I am curious about an apparent difference in religious affiliation of
Campbells arriving in Canada from Ireland, compared with those from Scotland.
The 1871 census for the province of Ontario is searchable on line. It shows
that of 299 Campbells born in Ireland, 76 (25%) belonged to the Church of
England, and 44 (15%) were Roman Catholic. This compares with 9/922 (1%) and
31/922 (3%) respectively for Campbells born in Scotland. Campbells in
Scotland are usually described in history books as a whig/protestant clan. I
wondered if this apparent Scottish-Irish difference reflects the time at
which the Irish Campbells emigrated from Scotland or whether it is a
consequence of conversion to either the established church (Church of
Ireland/England) or the church of the native Irish (RC).
Beyond idle curiosity, it has some consequences for genealogy research, as
church records are extremely important, particularly in following Irish
lineages.