Show ContentsMcCary History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The McCary family comes from the ancient Scottish Dalriadan clans of the mountainous west coast of Scotland. The name McCary is derived from the name Macara, which is the Gaelic word for son of the young, manly one.

Early Origins of the McCary family

The surname McCary was first found in Perthshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Pheairt) former county in the present day Council Area of Perth and Kinross, located in central Scotland, where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the McCary family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McCary research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1690, 1745, 1815 and 1890 are included under the topic Early McCary History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McCary Spelling Variations

Translation in medieval times was an undeveloped science and was often carried out without due care. For this reason, many early Scottish names appeared radically altered when written in English. The spelling variations of McCary include McAree, MacAree, McAra, MacAra, McArra, MacArra, McCarra, MacCarra, McCarry, MacCarry, McCarrie and many more.

Early Notables of the McCary family

More information is included under the topic Early McCary Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McCary Ranking

In the United States, the name McCary is the 7,317th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. [1]

Ireland Migration of the McCary family to Ireland

Some of the McCary family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 106 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States McCary migration to the United States +

The hardy Scots who made the crossing settled all along the east coast of North America and in the great west that was just then opening up. At the time of the American War of Independence, many United Empire Loyalists moved north from the American colonies to Canada. Scottish national heritage became better known in North America in the 20th century through highland games and other patriotic events. An examination of immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name McCary arrived in North America very early:

McCary Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John W McCary, who arrived in New York in 1842 [2]
  • J. McCary, aged 41, who immigrated to America, in 1892
McCary Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Florrie McCary, aged 20, who landed in America from Donegal, Ireland, in 1907
  • Samuel McCary, aged 30, who landed in America from Paris, France, in 1909
  • Don McCary, aged 22, who settled in America, in 1922
  • Dond. McCary, aged 23, who immigrated to the United States, in 1922

Contemporary Notables of the name McCary (post 1700) +

  • Warner "William" McCary (1811-1854), American convert to Mormonism who was expelled from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1847 for claiming to be a prophet
  • Elvin Columbus McCary (1907-1981), American businessman and politician
  • Dave McCary, American filmmaker and a co-founder of the sketch comedy group, Good Neighbor
  • Abigail McCary (b. 1982), American former beauty queen, Miss World United States 2007
  • Michael Sean McCary (b. 1971), American R&B singer and former bass singer of the R&B group Boyz II Men

USS Arizona
  • Mr. William Moore Mccary, American Seaman Second Class from Alabama, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking [3]


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)
  3. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html


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