U.S. Heraldic Registry
Registration of contemporary and historical American heraldry
Rustem Warthen McMillan
Registration number 20071001C
This certifies that the heraldic arms of Rustem Warthen McMillan (1872-1928) which are offered in memoriam and conveyed to his descendants are registered and described by the blazon below
Registration
2005 Committee on Heraldry of the New England Historic Genealogical Society
Biographical information
Farmer and merchant; born Talladega County, Alabama, 1872;
died Sylacauga, Talladega County, Alabama, 1928.
Design rationale
In keeping with the Scottish custom of basing all arms on those of the chief of the name, the design derives from the arms of MacMillan of Knap, "Or a lion rampant Sable in chief three stars Azure." The lion's posture is changed to passant, as it appears in the earliest known MacMillan arms. The stars are voided argent, presenting white stars on a blue field, an allusion to the United States. The bar wavy in base refers to Tallasahatchee Creek in Alabama, where Rustem W. McMillan's grandfather, Daniel McMillan, established the family farm in the 1830s. Alternatively, the entire composition can be interpreted as a graphic depiction of the motto, which comes from a passage by Horace, "Caelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt"--Those who travel across the sea (the MacMillan lion passing over the bar wavy) change their skies (the voiding of the stars) but not their souls.
The crest depicts a typical weapon used by the Creek Indians who previously occupied the area in which Daniel McMillan settled. It replaces the two-handed Highland claymore in the MacMillan of Knap crest.
Registered by
Ernest Oliver Joseph McMillan
Categories
Roll of Arms
Policies
