John Sinton

     
     John Sinton was born on 29 Sep 1809 ?Clarilaw Moor, ROX, SCT, (no place stated against his birth date, the immediately preceding entry for sister Margaret gave her birth place as Clarilaw Moor).^2,3 He was baptized in 1810 at Bowden, ROX, SCT, along with Janet Sinton, Agnes Sinton and Margaret Sinton; (one of a group of Sinton baptisms, all recorded together in 1810: Janet born 6 Nov 1801 (Par. of Ashkirk); Agnes born 27 May 1803 (Par. of Selkirk); Margaret born 8 Aug 1807 at Clarilaw Moor; John born 29 Sep 1809 (no place stated); John and Margaret bap. by Rev Mr Balfour, "Minister of this parish").²
     John Sinton died aft. 1855 ?SCT; age given as 45 on father's death cert, and as other children were shown as dec'd, I am assuming he was still alive, not that I've found any evidence of this.¹
     John Sinton was not found in the census of 1841 in ROX, SCT, 2 of the 3 John's of about the right age in Roxburgh in 1841 are accounted for with other parents, leaving only the John and Alison (Hall) couple, whom I now believe belong to James and Barbara Oliver. Casting further afield, and overcoming some interesting indexing on ancestry, I have however recently found a John in Ross & Cromarty who might fit the bill (see below).⁴
      He shown as a son on the death cert of James Sinton on 26 Apr 1855 at Raelees, Par. of Selkirk, SEL, SCT; Dist. 778/2 #1: James Sinton, 80, born Par. of Southdean, ROX, 31 yrs in Selkirk Parish, s/o Peter Sinton, cattle dealer, dec, and Janet m.s. Donaldson, dec. Wife Margaret Wilkie. Children: Janet dec'd 14 Oct 1816; Agnes (dec'd) 22 Oct 1826; Peter, 49; Margaret, 47; John, 45; Robert, 42; Rachel, 39; Mary, 37; Janet, 34; Isabella 32. Died 3pm of bronchitis, enlarged prostate and general debility, as cert. by James Fairweather M.D; Buried Churchyard, Bowden, cert. by Sexton William ?; Inf. James Laurence, son-in-law, reg. 27th Apr at Selkirk, James Park, Registrar.^5,6,3
     John Sinton son of James & Margaret (Wilkie) Sinton of Bowden, then Selkirk, and supposedly still alive in 1855 and John Sinton in Lancaster, Glengarry Co, Ontario by 1851, married to a Jane, with children Sarah, George, and Bella in 1851 are possibly the same person (but seems unlikely if George is the first son).⁷
     John Sinton marr. to Alison Hall was initially considered, and subsequently rejected, as a potential duplicate of John Sinton s/o James & Margaret (Wilkie) Sinton. However the latter John is shown as living in 1855 on parent's dth cert but the former died 1854, and states he was of Southdean, not of Bowden.⁸
     John Sinton a shepherd in Kiltearn, and Alness (Ross & Cromarty) who sometimes gives his birthplace as Bowden, ROX, and has parents named James and Margaret, (albeit I cannot make WILKIE out of mother's m.s. which looks rather more like GILLES, but not quite) and John Sinton s/o James and Margaret (Wilkie) Sinton in 1881 are possibly the same person The ROC chap's age is a tad out, but I'm not ruling him out on that basis, given he was indeed still going strong after 1855. So, if anyone is researching the family of John Sinton and Catherine Cross of Leadown (Contin); Alness, then Kiltearn, and can aid in identifying this John I'd love to hear from you. (an additional bit of circumstantial evidence is a dtr named Rachel, not a common name, but one that occurs in the family of James and Margaret (Wilkie) Siinton).⁹