Meanwhile, Robert Russell had completed a comprehensive tree for the Gillanders family and we were able to locate many of their property holdings. The fact that George Gillanders (elder) http://ica-atom.tasglann.org.uk/index.php/gillanders-family-of-highfield;isad was Factor to the Seaforth MacKenzies ; held the tacks of several farms on Lewis and owned Highfield House does suggest that William MacGregor must have been very well connected to end up marrying Helen, George Gillanders‘ (younger) eldest daughter.

An attempt was made to identify all the former Factors and Chamberlains of Lewis to try to determine how George Gillanders (senior) came to take up his role.  It was hoped that this information might help to shed more light on how William MacGregor came to be connected with the Gillanders family.

1612 -1642       Alexander McK IV of Achilty                1st Factor           https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/65933

  ?                   Donald Bain      d 1645 Battle of Auldearn 

1640 -1690     Murdoch (Murchadu Mor) McK  V of Achilty   4th Factor  d  before 1692      https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/41654 

 1709 -              Alexander McK (grandson of Murdoch McK V of Hilton) Chamberlain drowned 1759   

           https://digital.nls.uk/histories-of-scottish-families/archive/96684488?mode=transcription p259/460

 c1717-1730     Zachury McAulay    Chamberlain     d1735       https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/64830 

                 https://wikivisually.com/wiki/Clan_Macaulay_of_Lewis

The Seaforths forfeited their estates in 1725 after the Jacobite rebellion of 1715.

1730?                  Roderick McK of Brae & Longcroft (grandson of Murdoch McK V of Hilton)   Chamberlain bc 1680

           http://pdfbooks.co.za/library/ALEXANDER_MACKENZIE-HISTORY_OF_THE_MACKENZIES.pdf    p261/460

        http://www.clanmacfarlanegenealogy.info/genealogy/TNGWebsite/getperson.php?personID=I90673&tree=CC

(Sons: John; Colin McK of Glack & Sir Peter)

                             (Colin McK of Glack b 1707  Minister of Fodderty. Helped collect rent for McKs of Cromarty post Culloden

               http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=392092.0  

             http://ecclegen.com/kennedy-tree/    )

1739 – 1740?    Colin (Cailean Dearg) McK   Chamberlain   d 1757  one daughter Isobel   https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/41293

1740 - 1742       Alexander McK  VI of Achilty     Factor & Chamberlain 1740   d 1742

  https://digital.nls.uk/histories-of-scottish-families/archive/96684488?  mode=transcription    P507

c1742 – c1761   George McK of Dalmore Factor     b 1703 - d 1761/7

                    (Brother Dr John McK of Stracathro Commissioner to Seaforth b 1705 - d 1775 )

1761 – c1779  George Gillanders       Factor 1761   (c 1781 when he bought Highfield) b 1730 - d 1801  https://hebrideanconnections.com/record/people/65018/

 c1779 – c1791 Alexander Gillanders  (son)    Chamberlain         b1751- d1794

      (m Elizabeth daughter of Thomas McK V of Ord)

The great-grandson of the third Earl of Seaforth, and male heir of the family, Colonel Thomas Frederick Humberston Mackenzie, fell at Gherish in India in 1783. His brother, Francis Humberston Mackenzie, obtained the Seaforth estates, and was created Baron Seaforth in 1796

 c1791- c1815   George Gillanders  (son)            Commissioner of Seaforth  bc1779 – d1833-1841    Tacksman of Shader ca 1820

Lord Seaforth appointed Governor of Barbados in 1800

 c 1806               James Chapman Chamberlain of Lews

Francis Humberstone MacKenzie, Lord Seaforh (MP, Col of 78th Regiment, Baron McK of Kintail, Governor of Barbados 1800-1806) died Jan 1815. The estate passed to his eldest daughter, Mary Frederica Elizabeth, Lady Hood, whose husband, Admiral Sir Samuel Hood had died eighteen days earlier. Lady Hood married James Alexander Stewart of Glasserton (1784 –1843) in May 1817, after which Mr Stewart assumed the additional surname MacKenzie.

James Alexander Stewart MacKenzie presumably ousted George Gillanders as Chamberlain, in favour of Major Forbes MacKenzie, after he married Lady Seaforth.

1816-1820      Major Forbes MacKenzie (McK of Brae - son of Rev Colin McK of Fodderty) (Ross- shire Militia) , Deputy Lieutenant of Ross-shire  b1758 http://www.ecclegen.com/kennedy-tree/   https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/65026

                           ( sons: 1st son Roderick died; 2nd son Alexander (Hilton X)   Chamberlain of Ferntosh  b 1756 (?) 

         https://digital.nls.uk/histories-of-scottish-families/archive/96684488?mode=transcription p378

 1823               James Adam   Factor & Chamberlain of Lewis  (ref: Lewis: A History of the Island. Donald MacDonald)

c1827     Thomas Knox, Factor of Lewis

James Alexander Stewart MacKenzie was Governor of Ceylon from 1837-1841 leaving his estates in the hands of

   ? -1835            Alexander Stewart      Chamberlain (married Anne, daughter of Capt John MacKenzie III of Lochend) 

          https://digital.nls.uk/histories-of-scottish-families/archive/96684488?mode=transcription   P449

          http://www.pjsymes.com.au/articles/JASM.htm

 1841       Donald Munro (known in Lewis as the ‘Shaw’) arrived in Lewis to take up the posts of Procurator Fiscal and Legal Agent for the Lewis       Seaforth Estate. bit.ly/39MrPHN  http://direcleit.blogspot.com/search?q=Chamberlain

James Alexander Stewart MacKenzie died in 1843 forcing his widow to sell Lewis to Sir James Mattheson in 1844.

1854 Donald Munrho becomes Factor  

From http://www.pjsymes.com.au/articles/JASM.htm, it was noted that:

There had been a branch of the Aberdeen Commercial Bank on Lewis some time prior to 1820 with the Factor of the island as the agent, but at the death of the Factor the branch was “given up”. 

        In 1835 Alexander Stewart the retiring Factor of Lewis, in a letter to Stewart Mackenzie, bemoans the bank agency being in the hands of Roderick             Morison and L. McIver, who monopolised the fishing industry and the distilleries on Lewis. (Roderick Morison also acted for the Seaforth estate.)

Another observation was that it appeared that George McK of Dalmore and his brother Dr John McK of Strathcaro were merchants in Jamaica at the same time that Alexander McK XI Hilton and Brea was out there.

 It was also interesting to note that the McKs of Achilty regularly inter married with the McKs of Gairloch http://www.stewartbooks.com/graphics/Mackenzie/Mackenzie_Sample.htm  

eg        Alexander McK VI of Achilty’s 3rd wife was Isabel, daughter of Alexander McK, V. of Gairloch

             Murdoch Mackenzie, VII of Achilty, married Anne, third daughter of Sir Kenneth Mackenzie, first Baronet and VIII of Gairloch, in 1728,

      Colin Mackenzie, VIII of Achilty, an Officer in the 78th Regiment, who married Janet, third daughter of Sir Alexander Mackenzie, second Baronet and IX   of Gairloch. 

 The final point that stood out was that Alexander Stewart (Chamberlain <1835) had married Anne, daughter of Capt John McK III of Lochend.  This Lochend connection may add weight to the idea that William MacGregor was somehow related to the family.