My Extended Thoughts

1. Why do you want to be Commander of Clan Logan? 

It is better to say that I wish to lead the search for the Chief of Clan Logan, and that is what the commander will do. I have already been heavily engaged in the search and I am the best-qualified person to lead the future efforts as Clan Commander.

I wish to help Clan Logan in every way I can to find and restore the Chief of Name and Arms of Logan. I see my becoming Commander of the Name Logan as the next necessary step to this restoration. As we have not been able to find an hereditary claimant in two decades, the next step is to appoint a commander and begin a much more public search for the hereditary chief. 

2. What qualifies you to be Commander? 

To begin with, I possess all of the pre-requisites: 

• I was born to the surname Logan and have lived 55 years as a Logan, always proud of my name and my heritage; 
• I am physically fit and gratefully I possess sufficient worldly means to provide for my travels as commander;
• I present myself well in social settings, with courtesy and friendliness to those I meet

More specifically though, amongst the nominees, I uniquely have a proven, nearly ten year record in working with a wide variety of others in the search for the hereditary chief. 

• Most importantly, I have developed good relationships with Logans in many countries who are allied to the work of finding the chief as well. This quest will be successful because of the many Logans I have united to work on it.  
• I have worked with amateur and professional genealogists to conduct the research.
• I have written personally on the subject, and edited writings of others for clarity and correct alignment to known facts.
• I have developed resources, and indeed made friends, in many organizations such as the Office of the Lord Lyon, the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs, Council Of Scottish Clans and Associations, the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, the National Trust for Scotland, as well as  within many of the other clans of Scotland. All of these developed relationships will factor positively in the search for the chief.

3. What will you do in the first five years as Clan Commander? 

I have many plans for how to approach the search for the Chief in the first five years and beyond. While my fellow nominees would spend much of their first five years getting their “legs under them,” I am already well-versed in the previously completed work, where the pitfalls and successes have been, and where the search should continue. 

In the first five years, 

• I will continue to share our Search for the Chief story via social media, most especially via podcasts and a YouTube Channel with videos dedicated specifically to the search.
• I will work closely with Clan Logan Society International and the soon-to-be-established Clan Logan Charitable Trust of Scotland to develop appropriate fundraising activities. The goal will be to provide for the search for the chief, and also activities that will lead to the finding and preserving of Logan artifacts, documents, and perhaps even a portion of land in Scotland that was once connected to the Logans of that Ilk.
• Take a look at the grand-nephews of Further research on George Logan of that Ilk, a promising area of research. 
• I shall ask to be allowed to Make a full accounting of records held by the Lord Lyon’s office and whether they contain references to Logans. 
• I shall help complete further research into the earliest know Logans in Scotland and Ireland in hopes of finding a connection to a living heir to the chiefship 
• I shall play an active role in developing a “notable Logan families of pre-twentieth century Scotland” research project in hopes of finding a connection to a living heir to the chiefship. 
• There will be many social functions I shall attend to properly represent the Family and Highland Clan of Logan and our search for an hereditary chief. Many of these are listed in the answer to question #9, below.

4. What is your strategy for finding the Chief? Will you do anything different than what the Clan has been doing since around the year 2000? 

I see the search for the chief in the future as a multipart strategy…

1. FOLLOW UPS: 
   1. I will quickly follow up on the many leads we have produced in the last 18 months while working on convention readiness. Research has found new clues that relate to the great nephews of George Logan of that Ilk, aka “The Armiger.”  
   2. And in research of Logan heraldry, I have uncovered several previously unknown or forgotten Logan coats of arms that provide tantalizing clues to unresearched lineages. These clues all need to be followed up with a proper investigation.
   3. I will continue to coordinate active research into the earliest history of the Logans in Scotland and in developing the “well-known” Logan families of Scotland – i.e. the Highland Logans of Ross and Cromarty; the Logans of Restalrig; the Logans of Cumnock; etc. 
2. FUNDRAISING:
   1. Work with Clan Logan Society International to develop funding sources that can be used for larger projects that will build the “prestige” of Clan Logan
   2. Complete the setup and governance of the Clan Logan Charitable Trust in Scotland which will be used to acquire and preserve documents, artwork, and other historical items that pertain to the early Logans of Scotland
3. ADDITIVE STEPS: Things that I will be doing that are additive to the work that’s already been done are: 
   1. I will ask for permission to complete a comprehensive search of the archives of the Office of the Lord Lyon to specifically look for all mentions of Logans. 
   2. As a Commander of the Name Logan, it will be appropriate for me to ask politely to inspect the family records of other clans to see if there are clues to the Logans of that Ilk.
4. PUBLIC APPEARANCES & PRESENTATION: 
   1. I will apply to join the Society of Scottish Antiquaries, the Heraldry Society of Scotland, and other organizations that might aid in the notoriety of the Logans and our search for our chief. The goal in this case will be to give speeches or presentations on Clan Logan, our history, and our current search for the hereditary chief
   2. I will complete what is known as the “Tartan Trail” on wikitree, to further hone my research and documentation skills
   3. I will represent the family and clan of Logan at social occasions, including the upcoming Inverness Highland Games, the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, etc. in order to increase the public’s knowledge of our quest. See my answer to question #9 for more on this.

5. If you do not become Commander, how will you support the work of finding the Chief? 

I will continue doing the work I’ve been doing for many years now along this historic journey.  As President of Clan Logan Society International, I will maintain our focus on finding the chief. By continuing to grow a respected, well-known Scottish heritage society of Logan family and friends with an expanding global membership, the Society will be capable of raising necessary funds to provide resources for the search for the chief. 

I will always make myself available to help the commander with any questions he might have as he’s learning how to effectively search historical documents, speak to clansmen and women on the importance of our shared quest, and aid in any other capacity of which I am able.

6. What have you done to date that has supported finding the Chief? 

The key accomplishment I wish to focus on is not the personal searching I have done for the hereditary chief over the past ten years, nor my participation with John Marjoribanks and our many genealogists in recent years.

The fact that we are having this convention is due to my leadership. After I negotiated the hiring of Dr. Durie, the highly regarded genealogist, John and my work with him showed that we were not going to achieve our goal of finding the chief on our path we’d followed for 20 years. 

I proposed to the members of the Society that we should ask the Lord Lyon King of Arms for permission to hold a supervised convention. After almost 18 months, we are nearly ready to hold that convention. I have led the team putting together the convention and played an active role in advertising, graphics, and opinion-giving whenever there was a question about our plans.

The successful conclusion of this historic convention of the Family and Highland Clan of Logan will be secondary in our modern history only to the eventual finding of the hereditary chief. I am very proud to have led Clan Logan into this historic period. 

7. How would you explain the significance of having a Chief to someone just learning about Clan Logan? 

Having a Chief of Name and Arms will allow us to fully reclaim our rightful place in Scottish history. The Logans, being a proud family with a long history in the founding of Scotland and before, seek to be counted among the other clans with our proper place in history understood. Finding our long-absent Chief of Name and Arms will add to the prestige and acceptance of the clan and allow us to more fully take part in the telling of our history.

8. How do you plan to represent Clan Logan internationally over the next five years? 

I will follow the precedent I’ve already established as the President of Clan Logan Society International.

One of the best ways I can represent Clan Logan internationally is by continuing to reach out to clan members of the different nations. In working with those members, I can put together an effective plan that allows me to attend their local Highland festivals and games, their Burns Night suppers, and any other event that might excite a large Logan turnout. 

I brought together the leadership of the Society for the first time in over 100 years to one recent event – the 2023 Highland games in Estes Park, Colorado. In organizing and participating in this event, I showed how effective a coming together like this can be – we had over 50 Clan Logan members walk with us during the Parade of Clans. It has continued to pay off in camaraderie and membership growth.

9. What worldwide events do you believe should be prioritized to attend in person as the representative of Clan Logan? 

Certainly the following Highland festivals and games will be on the list:

• Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, North Carolina, USA
• City of Inverness Highland Games, Inverness, Scotland, UK
• Longs Peak Scottish Irish Highland Festival, Estes Park, Colorado, USA
• Hororata Highland Games, Hororata, Canterbury, New Zealand
• Glengarry Highland Games, Maxville, Ontario, Canada

There are also excellent opportunities to represent Clan Logan that can be had at:

• The biannual International Congress of Genealogical and Heraldic Sciences (the next event will be in 2026 in Italy)
• My local St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit monthly member meetings
• Quarterly meetings of the Board of Directors of Clan Logan Society International
• The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland online events, and in person when possible

10. What will your objectives be when representing Clan Logan at events?

My objectives are based on the precedence I’ve already set as a leader within Clan Logan. I have been representing Clan Logan at social occasions for a decade now.

My objectives continue to be:

• Make clear to all that I meet that our family’s fondest desire is to find the person who is able to inherit the title, “Chief of Name and Arms of Logan”  
• Proclaiming the accurate history of the Logans in the development of the great nation of Scotland
• Discuss the histories of Logans worldwide so that people will understand the proud heritage in the family name 
• Encourage Logans who attend the event to get more involved in similar events
  • by hosting hospitality tents, 
  • making their own presentations on Logan history, and sharing their own personal stories of what excites them about their heritage as a Logan

11. How will you search for the Chief if you do not live in Scotland? If the Chief does not live in Scotland? 

Gratefully, with the many advances in technology, it is no longer necessary to be present in Scotland to search the archival records of the nation. The Scots have done a wonderful job of digitizing and making available, often for free, many of the records that we may still need to review. Scotland’s People is a great searchable repository of historical records for instance. And recently, the Lord Lyon has digitized the many heraldic records his office maintains. This will be of great help. 

There are many archival documents held in universities around the world, and I happen to live near one of these. The University of Michigan’s Hathi Trust has digitized and maintains original source material of books and manuscripts dating to the 1600s and earlier. I’ve already used them as references in the search to date and likely will in future searching. 

If the trail to the chief should lead to a country other than Scotland – this is a fascinating topic for me. I’ve pondered more than a few times what the likelihood of finding the rightful chief in India, for instance, or South Africa, or Norway, might actually be. This has come up more than once in the last twenty years because it is well-known that in the fallout from the Gowrie Conspiracy many Logans left Scotland. When the name was unjustly besmirched, many kin left for other parts of the British empire, including more exotic places such as India, East Asia, and the African continent. Time has not permitted following up on these leads yet. 

How amazing would it be to find that the Logan of that Ilk line continued to develop over the centuries in lands that we don’t often associate with the UK, much less Scotland, in modern times? I am excited at the thought of this being part of the challenge of finding our hereditary chief, especially when I think about the knowledge that will be learned as the commander makes his way down a trail like that!