Person:Margaret Service (1)

Margaret had a son named William Henry Service^[2], apparently born out of wedlock. In the 1881 census, he used the surname Service, but by the 1891 census, he was using the surname Shepperd^[3], which is assumed to be the surname of his biological father.

A conversation with a Hilson family member and family researcher indicated that Margaret's son was William Henry Sheppard and they speculated his father was already married. They did not know his father’s name. (As of Dec 2023, FamilySearch^[5] gives William's father's name as William Sheppard, recently changed from John Sheppard. There is no source provided for either name.)

While most researchers seem to accept the evidence of 3 census records in a row in the same township with the name of William Henry Service in 1881^[2] becoming William Shepperd in 1891^[3] and then appearing as William Sheppard in 1901^[4], a direct descendant of William Henry Sheppard disputes that his ancestor was Margaret's son.

The documentation for Margaret's son being William Henry Sheppard is circumstantial, supported by a belief on one side of her family. No documentation has been provided to refute this conclusion. There does not appear to be a birth registered for William Henry Service/Sheppard in Halton County, Ontario in or around 1879 to prove the issue one way or the other. If William Henry Sheppard has a delayed birth registration, there is no guarantee that his parents' names were given correctly.

Since the descendant has disputed the claim of William Henry Sheppard's ancestry and there is no conclusive evidence either way, William's page does not show Margaret as his mother.

AncestryDNA match for Margaret Service descendant to William Sheppard descendant both using Ancestry.com DNA results. ©2023 ANCESTRY Ancestry.com DNA, LLC. 1300 W. Traverse Parkway, Lehi, UT 84043, USA

1881 Census

1891 Census

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Milton Champion Feb. 1937.

   McLaughlin - At Milton Heights, on Sunday, Feb. 28, 1937, Margaret Service, widow of the lat Michael McLaughlin, in her 77th year. Interment was made in Evergreen Cemetery, Milton on Wed. March 3.

2. ↑ ^2.0 2.1 Nassagaweya, Halton District, Ontario, in Canada. 1881 Census of Canada. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada).

   In the household of William and Maria Service:
   Margaret Elizabeth Service, age 21, born in Ontario
   William Henry Service, age 2, born in Ontario

3. ↑ ^3.0 3.1 Nassagaweya, Halton, Ontario, in Canada. 1891 Census of Canada. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada).

   Margaret Hilson (widow), age 33
   son: William Hilson, age 8
   son: James Hilson, age 6
   son: Isac Hilson, age 3
   son: William Shepperd, age 10
   all born in Ontario

4. ↑ Nassagaweya, Halton, Ontario, in Canada. 1901 Census of Canada. (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Library and Archives Canada).

   William Sheppard, born 5 Apr 1879 in Ontario
   wife: Jane Sheppard, born 3 Feb 1879 in Ontario
   3 children (John, Maggie, William)
   brother: Harry Hilson, born 25 Jul 1882 in Ontario
   sister-in-law: Annie Hilson, born 4 May 1883 in Ontario

5. ↑ GKXG-5J1 (FamilySearch Family Tree), in FamilySearch Family Tree.