyre 2, (Mike) with wife Dee
Mike and his wife Dee visited first the Livingstones of Bachuil, where they were shown the Staff of St Moluag, and later the Parish church where they privately renewed their wedding vows remembering their ancestors who had worshipped and married there before them.
The Bachuil, they told me, put them in touch with the beginnings of the strong Christian faith the Carmichaels and MacIntyres (McIntyres) had taken to North Carolina where they had started Presbyterian churches, one of which his family still attends.
With Donnie and Iris MacColl
The museum filled in yet more blanks with its portrayal of the lives of Liosaich through the centuries, so, when they visited Achinduin, the stronghold of the MacIntyres, they were delighted to meet Donnie and Iris MacColl, and Mike was able to see the last house occupied by MacIntyres and walk the land his ancestors had worked.
Before catching the afternoon ferry they visited Lismore School and met the pupils including a possible descendant, Aileen Carmichael.
At the school
Mike’s constituency, North Carolina’s 7th district, included the largest number of Scottish-American descendants in the United States. In office, he co-founded the Friends of Scotland caucus and was the original sponsor of the unanimously passed H.Res. 41 “Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a day should be established as National Tartan Day to recognize the outstanding achievements and contributions made by Scottish-Americans to the United States.”
His other notable achievement was in 2008 when he helped rescue Scottish literature and poetry after the Library of Congress had made changes to its world renowned classification system, removing 40 headings and subheadings for Scottish writing and placing this body of work under the English classification. This was a major cultural crime and academics, writers, government ministers and many others were outraged. Both First Minister Alex Salmond and Linda Fabiani, the Minister of Culture in Edinburgh, lobbied McIntyre while he was visiting the country and, thanks to a few phone calls, the changes were reversed by the Librarian of Congress, James H. Billington, who sent a letter to the National Library of Scotland. Apologising, I hope, but I haven’t seen it.
As a token of gratitude, the Scottish Parliament passed a motion (S4M-10778) on December 8, 2014 at the First Minister’s request, recognizing McIntyre’s contributions to Scotland’s relationship with the United States and congratulating him on his retirement from Congress.
All in all an interesting descendant.