Person:William Irwin (34)

Name and Relationships

Name: William Irwin. His 1873 marriage registration and death registration listed his name only as William. Some trees on Ancestry.ca show his name as William Robert Irwin. However, I can find no documents that support this.

Parents: Robert and Mary Irwin. Source is William's 1873 marriage registration.

Spouse: Francis Jackson. Source is William's 1873 marriage registration.

Children: ANNA Maria Irwin, and JAMES Jackson Irwin. Source is Margaret Irwin's 1874 and 1888 marriage registrations. Source is Jim's 1902 and 1921 marriage registrations.

Siblings: Hugh Irwin and MARGARET Jane Irwin. Source is 1861 Census of Canada, Huron County, Goderich Township, p28.

William Irwin was Elmer Irwin's paternal grandfather. Unfortunately, Elmer never met this grandfather as he died before Elmer was born.

Personal History

1842? - Birth: Several different birth dates are provided for William Irwin in various documents. Unfortunately, his correct birth date cannot be ascertained without a birth registration and so far have been unable to find it. The 1861 census listed his age as 18 and born in Ireland (infers a birth year of 1843). The 1871 census listed his age as 29 and born in Ireland (infers a birth year of 1842). However, his 1873 marriage registration listed his age as 28 (infers a birth year of 1845).

1848 - Immigration: It appears that William Irwin, his younger brother Hugh Irwin and his mother and father emigrated together from Ireland in 1848. However, the 1901 Canada census for the Hugh Irwin family only mentions Hugh and Mary Irwin (the two others had died). NOTE: There is another person listed in the McCabe household in the 1861 census: Margret J. Irwin 8. She is listed in the 1861 census as being born in Upper Canada. Is this a sister to William and Hugh? If she is a sister, this census infers that she was born in 1853 and this means that the family immigrated before that date.

1851 - Census: The 1851 census for Goderich, Huron County, has not survived and therefore cannot be used to track William Irwin's whereabouts using this document. Source is Library and Archives Canada.

1861 - Census: In 1861, William Irwin 18, was working on William McCabe's (his uncle?) farm in Huron County near Goderich as a labourer. His younger brother, Hugh Irwin 13 and his sister (?) Margret J. Irwin 9, were living at Hugh McCabe's (their maternal grandfather?) farm nearby. Source is 1861 Census of Canada, Huron, Goderich Township, Ontario p28. NOTE: What happened to Margret? She did not go to Magnetawan. These 3 Irwins are listed as not being a member of the McCabe household.

1869 - Residence: In 1869, William Irwin abt 26 and his brother Hugh Irwin came to Magnetawan, Ontario. Source is information contained in the testimony Hugh Irwin provided for the Ontario Agricultural Commission on August 24, 1880. Source is Ontario Agricultural Commission, Report of Commissioners 1881. Appendix R2 Muskoka and Parry Sound District, p34.

1871 - Census: On August 23, 1871, William Irwin 29, Farmer, single, born in Ireland, was living on the homestead at Lot 97, Concession B, Chapman Township (just outside of Magnetawan). His mother, Mary Irwin 54, widowed, born in Ireland, lived with him. Source is 1871 Census of Canada, Aumick Lake, Parry Sound, Ontario.^[1].

1873 - Marriage: On February 9, 1873, William Irwin 28, yeoman (means he owned and cultivated his own land), bachelor, married Frances Jackson 25, in Croft Township, Parry Sound District. The marriage registration listed his parents as Robert and Mary Irwin. Her parents were listed as William and Amelia Jackson. Witnesses were John Jackson and Robert Elliott, Township of Croft. Source is their 1873 marriage registration #008477.

1878 - Death and Burial: On March 26, 1878, William Irwin 36, died at the farm in Magnetawan. Source is My Irwin Family ^[2] by D. Smyth, Unpublished. His death registration listed the cause of death as "Prostration - for four years" but the date he died was not listed. Oddly, the death was not registered until May 15, 1878, almost 2 months after he died. Further, it was strange that the informant on the death registration was Dr. Henry Taylor, Magnetawan, not a family member. D. Smyth wrote that William Irwin was buried in Chapman Community Cemetery ^[2]. However, there does not appear to be a grave marker. His death registration did not list where he was buried. NEED TO CHECK THE INTERNMENT RECORDS FOR THIS CEMETERY.

Stories

D. Smyth wrote in My Irwin Family that William Irwin died in 1878 when "A pig got out and he chased it to try to catch it and died of a heart attack."

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Aumick, Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, in Canada. 1871 Census of Canada. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada)
   Image 4396312-00354, Page 5, Line 18, Family 22, 1871.
   Image:1871 Census William Robert Irwin I 4396312 00354.pdf
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} Donnabelle Smyth. My Irwin Family, Unpublished.
3. ↑ Unorganized Territories, Muskoka and Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, in Ontario, Canada. Ontario, Canada, Deaths and Deaths Overseas, 1869-ongoing. (Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Archives of Ontario)
   Reg #009040, Page 49, 26 Mar, 1878.
4. ↑ Goderich, Huron, Ontario, Canada, in Canada. 1861 Census of Canada. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada)
   Image 4391554 00361, 1861.