GORDON, John in Littlemill ¹

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  Research Notes:

JOHN GORDON OF LITTLEMILL


"JOHN. The 'Livetennand Colonell Gordon, brother to the Laird [of] Abirzeldie,' who in 1642 ''schippit' at Aberdeen men for Lord Argyll's regiment in France, as mentioned by Spalding (Troubles, II., 187), may be the John Gordon in Littlemill who had been in perpetual service with the rebels fighting at Inverlochie, Kilsyth and other battles first as captain, then as major and then as Lieut.-Colonel. He appeared before the General Assembly Commission at Aberdeen in May, 1647, and begged for pardon. There was a John Gordon in Littlemill in Ruthven son of Alexander Gordon of Cromellat and grandson of James Gordon, I. of Letterfourie. A John Gordon in Littlemill was excommunicated as a papist, Nov., 1643. A John Gordon in Littlemill was made a burgess of guild of Aberdeen on March 16, 1663, and similar honour fell to his son Patrick Gordon on Oct. 12, 1664." (Abergeldie)

So two John Gordons 'of little Mill', in the various forms of its name, one a grandson of James of Letterfourie, one a brother of Abergeldie. They were both descendants of George Gordon 2nd Earl of Huntly and his wife Elizabeth Hay: James of Letterfourie had a sister Agnes, and she, via the Ogilvy and Irvine marriages, was an ancestor of the Gordons of Abergeldie.

The History of the Troubles by John Spalding relates that on 16 May 1635
"John Gordon son to Littlemiln, John Gordon of Drumdelchy, and James Gordon son to Balarmy, fled, shipped at Cowsie over to Ross, to Caithness, and frae that forth of the kingdom, so ilk one of the rest fled and left the country."

The person was rose to be Lieutenant Colonel, and who fled, returned to Scotland, and begged for pardon, would seem to be the man who was the brother of Abergeldie. The reference to him in the Troubles places him immediately after a reference to James Gordon of Letterfourie, and both sets of Gordons had links ro Abernethy of Saltoun. Tenuous as it seems, it would appear the Abergeldie link is the more significant from the point of view of progeny and future accounts, so possibly the Letterfourie John of Littlemill had no offspring, and the designation passed to another branch of the Gordons, or the designation was taken over for other reasons, perhaps a sale of property. ^{2 3}