James Frederic Ferguson facts for kids

James Frederic Ferguson (1807–1855) was an Irish antiquary. An antiquary is someone who studies old things. They are interested in history, old objects, and ancient writings. Ferguson spent his life working with important historical documents from Ireland.

About James Frederic Ferguson

James Frederic Ferguson was born in 1807 in Charleston, South Carolina, in the United States. His family had French roots. His father, Jacques Frédéric Jaquemain, was from Cambrai, France. During the French Revolution, his father left France. He moved to London in 1793 and changed his name to Ferguson.

Later, his father went to America. He worked as a postmaster in Beaufort, South Carolina. In 1812, after his wife died, he moved back to London. There, he became a language teacher. Eventually, he opened a school in St Stephen's Green, Dublin, Ireland.

Early Life and Work

Young James Frederic Ferguson moved to Dublin with his father in 1820. As a young man, he helped a nobleman, Lord Kingsland. He worked to get back some family lands for Lord Kingsland. He was partly successful in this effort.

In 1850, Ferguson got an important job. He became a clerk and secretary for a group that organized old records from Irish courts. He kept this job for two years until the group stopped its work. However, he continued to look after these records until he died.

A Special Trip for History

James Ferguson was very dedicated to his work. Once, he traveled all the way to Switzerland. He paid for this trip himself. His goal was to get back some old Irish records. These records were part of a collection owned by a baron in Swabia.

It turned out these documents were from the Irish court of King's Bench. They dated back to the time of Edward I of England. People believed they had been stolen many years before. Ferguson bought these records with his own money. He then returned them to the State Paper Office in Ireland.

James Frederic Ferguson passed away on November 26, 1855.

Ferguson's Important Works

Ferguson worked with another writer, William Lynch. They helped organize many "Irish Records." These were huge collections of historical documents. Some of these documents later went to the library of Sir William Betham.

Indexing Old Records

Ferguson's most important achievement was creating indexes for the "Exchequer Records in Ireland." The Exchequer was like the government's finance department. These records were very old and important. Ferguson completed all the indexing by himself. The government bought his indexes. They are now kept permanently in the court of exchequer.

Published Writings

In 1843, Ferguson published a book. It was called Remarks on the Limitations of Actions Bill intended for Ireland. It also included parts of old records about churches in Ireland.

He also wrote for different historical societies and magazines:

• For the Transactions of the Kilkenny Archaeological Society, he wrote a list of the contents of the "Red Book" of the Irish exchequer.
• For the Gentleman's Magazine, he described an old drawing of the court of exchequer. He also wrote two important articles about the poor condition of Irish State Records. He wrote another paper about Irish laws that had not been published.
• For the Topographer and Genealogist, he shared several interesting historical notes. These included an account of Sir Toby Caulfeild about people who fled from Ulster in 1616. He also wrote about old taxes in Ireland and a list of castles from 1676.

When he died, Ferguson was working on a translation. It was a "Norman-French Chronicle of the Conquest of Ireland." This work was later finished and published by someone else.