Edgerston lies near Jedburgh in Roxburghshire, Scotland. For nearly five centuries the Rutherfurds held the barony against rival claimants, notably the Stewarts of Traquair descended from Katherine Rutherfurd, niece of Thomas Rutherfurd and ancestress of the Earls of Traquair. The family tenure ended when William Edward Oliver-Rutherfurd sold Edgerston in 1915 and emigrated to Kenya, closing a lairdship of almost 500 years.
Generation 1
1. Thomas Rutherfurd, Lord of Edgerston
(c.1460 – 1517)
Thomas was the third son and eventual heir of James Rutherfurd. He should have inherited his father’s entire estate, as everything was supposed to go to the male heir; however, his nieces Helen and Katherine Rutherfurd had politically powerful husbands and were able to wrest away the bulk of the estate. Thomas and his descendants struggled long to keep Edgerston.
On 26 November 1514 Thomas seemed to triumph when he received sasine of Edgerston, Hownam, Capehope, Browndown, ten librates in Maxton, and the patronage of Bedrule, Rutherford and Wells. Victory eluded him, and all except Edgerston eventually went to his niece Katherine Rutherfurd Stewart. Katherine is the ancestress of the Earls of Traquair through her marriage to Sir James Stewart of Traquair. Disputes between the Traquair Stewarts and the Edgerston Rutherfurds continued until Katherine’s grandson and Thomas Rutherfurd’s true heir, Thomas’s grandson, reached a settlement in 1560.
Thomas was “on the horn” for killing Patrick Hepburn on 13 May 1501. For distinguished services at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1485, King James IV of Scotland made Patrick Hepburn, Lord Hailes, Earl of Bothwell; Hepburn was at that time described as the rightful male heir to the estate of James Rutherfurd. Thomas lost his inherited lands at Over and Nisbet to Walter Ker of Cessford as punishment. His connection to the house of Erskine is also recorded. He served as bailie for Sir Patrick Home of Polwarth after 16 September 1503.
Generation 2
2. Robert Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(c.1490 – died before October 1544)
Robert occupied Edgerston in March 1525. Again the rightful heir was opposed by the Stewarts of Traquair, who held all of the former Rutherfurd lands and still wanted Edgerston. In 1536 Robert, with massive support from kinsmen, defended Edgerston against the Regent of Scotland and Walter Ker of Cessford. Somehow Edgerston remained in Robert’s hands, although his kin who helped him got into trouble; in November 1538 the Rutherford Lairds of Hunthill and Hundalee were accused of aiding Robert and his accomplices.
Robert was alive in July 1541 when his cousin William Stewart was given the whole ancient lordship of Rutherford, including Edgerston, then occupied by Robert. He defended Edgerston from Walter Ker of Cessford and was declared outlaw. During his lifetime the ancestral village of Rutherford was spoiled by Henry VIII in July 1544 and destroyed on 6 September 1544; the rest of the village was burnt, razed and cast down between 9 and 13 September 1544.
Generation 3
3. Richard Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(c.1520 – 1600)
Richard headed the Edgerston family for half a century and succeeded by 29 October 1544, when as “lord of Ruy’furd” he subscribed a bond to Henry VIII. His father and grandfather had struggled to keep Edgerston and the estate was still disputed by the Traquair Stewarts. At last, on 12 January 1560, Richard received a charter of the barony of Edgerston, Browndown and Capehope from Stewart, whose gift of the sasine of the tower and lands of Edgerston followed on 27 May 1560.
In company with seven kinsmen, “Rechart Rutherfurd of Edzerston” signed with his own hand a bond of manrent to Archibald Earl of Angus on Christmas Day 1574. According to a manuscript history in the Edgerston muniments he married “Bitty” (Elizabeth), sister of John Rutherford II “the Cock” of Hunthill.
Generation 4
4. Thomas Rutherfurd “the Black Laird” of Edgerston
(c.1550 – 1615)
The Black Laird gained his nickname from his swarthy complexion and black hair. He was “a man of restless disposition and marauding habits”. Thomas’s ability was well known in tradition, and the Scottish victory at the Reidswire in 1575 is said to be due to his timely arrival on the field of battle. He married Jean Elliot.
During the Battle of the Reidswire at Carter Bar in July 1575 a force led by Thomas Rutherfurd was able to defeat the English force and capture several of its officers, among them Sir John Forster. Sir John was made prisoner and taken with several others to the Scottish Regent, the Earl of Morton, at Dalkeith, where he was kept for a few days before being sent home.
“The Rutherfords with great renown, Convoyed the town o’ Jedburgh out.”
Sir Walter Scott — from the old ballad The Raid o’ the Reidswire
Generation 5
5. Robert Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(c.1590 – 1659)
Robert Rutherfurd was served heir to his brother at Jedburgh Tolbooth on 5 September 1615 (sasine 17 July 1616); witnesses were Nicol and Robert, called his uncles, Thomas of Tofts and Gilbert in Edgerston, with the chiefs of Hunthill, Hundalee and Fairnington and three more kinsmen — John portioner of Nether Ancrum, Adam of Littleheuch bailie of Jedburgh, and William once Provost.
- m1. Marion Riddell (contract 26 October 1620)
- m2. Elizabeth Turnbull of Minto
Generation 6
6. John Rutherfurd, Lord of Edgerston
(c.1622 – 1681; other sources cite November 1686)
John married (contract 1643) Barbara Abernethy, daughter of John Abernethy, minister of Jedburgh and later Bishop of Caithness. Barbara brought a dowry of 10,000 marks. Barbara Abernethy died 1697.
Generation 7
7. Thomas Rutherfurd of Wells and Edgerston
(c.1650 – 1720)
Thomas succeeded after his brother Andrew Rutherfurd (1647–1718), who had succeeded to Edgerston but was incompetent and often in debt, died unmarried and left illegitimate children; Andrew’s will was disallowed because of the illegitimacy of his children.
Thomas added to the Rutherfurd land holdings by purchasing Hunthill and Scraisburgh in June 1703 from Robert Rutherford of Hunthill. Thomas also bought Bonjedward and Mountholly. When his brother’s will was disallowed, Thomas succeeded to Edgerston.
In 1695 Thomas built the centre part of the present house. It is unclear whether this incorporated or completely replaced the existing tower (c.1600); however, the initials of Thomas Rutherfurd and his wife are said to be carved into one of the dormer windows.
- m. Susanna Riddell, Edinburgh, 25 February 1681 (contract 15 February 1680–1)
- m. Catherine Nisbet
Generation 8
8. Sir John Rutherfurd of that ilk and Edgerston
(baptised 2 January 1687 – 9 January 1764)
Sir John Rutherfurd of that ilk and Edgerston was admitted advocate on 3 July 1707 and knighted in 1710, the first of his line to receive that honour for three centuries.
- m1. Elizabeth Cairncross, daughter and heiress of William Cairncross of Wester Langlee (married 1710)
- m2. Sarah Nisbet, daughter of Sir John Nisbet of Dean, Bart.
Generation 9
9. John Rutherfurd, M.P., younger of Edgerston
(12 April 1712 – 1758)
Sir John’s eldest surviving son predeceased his father. Born 12 April 1712, he died at the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga. He represented Selkirkshire in 1730 and Roxburghshire (Teviotdale) from 1734 to 1741 in Parliament.
Generation 10
10. John Rutherfurd of Edgerston, M.P.
(1748 – 1834)
Born at New York, John succeeded his grandfather Sir John Rutherfurd in 1764 when he was sixteen. John was a great benefactor to Edgerston. In 1793 he built the two wings with their Venetian windows and the semi-circular tower at the south side of the house.
In a letter written by his uncle Baron Robert Rutherfurd to his uncle Walter Rutherfurd, Fairnington, 28 October 1788: “Dear Walter, I want to send you a copy of the plan of the improvements that our nephew is making at Edgerston. He is putting on two wings at a cost of 3,000 and when it is completed it will be one of the finest seats in the Shire. His spouse continues to please us more and more, but I long for her to make a beginning in the way of increasing the family, but it will probably come with time.”
Fairnington, 26 November 1792: “Edgerston House by being repaired with additions is now one of the handsomest and most commodious of any in this county.”
John was a friend of Sir Walter Scott, who also lived near Jedburgh and who called him “The beau ideal of a country gentleman”. He married at Edinburgh on 11 June 1787 Mary Anne Leslie, daughter of Major General the Hon. Alexander Leslie, son of the fifth Earl of Leven. Sadly they had no children; he left Edgerston to his nephew William Oliver, son of his sister Jane Rutherfurd Oliver.
Generation 11
11. Jean [Jane] Rutherfurd and William Oliver of Dinlabyre
(d. June 1820)
Sister of John Rutherfurd of Edgerston and heiress of Edgerston mentioned in her father’s wills of 1753 and 1758. She married at Edinburgh on 31 March 1771 William Oliver of Dinlabyre in Liddesdale (1738–1830), Sheriff of Selkirk and later Roxburgh, son of William Oliver and Violet Douglas of Cavers.
Generation 12
12. William Oliver-Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(15 March 1781 – 1879)
Eldest son of Jane Rutherfurd and William Oliver, born at Weens. He was educated at Eton and Edinburgh University, called to the Scottish Bar on 5 July 1803, and succeeded to Dinlabyre (his father’s estate). On inheriting Edgerston from his uncle John in 1834 he added Rutherfurd to his last name. He was Sheriff of Roxburghshire for over sixty years. He married on 21 August 1804 Agnes Chatto, daughter of Alexander Chatto of Mainhouse.
John Rutherfurd entailed the barony of Edgerston upon his nephew William Oliver of Dinlabyre, who in consequence assumed the surname and arms of Rutherfurd when he succeeded in 1834. William Oliver-Rutherfurd thus inherited the chieftainship of Clan Rutherford and the lands of Edgerston from his uncle. He was the grandfather of Malcolm Brakspear Oliver-Rutherfurd, immigrant ancestor of the current chief of Clan Rutherford, Edward Charles Rutherfurd.
The final addition to Edgerston was the tower built by William Oliver-Rutherfurd in 1840.
Generation 13
13. William Alexander Oliver-Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(30 June 1818 – 3 November 1888)
Born at Knowsouth, he matriculated at Jesus College, Cambridge in 1838 and succeeded to Edgerston in 1879.
- m1. 1861, Margaret Jane Young, daughter of his cousin Edward Young
- m2. 1872, Mary Ann Brakspear, daughter of his cousin Ann Elizabeth Young and William Henry Brakspear of Henley, Oxford, England
William Alexander Oliver-Rutherfurd is the second cousin of both of his wives. His wives were first cousins. The common ancestor of these three cousins is William Oliver and Jane Rutherfurd.
Generation 14
14. William Edward Oliver-Rutherfurd of Edgerston
(1863 – 1931)
William Edward Oliver-Rutherfurd sold Edgerston in 1915 to Frederic Scott Oliver (not related) and emigrated to Kenya, ending a family tenure of nearly 500 years. He married on 29 April 1891 Nancy Pott, daughter of Gideon Pott. The descendants of William Edward Oliver-Rutherfurd live in Kenya, England, Spain and Australia. Later chiefs of Clan Rutherford in America descend through his brother Malcolm Brakspear Oliver-Rutherfurd (1875–1913), Arthur William Oliver-Rutherfurd (1906–1984), and Edward Charles Rutherfurd.
The Edgerston Rutherfurds were closely allied with the Rutherfords of Hunthill, Fairnington, Hundalee and other Roxburghshire cadets. Sir George Rutherford of Chatto, progenitor of the Hunthill line, married Janet Rutherfurd of Edgerston. Disputes with the Traquair Stewarts, the Kerrs of Cessford and the English crown shaped the early history of the barony; later lairds rebuilt Edgerston House into one of the finest seats in the county before the sale of 1915.
References
- Kenneth Rutherford Davis, The Rutherfords in Britain: A History and Guide, Alan Sutton Publishing, Gloucester, 1987, pages 27–47 (multiple primary source citations).
- Knight Frank & Rutley, Edgerston Estate real estate brochure, 1980.
- Family records of Deborah Rutherfurd Andrus.
- Clan Rutherfurd — Edgerston.
- WKR 1986, volume 1, pages 3, 5, 7, 9 and 17; volume 2, pages 802–807.