John McDonnell (1791 - 1865)

Born 8 Jun 1791 in Inverness, Scotland

Husband of Margaret Bruce Elphinston (Harrower) McDonnell — married 1818 in Fort Augustus, Scotland

Descendants

Died 1865 at about age 73 in North Sherbrooke, Lanark County, Canada West

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Biography

John McDonnell was born 8 June, 1791 in Scotland, and died 1865 in North Sherbrooke Township Lot 12 Con 4 of Lanark County when it was still Canada West. He married Margaret Bruce Elphinston Harrower about 1818 in Fort Augustus, Scotland, daughter of James Harrower and Anne Tulloch. She was born Aug 08, 1797 in Scotland and died Sep 17, 1883 in North Sherbrooke Township Lot 12 Con 4 of Lanark County, Ontario, Canada.

Notes for John McDonnell:

John and his wife Margaret are buried on the McDonnell homestead at Lot 12, Con 4, of North Sherbrooke Township, Lanark County, Ontario, Canada. Located just west of the village of Elphin.

Gravestone reads: "Sacred to the memory of the late John McDonall who departed this life in 1865 aged 73 years - beloved by his loving wife Margaret Harrower." ^[1]

Note the spelling of McDonall on his gravestone. That is the only place I have seen it spelled this way. Margaret's stone says McDonald. John's Last Will And Testament is signed by him as McDonnell. In land claim documents his name is spelled McDonell, which is how most of the descendants who remained in Ontario spell it. The 1851 and 1861 Census for North Sherbrooke Township spells the name as McDonnell. Other variations among descendants include: McDonell, McDonnell, MacDonell, McDonald and MacDonald.

More About John McDonnell:

Burial: McDonell Homestead, near Elphin, Lot 12, Con 4, North Sherbrooke Township, Lanark County, Ontario, Canada ^[2]

Emigrated: 1818, From Scotland to Canada

Misc. Info: John said he had no less that 18 children, in his Land Petition dated Feb. 16, 1843.

John and Margaret had 12 children that bio on Find A Grave lists: ^[2]

01 ) - Elizabeth - married John Hannah, stayed in Palmerston Twp., Frontenac County, Ontario.

02 ) - Ann - married David Calvert and settled in Lambton County, Ontario.

03 ) - James - was living at home in North Sherbrooke Twp., Lanark County until at least 1843, died young.

04 ) - Margaret - married Jack Hugh Bryce, settled in Lambton County, then Strathclair, Manitoba after Jack died.

05 ) - Catherine - married Thomas Edward Smith, settled in Lambton County, Ontario.

06 ) - Hannah - married Allan McDougall, stayed in Palmerston, then moved to Lavant Twp. in Lanark County.

07 ) - Donald - married Ellen Euphemia Hannah, moved to Polk County, Minnesota, USA.

08 ) - John - married Alice Sergeant stayed at Robertsville in Palmerston Twp., Frontenac County, Ontario.

09 ) - Isabella - married Andrew Harrower and settled in Lambton County, Ontario.

10 ) - Charlotte - married William Hannah and stayed in Palmerston Twp. of Frontenac County.

11 ) - Mary - married George Sergeant and stayed in Lanark County, Ontario.

12 ) - Victoria - married Simon Clement and lived on the homestead in North Sherbrooke Twp., Lanark County.

Biography from Find A Grave: ^[2]

"The 1851 Census of North Sherbrooke Twp., Lanark County, says John was born June 8, 1791 in Scotland. A McDonell descendant in the U.S. believes John came from North Uist County in Inverness-Shire, Scotland. We do not know who John's parents were or any of his siblings. What we do know is that John McDonnell married Margaret Bruce Elphinstone Harrower about 1818. Margaret was born in Boleskine, Inverness-Shire, Scotland. Boleskine Parish records show that she was baptized on Aug. 11, 1799 a daughter of James Harrower and Anne Tulloch. The 1851 Census of North Sherbrooke says she was born on August 8 but gave no year. Her gravestone says she was 86 when she died on Sept. 17, 1883 which would indicate she was born in 1797.

Land Petition records say that John McDonnell came from Scotland in 1818 and that is the year we believe he was married to Margaret Harrower, however a marriage record has not been found yet. John and Margaret first settled in Glengarry County in Ontario, which had a large number of McDonell settlers from the Scottish Highlands. No records were found that show he ever owned land there. The Lochiel Church of Scotland in Glengarry shows the birth of their daughter Ann on April 15, 1821 and indicates that they were living on the 6th concession of Lochiel Township in Glengarry at the time. I went through the Lochiel Parish birth records and found several McDonell families living on concession 6 at that time. It's possible one of these families were relatives with whom they were living.

When John and Margaret came to Canada it appears they were Roman Catholic. Their daughter Elizabeth's birth was found in the birth records of St. Raphael's Roman Catholic Church in Glengarry. She was born May 19, 1819 and baptized May 23, 1819. It lists her parents as John MacDonell and Peggy Harrower. It also shows the baptism was sponsored by Duncan MacDougald and Jane MacDonell. I wonder if Jane could have been a sister of John ?

It appears that sometime between 1819 and 1821, John and Margaret left the Catholic Church and became Presbyterians. A story from "The McDonell Saga" , written in 1982 by Barbara Jean (McDonell) Crawford, says that John had an argument with his priest over a pig and he left the church. Records of the Lochiel Church of Scotland in Glengarry, show that John and Margaret's 2nd daughter, Ann, was born on April 15, 1821 and baptized on May 13, 1821. The following information on the Lochiel Church was taken from the Lochiel Parish Register book, 1820 - 1884, compiled by Duncan W. MacDonald;

"The Protestant settlers in Lochiel in 1793 had no church at first, nor any minister, other than Rev. John Bethune and his successor at St. Andrew's Church at Williamstown. However, in 1819, Rev. John McLaurin came out from Breadalbane, Scotland and took up abode among the settlers at Glenelg. In 1820 he started the erection of a small wooden church on the East hill. From the building on this 'Kirk' the district became known as Kirk Hill. In 1822, the first sacrament in Lochiel was celebrated; as the church was not yet ready, the service was held in the open air. Assisting the Rev. John McLaurin were Rev. John McKenzie of Williamstown and Rev. John Barclay of Kingston. "

The Lochiel Church Parish Register also shows that John and Margaret's 3rd daughter, Catherine was born on May 15, 1826 and baptized on June 11, 1826. Again it shows John McDonald and Peggy Harrower living on the 6th concession of Lochiel but does not give a lot number.

Catherine was the last of their children to be born in Glengarry County. They had a son James who may have been born there as well but no record has been found. The remainder of their children were all born in North Sherbrooke Township, Lanark County, Ontario."

Family links: Spouse: Margaret Bruce Elphinston Harrower McDonnell (1797 - 1883) ^[3][2]

Children: Elizabeth McDonnell Hannah (1819 - 1886) ^[3]
John McDonell (1832 - 1897) ^[3]
Charlotte McDonnell Hannah (1835 - 1887) ^[3]
Mary McDonald Sergeson (1838 - 1893) ^[3]
Victoria McDonell Clement (1840 - 1892) ^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (www.findagrave.com/memorial/51991659/john-mcdonnell : accessed 18 June 2021), memorial page for John McDonnell (8 Jun 1791–1865), Find a Grave Memorial ID 51991659, citing McDonnell Gravesite, Elphin, Lanark County, Ontario, Canada ; Maintained by Darb (contributor 47238300) .
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} Gravesite image and bio on FindaGrave
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5} Calculated relationship, by Gary Darby? -- See Find A Grave memorial

• Descendants of John McDonnell (http://www.genealogy.com/ftm/d/a/r/Gary-G-Darby/BOOK-0001/0003-0001.html)
• Created by: Gary Darby; Record added: May 04, 2010