Charles Agor/McGregor born 1724 moved to Duchess/Putnam county New York, married had a family, and when he died in 1819, was burried at the Patriots Cemetery in Carmel, Putnam county, New York.  Sometime in between he told his family that the Agor surname was shortened from McGregor, as the McGregors has lost a clan war, were hunted as outlaws, and that the name had been banned.  This has been passed down generation to generation. I will list here any clues that I have found in my search, so if you have one that I don't, please contact me.  I will also list other researchers that have Agors in there families, so if you have a website and have an Agor in your family, please let me know.

And the quest begins.....

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The first puzzle pieces are background to try to get an idea what was going on and why did Charles not use his own name? Children of the Mist -- MacGregor and the Proscription This site by Gael MacGregor will give the background of the Clan MacGregor and the ban on name MacGregor

Was there a Charles McGregor or a Charles (any accepted alias of Clan Gregor) in the time frame I am looking in? John Cameron Ward's collection of McGregor files amassed between 1980 and 1995. Mr. Ward describes himself as "a genealogy nut with special interests in the surames McGregor" I believe him to be a most dedicated researcher.

Just what names did these McGregors use? Names, Septs, and Aliases of Clan Gregor as Recognised by the Clan Gregor Society

You won't find AGOR there, Charles seems to have covered his tracks a little too well.

What some family members know and have shared

I heard from my grandfather that his ancestors (the MacGregors) were kicked out of Scotland for Stealing sheep, so they changed their last name and tried to sneak back in. Christina Agor

Our family legend is that Charles Agor with two brothers cqame to America and changed their name from MacGreagor because they had lost a clan war and were considered ourlaws and outcasts. Roberta Agor-Wingo

That is the very same legend that has been passed down in my family. We have lived in Mahopac for 10 generations.  Where did you hear this legend? Andrew Agor

...the Scottish connection to MacGregor- which my family really believed- in fact so much so- that when my grandfather built a lake in Mahopac in the 1950's- he named it Lake MacGregor-... Also- Charles appears to have arrived in 1760- which was a good fifteen years after the Jacobite rebellion (although other family lore is that he may have spent some time in Holland before coming to America). Andrew Agor

My father told me that the three Agor brothers must have been very large, that together they weighed about a thousand pounds. Roberta Agor- There is a story about the 3 original Agors- who you noted weighed together close to 100 lbs- who would take the ferry down to Peekskill.  The ferry man charged by the pound- so the Agors were forced to use some very creative estimates about their weight. Andrew Agor

(comment to Andrew Agor from his father)  Jesse, your grandfather told me that his Greatgrandfather, Jesse told him that Charles had very white hair and spoke with a Scottish burr. John Agor

Interestingly- my grandfather....was 5 years old when his greatgrandfather Jesse died.  He remembers Jesse saying that we were descended from the MadGregors. Andrew Agor

New!  2002 Spoke with my mother yesterday and she did not know anything more about her grandfather, Frank Agor.  She said he came over from Scotland but she really meant relatives further back. Lee Garigliano

This page was last updated on: January 23, 2002