The name Davie is a diminutive of David, and the Davie family is said to be a sept of the Clan Davidson, itself originally a part of the Clan Chattan. If this is so, the family's original home was around Cromarty. The name is common in Aberdeenshire, where there have been Davies since the 15th century, but there are other clusters of Davies in Lanarkshire, Dumbartonshire, and around Edinburgh.
There are several references to Davies around Leslie, Kennethmont and Old Rayne in the 17th century, but there is no evidence to connect them with the families living in Chapel of Garioch at the end of the 18th century. The list of persons assessed for the Poll Tax prepared in 1696 does not mention any Davies in the parish of Chapel of Garioch (then called Logie-Durno), or in the neighbouring parishes of Inverurie or Kemnay.
The parish registers of Chapel of Garioch begin extremely late - baptisms being recorded only from 1765 (and even then with gaps). Apart from a brief period between 1783 and 1787 when the records were entered thoroughly, marriages and burials were not registered until 1817 and 1850 respectively. To complicate matters further, the southern part of the parish embraced Fetternear, owned by the Leslie family, who were Roman Catholics, and Aquhorties, where a Catholic seminary was established. This makes it difficult to tell when Davies first entered the parish. However, there seem to have been three separate families.
In Pitscurry there were George Davie and his wife Jean Reid. Their children George, Janet, Alexander and Robert were born between 1769 and 1778. One of the witnesses at Janet's baptism in 1770 was a Robert Davie, not mentioned elsewhere.
In Durno were Alexander Davie and his wife Margaret Farquhar, whose children William (?), Deborah and Margaret were born between 1790 and 1795, and Peter Davie, married to Isobel Christie, whose children Jane (?) and Mary were baptized in 1794 and 1795, and Anne in 1806. The witnesses at Mary's baptism were Alexander and John Davie, not mentioned elsewhere. This family lived on at How of Durno well into the nineteenth century.
In Fetternear were Peter Davie and his wife Elizabeth Crombie, with whom this account deals.
GEORGE DAVIE (17??-?) married Jean Read. They were at Pitscurry in 1769. Their issue included:
1 GEORGE DAVIE (1769-?), baptized at Chapel of Garioch on 1 July 1769.
2 JANNET DAVIE (1770-?), baptized at Chapel of Garioch on 21 December 1770. The witnesses were Patrick Wilson in Pitscurry, and Robert Davie.
3 ALEXANDER DAVIE (1773-?), baptized at Chapel on 16 February 1773. The witnesses were James Reid in Pitscurry and Thomas Mostin in Pitcaple.
4 A child (1775-?), baptized on 1 December 1775.
5 ROBERT DAVIE (1778-?), baptized on 11 July 1778.
ROBERT DAVIE (17??-?) was a witness in 1770.
JAMES DAVIE (17??-?) of Oyne married Ann Nicol at Chapel of Garioch in 1785.
JOHN DAVIE (17??-?) of Insch was found guilty of fornication with Jean Henderson in 1791.
JOHN DAVIE (?1760-1841) may be the same as the above. His wife was Margaret, ten years his junior. He was at Durno in 1809. They had two sons:
1 WILLIAM DAVIE (1809-?), born in 1809.
2 Another son, who had two children:
2.1 MARGARET DAVIE (1832-?), born in 1832 at Ellon.
2.2 WILLIAM DAVIE (1842-1933?), born in 1842 at Daviot. He may be the William Davie who died on 26 January 1933 aged 91, who is buried at Logie-Durno, together with his wife, Wilhelmina Ledingham, who died at Middleton, Old Rayne on 26 March 1907, aged 69. This couple had children Helen (who died 14 December 1908, aged 34) and James (who died at Aboyne on 20 January 1887, aged 23.
WILLIAM DAVIE (1770-18??) was living at Fetternear in 1841.
JONATHAN DAVIE (17??-1869) died in 1869. His first wife was Helen More, whom he married at Chapel of Garioch on 4 December 1817, and his second wife was Charlotte Milne, who died, aged 70, on 20 September 1870. He was probably farming at Kirktown of Rayne in 1841: he was with Catherine, aged 45 - his wife or his daughter?
ALEXANDER DAVIE (17??-?) lived in Durno. He may have been the pauper in receipt of aid in Knockcollochy in 1791. His wife was Margaret Farquhar, who was born in 1760. She was still alive in 1841. They had three children:
1 WILLIAM(?) DAVIE (1790-?), baptized at Chapel on 3 November 1790. He may have been a crofter at Durno in 1855 (but see above).
2 DEBORAH DAVIE (1792-?), baptized on 8 July 1792. John Davie and James Elmistie were the witnesses.
3 MARGARET DAVIE (1795-18??), baptized on 25 June 1795. George Diack and Peter Durno were witnesses. She was a dressmaker, and was at Kembals in 1841. In 1851 she is described as a pauper.
PETER DAVIE (17??-?) lived in How (or Cairnton) of Durno. He married Isobel Christie (on 26 May 1793 in Aberdeen?). They had three children:
1 JANE(?) DAVIE (1794-?), baptized on 23 April 1794 at Chapel of Garioch. The witnesses were Alexander Davie and Margaret Farquhar. She may have married William Nichol. He died at Blairbowie on 25 August 1858, aged 68. Jane, his wife, died at Blairbowie on 4 May 1884, aged 91.
2 MARY DAVIE (1795-?), baptized on 12 December 1795. Alexander and John Davie in Durno were witnesses.
3 MARGARET DAVIE (1802-?), born at Knows of Durno on 3 March 1802 and baptized by Mr Davidson of Rayne on the 8th. Again, Alexander and John Davie in Durno were witnesses.
4 JOHN DAVIE (1802-?), born on 3 May 1804 and baptized on the 8th.
5 ANN DAVIE (1806-?), born on 414 January 1806 and baptized the next day.
6 ALEXANDER DAVIE (1810-?), baptized on 21 May 1810. He was still alive in 1881, and living at Townmill, Premnay. His wife was Elizabeth, from Premnay. Their son:
4.1 ALEXANDER DAVIE (1852?-?), aged 28 in 1881 was born in Meldrum.
ALEXANDER DAVIE (1788-1871) may have been the son of Alexander and Margaret above. He was born at Rayne. He was at Upperknows of Durno in 1820, Kembals in 1841, Durno in 1851 and Whiteford in 1861. On 4 March 1820 he married Ann Maitland, who had been born in 1786. She died on 12 March 1868 at Whiteford. The couple had four children:
1 MARY DAVIE (1820-?), born on 26 July and baptized on 30 July 1820. She was at Kembals in 1841.
2 ALEXANDER DAVIE (1825-?), born on 6 June 1825 and baptized at Chapel of Garioch on the 12th. He was at Kembals in 1841. He was probably the toll-keeper at the Wauk Mill Toll Bar in Kinnthmont in 1851, with a wife, Isabel, from Insch, aged 25, and two daughters, Ann (aged 5 and born in Oyne) and Margaret (aged 3 and born in Chapel of Garioch).
3 MARGARET DAVIE (1827-?), born on 27 August 1827 and baptized on 2 September. She was at Durno in 1841 and 1851. She seems to have had children by James Knight.
3.1 MARY MAITLAND KNIGHT (1846-??), baptized at the Free Church in Chapel of Garioch on 21 April 1846.
4 JEAN (or JANE) DAVIE (1831-?), born on 17 October 1831 and baptized on the 24th at Chapel of Garioch. She was at Durno in 1841 and 1851.
GEORGE DAVIE (17??-18??) was at Logie Elphinstone. He married Mary Meatham. They had two children:
1 MARGARET DAVIE (1816-?), baptized on 14 August 1816.
2 ROBERT DAVIE (1819-?), baptized on 15 February 1819.
PETER DAVIE (1801-?) was born at Chapel of Garioch in 1801. He was a blacksmith. He lived in Elgin, and married Anne Smith there on 5 June 1834, shortly after the birth of their first child. Anne died, probably on 13 December 1843, and Peter remarried, to Elizabeth Aird, on 23 February 1845. Elizabeth seems to have died, as Peter probably later married Ann Duffus.
1 ANN DAVIE (1834-?), born on 5 April 1834 at Elgin, and baptized there on the 14th.
2 JAMES DAVIE (1839-?), born on 18 May 1839, and baptized on the 28th.
3 ELIZABETH DAVIE (1844-?), born in 1844.
4 HARRIET (or HENRIETTA) DAVIE (1845-?), born on 6 October and baptized on 6 November 1845.
5 PETER DAVIE (1846-?), born on 9 December 1846 and baptized on 21 January 1847.
6 JANE DAVIE (1848-?), born on 2 December 1848 and baptized on 28 January 1849.
7 ROBERT DAVIE (1852-?), born on 7 October and baptized on 11 November 1852.
8 WILLIAM DAVIE (1857-?), born on 18 October 1857.
9 JOHN DAVIE (1859-?), born on 25 July 1859.