Keep in mind that census data, or any information that depends on input from individuals, is not always accurate. I had one woman who gave her birthplace as Ayr in every census until 1891, when she finally said Cummertrees, Dumfries. Another woman gave the wrong birthplace for her marriage license (along with the wrong birth year). Most people assume they were born where they grew up. Also, with transcriptions, the transcriber sometimes makes guesses at ages if the handwriting is not clear. I just had one transcription give an age of 68 for a person, when, according to their birth record, they would have been 53. An easy error to make, but if she had not been living with other family members, I would never have found her using her age. The point being, check out John Carruthers younger than you would assume from the census transcription. Happy hunting -- Jo-Ann