The ORR  Coat of Arms

Heraldry is a science all its own and bound about with strict rules as to who may bear arms and use heraldic devices and crests. A coat of arms can be obtained in only two ways - by applying for a grant to the appropriate office or by proving descent from someone who was legally entitled to have arms. It is a very expensive thing to do. 

Being of the same name as someone with arms does not confer any right to use it. The `family crest` which goes with a coat of arms is also personal property. To use or claim an arms to be your own is technically a civil wrong and punishable by the courts. In Scotland the Lord Lyon King of Arms, through his Court in Edinburgh, matriculates (approves) coats of arms and has wide powers under an Act of Parliament.

The designs shown here are representations of  arms used by Orr in the past. The two versions differ mainly in the shape of the shield on which the design is mounted.

The armorial description is :

Gule. Three piles in point argent, on a chief or, a torteau between two crosslets fitchee of the field. Crest Cornucopia proper.

Meaning: On a red shield, three silver piles. On a gold upper third, a red circle between two red crosses - crosslets fitchee. Crest a naturally coloured cornucopia ( a horn of plenty ).

The  Ulster version of James Orr of the Villa Antoinette, Cannes, France and Belfast has a trefoil added, as above. He was the second son of James Orr of Ballygowan and Holywood House, a Belfast banker. His mother was Jane Stewart of the Stewarts of Ballintoy. His grandfather was Alexander Orr.

The armorial description in Burkes General Armory  is: 

Gule. Three piles in point argent, the centre pile charged with a trefoil slipped vert on a chief or, a torteau between two crosslets fitchee of the field. Crest Cornucopia proper charged with a trefoil slipped as in the arms.