William Craighead

	Born	10 May 1821 in Teuchan, Cruden, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
	Baptized	22 May 1821 Parish of Cruden, Aberdeenshire
	Died	13 Sep 1903 in Seymour Twp., Northumberland Co., Ontario
	Married	21 Dec 1844 to Elizabeth Craighead at Burnbrae, Ontario.

Parents and Family of William Craighead:

• Father: William Craighead; b. 10 May 1796 in Scotland, d. 07 Jan 1832 in Scotland
• Mother: Barbara King; b. 09 Aug 1795 Parish of Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, d.

1. William Craighead; b. 22 May 1821, d. 13 Sep 1903
2. Sylvester Craighead; b. 02 Nov 1822
3. Margaret Craighead; b. 05 Sep 1824, d. 07 Jan 1832
4. John Craighead; b. 14 Apr 1826, d. 07 Jan 1832
5. Matthew Craighead; b. 16 Sep 1828, d. 07 Jan 1832
6. George Craighead; b. 01 Dec 1831, d. unknown

Parents and Family of Elizabeth Craighead:

• Father: George Craighead; b. 1786 in Scotland, d. 05 Dec 1861 in Northumberland Co., Ontario
• Mother: Elizabeth Elspet Cooper; b. 31 Aug 1794, d. 18 Jan 1884

1. Mary Craighead; b, 1818, d. 13 Apr 1890
2. George Craighead; b. 1819, d. 18 Nov 1910
3. John Craighead; b. 1821, d. unknown
4. Elizabeth Craighead; b. 08 Dec 1823, d. 21 Feb 1905
5. Anne Craighead; b. 15 Mar 1825, d. unknown
6. Alexander Craighead; b. 17 Mar 1827, d. 1913
7. Christian Craighead; b. 09 Dec 1829, d. 1906
8. William Craighead; b. 29 Mar 1831, d. 13 Oct 1917
9. Robert Craighead; b. 1833, d. unknown
10. James Cooper Craighead; b. 23 Apr 1835, d. 1912
11. Thomas Craighead; b. 26 Jul 1839, d. 24 Feb 1920

Children of William Craighead and Elizabeth Craighead:

1. Barbara Craighead; b. 1845, d. 1849
2. John Craighead; b. 02 May 1847, d. 13 Apr 1923
3. Christina Craighead; b. 1850, d. 09 Oct 1880
4. Mary Ann Craighead; b. 06 Jul 1852, d. 04 May 1928
5. William Craighead; b. 19 Jan 1858, d. 16 Jun 1936
6. Elizabeth Craighead; b. 01 Dec 1862, d. 12 Oct 1945

William’s Early Years

William was the eldest child, born in 1821, and was only 10 years old when the great cholera epidemic spread through Scotland. His father and three siblings all died and were buried in the same grave on 07 Jan 1832. His mother, Barbara King and his oldest brother, Sylvester, survived. We don't have any further information on the youngest sibling, George who was only a month old when the father and other siblings died but probably became a victim of the epidemic. (He may have survived, as there is a George aged 8 listed with Keith & Barbara Hutchison in Cruden in 1841. As they only married in 1839 he may not a son of the marriage). The following years for the survivors would have been very tough and William would have had to help to earn a living for the family. William's mother remarried on 09 Feb 1839 to Keith Hutcheson. The 1841 census shows William working as an agricultural labourer on the Clerkhill Farm in the Parish of Peterhead. The next information that we have places William in Canada getting married at Burnbrae, Ontario.

William and Elizabeth

On 21 Dec 1844, William married his second cousin, Elizabeth Craighead, at the Burnbrae Presbytarian Church in Seymour Twp., Northumberland Co., Ontario. Elizabeth emigrated from the Parish of Old Deer in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, with her parents and other siblings in 1844. We don't know whether or not they sailed on the same ship but they had lived only about 20 miles apart in Scotland and came to the same loction in Canada. They probably knew each other since their grandparents were brothers. On 03 Apr 1854, William and Elizabeth bought their own place, a 50 acres farm in Lot 21, Concession 5, of Seymour Township, Northumberland County, Ontario. This was located about half mile west of the Burnbrae Church in which they were married some 10 years earlier. Elizabeth's parents lived on a farm across the road from the Burnbrae Church. Here, they raised their six children. William also had a blacksmith shop on the property. The daughter, Mary Ann, a spinster, lived in the house until her death in 1928 while her cousin owned and operated the farm until 1943.

The Final Years for William and Elizabeth

William Craighead died on 13 Sept 1903 and was buried in the family plot in the Burnbrae Cemetery. Elizabeth died on 21 Feb 1905 and was buried with her husband.

References

Ref.1 - Old Parochial Registers for the Parish of Cruden in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. These were reviewed on microfilm through the Family History Centre of the Church of the Latter Day Saints.

Ref.2 - Burnbrae Presbytarian Church registers for births, marriages and deaths.
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