OK, sorry if it’s a bit long winded, here’s my brick wall:-
WHO… were my Great Grandmother’s biological parents?
WHAT …was my Great Great Grandmother’s maiden name?
WHERE …. County Antrim, Ireland.
WHEN … 1857 and before.
Existing knowledge:-
My paternal Great Grandmother, Margaret, was born about Dec 1857 in Antrim.
She married my Great Grandfather, Charles Colgan junior, 20 Jan 1875 under name of Margaret Scott.
I have the marriage certificate which shows that she was a minor at this time and her “Father” or guardian as Joseph Scott.
Before I obtained the copy Charles and Margaret’s marriage certificate from the GRO Ireland, I asked my aunt (Margaret’s Granddaughter), “what was Granddad’s mother’s maiden name” and she told me it was Scott.
N.B.
The problem is, Margaret had told some of her children that “Templeton was her family name and that was why she named her first son Charles Templeton Colgan (b.7 Mar 1876) and her second son William John Templeton Colgan (b.6 Nov 1877)”.
Apparently, it was also why her third son, Leonard Colgan (b. Apr 1882), stated his mother’s maiden name was Margaret Templeton on his marriage (24 Jun 1910, Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada).
The California branch of my family had always believed that Margaret’s maiden name was Templeton and this had been passed down to them by Margaret’s daughter, Kathleen Cecilia Colgan (b. 1884).
This brings into question Margaret’s parentage because she may have been Joseph Scott’s child or a stepchild or she may have adopted his name in order to get married as she was under age.
To date, I have not found a record of Margaret’s birth or of a marriage between Joseph Scott and a Templeton lady that I can send for with any confidence.
I am certain that I have the correct marriage certificate. The location and date fit perfectly with later evidence,
some of which are:-
Charles’s service record in the London Met. Police.
The births of all Charles and Margaret’s 7 children are registered in and around London as well as the death of 1.
The family on the English census 1881, 1891.
The Passenger List records for 7 of the 8 of my Colgan’s who emigrated to Canada 1903-04.
The family on the Canadian census 1906, 1911, (by this time split between Prince Albert, Sask. and Fort Erie, Ont).
My father’s birth certificate, Arthur Leonard Colgan b. 12 Jun 1908, P.A.Sask.
The marriage registration of Leonard Colgan in Fort Erie, Ont. 1910.
If I can categorically say that Margaret Scott was either born Templeton and became Scott or that her mother’s name was Templeton then I can reunite the Canadian, English and USA septs of my family once and for all.
Genie
