William Coats was born to Thomas Coats and Janet Zuill in Blantyre in 1692. William was captured at Carlisle Castle in 1746, giving Aberdeenshire as his home, and transported to Antigua on the ship Veteran. It was captured by a French ship and the Jacobite prisoners were released in Martinique. From here on is conjecture, but I believe William had at least one other son of a second \"wife\", John, in Martinique, who came to Johnston county, North Carolina, USA before 1780 (William had three sons in Blantyre: Thomas, John, and Robert). John had a son, William, who had a son that he named Thomas. The naming pattern: William - John - William fits the general Scottish pattern. And Thomas could be in honor of the grandfather in Scotland. John, William , and Thomas were in my line, but another descendant of John, my grandfather\'s first cousin, was named Faquard, a misspelling of Farquar, the first of the Clan Farquharson, of which  Coats is a sept. I\'ll never prove any of that, and the names are hardly unusual, but the coincidences are remarkable. I was hoping to find any record of these men\'s lives, although it\'s seldom or never the common man that history remembers, and any information you may be able to find would be greatly appreciated. My surname is Coates, but the \"e\" was added to my father\'s name. If everyone\'s economies hold together we\'re hoping to return to Scotland this fall and I would love to visit Blantyre. Tapadh leibh.