Our McNair Family History

 I wrote this on 24 March 2016. I recently found it in my files.

My research on the McNairs began in 1989 and was one of my first lines to trace. With eager vitality, I was trying to establish ties to Ireland since we had a trip to Ireland planned for the summer of 1990.  This research jumped track when I ran into a few brick walls on the McNairs and then discovered that my maiden name of ‘Quillin’ had an obvious tie to Ireland, which I would have never imagined.  I felt certain that the Mc in McNair would establish an Irish connection.  In the next few years, I reestablished my research with the McNair line, this time with a new mission: to enter DAR.  Anyone who has documented for DAR knows that this is rigorous research and generation links have to be proved.  Armed with the information that I already had and now with a new purpose (having a hint that James McNair served in the Revolution), I found that the McNairs do trace back to Ireland.  My prior research was so thorough that I feel very confident in the information that I have and I have since been strongly linked to James McNair through DNA.  I have all the documents (3 envelopes full of copies of the original documents) on James and John McNair from the Knox County courthouse. With this many documents I believe these two men were well respected and established among the locals.  There is also a book, McNair, McNear, and McNeir Genealogies by James Birtley McNair (Editor) 929.273 M231 Chicago, Illinois : J.B. McNair, c1923. There are 3 supplements: 1928, 1955 & 1960 compiled by James Birtley McNair. I purchased the 1928 supplement.  Once again, as with many of our lines, this was a family of hardy pioneers that date back to colonial times.