Memoirs of the Fultons of Lisburn

CHAPTER VI
JOHN FULTON OF LISBURN AND DERRIAGHY OR BELSIZE
JOHN FULTON "of Lisburn" is found in one of the very oldest estate registers as holding, on
1st November 167S, the farm, since known as " Belsize," in the townland of Magheralave, in the
parish of Lambeg or Derriaghy, "containing forty Irish acres" {71 English), then " in his own
possession," at a rent of £8 os. od. + 2s. Sd. duties, " For the lives of John the Party, Paul his
son, and John, son of George Willisey of Derriaghy, or 41 years." The Derriaghy " Hearth
Money " Roll shows him as having paid the tax in 1666. In the Lisburn Cathedral Register John
Fulton "of Lisburn" baptized a daughter Ann on 26th December 1661, and in the Vestry Book
he appears as one of the Surveyors for Highways for 1676, and again in 1681 as in that post
" for Derriaghy, way by Magheralave." Paul is similarly Surveyor for 1678, and also in that
year, by the Cathedral Register, baptized a daughter Margaret. By the same authority,
George Woolisey, on 17th November 1670, married Janet Fulton of Blaris, a who may be
assumed to have been a sister of Paul, and the mother of John, who is the third life in
the lease. Paul's name does not occur again, and he probably died, as the Belsize property
passed to John, latterly called " of Derriaghy," but originally "of Blaris," who was eventually the
husband of Margaret Camac. Fuller notice will occur later on of this John "of Derriaghy," the
child of John " of Lisburn " (or "of the lease," as I shall hereafter call him), who appears to have
come next after Paul and Janet, and from whom all existing members of the Lisburn family are
descended. The younger children were Robert "of Guanabo," Hugh "of Derriaghy," Ann,
already mentioned, and Thomas " of Blaris," as appears from a careful collation of dates of their
marriages, children's births, and other known incidents. In such a task, we receive an important
auxiliary in an old register, dating from 1688 for marriages and Kirk Sessions minutes, and from
1692 for births, which the first Lisburn Presbyterian Church was recently found to possess.
Before passing on to details of the main line of John, I may give brief notices of these younger
brothers, of whom :
Robert " of Guanabo " is the most important and interesting. The " Memorandum of 1872 "
describes him as " son, or perhaps grandson " of William of Kilkenny, but it has now become clear
to me by the tracing back of his history from Jamaica, which was mainly effected by Dr. Fulton of
Dunedin, and completed by myself with the aid of the Heralds' College, that he must have been
a grandson. A son he could not have been, as he did not graduate M.A. till 1677. At the same
time, he must have held an important position in the family, from Richard having been
supposed, by my uncle's tradition, to have been a son of his. According to what we now know
of his approximate age, he was the next brother of John " of Derriaghy." b Pie matriculated at
Edinburgh University in 1675, and took the M.A. degree on 21st September 1677. He was
a Blaris is an old name for the southern portion of the town of Lisburn.
b The following account of him is derived from the documents registered in Jamaica, of which Dr. Fulton gave me copies,
and other information from the Island Records obtained for me by the Heralds' Office.
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