The Beginning

When I was 8 years old we (Mom, Dad and I) went to the grave of my Dad's Dad. Grandpa was buried in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as he was a veteran of the Spanish - American War. The name on his tombstone was Albert Olin Stewart. Note his last name. My last name is Stuart. So I asked Dad why I did not have my grandfather's last name. Dad said that Grandpa had done ancestry research and determined that he was a direct descent of Mary Queen of Scots. As her last name was Stuart he arbitrarily changed his last name to match her's. As he never legally changed his last name the military buried him under his legal name - Stewart. Legal name being determined by his birth certificate. My father's birth certificate and mine have our last names as Stuart. So those are our legal names. Hence the difference.

No one ever found any research documentation that supported Grandpa's claim. Dad said Grandpa enjoyed a good story and could be loose with the truth. Dad strongly doubted Grandpa's claim and that he had done any research.

This blog is to document my research into my grandfather's claim. I suspect Dad was correct but my curiosity is up and I have time to do some research. My process will be to see what I can find on my grandfather. I do not know much about him or how his undocumented name change will impact my efforts.

I will also track Mary's lineage. That should be easier initially but more difficult as the time line moves further from her.

Ideally those two lineage will intersect. We shall see.