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McKechnie History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

McKechnie History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland

The ancestors of the McKechnie family come from the ancient Scottish kingdom of Dalriada. Their surname comes from /the personal names Eachan and Eochaidh. The Gaelic form of the name is usually Mac Eachainn, meaning son of Eachan. However, The surnames MacGeachie, MacGeachy, and MacKeachie are derived from the Irish surname Mag Eachaidh, an Ulster variant of Mag Eochadha, which means son of Eochaidh. 1

Early Origins of the McKechnie family

The surname McKechnie was first found in Knoydart, where they were a sept of the MacDonalds, descended from Hector (Gaelic Eachann,) second son of Roderick MacDonald, 3rd of Moydart and Clanranald. 2

Early History of the McKechnie family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McKechnie research. Another 94 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1686, 1694, 1711, 1715, 1745 and 1890 are included under the topic Early McKechnie History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McKechnie Spelling Variations

Medieval spelling was at best an intuitive process, and translation between Gaelic and English was no more effective. These factors caused an enormous number of spelling variations in Dalriadan names. In fact, it was not uncommon to see a father and son who spelled their name differently. Over the years, McKechnie has been spelled McEachan, McGeachan, McKechnie, McGeachie and many more.

Early Notables of the McKechnie family

Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McKechnie Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McKechnie Ranking

In the United States, the name McKechnie is the 14,827^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Migration of the McKechnie family to Ireland

Some of the McKechnie family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McKechnie migration to Canada +

Settlers from Scotland put down roots in communities all along the east coast of North America. Some moved north from the American colonies to Canada as United Empire Loyalists during the American War of Independence. As Clan societies and highland games started in North America in the 20th century many Scots rediscovered parts of their heritage. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name McKechnie were among those contributors:

McKechnie Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Arch McKechnie, who landed in Canada in 1821

McKechnie migration to Australia +

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

McKechnie Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Daniel McKechnie, Scottish convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 10 years, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 28th July 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4
Miss. Barbara McKechnie, Scottish convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 10 years, transported aboard the "Baretto Junior" on 5th April 1850, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
Mr. William Mckechnie, Scottish convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Equestrian" on 27th August 1852, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 6
Mary McKechnie, aged 22, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Admiral Boxer"

Contemporary Notables of the name McKechnie (post 1700) +

Donna McKechnie (b. 1940), American musical theater dancer, singer, actress, and choreographer
William Boyd McKechnie (1886-1965), American third baseman, manager and coach in Major League Baseball
William G. McKechnie, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Massachusetts 2nd District, 1910, 1912 7
Ian Hector McKechnie (1941-2015), Scottish footballer who played from 1958 to 1974 and managed Sligo Rovers in 1979
Thomas Sharp "Tommy" McKechnie (b. 1940), former Scottish footballer
James McKechnie (1826-1886), Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross
Christina "Licorice" McKechnie (b. 1945), Scottish singer and songwriter
Dame Sheila Marshall McKechnie (1948-2004), Scottish trade unionist, housing campaigner and consumer activist
Gilbert McKechnie (1845-1930), Scottish-born, Canadian merchant and politician in Ontario
Shirley Elizabeth McKechnie AO FAHA (1926-2022), née Gorman, an Australian dancer, choreographer, director and educator, born in Melbourne, awarded the Kenneth Myer Medallion for the Performing Arts in 1993, recipient of a lifetime achievement award at the Australian Dance Awards in 2001
... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the McKechnie family +

HMAS Sydney II

Mr. Glen Morton McKechnie (1922-1941), Australian Ordinary Seaman from Seacliff, South Australia, Australia, who sailed into battle aboard HMAS Sydney II and died in the sinking 8

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 23rd March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baretto-junior
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/equestrian
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 24) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
HMAS Sydney II, Finding Sydney Foundation - Roll of Honour. (Retrieved 2014, April 24) . Retrieved from http://www.findingsydney.com/roll.asp