Editing Samuel Cunard (section)

==Family and early life==

Samuel Cunard was the second son of [[Abraham Cunard]] (1756–1824), a [[Quaker]] and Margaret Murphy (1758–1821),<ref name=jl/> a [[Roman Catholic]]. The Cunards were a [[Quakers|Quaker]] family that originally came from [[Worcestershire]], in Britain, but were forced to flee to Germany in the 17th century due to [[religious persecution]], where they took the name Kunder. Samuel Cunard's great-great-grandfather had been a [[dyer (occupation)|dyer]] in [[Crefeld]] there, but emigrated to [[Pennsylvania]] in 1683. In America they adopted the name Cunard. Later some of his descendants, including his grandfather, Samuel, changed their name to Cunard. Abraham Cunard was a [[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Loyalist]] to the British Crown and moved to [[Halifax, Nova Scotia|Halifax]] in 1783, after the [[American Revolution]]. He married Margaret Murphy, another Loyalist [[émigré]]e that year. Margaret's family were originally from Ireland and came to Halifax from [[South Carolina]].{{sfn|Lownds|1987|loc=p.&nbsp;3}}{{sfn|Smy|1997}} Abraham and Margaret had nine children, two girls and seven boys (William 1789–1823, Samuel 1787–1865, Edward 1798–1851, [[Joseph Cunard|Joseph]] 1799–1865, John, Thomas and Henry).<ref name=DCB>{{cite DCB |last1=Blakeley |first1=Phyllis R. |author-link=Phyllis Blakeley |title=Cunard, Sir Samuel |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/cunard_samuel_9E.html |volume=9 }}</ref>

Abraham Cunard was a master carpenter who worked for the British garrison in Halifax and became a wealthy landowner and timber merchant.<ref name=DCB/> Margaret Cunard's alcoholism spurred Samuel Cunard to assume responsibilities at an early age.<ref>Fox, p. 42</ref> Samuel Cunard's own business skills were evident early in his teens: he was managing his own [[general store]] from stock he obtained in broken lots at wharf auction. He later joined his father in the family timber business, which expanded into investments in shipping.<ref name=jl>{{harvnb|Langley|2006}}</ref>