Matthew "The Rebel" (Campbell) Rheagh - Disputed Origins

https://www.genealogy.com/ftm/f/o/l/Dr-ed-Foley/GENE1-0001.html

Please LOCK his name fields! He has already become a No Name.
I just reverted it and added back the death date so please make sure that dare is correct.
I added back a middle name of Campbell because it is a name many knew him by and may need it to identify/find when searching for him.
Thank you

I thought about putting it in the aka after I left lol just have not made it back
Thank you!

“I think the first time i have seen it is an Amercan family history of the 1900's taken from information given years earlier by a Rhea who was either a Politician or looking to be one, so perhaps he thought he would embellish his family back ground. No real way to confirm or deny it back then.
This has since been recreated as a true verbal family history. The internet has just let it spread.
A quick check to see the status of Mathew Reagh is from the 1660's Hearth Money rolls. This is a tax on fire places. The idea being if you are rich, have a big house you will have lots of rooms and lots of fire places, you can be taxed on.
Along with the vast majority of the people listed, he had one hearth. A big single heating/cooking fireplace most likely.
He was not a wealthy man, he was just a base farmer like most of his neighbours.
Probably wouldn't even have owned a horse. If he did it would have to do everything, ploughing, wagon pulling, carrying grandma to church.. Very much like early US settlers had their horses.
Marrying in the Cathedral in Londonderry was no indication of status. So the Mathew on the Hearth Roll 1660's will likely be the father of Mathew who married in the Cathedral 1688.
As far as the time in Donegal we cannot be sure of how many children other than using the dna to see who is connected.
The only thing i have queried myself is did the family start at Magheradrummond and then spread out or start at Raymoghy then go to Magheradrummond. The Hearth Tax looks to favour this. However there was a war in 1641-42 which meant a lot of the families moved around for a while until they felt ok to go back.
Ramelton, right near Magheradrummond was where the Scots Presbyterians settled first and had their Churches so its logical the first families would stay close by. The Dill family did this then moved away a few miles. The Reagh family were connected to the Dill family early on, or rather i am, we need to see if any of the USA lines are.
We can tell this as Caleb Dill goes to the USA first, early 1700's, and its looking like we match some of his lines. So the intermarriage is earlier than him leaving. At least his father John Dill's generation, so from around 1650. I match various John Dill lines.
As most Donegal families split, some stay and others emigrate you can work out a timeline for the families joining.
There is a sort of fixed family pool in Donegal that then transfers to Nova Scotia en bloc. So you go through the list of surnames to see where you have connections.
The only other time you really see this carry on is in Philadelphia 1840-1860 where hundreds of these same Donegal families emigrate at the same time and settle together south of the city centre and their children born in either Philadelphia or Ireland continue to marry into the old families.”
R. E.
yesterday at 8:53 PM

Just for anyone who is in doubt, the Campbell Clan has said any Reagh/Rhea/Ray that believes Mathew Reagh of Donegal was Mathew Campbell then they would be pleased to receive a dna sample to prove or disprove.
I have asked the Nova Scotia Reagh familes if they have heard tell of Mathew and non of their side have this story in their folklore and neither do we, which you might expect to at least have some, however vague, detail as it would be common to all the Reagh families of Donegal origin.

Just for anyone who is in doubt, the Campbell Clan has said any Reagh/Rhea/Ray that believes Mathew Reagh of Donegal was Mathew Campbell then they would be pleased to receive a dna sample to prove or disprove.
I have asked the Nova Scotia Reagh familes if they have heard tell of Mathew and non of their side have this story in their folklore and neither do we, which you might expect to at least have some, however vague, detail as it would be common to all the Reagh families of Donegal origin.

With these new developments,I believe that the vitals need to be updated,as the asserted birthplace of Scotland is itself now clearly in question.The FamilySearch profile(https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/GMZW-PMQ)gives of a more realistic birthplace of County Donegal and a realistic birth year of circa 1660.Even the death date of April 1689 may not be proven.The vitals on this profile clearly need to be updated.

Also while googling for 'Donegal hearth rolls' I found this a couple links(http://donegalgenealogy.com/hmrraphoe.htm andhttps://cotyroneireland.com/hearth/taughboyne.html)but I'm not sure if he's the only Mat(t)hew Reagh listed.

Mike,
You are correct, Scotland is not a realistic place for Mathew seniors birthplace. The Reagh's were part of the Ulster Scots Plantation so could have been in Donegal as early as 1610. 1660 is a reasonable birth date to work off, with his father as 1620-30.
It was the norm for older male to marry much younger girls.
Given only one Mathew is listed as defender of Londonderry 1689 its possible his father was dead. However it is known that not all the Protestants had gone into the City, so maybe Mathew snr was too old to fight. Interesting you show that hearth list with the Patrick Reagh on, as it is the right area for the family. Furthet up that list in a different district but not far away is David Dill, these are the Dill's who keep turning up with the Reagh/Rhea's. And who i dna match.
Yesterday by coincidence while looking on ancestry i came across a Patrick Ray in Kentucky, born in Ireland 1816. What got my attention was his sons name, Deglan Ray.
I thought this was a spelling mistake but its not. He was born 1853, died 1942.
In the Preston document on the USA Rhea family history there is one thing i must disagree with...besides the 'Rebel' Reagh bit.
He says it was family tradition to name first born after the mothers father. This is not Ulster/Irish naming pattern.
First born would be either after father or grandfather. Whichever you started with the second born would then be the other. Third born male then after mothers father.
You can see this with the Mathew Reagh's & also in my line of continuous Samuel Reagh's who in each generation 1700's to 1921 inherited the farm in Donegal as eldest son.
This clearly the pattern does change in the US but not in Ireland or Canada for a good while.

On the Hearth Rolls There is a Hugh Reagh named near Mathew. Looking at much later Tithe Tax records, 1830's, a Hugh Reagh is in County Cavan. A good way from Donegal but also a good way from any other Reagh's. That said i have a dna match to three people thst say they have a Cecilia McNamara Reagh b1663 in Fermanagh
She is supposed daughter of a MaCarthy Reagh.i am not sure what to make of that as it would put us connected to the Southern Reagh's of Cork. They go way back in Ireland. Over from Scotland in the 1500's.
Can't rely on trees.

One thing has come up going over other Irish records today.
In the 1830's Tithe tax records there are three Reagh's all in one place. James, Joseph & John. The townland is Corncamble. In the middle of the Laggan Valley, this is regarded as the main location of the Ulster Scots settlement. And is right where the Ulster Scots Heritage Centre is at Monreagh today, next to Monreagh Presbyterian Church.
The 1665 hearth rolls say Mathew & Hugh are in this area, although don't give a specific location. The large number of marriage & baptism certificate transcripts i have for, as yet, unlocated Reagh's are all concentrated in this near vicinity. Londonderry City where Mathew Reagh married in 1687 is a short distance away. Fahan Presbyterian Church where the Rev Joseph Reagh/Rhea served for many years before emigrating is not far North at all & Magheradrumman where my line come from is similar distance to the West.
I think the conclusion to be drawn is the townland of Corncamble is where our mutual Reagh ancestors were 1610-1690 period.
And the Dill line comes from just by there too.
What i have noticed on the Tithe rolls is the names of other families that pick up with the Reagh/Rhea lines in the US. Latta, Neely, Hunter.

Mike,
You mentioned the Patrick Reagh on the Hearth Rolls.
Years later there is a Patrick Reagh marriage, 1738 in the Raphoe district.
The name is worth following if it comes up anywhere as Patrick looks to run through the family in the Raphoe line.
That Deglan Ray of Kentucky who i mentioned yesterday, who's father Patrick was born Ireland 1816. I am dna matching people who have him in their trees.

Had a message back from one of the Dill family of Nova Scotia. Said when he did a search of Reagh family he got a couple of dna matches. When he did Rhea he said there was a lot. Hopefully i can get a list & compare. His family left Donegal possibly as early as 1730. This would be from John Dill of Donegal same time period as Mathew Reagh snr c1640'-90s.
Worth people looking for Dill connections, Ireland only though not the English ones. Different family.

Another Dill family, this one in the US but part of the same original Donegal family has found a lot of Rhea dna matches.