First found in Kintyre, and much of the Eastern islands and coast-lands where members of this clan, descended through Somerled, Lord of the Isles and had resided for many years.

These settlers arrived in North America at a time when the east was burgeoning with prosperous colonies and the expanses of the west were just being opened up. The American War of Independence was also imminent. Some Scots stayed to fight for a new country, while others who remained loyal went north as United Empire Loyalists. The ancestors of all of them went on to rediscover their heritage in the 20th century through highland games and other patriotic Scottish events. The McDonald were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: Daniel Macdonald, who came to New Jersey sometime between 1730 and 1749; Angus McDonald who settled in Virginia in 1746; Norman and Elizabeth Macdonald, and their two children who settled in Georgia in 1741.

Motto Translated: By sea and by land.

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