From Scotland to Atlanta: The Story of William Wordsworth Forsyth and Annie McQueen Forsyth
/Few Forsyth families experienced as much change, hardship, and history as William Wordsworth Forsyth and his wife, Annie McQueen Forsyth.
William Wordsworth Forsyth was born on 15 October 1821 in New Monkland, Lanarkshire, Scotland, the son of James Forsyth and Margaret Boyd. Like many Scots seeking opportunity in the nineteenth century, William eventually left Scotland for America, reportedly arriving through Liverpool in December 1845 before settling in New England.
On Christmas Day 1848, William married fellow Scottish immigrant Ann “Annie” McQueen in Fall River, Massachusetts. Within a few short years, the young couple moved south to Atlanta, Georgia, where William worked as a blacksmith. According to A Dictionary of Scottish Emigrants to the U.S.A. by Donald Whyte, William later operated musket works in Atlanta during the Civil War.
The family was living in Atlanta during the terrible events of the 1864 Siege of Atlanta. Annie McQueen Forsyth later became known through a newspaper feature published in The Atlanta Constitution in 1900, which described her as “the only woman wounded in the siege of Atlanta.” During the bombardment of the city, Annie was struck in the side by a fragment of shell while trying to protect her children near an old engine and soap factory. Despite the severity of her wound, she survived and continued raising her family in Atlanta after the war.
Together, William and Annie raised a large family that included William Woods Forsyth, who later became a Colonel in the United States Army, along with several other children born in Georgia during and after the Civil War years. Like many nineteenth-century families, they also endured heartbreaking losses, including the deaths of children Emma, Walter, and Charlie before adulthood.
William remained in Atlanta for the rest of his life and continued working as a blacksmith into his later years. He died in December 1900. Annie survived him by several years, passing away in 1903. Both are buried in Oakland Cemetery, one of Atlanta’s most historic cemeteries.
Their story represents the journey of many Scottish immigrants who helped build communities across America while living through some of the nation’s most difficult years. The experiences of William and Annie Forsyth — from industrial Scotland to Civil War Atlanta — remain an important part of Forsyth family history.
A more detailed article on William and Annie Forsyth, written by descendant Elizabeth Forsyth Harris, appeared in The Griffin, the newsletter of the Clan Forsyth Society USA.
If you’re a Forsyth descendant—or curious if you might be—consider joining the Clan Forsyth Society USA to explore your heritage!