The surname Waddell comes from the place named Wedale, in the parish of Stow, near Edinburgh. As such it is a habitation name, a category of surnames derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages or parishes.

Rev. John Waddell

Born 10 April 1771, Scotland.

He was educated in Glasgow, where he studied for the Presbyterian ministry and was ordained in May 1797.

Departed Scotland on 12 Aug 1797 by ship and arrived in Truro, Nova Scotia on 06 Nov 1797 following a short stay in New York. While in Truro he boarded with a Mr. Alexander Barnhill until he married and moved into his own house.

Married Nancy Ann Blanchard (1780-1818) on 02 Sep 1802 at Truro. Nancy died on 18 August 1818, leaving Rev. John with the care of seven young children.

In October 1828 John suffered a stroke which left him partly paralyzed. As a result he needed a wheelchair to be able to continue his ministry.

In the summer of 1836 he was injured when the wagon he was traveling in upset, and he subsequently retired from the ministry in November of that year. His last public address was at the funeral of a family who perished in a house fire in the spring of 1841.

Died 14 Nov 1842 at Truro aged 72 years.

• John Waddell had an older brother James who settled in South Maitand, Hants county. James had studied for the ministry, but upon completion of his studies, refused to accept some of the rules and regulations he was told he must affirm to. By the time he came to NS in 1813 he was a skilled finish carpenter and cabinet maker. Some of his tools and furniture are at the Nova Scotia Museum in Halifax.
  
  
• The Blanchard family has been traced back to Pierre Jean Blanchard (1555-c1610) of Calentine, France. His four sons were born in France but moved to England during the French Huguenot migration. Pierre (Peter) and Jean, the two eldest, remained in England. The younger sons Joseph (15??-1637) and Thomas (1600-1654) emigrated to Massachussetts and their descendants remained in the Massachussetts/New Hampshire area. In 1785, Joseph's great-great-grandson Col. Jotham Blanchard moved his family to Truro, Nova Scotia.

1. Mary Waddell (1803-1838) Truro
   Married Isaac Smith (1802-1891) on 23 Feb 1823 at Truro
   
   1. Nancy Waddell Smith (1826-?) Truro
      
   2. Eleanor Smith (1827-?) Truro
      
   3. Sarah Jane Smith (1830-?) Truro
      
   4. Gavin Walker Smith (1838-?) Truro
   
   
2. Rev. James Waddell (1805-1870) Truro
   Married Elizabeth Blanchard (1819-1897) on 03 Oct 1837 at Pictou
   
   1. William Henry Waddell (1838-1913) Truro
      
   2. Jane Walker Waddell (1840-1926) Charlottetown PEI
      
   3. Elizabeth Bedford Waddell (1844-?) Truro
      
   4. Edward Sherburne Waddell (1847-1907) Truro
      
   5. Mary Waddell (1849-1893) Truro
      
   6. Sarah Waddell (1855-?) Truro
      
   7. John Waddell (1858-1923) Truro
   
   

• Rev. James and his wife Elizabeth were first cousins. There was a lot of intermarriage among the Waddell, Blanchard and Archibald families of Nova Scotia because, according to family legend, "no one else was good enough".

3. Jotham Blanchard Waddell (1808-?) Truro
   Married Nancy Kent (1807-1852) on 06 Apr 1830< at Truro
   
   1. John Waddell (1831-1889) Truro
      
   2. Nancy Waddell (1833-?) Truro
      
   3. Richard Christie Waddell (1835-1871) Truro
      
   4. Alexander Kent Waddell (1837-1910) Truro
      
   5. Jane Frances Waddell (1840-1920) Truro
      
   6. Susan Lynds Waddell (1842-1920) Truro
      
   7. William McCully Waddell (1845-1888) Truro
      
   8. Samuel James Waddell (1847-1919) Truro
      
   
   
4. John Waddell (1810-1878) Truro
   Married(1) Susan Lynds (1811-1834) on 03 Oct 1833 at Truro
   Married(2) Jane Archibald (1807-1878) on 25 June 1844 at Saint John NB
   
   1. Susan Lynds Waddell (1846-?) Truro
      
   2. Sarah Waddell (1848-1874) Truro
      
   3. Charles Melville Waddell (1849-1859) Saint John NB
      
   
   
5. Elizabeth Waddell (1812-1870) Truro
   
   
6. Jane Walker Waddell (1814-1840) Truro
   Married John Albro Dickson (1814-1842) on 16 Aug 1836 at Truro
   
   1. Robert Douglas Dickson (1837-?) Truro
   
   
7. Sarah Waddell (1817-1824) Truro