William John Moncrief

William John Moncrief
(1854-)

Family Links

Spouses/Children:
1. Elizabeth Porter
2. Ann Hutchinson

William John Moncrief ¹ ²

Born: 21 May 1854, South Monaghan, Northumberland County, Ontario ² ³ ⁴
Marriage (1): Elizabeth Porter
Marriage (2): Ann Hutchinson

bullet General Notes:

Notes for WILLIAM JOHN MONCRIEF:
72 yr old Bailieboro Twins are similar in every detail.
Seventy two years ago, in the year of 1854, there was
born to the late Mr. & Mrs. John Moncrief of South Monaghan, twin boys
who were just as much alike as two pins. In fact the brothers were so
much alike that the proud parents could not distinguish one from the
other, & so it was decided they would be called John William & William
John. Their father, John Moncrief had cleared the land upon which he
settled, & erected a splendid home. Their mother's maiden name was Jane
Armstrong.
The boys grew up & always worked on their father's farm,
which is situated about four miles east of Bailieboro, & now occupied by
a son of William's (Harold). From their boyhood days their whole hobby &
pride was to be as much alike as possible, both in appearance & dress,
while nothing pleased them more than to have their friends &
acquaintances mistake one for the other. This was a most frequent
occurrence as the brothers always dressed exactly the same, & even their
closest friends were never sure just which of the gentlemen they were
addressing.
As the twins grew up to be young men & desired a home of
their own, a farm just to the west of their old homestead was purchased
for John, & to this home he took his young bride, Maude Stewart, of
Otonabee. Their family consisted of one daughter & two sons. William
has be en married twice. His first wife was Miss Porter & their family
consisted of one daughter & one son. His second wife was Annie
Hutchinson of Cavan who died several years after their marriage.
About fourteen years ago, when their sons were ready to
take over the farms, the brothers built houses exactly alike on the front
street in Bailieboro, & with their wives moved to their fine new brick
houses, where they have lived since.
The Moncrief brothers were splendid farmers who always took
a keen interest in doing their work well. They were always of a cheerful
disposition & their friendly, sociable manner won them many warm friends,
& they are highly thought of in this whole district, where they are so
well known. They have always been staunch supporters of the Centreville
Presbyterian Church, & winter or summer they attended regularly .
They have a large plot at the rear of their houses & a
splendid barn. The y have always kept a pair of excellent driving horses
& take great pride in keeping them in good trim.
The two gentlemen, now at the age of seventy-two, are
hale & hearty, & above all very happy, which is the fruit of living a
happy, contented life, taking great pleasure from their families, &
life's occupation.
The first separation of their lives occurred a couple of
years ago. William has a daughter in Vancouver & John has a daughter in
Winnipeg, & they decided to visit the west together. John stopped off at
Winnipeg, but regretted it afterwards. "If I had known how much I would
miss William I would have gone on with him," he remarked. " We were
separated for about five months ." "Was I at the station to meet him
when he came home?" he chuckles quietly over the question. "I guess I
was, he drawls."
There was a disconcerting mishap over this journey.
William lost his trunk & had to buy new clothes. The result was that for
over a year the brothers were not dressed alike, & it was the first time
since the episode of the colored beads that this had occurred.
They have more than mere appearance in common. Their
height is exactly the same-six feet; & there has never been more than a
few pounds difference in weight between them. But more remarkable still,
their minds frequently work in unison. "It's the commonest thing in the
world for me to be thinking a thing one moment & hearing William say it
the next," says John. "When we were youngsters we even used to have the
same illnesses together."

William married Elizabeth Porter. (Elizabeth Porter was born on 16 Feb 1864 in Otonabee, Ontario.)

William next married Ann Hutchinson. (Ann Hutchinson was born in 1863 in Ontario ⁶.)

1 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, National Archives of Canada, 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, film NAC C-13241. :

1881 Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 14 Family 54
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace
Joseph WOODS M M 40 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Mary WOODS F M 43 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Rebeca WOODS F 18 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Abner WOODS M 15 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Son Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Mary A. WOODS F 12 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Wilbert C. WOODS M 10 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
______________________________

1881, Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 14 Family 56
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace

William CREBA M M 42 English England
Occ: Blacksmith Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Mary CREBA F M 36 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Emma CREBA F 14 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Mary CREBA F 12 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
John CREBA M 10 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
William CREBA M 4 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Harriet CREBA F 2 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
____________________________________________________
1881, Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 35 Family 159
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace
Alexander ANDERSON M M 96 Scottish Scotland
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Iisbell ANDERSON F M 86 Scottish Scotland
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Jane IRWIN F W 64 Irish Ireland
Religion: C. Presbyterian
___________________________________________________

1881 Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 40 Family 191
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace
Nichol DAWSON M M 35 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Annie DAWSON F M 29 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Charles W. DAWSON M 6 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Margret J. DAWSON F 3 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
__________________________________________________

1881, Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 40 Family 190
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace
Alexander ANDERSON M M 49 Scottish O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Religion: C. Presbyterian
Sofiah ANDERSON F M 45 English O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Elisabeth M. ANDERSON F 21 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Thomas ANDERSON M 19 Scottish O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Son Religion: C. Presbyterian
Alfred ANDERSON M 17 Scottish O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Son Religion: C. Presbyterian
Alexander ANDERSON M 16 Scottish O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Son Religion: C. Presbyterian
Caroline ANDERSON F 13 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Fredrick ANDERSON M 7 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
George C. ANDERSON M 5 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
Sofiah T. ANDERSON F 3 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: C. Presbyterian
__________________________________________
1881, Census Place: Monahan South, Peterborough West, Ontario, Canada
Source: FHL Film 1375877 NAC C-13241 Dist 126 SubDist D Page 19 Family 79
Sex Marr Age Origin Birthplace
Joseph DAWSON M M 55 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Christiana DAWSON F M 54 Scottish O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
James DAWSON M 22 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Catherine DAWSON F 24 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Martha E. DAWSON F 21 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Joseph A. DAWSON M 17 English O <Ontario>
Occ: Farmer Son Religion: Weslyan Methodist
Edmond DAWSON M 13 English O <Ontario>
Religion: Weslyan Methodist
_______________________________________________

2 1861 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, National Archives of Canada, 1861 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, film C-1055,.

3 1861 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, National Archives of Canada, 1861 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, film C-1055,, page 12. William Moncrief, and John Moncrief, both age 7.

4 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, National Archives of Canada, 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, film NAC C-13241, page 26. William Moncrief, age 24, single.

5 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, National Archives of Canada, 1881 census, South Monaghan, Ontario, film NAC C-13241.

6 Email from June James, Jan 10, 2001 re descendants of John Moncrief, June James, Email from June James, Jan 10, 2001 re descendants of John Moncrief.

William John Moncrief 1 2

Sources

William John Moncrief ¹ ²