Margaret Archibald

  General Notes:

1910 US Federal Census, Conway, Franklin County, MA, ED 493, p.81b, sheet 4b, Baptist Hill, Enumeration #75/76.

Archibald Sinclair, head, age 74, married once for 55 years, born Scotland, emigrated 1854 [1856?], naturalised, own income, owns mortgaged house, survivor of the Union army.

Margaret A. Sinclair, wife, age 76, 9 children born, 2 children surviving, born Scotland, Parents also, Naturalised, no occupation.

26 Feb 2008, I received the following from the town clerk, in Conway, MA:

Colleen…
According to the unofficial genealogical information in our 1967 town history, Archibald Sinclair was born 1835, Bridge of Weir, Scotland, the son of Duncan and Isabella (Pinkerton) Sinclair.
He married Margaret Archibald, also of Bridge of Weir. (This may have been presumed that she was from the same place as he, since it is an "unofficial" history; then again, maybe she was born there?)
Their first child was born in Scotland, the next three in Canton, MA and the last three in Conway, MA.
(We know that Ann was born in the same house that her mother resided in, on Dovehill.)
The history indicates that he came to Conway in 1866 and he is not listed among our Civil War veterans…
(1966 is of course after the war... the family lived in Canton, prior, and his brother lived in Connecticut previously, so perhaps they did as well.)
We do have death records for both Archibald and Margaret. He was a mill worker and died, 22 Dec 1910, from cancer of the larynx at the age of 75 years.
She died of cerebral meningitis on 21 Mar 1917 at the age of 83 years…
Harry Sinclair who served as Conway town treasurer from 1937-1941 and 1949-1960 and as town clerk from 1956-1961 was the son of Archibald's brother Alexander.
Harry stayed here until his death in 1961 and was the last of the family to live in Conway.
Knowlton
Town Clerk

THANK YOU GINNY KNOWLTON!

  Research Notes:

We first find Margaret in the 1841 Census. Interestingly enough, she winds up having her own daughter born at the same address, as Margaret Sinclair... her daughter being Anne... but then I am getting ahead of the story... :)

FIRST we see that Margaret is probably the first daughter born to James and Margaret [ Haldane ] Archibald, where as they were married in 1832 and she was born at their residence, in abt. 1833.

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1841 census, 10 Little Dove Hill, Glasgow, Scotland:
James Archabald , 50, Shoemaker, born Scotland
Margaret (Haldane) Archabald , 40, - - - , born Scotland
Isabella Archabald, 25, Power Loom Weaver, born Lanarkshire
John Archabald* , 15, Tailor, born Lanarkshire
Margret Archabald , 8, - - - , born Lanarkshire
Ann Archabald, 6, - - - , born Lanarkshire
Janet Archabald , 1, - - - , born Lanarkshire
* In this census our John Stewart, son of Margaret Haldane and her first husband, Charles Stewart, is listed under his step-father's surname of Archibald/Archabald. John became very close to his half-sisters and it is has been said that he and little Ann Archabald were especially fond of each other as siblings and remained so through out their lives.

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We know that Margaret and her family moved to America, according to her mother's poor relief application.


1860 Federal Census, Canton, Norfolk County, MA, page 159, sheet 3, family #1364/1368. [is this our Sinclairs?]

Archibald St. Clair, age 25, card grinder, born Ireland [?]
Margaret " ", age 26, born Ireland [?]
Ann " ", age 2, born Rhode Island.
Archibald " ", age 3/12 " " ".



I am going to make a seperate entry for this daughter, primarily because Margaret did have 9 children to be accounted.

1886 Marriages.

Married: 25 Nov 1886 at Greenport, New York [recorded Whatley, MA 1^st December.]

Groom: Perry F. Crofts, residence Whatley, age 25, Painter, b. Whatley, to Leander & Sarah Crafts. First marriage.

Bride: Isabella Sinclair, residing Conway, age 22, at home, born Conway to A & M Sinclair, first marriage, by Edward Lans, Greenpoint N.Y. pastor, Congregational Church.

Margaret reportedly had 9 children, according to the 1910 census... with only two surviving to that date... the following entry suggests that there may have been two daughters named Isabella... perhaps the elder having died, as a child, hence the naming of the second. Margaret Archibald did have an older sister of her own, named Isabella, who was actually a half-sister, from her father's first marriage... so the name would be important to her. This Isabella would have been born 1864...if 22 years old in 1886. The earlier Isabella was supposedly 8 yrs old in 1870 Census making her birth at c. 1862.... a discrepancy of four years... ?

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Margaret married Archibald Sinclair, son of Duncan Sinclair and Isabella Pinkerton, on 12 Nov 1854 in Glasgow, Sct. (Archibald Sinclair was born circa 1835 in SCT and died on 22 Dec 1910 in Conway, Franklin, MA.)