Lucille Campey at BIFHSGO Conference

On Saturday and Sunday, September 15th and 16th, I attended the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa's Conference, and heard Ottawa native, Dr. Lucille Campey, give three talks about emigration from the British Isles to Canada.

Since I am deeply interested in emigration, I had waited impatiently since first hearing that she was coming to speak at the conference, so I had to make sure that I did not miss any of her talks.

The first talk was “Lord Selkirk and the Settlement of Scottish Highlanders in Canada”, and Lucille says that he is a favorite of hers to write about because he had such a strong personality, and such a commitment to bring Scottish Highlanders to Canada to settle in Red River, Manitoba; Baldoon (Wallaceburg), Ontario; and Belfast in Prince Edward Island.

Her next talk on Sunday was “Seeking a Better Future: The English Pioneers of Ontario and Quebec” in which she challenged the commonly-held idea that people were running from poverty in the homeland. She found out in her research that the English came to Canada seeking greater freedoms and a more attractive style of life than they could find at home.

Her third talk, “The Scots in Ontario – a New Look at the Data”, looked at Ontario census data to explain why Scottish people settled in the area where they settled. She showed genealogists why people such as weavers and kelp farmers settled in particular areas in Ontario. It was an interesting talk for me because it showed the patterns of settlement, and the reasons why people settled in one area, and not in another.

You should check out her books on emigration at Dundurn Press http://www.dundurn.com/authors/lucille_h_campey, and the interviews that were done with her by BIFHSGO at www.bifhsgo.ca/upload/files/Conference%202012/Campey.mp3 In addition, there is an interview with Lucille Campey, Chris Paton, and Patricia Whatley by Ottawa's Austin Comerton on his radio show, The Gaelic Hour (CJLL 97.9 FM) www.thegaelichour.ca. To listen to the interview, click here - www.thegaelichour.ca/20120916.m3u

You can visit her Scottish website at www.scotstocanada.com, and her English website at www.englishtocanada.com

Lucille Campey Will Be at The BIFHSGO Conference

Just got a note from Geoff Campey, the husband of Lucille Campey, a lecturer at the BIFHSGO conference in September, and a special speaker at Toronto, also in September.

She will be in Canada to talk about her latest book in her series "The English in Canada" with title Seeking a Better Future - The English Pioneers of Ontario and Québec published recently by the Dundurn Group, Toronto.

In Toronto, she will be giving a public lecture about English emigration to Ontario and Quebec on Thursday 20th September at 7.30 pm at the Blessed Sacrament Parish Hall, 24 Cheritan Avenue, Toronto. For more information,call 416.482.4909 or info@crht.ca

John D. Reid at www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=62 has just interviewed Lucille, and I listened to it this morning.

She talked about her three lectures at the BIFHSGO Conference next month www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=22, and one of the lectures will be about the 200th Anniversary of the Red River Settlement in Manitoba, and it sound interesting.

Another lecture that she will give will be on the Highlanders who settled in Glengarry County in Eastern Ontario, and in other parts of Ontario.

Her website has been updated www.englishtocanada.com

BIFHSGO Conference in September

I have just registered for the 17th annual BIFHSGO conference tobe held in Ottawa from September 14th to the 16th. This year’s theme is Scotland.

On Day 1 I plan to attend 4 lectures –

Session 1

An Introduction to Researching Scottish Family History – presented by Chris Paton

Session 2

Lord Selkirk and the Settlement of Scottish Highlanders in Canada – presented by Lucille Campey

After the lunch break, I will take in two more lectures, and they are –

Session 3

Scottish House and Land History – presented by Chris Paton

Session 4

Online Books: Are they Really Good Resources? – presented by Tony Bandy

And I will top off the day by having a “get together” supper held at the Bay Street Bistro where my husband and myself usually have good food and conversation with fellow genealogists.

Then on Sunday, I will attend –

Session 5

Seeking a Better Future; The English Pioneers of Ontario and Quebec – presented by Lucille Campey

Session 6

The Good Commonwealth – presented by Chris Paton

I will enjoy lunch, and then I will attend the following sessions in the afternoon -

Session 7

The Scots in Ontario – a New Look at the Data – presented by Lucille Campey

Session 8

The Mount Stewart Murder – presented by Chris Paton

All of the lecture abstracts are at www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=98.

The biographies of each of the speakers is at www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=94

I will post my reactions to the different lectures that I plan to attend on Monday, September 17th.