Brief Life History of William
When William Dempster was born on 9 October 1830, in Dalrymple, East Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, his father, John Dempster, was 28 and his mother, Margaret Templeton, was 21. He married Emma Jane Cramer on 20 August 1858, in Fayette, Iowa, United States. They were the parents of at least 1 son. He lived in Fairfield Township, Fayette, Iowa, United States in 1880 and Little Rock Township, Kendall, Illinois, United States in 1900. He died on 24 May 1908, in Plano, Kendall, Illinois, United States, at the age of 77, and was buried in Plano, Kendall, Illinois, United States.
Photos and Memories (2)
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Family Time Line
Sources (11)
- William Dempster, "Scotland Census, 1841"
- William Dempster, "Scotland, Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950"
- Wm Dempster, "Iowa, County Marriages, 1838-1934"
Spouse and Children
Parents and Siblings
World Events (8)
1832 · The Black Hawk War
Convinced that a group of Native American tribes were hostile, The United States formed a frontier militia to stop them in their tracks. Even though Black Hawk was hoping to avoid bloodshed while trying to resettle on tribal land, U.S. officials opened fire on the Native Americans. Black Hawk then responded to this confrontation by successfully attacking the militia at the Battle of Stillman's Run and then left northward. After a few months the militia caught up with Black Hawk and his men and defeated them at the Battle of Wisconsin Heights. While being weakened by hunger, injuries and desertion, Black Hawk and the rest of the many native survivors retreated towards the Mississippi. Unfortunately, Black Hawk and other leaders were later captured when they surrendered to the US forces and were then imprisoned for a year.
1837
Historical Boundaries: 1837: Clayton, Wisconsin Territory, United States 1838: Clayton, Iowa Territory, United States 1846: Clayton, Iowa, United States
1853
Historical Boundaries: 1853: Kendall, Illinois, United States
Name Meaning
English, Manx, and Scottish: occupational name for a judge or arbiter of minor disputes, from Middle English demester(e) ‘judge’. Although this was originally a feminine form of the masculine dēmere (see Deamer ), by the Middle English period the suffix -stre had lost its feminine force, and the term was used of both sexes. The surname is not common in England, where the term was early replaced by Anglo-Norman French juge (see Judge ), but relatively frequent in Scotland, where until 1747 every laird of a barony could have certain offenses within his territory tried by his dempster, and on the Isle of Man, where deemsters also played an important part in the administration of justice.
Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.
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