100th family reunion held in West Deer, but their roots came from Scotland — so did the clan's leader

It’s in the Scottish nature to want to get together and meet up, says Madam Pauline Hunter, the 30th clan chief of Clan Hunter.

Often that sees members of the clan, now scattered around the globe, returning to their roots and visiting Hunterston Castle, which is located southwest of Glasgow, dates to the 11th century and remains owned by the family as a museum.

But this time, it was Madam Hunter who traveled to a church in West Deer to be part of the 100th reunion of a branch of the clan whose lineage in America dates to 1830. That’s when James Hunter III and his wife, Margaret MacCord Hunter, left Scotland in search of opportunity.

About 180 members of the Hunter family were expected to attend the reunion Saturday at Deer Creek United Presbyterian Church.

Margaret MacCord Hunter’s lineage traces back to Rob Roy MacGregor, a Scottish outlaw who became a folk hero. This year’s reunion fell on the 145th anniversary of her death in 1880.

The majority of the family in this area traces its roots to James and Margaret’s ninth child, Francis.

Francis Hunter married Martha Wallace, whose lineage goes back to Sir William Wallace, a Scottish knight who became a leader of the First War of Scottish Independence and was portrayed by Mel Gibson in the 1995 film “Braveheart.”

While many still live locally, others came from a number of states including Virginia, New Hampshire and Illinois.

John Snitzer, 75, returned from his home in Denver while one of his two daughters came from Alaska. He last attended two years ago and hasn’t been to many since leaving Pennsylvania in 1972. But he remembers being there as he grew up, playing games with the other children while the adults tended to business.

“It’s amazing that they kept it together,” he said of the family gatherings reaching the century mark.

Surrounded by family chatting and catching up outside the church, Snitzer said he felt loved and accepted.

“Everything else in life, you have to earn it,” he said.

The reunion has been held at the West Deer church nearly every year since 1923, said Karen Dwyer, 53, of Mars, who is in her third year as reunion president. Only two years were missed: 1943, during World War II, and 1972, during a national energy shortage that spiked gas prices.

She doesn’t know how the gatherings got started but said it’s been faith and “pure will” that have kept them going for so long.

Attendance for the reunion was “way up” Saturday from the usual 50 to 100 who come, Dwyer said. Four generations of the family were represented, from about 8 months old to 89 years.

“This is our big one,” she said. “It’s 100 years of generation after generation getting together. You don’t see that too often anymore. It’s really nice to get to see people you don’t see all the time.”

Dwyer’s daughter, Krista McGuire, 30, of Unity will be taking over the job of reunion president from her mother.

“It’s important that we carry on these traditions. It’s a way to honor family history and bring everyone together,” McGuire said. “To see that our family has remained in one area for so long, you don’t see a lot of families that have that.”

McGuire has never been to Scotland but has read up on Scottish history as well as that of her family’s. She hopes to be able to visit Hunterston Castle.

“I feel very close to the culture that I never got to know,” McGuire said.

Madam Hunter made good on an invitation given five years ago by Beverly Sheirer, 81, of Butler, who in 1970 reconnected their part of the family with their homeland when she and her sister, Millie Sass, visited Hunterston Castle. They introduced themselves to Madam Hunter’s father, Neil Aylmer Hunter, who was clan chief before her.

“I’m thrilled. I’ve been waiting for this for five years,” Sheirer said. “It means a great deal. For her to come over here for our little family, it’s unheard of. It’s quite an honor.”

Madam Hunter said this is the second time she has visited West Deer, having come to a gathering more than two decades ago shortly after inheriting her seat in 1994.

An international gathering of the clan is held every two years at Hunterston Castle. The next is July 24-26, 2026.

Members of the clan can be found across the United States and around the world, including Central and South America, Australia, New Zealand and Europe, Madam Hunter said.

“A lot of Scots migrated. The land wasn’t that rich,” she said. “Many came to America and to Pittsburgh looking for a better life and opportunities.”

She was not aware of any part of the family coming together on a regular basis and for as long as the Hunters have in West Deer.

There was never any question whether she would attend the 100th on Saturday.

“They’re the stewards of their family traditions. This is their legacy that they hand down to each generation,” she said. “It’s just wonderful to see people who have not been here in at least a decade come together, meet up and chat as if no time has passed.

”It’s family. It’s what being a clan is about.”