OGS President Shirley Sturdevant Has an Update on the LAC

There has been an update on the termination and replacement of the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) Services at the Library and Archives Canada‏ from OGS President Shirley Sturdevant. 

You can read the full update on their blog at www.ogs.on.ca/ogsblog/?p=2794, but it more or less says that although she offered to be a part of the discussion, that offer wasn’t accepted. This is rather unfortunate, since Shirley might have been able to present the “genealogical point of view”, which has been missing from the discussion so far.

The answer that she received from the LAC said, in part, that “Although my offer was not accepted, I was promised by M. Grandmaitre (of the LAC) hat we would receive the same documentation as the other participating parties for further discussion with or distribution to our members”.

In the meantime, she says that “The Ontario Genealogical Society shall stay its course in advocating for open and equal access to our Canadian archival documents”.

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

Genealogists Helping Genealogists

There will be free research assistance given by the members of the Elgin County OGS to experienced genealogists, and beginners at the Elgin OGS on Saturday, January 19, 2013, from 1 to 3 p.m.

The location is at the George Thomas Room (upstairs), at the St. Thomas Public Library in St. Thomas, Ontario.

If you cannot get to the meeting on January the 19th, but you have ancestors in the Elgin County Region, they have a number of indexes online - free, including

Cemetery Indexes - The Elgin OGS has transcribed the inscriptions of all the current gravestones in Elgin County,

Census Indexes - The 1842 Township censuses indexes are online free

Funeral Home Records - Several of the Elgin County Funeral Homes have records that have been indexed

Land Records - The Elgin County Township papers have been indexed for ancestor names.

Newspaper Indexes - Many Elgin County Newspapers issues have been indexed and are available here free online.

Online Publications - miscellaneous collection of indexes to other sources; be sure to take a look!

Vital Records - the Elgin County Marriage abstracts of names from 1853 - 1873, plus some church records

Places of Worship - an inventory of church records available

Military - 1828 Militia men, War of 1812 veterans, Civil War veterans, World War 1 veterans, Cenotaphs of Elgin County

So there is a good selection, and should get you started in the right direction when searching your ancestor.

The website for the Elgin County website is www.elginogs.ca

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

More Holiday Gift Ideas

Here are some nore places to check which has books/CDs you may like either for yourself or for someone else during the Holiday Season -

In 2008, the Ontario Genealogical Society, and Dundurn Press entered a joint partnership in which the OGS would edit the books and Dundurn Press would publish them. Together, they have published many books on Canadian genealogy.

Families, the quarterly journal of the OGS (of which I am the editor) has regular excerpts from the books and reviews of books from their catalogue.

The OGS e-Store website has books at  www.ogs.on.ca/ogscart/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2

Global Genealogy, located near Toronto, is another good source of genealogy books, maps, and CDs.

They just came through their 20th year of operation, and they have published their “Top 10 Gift Ideas for the history and genealogy enthusiast on your list” at http://globalgenealogy.com/new/top-10.htm.

They also have two of my research booklets for sale — The War of 1812: Canada and the United States and Migration: Canada and the United States — that you might enjoy as a gift for a loved one, or even yourself!

And right down the road from us in Manotick is Archive CD Books Canada www.archivecdbooks.ca/acdbcanada.html. Malcolm Moody and his wife, Chris, carry a huge selection of older local Canadian history books that they have scanned and published on CDs in electronic document format.

What makes their business unique is that they take much care and effort in scanning each of the books (and maps, too), so it’s like buying the book in its natural form, with its resulting high quality and readability, which is rare when it comes to scanned books. The CDs are easy to use, reasonably-priced, and backed by the Moody’s expertise and broad subject knowledge.

So if you are wondering what you could possibly get for a gift for the genealogist on your list, these are some of the places you can visit for ideas of what they would like to see under the tree this Christmas!

Further Update: More Ontario Unregistered Cemeteries sent to Registrar

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about the OGS registration of unregistered cemeteries across the province, and the committee has an update.

This week the committee sent to the registrar the lists of unregistered cemeteries for the counties of Cochrane, Dundas and Durham so that they can be registered and protected.

To read my original post, go to http://genealogycanada.blogspot.ca/2012/11/update-on-ontario-cemeteries-act.html

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

How Did Ontario’s Early Settlers Celebrate Christmas?

Ever wondered how Ontario’s early settlers celebrated Christmas?

Drop by the Haldimand County Museum & Archives at 8 Echo St., Cayuga, Ontario on Saturday, December 1st from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, and enjoy some tea and a lecture on how settlers from 1812 celebrated the festive season.

You can contact them at 905.772.5880, or by email at museum.archives@haldimandcounty.on.ca

Go to their website at http://www.haldimandcounty.on.ca/residents.aspx?id=150 where you can see what they have to offer the genealogy researcher.

They have extensive collection of family histories, local histories, newspapers, church records, cemetery transcripts, census records, some birth, marriage and death records.

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

The Oakville Historical Society

The Oakville Historical Society is holding its last Public Speaker Night of the year this Wednesday. The topic for this final event is, “Alice’s Journey – A Personal Story of One Girl’s Journey from the Dr. Barnardo’s Homes to Canada,” as told by Alice’s daughter, Elaine Guther:

“The S.S. Scandinavian, with her precious cargo – Britain’s young children from the DR. BARNARDO’S HOMES cross the Atlantic on their way to Canada….. ALICE was on her way …..but would it be to “Wonderland”? “

The date of the lecture is Wednesday, November 21, 2012 at 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm, and the location is at St. John’s United Church, Dunn & Randall St., Oakville, Ontario.

The admission is Free. Refreshments Served

You may contact The Oakville Historical Society at 905.844.2695 or go to their website at www.oakvillehistory.org

For more information on the Home Children, go to

Home Children http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Children

Young Immigrants to Canada: Barnardo Homes http://jubilation.uwaterloo.ca/~marj/genealogy/children/Organizations/barnardo.html

Read about this latest news on the Home Children at the Library and Archives Canada Blog at http://thediscoverblog.com/2012/11/20/home-children-introduction

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

Anishinaabe First Nations in the War of 1812

Alan Ojiig Corbiere, former Executive Director of the Ojibwe Cultural Foundation in M’Chigeng, Manitoulin Island, Ontario, comes to Toronto to detail his research, including interviews with elders, to uncover the names and experiences of Anishinaabe combatants in the War of 1812 – often left nameless in historical records.

The date of the talk will be Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

And the location is Native Canadian Centre, 16 Spadina Road (west side, north of Bloor), Toronto.

To learn more about the Anishinaabe people , you can go to

Anishinaabe http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anishinaabe The meaning of Anishnaabeg is 'First' or 'Original Peoples' or good people - those people who are on the right road/path given to them by the Creator or Gichi-Manidoo (Great Spirit).

Anishinaabe outfit collected by Andrew Foster http://nmai.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/woodlands/242000.html There is a photo of the clothing that was worn about 1790 by the Anishinaabe.

The Waterdown East-Flamborough Heritage Society’s Book Fair and Seminar

The 22nd annual Book Fair and Seminar is being held Saturday, November 10th, 2012 from 9:30 am – 3:00 pm, with the Seminar beginning at 10: 30 am. at the Waterdown East-Flamborough Heritage Society. 

The seminar topic will be “The Importance of the Battle of Stoney Creek,” and the speaker will be James E. Elliott, author of “Strange Fatality: The Battle of Stoney Creek”.

Admission for the seminar is $5.00. Reservations will be taken up to November 5th. Fee is payable at the door.

For more information on the Book Sale, Seminar, and placing your reservation, you may contact them by phone at 905.540.5161. They are located at Fellowship Hall, St. James United Church, 306 Parkside Drive, Waterdown

The website is at www.wefhs.myhamilton.ca

Note: If you go on to their site, they have biographies of the Flamborough Nursing Sisters, C.E.F. Honour Roll for the Flamborough Area, Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, Leper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, and Flamborough Home Children.

They also have the history about The Railway in Waterdown, Postcards of the area, "Let It Snow" (a very well done vignette), and the McGregor family and their impact on the Waterdown area.

They have vertical files, photographs and histories of numerous other local families in the Waterdown Flamborough area.

A Toronto Genealogy Hero

A genealogy hero, Henry Wellisch, Past President Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada (JGS Canada), turned 90 years old on Sept. 22, 2012, and he will be honoured at the meeting tonigh at the Temple Sinai in Toronto at 8 pm (doors open 7:30 pm).

All members and friends are encouraged to attend this event as well as the presentation that follows called “Travelling Over the Pond” with Harvey Glasner and Les Kelman.

To read about this event, go to www.jgstoronto.ca

Perth County Branch Holds October Meeting

Perth County Branch of the OGS in Stratford, Ontario is having their annual meeting on Saturday, 27 October 2012 from 1-4 pm.

The meeting will take place on the Upper Level at the Stratford Public Library, 19 St. Andrew Street, Stratford, and the speaker will be Lynn Matthison. She will talk about family members who fought in the Boer War, India, WWI, WWII and Bosnia, including a picture board and artifacts.

If you have war stories and memorabilia, bring them along as well.

The website is at www.ogs.on.ca/perth

Kitchener Public Library Genealogy Fair

The Kitchener Public Library is holding their second annual Genealogy Fair on Saturday, November 3 from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. There is no registration, simply drop by. FREE admission!

The Keynote Speaker will be Kevin James, Professor of History, Centre for Scottish Studies, University of Guelph, and he will speak at 10:00 am in the Kitchener City Hall Rotunda. The subject will be "Connecting Family and Public Histories"

The press release says that “Drawing on novel examples of partnerships using sources from census returns to cookbooks, Kevin explores recent efforts to connect family history and genealogy to 'public' history, and talks about exciting new directions for collaborations between historians (amateur and professional), of the family, of the state and of society. Kevin’s research focuses on comparative Scottish and Irish social history.”

To find more information about the Fair, go to www.kpl.org/programs/program_listings/all.html#genealogy

There will be more than 25 exhibits and vendors!

Perth & District, Ontario

A 64-page booklet about the town of Perth, located 60 minutes southwest of Ottawa, has been put together by the Perth & District Chamber of Commerce. Among the topics listed within the booklet is “Museum and Libraries”.

The eight are –

Matheson House – Perth Museum

Visit the 19th-century home at the museum, and beside the home, see exhibits on the Last Fatal Duel, and the Mammoth Cheese.

Outdoors is a Scottish garden containing flowering plants and shrubs true to the era (that I would like to see), and an outdoor bake oven and kitchen herb garden.

The website is at www.town.perth.on.ca/siteengine/activepage.asp?pageid=97

Hall of Remembrance Museum

This museum is on the second floor of the Royal Canadian Legion, and has artifacts of the Boer War, World War One and Two, Korea, and  Afghanistan.

The website is at www.lanarkcountymuseums.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27&Itemid=20

Lanark and District Museum

There are genealogical books in their library, as well as exhibits of early pioneers life in Lanark County. They have the archives of William Caldwell, one of the earliest lumber barons of the area.

Go to their website at www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/GetMuseumProfile.do?lang=en&chinCode=guadsp

Middleville and District Museum

Housed in a 1861 two-storey stone house, the exhibits includes a horse-drawn hearse!

There are original genealogy and family history records onsite, and a 1830s log cabin.

The website is www.middlevillemuseum.blogspot.com

Dalhousie Historic Library and Museum

This is the oldest rural library in Ontario, and it includes books donated by Lord Dalhousie in 1828, plus genealogical records.

There isn’t a website.

Archives Lanark

This archives is operated by the Lanark County Genealogical Society, and it contains deeds from 1868 to 1958, land records, newspaper clippings, and photos.

Their website is www.globalgenealogy.com/archiveslanark

Perth and District Union Public Library

This library serves the Town of Perth and Drummond/North Elmsley and Tay Valley Townships. They have genealogy books, and book clubs.

The website is at www.perthunionlibrary.ca

Lanark Highlands Public Library

This library has been in operation since 1824, and they have many books on the social and historical aspect of the Lanark Highlands.

The website is www.lanarklibrary.ca

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved.

Doors Open Ontario 2012

The Quinte Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society, Trenton, ON will thrown open the doors to its library on Saturday September the 15th from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. during Doors Open Ontario 2012.

Their library is housed in the Quinte West Public Library, and it contains traditional printed material and microfilm records, cemetery transcriptions, census data, birth/marriage/death records and searchable databases.”

For more information about Doors Open Ontario 2012 visit www.doorsopenontario.on.ca

Spirit Walk to be Held in Puslinch

Betty Andersen has sent me the following notice -

“Celebrate the 175th anniversary of Duff's Church with a SPIRIT WALK to be held Monday September 17 at 7 pm

Come with us to visit the resting places of five of Duff's Church's first members - early pioneers in Puslinch Township, Ontario. Hear the stories of their lives as presented by some of their descendants -

Kerr

Meldrum

McCaig

McLean

McRobbie

Meet at Crown Cemetery REAR entrance which is off Nicholas Beaver Road (at Tim Horton's on Brock Road, Aberfoyle).

The SPIRIT WALK is sponsored by Puslinch Historical Society http://puslinchhistorical.ca

See Two Exhibits for the Price of One

If you purchase a special museum pass before Sept 3 at Smith’s Falls, Ontario, you will be entitled to see two exhibits for the price of one!

The tour called the Rails to Bales Tour will let you go to the Heritage House Museum and the Railway Museum of Eastern Ontario in Smiths Falls .

The Legend of Frost & Wood: Outstanding in Their Field at the Heritage House Museum and A Social History of the Railway in Smiths Falls at the Railway Museum documents the development of Smiths Falls over 150 years, the people and the lasting legacy of these industries.

Heritage House Museum is open daily from 10:30 am to 4:30 p.m. until December, at 11 Old Slys Rd., Smiths Falls. Call 613.283.6311 or visit www.smithsfalls.ca/heritagehouse for more information.

The Railway Museum of Eastern Ontario is open daily from 10 am to 4 p.m. until Labour Day, and weekends until December at 90 William St. W., Smiths Falls. Call 613.283.5696 or visit www.rmeo.org for more information

Keffer Writing Contest

Every year, the Ontario Genealogical Society sponsors a writing contest called the Keffer Writing Contest – and this year – it was something special. We had 14 entrants!

From the 14 essays – four were chosen as winners, and they are -

First Place goes to Virginia Reid, and her essay "How an Old Handkerchief Helped Me"

Second Place goes to Debra Butler Honor UE, and her essay "The Stain Glass Mystery"

Third Place goes to Anne Rahamut, and her essay "Mrs. Teepell's Tale"

and

Fourth Place goes to David Harper, and his essay "Tracing 19th Century Homesteading"

If you want to see the rules for entry, go to www.ogs.on.ca/home/essay.php

If you aren't a member, they have a special offer where you can join for $35.00 for a six month period, and be eligible to submit an essay. Plus, there is lots of records on the OGS Members Site.

There will be one essay published per issue of Families, starting with the August 2012 issue.

The deadline for the 2013 contest is November 1, 2012.

Genealogy “Summer Camp” in Toronto

"Have you ever wondered what you can do this summer? Go to the Toronto Summer Camp for genealogists from August 12 to the 17^th!

Genealogy "Summer Camp" is a unique program (for adults) that brings out-of-town family historians to Toronto for an intensive week of tutorials and hands-on research at the many archives and reference libraries in the city. If you have ancestors from Toronto or other parts of Ontario, there are many resources here for you. Local family historians are also welcome to participate as “day campers”. We take full advantage of Toronto’s great public transit system, and we keep the group small to allow lots of help from our local experts.

We’ll help you spend more time finding information about your ancestors—and less time finding the archives.

This will be our 16th Summer Camp. More than 125 participants from England, right across Canada and many US states have attended the 15 previous Summer Camps—some more than once!

Genealogy “Summer Camp” 2012 will take place from August 12-17. The Summer Camp fee for 2012 is $230 (CDN), which covers approximately 7 hours of lectures and tutorials, 25 hours of hands-on instruction and all worksheets and handouts.

For details as to venues, resources, tutorials and accommodation, and to download an application package, visit www.torontofamilyhistory.org/summercamp.html, or contact Jane MacNamara at info@torontofamilyhistory.org.

Applications should be received by 11 June 2012."

The Genealogy Corner

I have started writing a genealogy column called "The Genealogy Corner" in The Review – a weekly newspaper in Vankleek Hill, Ontario. The column is geared towards beginning genealogists, but I think anyone can gain a new insight in the views that I have put forward in the column.

The column appears every two weeks in print, but unfortunately, doesn't appear on the website, so if you are interested, you will have to buy the paper or get an online subscription. The website is www.thereview.on.ca.

The columns that have been printed so far this year are -

• March 14 - Finding Your Canadian Roots
• March 28 - A Genealogical Society Is Not Just Another Society
• April 11 - It's Time to go Back to School – Year Round
• April 25 - It’s Time to Start Your Research!
• May 9 - The Year Genealogy Was Reborn In Canada

 The next column on May 23 will be all the changes that are taking place at FamilySearch.org.

Walking Tour In Morriston

The Puslinch Historical Society invites you to a Walking Tour in Morriston on Sunday May 27 2012 at 2 pm.

Exploring the history and architectural features of certain houses in the village of Morriston, Ontario. They point out that interiors not included in the tour. You are to meet everyone at the stoplight in the centre of the village.

There will also be a Spirit Walk in Crown Cemetery this fall. You can tour the cemetery, and hear the life stories - the words of people who are buried here. The tour is Monday September 17, 2012 at 7 pm.

Take Nicholas Beaver Rd (at Tim Hortons south of Aberfoyle) to the cemetery side entrance.

Both of these events are sponsored by Puslinch Historical Society, and The Wellington County Historical Society.

For info call 519-658-9923, or contact Betty Anderson at b.anderson@sympatico.ca.

Take a minute to look at the Puslinch Township site at http://www.puslinch.net/index.html.

OGS "Families" – February 2012 Issue

Photo – A cover photo by Janet Iles of the Greenwood Cemetery in Owen Sound, which was once known as the “People's Cemetery”. Read more about its history in “On the Cover” on page 34 of this issue.

The Ontario Genealogical Society's journal, Families (of which I am the editor) was released in February of this year.

As usual, there were two themes to this issue – Ontario Cemeteries, and Ontario Heritage.

Cemeteries

The excerpt was from the book, A Better Place: Death and Burial in Nineteenth-Century Ontario, by Susan Smart in which Chapter 6: The Establishment of Cemeteries in Three Towns (the three towns were Peterborough, Kingston, and Niagara-on-the-Lake) was reprinted in full. Plus, a book review was written about the book on page 32.

To continue the cemetery theme, two more articles about Ontario - Rambles Around Some Halton-Peel Cemeteries by Dorothy Kew, in which she gives an excellent review (with photos) of cemeteries of Halton-Peel, and an article, Changing Gravestone Motifs in Quinte and Beyond by Peter Johnson, in which he describes the “changing motif” on gravestones through the centuries – and there are fourteen photos in the paper!

Ontario Heritage

Three papers were published in acknowledgement of Ontario Heritage Day in February, and they were - Family History of a Caribbean Canadian by Dr. Jerome Teelucksingh, in which he traces the life of Tom Ashby; Why and When Had Mary Ann and Joseph Whiteley Moved to Grey County by Catherine Whiteley, in which she traces the life of George Forbes; and Hunting for Hidden History: How Slavery Came to the Town of York by Hilary Dawson, in which she write an account of slavery in York Township.

One other paper, Letters Home: Upper Canada to England by Dr. Bill Mills, give a very gripping account of a homesick Christopher Stokes writing home to his family in Nottinghamshire, England.

Families is available only to members of the Ontario Genealogical Society. There are two membership packages available – a six month term for $35.00, or a full year for $60.00. Memberships are available at www.ogs.on.ca/membership.php

Full issues of Families, including an index, is also available for the years 1962 to 2006 through the “Members Only” portal at

www.ogs.on.ca/membersonly/mem_sign_in.php.