MacASKILL/McASKILL, Norman 1836

 

I've chosen to use the 'a' in MacAskill rather than the often used McAskill

and that's simply because my mother-in-law, Georgina MacAskill,  

always used the 'Mac' form ...... and so I shall too. 

I've always understood that was the form the family used

but it's only as I've looked at various

census forms I realize that the 'Mc' form was used a lot too.

Georgina was fiercely proud of her family's heritage

and rightly so!  The ancestors braved the new world and carved

out a life for themselves in the midst of harsh weather, the 1837 famine

in Cape Breton, the immense task of clearing the land and keeping

it cleared and a whole host of other things that had to

be overcome in the harsh-but-beautiful land

that is Cape Breton.

 The chart below shows how Norman MacAskill

fits into the MacAskill line.

He was the first generation to be born in Cape Breton.

(click to enlarge)

  

 Marriage and Family

He married Margaret (Maggie) McPherson, 

who was also born in Cape Breton, in 1836. 

They were married in

July of 1867. 

As a matter of interest, I've included this report written in

1862 about the conditions in Cape Breton. 

(click image to enlarge)

  

 1891 Census

  1901 Census 

  

 1911 Census

 

 A view of Bay St. Lawrence

 This is a great map for our purposes.  All our Cape Breton family locations

are shown on it.  Cape North is where the MacAskill family pioneered

their life in Nova Scotia.

 Painting by Artist Anna Syperek.  Her beautiful portfolio HERE

 (click image to enlarge)