MATERNAL NAMES
JOHN M'KEOWN 1728-1753. 5th great-grandfather
John M’Keown is the first of my McEwan line. I feel confident John is my ancestor. He was born to parents John Stephen McEwen/McKeun 1699–1746 and Anna Mary Campbell (Camble) 1688–1743 my 6th great-grandparents.
I have found a baptismal certificate dated April 11, 1728, from Paisley Abbey, Renfrewshire, Scotland. Like many in the McEwan family, the many changes in the name's spelling and migration from Scotland to Ireland and back have created a puzzle about who is who.
MARRIAGE
John married Elizabeth Allen 1720–1750 in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. She appears to be much older than him. Elizabeth was the daughter of Robert Allen 1678– and Margaret “Mary” Wallace 1688–1752.
The couple would have four children over the next eight years; Elis, Mary Jane, Anne, and William.
*Some discrepancies appear in the information I have found, so further research is necessary.
These were difficult times in Scotland. The 1756: An Act of the Court of Session in Edinburgh establishes the local sheriff may easily remove tenants. This is to have major implications in the Highlands in the following years.
Then in 1760, The Highland Clearances gain momentum. The pressure on highlanders through increased rents and more direct means to leave the land resulted in 20,000 emigrating by 1773, many for Canada and other colonies.
DEATH
My McEwan family left Scotland for Ireland after the death of John’s mother in 1753. The date of her death might imply she died in childbirth when William was born.
After 1753, his father died, but I have discovered no proof of his death.
Citations
(1) B. 1728 McEwen John - (Old Parish Registers of Birth 559/20134 Abbey) Page 134 of 634
(2) Title Geneanet Community Trees Index Author Ancestry.com Note iGeneanet Community Trees Index/i. Paris, France: Geneanet.
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