Who were the Parents of John Campbell of Beckwith Township?

My 3x great-grandfather, John Campbell, appeared in Canadian records on the 1851 census, only completed in many jurisdictions in 1852. According to this record, John lived in Beckwith Township of Lanark County, was male, 40 years old, Presbyterian, and born in Scotland. 

This meant that John Campbell was likely born about 1811, although census records were notoriously imprecise. We don't know who reported the information or how they knew it. When examining all the available records, the estimated birth year ranged from 1808 to 1812, with most records suggest 1808 or 1809.

Record	Record Date	Age	Birth Year Est.
1851 Census	1851/52	40	1810-1812
1861 Census	1861	51	1809-1810
1871 Census	1871	62	1808-1809
1881 Census	1881	71	1809-1810
Ontario Death Record	Feb 13 1888	80	1808-1809
Obituary	Feb 1888	84	1804-1805

John married Elizabeth McNaughton on Sept 30, 1842, in Beckwith County, and in 1851 they had four children: Catharine, Margaret, Duncan, and Peter, my 2x great-grandfather. A Catharine McNauton also lived in the household, age 80, born in Scotland. The 1861 census included additional children: Donald, James, John and Elizabeth. 

John's 1888 obituary provided a few more details:

 ​"Mr. John Campbell, who is perhaps more intimately known under the long-established sobriquet, “the Duke of Argyle”, died at his residence in Beckwith near Frankton last Monday afternoon at the notable age of eighty-four. He had been ailing all winter, but there was no symptom to give uneasiness, and none alarm, until the last day or two, when his decline was very rapid. The deceased came from Scotland when he was nine years of age and settled with his family on the place where he always resided, and near which a younger brother still lives. His pride in the ancient and chivalrous clan often found vent in his prime in glowing rehearsals of deeds of prowess enacted by members of it, so that when the name of Duke of Argyle was first fastened on him it became a fixture to the very end. Early in his life he went west and bought land largely and with shrewdness which indicated his position of a genius for speculation, which developed and strengthened as the years rolled by. Mr. Campbell never became a candidate for public office though often pressed; but he was an ardent Conservative, nerve once swerving to the right hand nor to the left in his life-long attachment to Sir John; and found his supreme political delight in aiding the fortunes of the party. There are three sons and three daughters still living, all happily and prosperously situated, but there are few left of his early friends and contemporaries, only Mr. R. Bell and Mr. N. Lavallee, that we have heard of. "

This obituary provided several other pieces of information, including:

• farm was near Franktown
• age 84
• immigrated when he was 9
• nicknamed the "Duke of Argyle"
• had a younger brother who farmed near him

As with the census, I was somewhat skeptical about the accuracy of all the information. However, I began by looking for the younger brother. 

John's son, James, sadly died in 1870 of "congestion of the brain," which could have resulted from a condition such as meningitis. The reporter of the death was "A. Campbell uncle of deceased." Searching Beckwith for A. Campbell, I found two Archibald Campbells. Archibald (1) was born about 1818 in Scotland; Archibald (2) was born in Canada in about 1827.

​Archibald Campbell (1) did not appear in Beckwith on the 1851 Census, but he might have been away working. He later married Sarah Gillies, the daughter of a local innkeeper, and appeared on Beckwith Township's subsequent censuses. His 1861 household held another clue: Catherine Campbell, widow, age 76, born in Scotland. She would also appear in his household on the 1871 census. The reporter on her Sept 23 1873 death record was "Archd Campbell her son." ​​

I searched for a woman resembling Catherine Campbell in the 1851 census and found one in Beckwith Township, age 63, in the home of Donald Campbell, farmer, age 35, born in Scotland. Was Donald another sibling?

To find more evidence of these relationships, I consulted some land grants and maps. John's obituary claims "he was nine years of age and settled with his family on the place where he always resided." This passage suggested that his parents were among the earliest settlers in the township. Four Campbell men obtained grants there.: Duncan, Moses, Charles, and Peter. ​

Record	Owner	Concession	Lot
Sept 1818 Land Grant	Duncan Campbell	4	11NE
Nov 1819 Land Grant	Moses Campbell	11	3SW
24 Oct 1818 Land Grant	Charles Campbell	3	18SW
30 Aug 1821 Land Grant	Peter Campbell	10	25SW

Beckwith Township was square in shape, or a diamond if looking at it from north to south. Concessions number ran across the S to W axis and the lot numbers ran from S to E. An 1822 Beckwith land map shows these original grants, along with James Campbell, who obtained land next to Duncan Campbell. 

Record	Owner	Concession	Lot
Beckwith 1822 Map	Duncan Campbell	4	11
Beckwith 1822 Map	James Campbell	5	11
Beckwith 1822 Map	Moses Campbell	11	3
Beckwith 1822 Map	Charles Campbell	3	18
Beckwith 1822 Map	Peter Campbell	10	25

Another map, which appeared to be a working copy, with names scratched out and new names written in, appears to have been updated as late as 1845. 

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Record	Owner	Concession	Lot
Beckwith 1845 Map	John Campbell	1	6
Beckwith 1845 Map	Duncan Campbell	4	11
Beckwith 1845 Map	(undecipherable) Campbell	5	11
Beckwith 1845 Map	Chas Campbell	3	18
Beckwith 1845 Map	Peter Campbell	10	25
Beckwith 1845 Map	Peter Campbell	11	24

A John Campbell now appears on the map near Franktown, which may be my 3x great-grandfather. Otherwise, the map appears static, with only Peter acquiring additional land. 

After these two maps, there were several agriculture census records and an 1863 map. However, the 1863 map only included some land owners and the 1851 agricultural census records for Beckwith were incomplete, only containing concessions 9 to 12. 

Record	Owner	Concession	Lot
1851 Census	John Campbell	9	25
1851 Census	Archibald Campbell	9	25
1851 Census	Donald Campbell	10	10/11
1851 Census	Dond Campbell	11	24/25E
1851 Census	Peter Campbell	11	24/25W
1861 Census	John Campbell	2	6
1861 Census	Archibald Campbell	4	11
1861 Census	Donald Campbell	11	24
1861 Census	Peter Campbell	11	24
Beckwith 1863 Map	D. Campbell	11	24
Beckwith 1863 Map	P. Campbell	11	24
Beckwith 1863 Map	P. Campbell	10	25
Beckwith 1863 Map	A. Campbell	9	26
Beckwith 1863 Map	J. Campbell	2	6

Peter (2) in 1851 Census and afterwards was not the same Peter (1) who received the 1821 land grant. On the 1851 census, Peter Campbell was 27-years-old, born in Canada, and unmarried. Living next to him are several other Campbells, including Donald, John, and Archibald. However, John and Archibald were 29 and 20, also born in Canada. All three men, along with Donald, appeared next to each other on the 1851 census, as well as on the 1851 agricultural census and 1863 map.  Their land was the same land owned by Peter (1), which suggested that they were his sons. 

​However, Donald was 35, born in Scotland, and had Catherine Campbell in his household. However, this may have been a different Catharine Campbell. Find-a grave had photographed two graves belonging to Duncan Campbell, whose grave had the following inscription:​

A native of Perthshire, Scotland,
who emigrated to the country
in the year 1818 and
died at Beckwith May 19, 1851.
Aged 71 Years

Duncan Campbell Grave

Next to his grave, was the grave of Catharine, wife of Duncan Campbell, died Sept 25, 1873, aged 95 years.

Catherine Campbell's Grave

Catharine went to live with Archibald (1). Archibald (1) in 1861 then owned concession 4, lot 11, which Duncan Campbell had owned from 1818 to 1845. The John who lived on concession 2, lot 6 was my 3x great-grandfather and lived very close to Duncan and Archibald (1).

By 1861, the families of James, Charles, and Moses Campbell disappeared from Beckwith, leaving two family groups; one in the north and one in the south. 

While John lived near Duncan, and named his first son Duncan, it was still possible that he was the son of Peter. However, secondary sources claim that Duncan Campbell arrived on the Curlew, a brig that set sail from Greenock, Scotland on July 21 1818, and arrived in Montreal on Sept 9. This manifest includes Duncan, Catharine, and a 10-year-old John Campbell, which fitted the facts very neatly. 

Name	Age
Duncan	-
Catharine	-
John	10
Elizabeth	8
Jannet	6

The one issue with this record is that it did not include an Archibald Campbell. If the John on this record is my 3x great-grandfather, then there are a few possibilities: an error either in the original document or in the transcription, Archibald crossed separately, or perhaps Archibald was born on board. Agents would have created the passenger manifest on embarkation. 

​It appears very likely that my 3x great-grandfather was the son of Duncan Campbell and Catharine. There is no solid evidence that Peter Campbell was related to Duncan Campbell, but that needs further investigation. The secondary source claims that they were from Killin Parish, although I have been as of yet unable to find records that capture the details of this family group.

Investigating this family in Scotland is the next step, although challenging due to the paucity of records. Tracing them to Kenmore might be all that's possible to do with an confidence, although perhaps we can creep back another generation.