Editing John A. Macdonald (section)

==Early years, 1815–1830 ==
John Alexander Macdonald was born{{efn|name=officialbirthrecord}} in [[The Ramshorn|Ramshorn]] parish in [[Glasgow]], Scotland, on 10 January (official record) or 11 (father's journal) 1815.{{efn|name=born}}<ref name=Haggis>{{cite web | url=http://www.happyhaggis.co.uk/lanark-ramshorn.htm | title=Ramshorn Cemetery Glasgow, Lanarkshire. | publisher=Happy Haggis | access-date=29 June 2017 | archive-date=2 August 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802194712/http://www.happyhaggis.co.uk/lanark-ramshorn.htm | url-status=live }}</ref> His father Hugh, an unsuccessful merchant, had married John's mother, Helen Shaw, on 21 October 1811.{{sfn|Phenix|2006|p=6}} John Alexander Macdonald was the third of five children. After Hugh's business ventures left him in debt, the family immigrated to [[Kingston, Ontario|Kingston]], in [[Upper Canada]] (today the southern and eastern portions of Ontario), in 1820, as the family had several relatives and connections there.{{sfn|Gwyn|2007|p=13}}

The family initially lived together, then resided over a store which Hugh Macdonald ran. Soon after their arrival, John's younger brother James died from a blow to the head by a servant charged with taking care of the boys. After Hugh's store failed, the family moved to Hay Bay (south of [[Napanee, Ontario]]), west of Kingston, where Hugh unsuccessfully ran another shop. In 1829, his father was appointed as a magistrate for the [[Midland District]].{{sfn|Phenix|2006|p=23}} John Macdonald's mother was a lifelong influence on her son, helping him in his difficult first marriage and remaining influential in his life until her 1862 death.{{sfn|Smith|McLeod|1989|p=1}}

Macdonald initially attended local schools. When he was aged 10, his family gathered enough money to send him to [[Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute|Midland District Grammar School]] in Kingston.{{sfn|Smith|McLeod|1989|p=1}} Macdonald's formal schooling ended at 15, a common school-leaving age at a time when only children from the most prosperous families were able to attend university.{{sfn|Creighton|1952|p=18}} Macdonald later regretted leaving school when he did, remarking to his secretary [[Joseph Pope (public servant)|Joseph Pope]] that if he had attended university, he might have embarked on a literary career.{{sfn|Pope|1894|p=4}}