Updated May 2023
In a family tree provided to me, and to others in the family, there are 8 children listed. In other family trees, there are only 7 children listed. This would not be unusual if the additional child listed was one that died young. However the additional child in this case grew and married.
In the larger family tree, a daughter of William Young and May Nichol is listed as Janet (Mary) Young, born 1818 in Scotland who Married James Wilson and had seven children: Jane, Elizabeth, James, David, Ellen, John, and Mary. But, was she really a relative?
The History of the Counties of Argenteuil, Quebec & Prescott, Ontario by Cyrus Thomas indicates that William and May had 6 boys and 2 girls. That would appear to indicate that perhaps there was a second daughter. However, the source of the information is not known.
Checking the censuses did not yield any conclusions. The 1825 census indicates three children under 14, with only of them a one girl, living in the household of William Young. The two oldest boys Andrew and Thomas plus Elizabeth Wardrope would make up the total children. It does indicate a total of six people in the household, but one is an unmarried male over 40-60. That would support the argument of only one daughter. Confusingly, the 1831 census, although there are 8 people in the household, indicates that there were three females under the age of 14, which does not make sense in relation to any of the genealogies provided. The 1841 census indicates that there are 9 people in the household. There is one female over 5 and under 14 and one female 14-15. Neither of these would fit either Elizabeth or the elusive Janet. That census also indicates that four of the people in the household were from Scotland and five of the nine were Baptists. Based on that information as well as the ages, it indicates that there was perhaps children of family or friends staying with them during the census.
There are a few genealogies on Ancestry.ca that show a daughter Janet of William and May born in 1827. However, there sources are circular to each other and no documentation is provided.
A search of Scotland’s People records did not reveal any daughter named Janet or Mary born to William and May. The oldest three children were found in parish registers in Scotland in the St. Ninians parish in Stirlingshire.
There are some DNA matches to people with a line back to a Janet or Mary Young/Wilson. Some with no other relation to the Youngs, so there is definitely a connection. However, in reviewing the amount of DNA that is matching, it is more likely that Janet was a child of a sibling, or even of a cousin, of either May or William rather than a natural child.
So, for now, I have Janet or Mary Wilson, born Young, attached to William and May with a relationship of unknown. Perhaps someone reading this will contact me with knowledge on how we are connected.
