The primary purpose of the Fullarton/Fullerton Family Study is to clarify the origins of this family first recorded in Ayrshire, Scotland, as well as to identify the various cadet branches and our descent from them. All Fullarton's and the associated names are welcome and encouraged to join us. Early accounts of the name Fullerton show to originate from the town of Fullerton south of Andover in Hampshire UK. Some men bearing this name were said to have accompanied Walter Fitz Alan on his journey north into Scotland, to serve as the High Stewart under King David the 1st ca 1136. These men may have settled and given their name to the town of Fullerton in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is also mentioned in several works "The Montgomery Manuscripts" and "Stewarts of Ballintoy" by Rev. George Hill that another branch of the Fullerton may have existed separately in Arran, this branch became McCloy, and may have arrived during the Viking King Haco's expedition into Scotland ca. 1263, with the name Leosaigh (is this a corruption of the Old Irish word Loinsigh? Meaning "Sea Man" see Lynch/Lindsy origin) . Another possible origin of McCloy is that it arrived into Arran much later with a Lewis Fullerton from Ayrshire during the reign of Robert the 3rd "Genealogical Collections Concerning Families in Scotland," by Walter MacFarlan 1750–1751. In any event the McCloy and Fullarton names were used interchangeably in Arran. These Fullerton and their kin appear to be tied to the Stewarts of Bute aka Stuarts of Bute who ruled over the Isles of Bute, Cumbrae, and Arran. The Camel in the Fullerton coat of arms... I want to mention two tales here told in Gordon Fullerton's "The Fullertons of North America", The more fanciful tale claims the Fullertons were descended from Phoenician traders/sailors who were shipwrecked off the coast of Norway long ago and kept the symbol of the Camel as a reminder of their ancient origins. Another tale is that a branch of Fullertons using the French surname Lewis, later McCloy (Son of Lewis), were a Gaelic family of Silk Merchants who belonged to a creed known as the Waldensian Church. This group ran contrary to the Catholic Church and was said to operate in secrecy, they appeared to have adopted a Camel as a symbol of this faith. The less fanciful tale could have simply been that the Camel a Heraldic symbol depicting "patience, temperance, and perseverance" could have been a trait of the Fullertons. Now the Otters would have been a much more common sight on the isles and are depicted on several Scottish Arms, they are said to represent "industry and perseverance with the ability to return to play and enjoy life".