Margaret Clark Macdonald ^1,2

Margaret married Robert Coubrough, son of John Coubraugh and Katharine Andrew, about May 1840 in Eastwood Parish, Renfrew, Scotland. (Robert Coubrough was born about 1820 in Thornliebank, Eastwood, Renfrew, Scotland and died on 24 May 1857 in Eastwood Parish, Renfrew, Scotland.)

  Noted events in their marriage were:

• Banns, 25 Apr 1840, Eastwood Parish, Renfrew, Scotland.

  Marriage Notes:

Robert Cowbrough & Margaret MacDonald registered for Proclamation of Banns in Eastwood Parish on April 25th 1840 (Film #1041057, vol. 5, page 76).

There seems to have been some confusion in the orginal premise of this family's names and dates. It had been thought that John MacDonald Coubrough, born 1854, in Thornliebank, Eastwood parish, was the son of Robert MacDonald Coubrough and Margaret Douglas, and that Robert's parents were Thomas Coubrough, b. 1788, in Airdrie, and Mary Wesley. There was other, conflicting information that said that John MacDonald's parents were named David Coubrough and Margaret MacDonald.

I can find no record of a Robert Coubrough being married to a Margaret Douglas, nor can I find any indication of any Thomas Coubrough who was born in 1788 in Airdrie - or any place else. There is also no proof of any Thomas Coubrough marrying any Mary Wesley any time.

It is certain that John MacDonald Coubrough's birthdate is wrong. From a copy of his marriage certificate to Ann Inwood, we know him to have been 24 years old in 1870. This would put his birthdate at about 1845 or 1846 at the latest - not 1854. The same certificate gave his father's name and occupation as Robert Coubrough, Cloth finisher, deceased. As for the other children, all of their birthdates were unknown.

If Robert Coubrough really was the son of a man named Thomas, he normally would have named his first son Thomas. This Robert and Margaret had no sons named Thomas, indicating that neither of their fathers bore that name. This family seems to have had sons named Robert, James, and John, with Robert probably the oldest and James the youngest. This should mean that Margaret's father was either Robert or John: There were enough sons in this family for one of them to be named after the mother's father. There is possibly some confusion here if the tree was made from oral evidence only: John's father - in - law was called Thomas so the name could have migrated.

If John's mother Margaret was really the daughter of a woman named Jane Ewart, odds are Margaret would have called her only daughter Jane or Jean rather than Margaret. Thus, it is more likely that Margaret and her mother had the same name.

I think that this couple were really Robert Coubrough and Margaret MacDonald:
1. Robert Coubrough married Margaret Clark MacDonald in Eastwood parish, May 1840.

2. In the 1841 Eastwood census, Robert m. Margaret MacDonald gave his age as 20 years and his profession as cloth lapper. This is the same as cloth finisher, which John MacDonald Coubrough's marriage record gave as his father's occupation. Margaret's age was given as 15 in this census, but ages of adults were rounded down to the nearest 5 years, meaning Margaret could have been as old as 19 (or nearly 20 if she hadn't had her birthday by the census date), and Robert as much as 25. Thus both would have been of a suitable age for marrying in 1840.

3. According to the same census, Robert and Margaret Coubrough lived two doors down from a couple named Robert and Margaret MacDonald, both age 40, who were probably Margaret's parents. Robert was a calico printer by trade. These names accord much better with the names of the children in this family than Roger and Jane Douglas. Further on this point, if their mother's maiden name had been Douglas, that would probably be the children's middle names rather than MacDonald. Probably the son Robert in this family was the one whose middle name was MacDonald rather than the father.

4. Also in 1841, Robert Coubrough gave his trade as apprentice cloth lapper. This would seem to match that of John MacDonald Coubrough's father. Robert was the only Coubrough listed as living in Thornliebank in this census.

5. In the 1851 Eastwood census, Robert and Margaret Coubrough lived at 2 East Row. There is no street address given in the 1841 census, but the description of the enumeration areas is nearly identical in both surveys, so it is probably safe to assume that they lived in the same area of the village as the couple of the same name in the earlier record and appear to be the same people. Again, they are the only Coubroughs living in Thornliebank.

6. There is this additional information in the 1851 census:
Robert Coubrough Head Marr 30 Male Cloth lapper born Renfrew, Thornliebank
Margaret do Wife Marr 30 Female Domestic Mistres born Renfrew, Thornliebank
Robert do Son 9 Male Scholar born Renfrew, Thornliebank
Margaret do Dau 7 Female Scholar born Renfrew, Thornliebank
John do Son 5 Male born Renfrew, Thornliebank
James do Son 3 Male born Renfrew, Thornliebank

7. The names of these children coincide exactly with the names in Robert C. & Margaret "Douglas's" family. John, aged 5, in June 1851, would have been born in Thornliebank about 1845 or 1846, the same as Anne Inwood's husband.

8. See notes under marriage of Robert Coubrough and Margaret Clark MacDonald. I think this Robert is probably the same one who was married to Mary Sandels.