‘Scots Hardened on the Anvil of Ulster’ – Lord John Laird

Welcome to Bogstown.com, the Laird family history site. Here you’ll find genealogies and biographies of Laird families from County Londonderry and County Donegal, along with related families including Hunter, Neely, Wilson, and Boggs.

This site is a repository of years of research, mine and that of others, dedicated to uncovering the lives of ordinary people whose stories might otherwise be lost. The choices and achievements of our ancestors continue to shape who we are today. I hope you find these records meaningful, connect with relatives, and perhaps contribute to this shared history.

Kilderry District lies just outside modern Londonderry, covering areas such as Shantallow and Ballyarnett, and extending across the border into Donegal, including Muff. Births in this region are typically recorded under Kilderry.

Bogstown (or Boggstown), established around 1698, was a farmstead in Shantallow consisting of a farmhouse, outbuildings, and labourers’ cottages arranged around a stone courtyard. Originally home to the Boggs family, Scottish Plantation settlers, it later became the residence of the Laird family. After Richard Laird’s death in 1797, the property passed to his nephew James Laird, with successive generations remaining there until the early 1900s.

In 1886, James’s grandson, Richard Laird (aged 20), emigrated from London to Melbourne aboard the SS Orient, joining his cousin John Laird Hunter, who had settled there earlier. Family members remained at Bogstown until about 1900. The property was sold in the late 1920s and remained largely unchanged until 1960.

Around 1966, Bogstown was acquired by the Catholic Church. The original buildings were removed, and a new chapel was built on the site in 1976. The former Steelstown Lane, once known as Laird’s Lane was widened into Steelstown Road, now lined with homes developed during the mid-20th century.

Bruce Laird – 2026