Henry,
Can't believe the number of leads- you are a gentleman and true professional!
Very grateful indeed...
Derek
I am Alistair, the son of Alex Duthart and I have been researching the surname for several years via Ireland, Holland and France.
Route 1 -
I have traced the French ancestry in 1126 to Macosquin 3 miles from Coleraine in 1289. Cistercian Monks travelled from a place called Tarte in France just below Dijon. Tarte was spelt Tharte in Latin at that time. The monks travelled with an entourage and were self sufficient. The entourage from Tharte may have used the Du Tharte surname. The present church in Macosquin is on the site of an original Cistercian Monastery. I have interviewed a present day Cistercian Monk in Portglenone and he gave me evidence of the original monastery location. A similar event happened in Wales and England where the name Tart is still in use to the present day. A tarte is a small hill in old French. The Abbey of Tarte originally run by Cistercian Nuns in France no longer exists but the wine they made on a small hill is still in production to this day. The wine is called Clos De Tarte. The old abbey was sited on the Rue Du Tarte. You can still see its outline in a field adjacent on Google Earth
Route 2
I have traced the name from Scotland back to Coleraine - 1740 - via the weaving trade connection but hit the buffers at around 1690 when records are scarce.
I am now investigating the possibility that our route from France could have come via the Huguenot weavers from Holland. I have found the surname in Holland , Belgium and Germany around the time of the Huguenot migration out of France. The route may have been directly from Belgium or via Cork and Southern Ireland.
My next move is to go back to Ireland early next year and find the last traces of Duthart, Douthart, Douthert before hitting France in the Summer.
I hope you are still reading these posts - If not and some one else is reading I would be glad to hear from anyone on the same journey.
