Maskell Families

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Comment by September McCarthy on July 16, 2009 at 5:20pm

Greetings! My Maskell ancestry is through my great-grandfather, James Maskell, who immigrated to Boston, MA in 1881. He was born in 1850 at Isle Madame, Cape Breton, Canada to William Maskill (spelling is per the census) and Ann Proctor (daughter of Harriet Grant and John Proctor). The family moved to Prince Edward Island where William died in 1890, at which point Ann Proctor Maskell also immigrated to Boston. Most of their children were already here. William indicated on the 1855 Canada Census that he was born in Cape Breton, and a visit to Isle Madame revealed a burial record for a Thomas Maskill. He and William are the only male Maskill's on the island at the time (1840-1860, approx.). Local residents suggested to me that they may have come from the Channel Islands as fishermen, however William was a cooper, by profession. I have not ruled out the possibility that they may have come from Massachusetts as Maskell were early settlers of Salem, MA and there was a great deal of contact between the two areas. There is also a large Maskell line in Jeddore, Nova Scotia, who descend from a single male Maskell whose origins are uncertain. The timing of these two lines are similar so may be connected! It would be great to make contact with others researching the Maskell lines and, of course, any leads or information on my particular line would be greatly appreciated!