Emigrants
Like many European families, economic hardship, religious intolerance, or just the excitement of new horizons and opportunities offered by the outposts of the British Empire, or the open door policy of the USA, persuaded many Mastertons to seek their fortunes in the New Worlds. I have come across emigrants to the Americas, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand from the 19th century onwards.
But it wasn't just the lure of the Empire. Scots have long been willing to travel to do business and there are also some emigrants from Scotland to other European countries in earlier centuries. For example, the Mesterton family of Sweden and Finland originates from James Masterton (1625-89), shipper in Leith, who became Jakob Mesterton and married Kerstin Scrymgeour and later Petronella Schaeij and settled in Sweden. Ossian Mesterton's website has much more information on these Swedish and Finnish Mestertons, including a speculative addition to Victor A Noel Paton's genealogy.
Another early emigrant was Adam Masterton whose son James, born in Dendermont in Flanders in 1610, became professor of law at Leiden University in 1630. An early American colonist, Christian Masterton, was one of a group of prostitutes transported from Edinburgh in 1695. Somewhat inauspicious but we tell it how it is on this site! More respectably, Alexander Masterton, bosun, was in the party of Scots colonists on the ill-fated Darien Scheme, which led to a huge financial loss for the nation and was a factor leading to the Union of Parliaments with England in 1707.
THE MASTERTON DIASPORA
Records of some Masterton emigrants from their home country.
United States of America
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
| Christian Masterton, whore | 3 1695 | Edinburgh | transported after conviction | |||
| John Masterton | 33 | 22 4 1870 | 'Iowa' | New York | ||
| Jno Masterton, miner | 31 | 6 5 1870 | 'Australia' | New York | ||
| Mrs Janet Masterton | 32 | 9 6 1871 | 'India' | New York | ||
| Alexander | 10 | 9 6 1871 | 'India' | New York | ||
| Euphemia | 8 | 9 6 1871 | 'India' | New York | ||
| Mary | 6 | 9 6 1871 | 'India' | New York | ||
| Hugh | 3 | 9 6 1871 | 'India' | New York | ||
| Wm Masterton, merchant | 23 | 1 5 1878 | 'Abyssinia' | New York | ||
| D Craig Masterton | 32 | 18 5 1892 | 'Norwegian' | New York | ||
| John Masterton | 20 | 10 7 1893 | Glasgow | 'Furnessia' | New York | |
| David Masterton | 40 | 6 11 1901 | Liverpool | 'Ivernia' | Boston | Wisconsin |
| Margaret Masterton | 40 | 6 11 1901 | Liverpool | 'Ivernia' | Boston | Wisconsin |
| George Masterton | 27 (?) | 7 5 1903 | 'Ethiopia' | New York | ||
| Walter Henry Masterton | 19 | 5 3 1904 | Glasgow | New York | New York | |
| Arthur Masterton | 16 | 6 1906 | Antwerp | 'Glenclova' | Seattle | |
| David Masterton | 12 9 1908 | Glasgow | 'Hesperian' | Canada | USA | |
| Christina Masterton | 12 9 1908 | Glasgow | 'Hesperian' | Canada | USA | |
| Andrew Masterton | 35 | 6 1909 | 'Furnessia' | New York | ||
| Janet Masterton | 35 | 7 11 1909 | 'Caledonia' | New York | Brooklyn, New York | |
| John | 10 | 7 11 1909 | 'Caledonia' | New York | Brooklyn, New York | |
| Alice | 8 | 7 11 1909 | 'Caledonia' | New York | Brooklyn, New York | |
| George | 1 | 7 11 1909 | 'Caledonia' | New York | Brooklyn, New York | |
| George Masterton | 25 | 22 3 1910 | 'Furnessia' | New York | ||
| Agnes Masterton | 23 | 4 1910 | 'Canada' | Portland, Maine | ||
| John Masterton | 24 | 13 8 1911 | 'Caledonia' | New York | Detroit, Michigan | |
| Harry Masterton | 23 | 6 4 1912 | 'Parisian' | Boston | ||
| George Masterton | 5 1912 | 'Haverford' | Philadelphia | |||
| John Masterton | 5 1912 | 'Haverford' | Philadelphia | |||
| James Masterton | 33 | 17 2 1913 | 'Caledonia' | New York | ||
| James Masterton | 19 | 15 5 1914 | Glasgow | 'Pretorian' | Boston | |
| William Masterton | 31 | 26 6 1920 | 'Columbia' | New York | ||
| Mary Masterton | 28 | 26 6 1920 | 'Columbia' | New York | ||
| George Masterton | 32 | 30 1 1922 | 'Lapland' | New York | ||
| James Masterton | 39 | Jul 1923 | 'Columbia' | Boston | ||
| George Masterton | 45 | 1 10 1923 | 'Tuscania' | New York | ||
| Agnes Masterton | 35 | 28 4 1925 | 'Tuscania' | New York | Gary, Indiana | |
| Thomas David | 12 | 28 4 1925 | 'Tuscania' | New York | Gary, Indiana | |
| Arthur | 11 | 28 4 1925 | 'Tuscania' | New York | Gary, Indiana | |
| Mary | 9 | 28 4 1925 | 'Tuscania' | New York | Gary, Indiana | |
| Catherine Masterton | 38 | 27 9 1926 | Glasgow | 'California' | New York | |
| Elizabeth | 14 | 27 9 1926 | Glasgow | 'California' | New York | |
| James | 5 | 27 9 1926 | Glasgow | 'California' | New York | |
| Hugh | 18 | 27 9 1926 | Glasgow | 'California' | New York | |
| Thomas | 17 | 27 9 1926 | Glasgow | 'California' | New York | |
| Annie Masterton | 48 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
| Andrew | 18 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
| Peter | 16 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
| George | 12 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
| Catherine | 9 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
| Jean | 5 | 17 12 1927 | Glasgow | 'Letitia' | Halifax | Chicago, Illinois |
The following link has passenger records for immigrants to USA that travelled through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1925.
Canada
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
| Alexander Masterton | 17 | 1814 | Halifax, Nova Scotia | New York, USA | ||
| Robert Masterton | app 1820 | Kingston (now Rexton), Kent County, New Brunswick | ||||
| John Masterton | 37 | 7 1820 | Chatham, Northumberland Co., New Brunswick | New Brunswick | ||
| Janet Masterton | 1830 | Annan | 'Ellen McCarthy' | Kingston (now Rexton), Kent County, New Brunswick | ||
| George Masterton | 22 | 6 5 1912 | Glasgow | 'Hesperian' | Quebec, Canada | USA via GTR |
Other America
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
| Alexander Masterton, bosun | 14 7 1698 | Leith | Caledonia | Darien | ||
Australia
In 1852, James, Janet and George Masterton were passengers on the notorious journey of the "Ticonderoga", the Fever Ship from Liverpool on which a quarter of the passengers died. The Emigration Commission changed the minimum acceptable standards of accommodation on immigrant ships as a direct result.
Three brothers, two sisters and their families emigrated to Melbourne, Victoria 1853-54:
David Masterton was a master mariner and Captain of 'Ferozepore' 1847-1853. He bought a 127-ton ship 'Elizabeth' and took his sisters Mary and Julia and William's wife and four children to Victoria in 1853/54. David's children and his brothers William and Fowler were already in Victoria in 1852/53. In 1877 David became mayor of Brighton, Victoria.
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
| James Masterton | 28 | Dec 1852 | Liverpool, England | 'Ticonderoga' | Portsea, Point Nepean, Victoria | Kilmore, Victoria |
| Janet | 24 | Dec 1852 | Liverpool, England | 'Ticonderoga' | Portsea, Point Nepean, Victoria | Kilmore, Victoria |
| George | 4 | Dec 1852 | Liverpool, England | 'Ticonderoga' | Portsea, Point Nepean, Victoria | Kilmore, Victoria |
| William Masterton | 35 | Oct 1852 | 'Ferozepore' | Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Fowler Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| Margaret Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| Isabella Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| Julia Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| Frances Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| David Masterton | Melbourne, Victoria | |||||
| David Masterton | Feb 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| Mary Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| Julia Masterton | 7 | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Isabella Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| David Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| Alexander McKay Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| Frances King Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
| Julia Mitchell Masterton | 1854 | 'Elizabeth' | Melbourne, Victoria | |||
New Zealand
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
| William Masterton | app 1868 | Australia | ||||
| Christina Dunn Masterton (ms Forbes) | app 1868 | Australia | ||||
| Peter Masterton | 1874 | Oamaru | ||||
| John James Alexander Masterton | 1911 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| Helen Masterton (ms Urquhart) | 1911 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| John Urquhart Masterton | 1911 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| Thomas Urquhart Masterton | 1911 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| James Reid Masterton | 1911 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| Alexander Monro Masterton | 1912 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| Mary Anderson Masterton (ms Ellis) | 1912 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| George Masterton | 1912 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| Mary Ellis Masterton | 1912 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| John Ellis Masterton | 1912 | London | Wellington | New Zealand | ||
| James Alexander Masterton | 24 | 1927 | London | Sydney, Australia | New Zealand | |
| Eva Masterton (ms Strachan) | 24 | 1927 | London | Sydney, Australia | New Zealand | |
| Alexander Burns Masterton | 46 | 1950 | Southampton | New Zealand | ||
| Margaret Chalmers Duncan Masterton (ms Whitelaw) | 46 | 1950 | Southampton | New Zealand | ||
| Rachel M Masterton | 17 | 1950 | Southampton | New Zealand | ||
| Alexander B Masterton | 13 | 1950 | Southampton | New Zealand |
Southern Africa
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
Sweden
| Name | Age | Date | From | Ship | Port of Arrival | Final Destination |
Sources for images of ships: 1) Simplon Postcards The Passenger Ship Website
2) Clydebuilt