Margaret Finlay was born on September 10th, 1735 in Coupar Angus to Patrick Finlay. I was unable to find any further information on her father or any possible siblings.

Margaret and William were married November 28, 1761 in Meigle according to the microfilm of the parish records that I viewed. The Scots Ancestry Research Society reported the marriage was November 8th, but that was likely an error of transcription. Both were parishioners of Meigle at the time and their marriage was one of approximately 100 weddings held in Meigle between 1759 and 1763.

William and Margaret would have 9 children between 1762 and 1779 - all of them were born in Potento, Meigle. I found six possible marriage records for the 9 chiildren, but some of those are speculative. I have assumed that the other three children died young. Although William had four sons, I could find no line extending from those sons that continued more than a couple of generations. (See the biographies on each of the children for more information.)

In an earlier essay, I described the kind of housing agricultural workers would face in the early part of the 18th century. If you wish to re-read that essay, it is found at Housing in 18th Century Scotland: Part 1. With the Agricultural Revolution in full force during Margaret's life in Meigle, we can expect that they may have had easier living conditions than her mother-in-law, Helen Mill. The essasy Housing in 18th Century Scotland: Part 2 describes some of the typical improvements that agricultural workers would be enjoying by the second half of the 18th century.

We do not know when Margaret died.

Sources

Family Search, The LDS Genealogical Website: (http://www.familysearch.org/)

Greg Wighton of Tasmania provided the birth data for Margaret and her father's name. (LDS batch # 7511405)

ScotlandsPeople Database (http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/)

Scots Ancestry Research Society (March 26, 1971). Report to John L. Wighton

Where to now? To read more about Generation 2 William's immediate family, just click top to make a selection from Generation 2's genealogical table at the top of this page. The navigation buttons just below will give you quick access to biographies in other generations.