Show ContentsBoyne History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

In Scottish history, few names go farther back than Boyne, whose ancestors lived among the clans of the Pictish tribe. The ancestors of the Boyne family lived in the lands of Boyne, near Portsoy in Banffshire since very early times. Translating from the Gaelic, the name means dweller by the river Boyne.

Early Origins of the Boyne family

The surname Boyne was first found in Banffshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Bhanbh), former Scottish county located in the northeasterly Grampian region of Scotland, now of divided between the Council Areas of Moray and Aberdeenshire, where they held a family seat in the ancient thanedom of Boyne near Portsoy in that shire.

Early History of the Boyne family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Boyne research. Another 128 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1556, 1577, 1591, 1613, 1690, 1750 and 1810 are included under the topic Early Boyne History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Boyne Spelling Variations

Although Medieval Scotland lacked a basic set of spelling rules, which meant that scribes recorded names according to their sounds it was not uncommon for the names of a father and son to be recorded differently. As a result, there are many spelling variations of Scottish single names. Boyne has been written Boyne, Boyn, Boynd and others.

Early Notables of the Boyne family

Notable amongst the Clan at this time was

  • Frank Boyne, killed in the first World War

Ireland Migration of the Boyne family to Ireland

Some of the Boyne family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Boyne migration to the United States +

Thousands of Scots left their home country to travel to Ireland or Australia, or to cross the Atlantic for the North American colonies. The difficult crossing was an enormous hurdle, but those who survived found freedom and opportunity in ample measure. Some Scots even fought for their freedom in the American War of Independence. This century, their ancestors have become aware of the illustrious history of the Scots in North America and at home through Clan societies and other organizations. Passenger and immigration lists show many early and influential immigrants bearing the name Boyne:

Boyne Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • John Boyne, who arrived in Maryland in 1658 [1]
  • Rich Boyne, who arrived in Virginia in 1662 [1]
  • Daniell Boyne, who landed in America in 1679 [1]
Boyne Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Michael Boyne, aged 31, who landed in Missouri in 1840 [1]
  • Phillip Boyne, who landed in New York in 1846 [1]
  • Bernard Boyne, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1848 [1]
  • Benjm Boyne, aged 33, who landed in New York in 1862 [1]
  • Patrick Boyne who arrived in Philadelphia in 1874

Canada Boyne migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Boyne Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Alex Boyne U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1783 [2]
  • Mr. James Boyne U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1783 [2]
Boyne Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Boyne, aged 3 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Bee" departing 17th April 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 12th June 1847 but he died on board [3]

Australia Boyne migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Boyne Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Boyne (post 1700) +

  • Walter J. Boyne (1929-2020), United States Air Force officer, combat veteran, aviation historian, former director of the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution
  • Thomas Boyne (1849-1896), American soldier, recipient of the Medal of Honor for actions in the Indian Wars of the western United States
  • Peter Boyne (b. 1944), former Australian Rules Footballer
  • Henry Boyne (b. 1910), Political Correspondent of the Daily Telegraph
  • John Boyne (b. 1971), Irish novelist

HMS Repulse
  • Mr. Peter Boyne, British Ordnance Artificer 5th Class, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking [8]


  1. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  2. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  3. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 65)
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
  5. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CONSTANCE 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Constance.htm
  6. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LYSANDER 1850. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1850Lysander.htm
  7. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The barque OREGON, 521 tons - 1851 voyage to South Australia. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1851Oregon.htm
  8. HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html


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