We are currently advancing our efforts in our research on the family line of the last Chief of the Watson name in Scotland. The immediate priority is to research the Watsons of Saughton in more detail to establish whether there are any living heirs to James Watson, 10th of Saughton, his father Charles and, if that draws a blank, Charles's father James. We will also be looking for any evidence that other Watsons of Saughton before James, 10th of Saughton, were officially recognised as chief of the name in Scotland.

In order to petition the Lord Lyon to recognise a new Clan Chief or Clan Commander, it is essential that we thoroughly research and document all bloodlines from James Watson to conclusively demonstrate that any nominated candidates for the Chieftancy are eligible heirs of the Watsons of Saughton. In the case that no living Watson heirs are found, a comparable level of rigour needs to be applied in demonstrating that all possible Watson bloodlines from the Saughtons have died out.

We have done a considerable amount of research ourselves at our own cost, but it is our view that we need increase our expenditure a little in order to progress. Our current priorities are digitising and transcribing records dating as far back as the 16th century and, later, to hire a professional researcher who specialises in this kind of research to validate our findings and to prepare a case for the Lord Lyon.

If you would like to contribute towards the cost of this research we'd be very grateful for your donation. As described elsewhere, we are looking to formalise the society, and part of this will involve introducing a paying membership structure. Although the free-to-access website will continue to make summary information on Watson history available to all, access to the detailed research will be reserved to those who are paid-up members.

In the meantime, we will share any results from the research with those that contribute towards the cost. Those that contribute at least £25 in any calendar year will receive one year's membership for free once we do introduce a paying membership structure.

There's no obligation whatsoever, but if you are able to contribute, we'll happily accept any donation, no matter how small. We will start the research anyway, but the speed with which we are able to progress will be governed by the level of funding that we are able to raise.

Donations will be held in the account and only used for the purpose of supporting research or, if an excess accrues with time, for supporting other costs incurred by the society such as webhosting fees or membership fees for umbrella clan organisations.

You can contribute using either the Paypal button or the QR code below - both will take you to our donations page.

    

As a thank you for making a donation, you will get:

A mention in any monthly communication that is issued in any month in which you make a donation (mentions will not reference the level of donation unless you request us to do so)

A personalised, numbered certificate (PDF) recognising your status as a Clan Watson Supporter

Updates on the results of any research as they become available

You will be added to the exclusive Facebook group chat in which we discuss the research and make decisions on the way forward (requires a Facebook account)

Your first year's membership for free when the society adopts a paying membership model (for those that donate at least £25 in any calendar year)

You will be eligible for the above benefits for a year after making your donation, so visit the PayPal link and get involved now!

The account linked to above is used exclusively for funding The Clan Watson Society. A statement of the account with donations anonymised will be made available to any donors who wish to audit the account; if you wish to perform such an audit, please contact us (donors only).

The only data that we collect will be the name, email address, donation amount and donation date of those who make a donation. This data will be held in a password-protected spreadsheet and will only be used for the purposes of supplying the benefits listed above. The data will not be shared with anybody that does not need access to it for the purposes of administering donations or benefits. By making a donation, you agree to having your data held on file as described in this section. If you do not wish to have your data held, please contact us after making your donation and we will remove it from our records on the understanding that it will not be possible for us to supply the above benefits once your data is removed.