| Notes |
- David McNamara immigrated from either Ireland or the United States to Nova Scotia, somewhere between Halifax and the Canso strait and possibly in the Guysborough region. There is evidence of a David McNamara being a member of the Royal Fencible American Regiment in 1784 (see sources) and this may be that David McNamara, but that is dependent upon his age being older than some sources record. The 1818 census has his age recorded as 61, but other sources indicate his age as 43 in 1813 and 47 in later land petitions.
At some point he met and married his wife, a woman named Sarah Horne in Halifax. Sarah's father Jacob Horne is recorded as having large land holdings in the area of Eastern Passage near Halifax and David and Sarah had 4 children (James, Frances, John and Ellen) who are recorded in census and vital statistics data as having been born in Halifax. Also - A Poll Tax record from Herring Cove, Halifax County ? 1793, shows a "J. McNamara - Labourer - 1 (shilling)"... Herring Cove is directly across from land owned by Sarah Horne's father Jacob Sr., so this individual is placed within meeting distance to Sarah.
David is referred to as "John Sr" in the 1881 census record, so the use of "J. McNamara" fits with that moniker. The poll tax indicates a number 890 and then the names of 3 men, the previous number 880 list 10 men's names and so on... Meaning these men were likely labourers working on farms and David is listed as a yeoman in the 1818 census and is clearly more of a farmer by trade, rather than a fisherman.
The family then went for a time to the Charlestown area of Boston, Massachusetts (according to the vivid recollections of stories told to William 'Billy' McNamara' when he was a child.) There they had at least one child (David) and they returned to live in the River Inhabitants area of Cape Breton. Billy's great grandfather was the McNamara's third son 'David', and David is recorded in later census data as being born in the United States.
According to records (sourced) the 1809 petition by David McNamara for 'title' of the island records that he was given a 'warrant' to survey the Isle of Bouchey in 1807, and he started occupying the island at that time. According to the 1817 petition he was given permission to occupy the island in 1813, even though he had actually been occupying the island since 1807 and in the 1819 petition it states that the 1817 petition resulted in David being granted a 'lease', but his full grant was finally 'recommended' after his 1819 petition.
Also - In the 1819 petition David is referred to as an immigrant of Scotland (possibly for the purpose of more easily obtaining the land). In the earlier 1817 petition he is referred to as a 'native' of Cape Breton and in the 1818 census where David is recorded as 'John Sr' McNamara, his birth place is clearly recorded as Ireland.
The 1818 census also indicates his age as 61, and there is a blank after his age in the category of 'Fit'. Men under the age of 60 in the category of 'Fit' have the word 'Fit', or 'Not' indicated. This census also indicates that David is married with 7 children. 5 were born previous to his occupying the Island and 2 (Bridget and Maurice) were born on the island. All 7 of David and Sarah's children are well documented as being married, having children and living either on the island or near the area of River Inhabitants.
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Bef 1768 - Bef 1823 (~ 55 years)