Friday, March 18, 2016

2.12.8. Margaret Muir (1884-1966)

Margaret "Maggie" Muir was born on 6 May 1884 in Dalserf, Scotland, to James Muir and Margaret Semple. She was born at Swinhill Farm, the farm her maternal grandfather rented. She was James and Margaret's seventh child, but only the second who lived beyond infancy.

On 30 September 1887 Maggie arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with her mother, brother Robert, and half-sister Jessie. They had traveled aboard the S/S Manitoban from Glasgow, Scotland, and likely took a train to Streator, Illinois, where Maggie's father, James, worked as a coal miner. James had immigrated in June 1887.

When the 1900 census was enumerated, Maggie was a live-in servant on the farm owned by Sarah Dawson, a widow whose two sons lived with her. The farm was located in Long Point, Illinois, which was about 10 miles south of Streator, where her mother lived. Streator and Long Point were also connected by railroad.

On 3 August 1902 Maggie married Robert Caswell, son of John Caswell and Elizabeth Russell, in St. Joseph, Michigan. St. Joseph is the county seat of Berrien County, which was considered a "Gretna Green" county, a place where there are fewer marriage restrictions than in nearby counties. Maggie did not report her father's name to the civil authorities when they married, which is not perhaps unusual as he had abandoned the family around 1895.

According to the genealogy notebook kept by Alice (Muir) Jennings, Maggie's niece, Maggie and Robert had seven children with five surviving to adulthood. This was likely correct because Grandma Jennings worked with Maggie's daughter, Roberta (Caswell) Fullerton on the genealogy of the Muir and Semple families.

By 1910 Robert and Maggie lived in Nineveh, Missouri, where Robert worked as a coal miner. Maggie's half-sister lived in Novinger, which was about four miles from Nineveh. The family remained in Nineveh in 1920 when the census was enumerated.

Between 1922 and 1928, they had moved to Tilton, Illinois, a village in Danville Township, where I believe Robert and Maggie lived for the remainder of their lives. Robert died in 1959 and Maggie died on 29 August 1966. They were interred at the Springhill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Danville.

_______________
1900 US Federal Census, Census Place: Long Point, Livingston, Illinois; Roll: 318; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 0104; FHL microfilm: 1240318
1910 US Federal Census, Census Place: Nineveh, Adair, Missouri; Roll: T624_766; Page: 20A; Enumeration District: 0015; FHL microfilm: 1374779
1920 US Federal Census, Census Place: Nineveh, Adair, Missouri; Roll: T625_902; Page: 3B; Enumeration District: 17; Image: 325
1930 US Federal Census, Census Place: Danville, Vermilion, Illinois; Roll: 564; Page: 22B; Enumeration District: 36; Image: 973.0; FHL microfilm: 2340299
1940 US Federal Census, Census Place: Danville, Vermilion, Illinois; Roll: T627_898; Page: 19A; Enumeration District: 92-52
Alice (Muir) Jennings Genealogy Notebook, pages 4 and 15
Global, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, Memorial No. 83805866
Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1855-2015, 1884 Muir, Margaret (Statutory Births 638/02 0059)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1928 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1947 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1949 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1951 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1953 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1955 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1957 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, City Directories, 1822-1995, 1958 Danville, IL (Robert and Margaret Caswell)
US, Illinois Find A Grave Index, 1809-2012, Memorial No. 83805866
US, Michigan Marriage Certificate, State File Number: 1-300, Record Number 820
US, Michigan Marriage Records, 1867-1952, 1902 Caswell, Robert - Muir, Margaret
US, Pennsylvania Passenger and Crew Lists, 1800-1962, Roll: T840_9; Line: 19
US, Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, Number: 531-26-3649

No comments:

Post a Comment