May Events at the Quebec Family History Society

My thanks go to Susan for letting me know about these following events.

On Wednesday, May 8, at 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm there will be a meeting on Brick Wall Solutions (Special Interest Group) QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, 173 Cartier Avenue, Pointe-Claire.

New and experienced genealogists are invited to join us at our monthly meeting to discuss brick wall problems in a friendly and informal setting. This month, we will learn how to improve our online research skills to find family trees, newspapers, and books. We will also review how to use wild cards when searching for ancestors on websites, such as Ancestry, Family Search, and Free BMD.

On Saturday, May 11th, there will be a Guided Tour of the Chateau Ramezay (Tour) at 10:30 am at 280 rue Notre-Dame est, Montreal.

This guided tour is $8 per person and open to QFHS members and non-members. To attend, you must register and make your payment at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library.

The Château Ramezay is the province's oldest private history museum. It was built in 1705 as the residence of the Governor of Montreal Claude de Ramezay and his wife Marie-Charlotte Denys, whom he married in 1690 in Quebec. Their home changed hands over the years and has had an interesting history. The building was enlarged in 1756.

The Château Ramezay Historic Site and Museum was selected by a team of experts, in collaboration with UNESCO, as one of the 1001 historic sites you must see before you die.

On Wednesday, May 15th, there will be Celebrating Our Female Roots Day (Roots Day) from 1:30 pm to 4:00 pm at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, 173 Cartier Avenue, Pointe-Claire.

Half of our direct ancestors are women, and since Mother's Day takes place this month, this is a good time to celebrate our female ancestors and learn how our ancestors lived.

Join us to chat about how to learn what life was like for your female ancestors. What was home life like during the time they lived? Do you own any letters or diaries? Share with others the challenges you face when researching your female ancestors.

On display will be books from the QFHS collection about social history that help us better understand our ancestors’ lives.

Drop by for coffee, tea, and informal conversation to talk about some of the favourite women in your family and how our ancestors may have lived. Bring your own books, resources and memorabilia on social history that have helped you in your research, a friend, or just bring yourself.

Before Roots Day, please drop off copies of photos of your female ancestors for the display with Joan Benoit at QFHS. Remember to caption the photo with name, date, and description. If you live out of town, please send your photos by email at qfhs@bellnet.ca.

Open to members and the public. Free admission.

On Wednesday, May 22th Family History Writing (Special Interest Group)

To be held from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, 173 Cartier Avenue, Pointe-Claire.

Join us any month! Together, in a friendly and informal setting, we encourage each other to write and discuss each month's mini-project.

This monthly meeting is open to QFHS members. We meet the fourth Wednesday of each month. If interested in joining, call 514.695.1502 or email qfhs.web@gmail.com.

More info: http://qfhs.ca

Celebrating the Heritage of Cascapedia Bay, Quebec

This is a press release from The Chaleur Bay Military Museum, the Cascapedia River Museum and the Gaspesian British Heritage Village telling us of a video project which they are undertaking -

'The Chaleur Bay Military Museum, the Cascapedia River Museum and the Gaspesian British Heritage Village are working together to produce a series of videos focusing on the history of the Cascapedia Bay area. These videos will tell the story of the community and the magnificent countryside, and will be available as four downloadable video podcasts.

Each bilingual “vodcast” will take the viewer on a drive through the modern-day landscape while highlighting important sites and events from the past. Photos and descriptions of former landmarks will take the viewer back in time - the Dimock Creek ferry, logging and fishing on the Cascapedia River, one-room schoolhouses, inns and hotels, sawmills, blacksmith shops and military history, cemeteries and residences - will all be showcased. In addition, interviews previously carried out with community members will be included.

The project is financially supported by the Fonds de soutien à la mise en valeur du patrimoine culturel, a partnership between the Conférence régionale des élus Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine and the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications.

It is part of the ongoing work that the Military Museum, River Museum and Gaspesian Village carry out to ensure that the important heritage and history of the community is preserved, shared and celebrated. The three partners are very excited about this initiative and are looking forward to increased collaboration in the future.

It is anticipated that these vodcasts will be available for viewing in October 2013. If you have any photos or videos you feel should be included, please bring them by the Cascapedia River Museum or the Gaspesian British Heritage Village during opening hours".

The website of the Cascapedia River Museum is at www.cascapediariver.com/museum.shtml and the email is cascapedia_museum@globetrotter.net.

The website of the Gaspesian British Heritage Village is at www.gaspesianvillage.org, and the email is info@gaspesianvillage.org

The website of the Chaleur Bay Military Museum is at
 www.chaleurmilitarymuseum.com

GENWEB UPDATE: Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario Cemeteries

The Canadian GenWeb has issued an update to the Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario cemeteries as follows -

ALBERTA

Lacombe:

-  Bentley Cemetery

QUEBEC

Huntingdon County:

- Tallen Family Burial Ground

ONTARIO

Brant County:

- Farringdon Cemetery

- Mount Hope Cemetery

Bruce County:

- Douglas Hill Cemetery

- Queen Hill Cemetery

Elgin County:

- St Thomas Cemetery

Essex County:

- Victoria Memorial Gardens

Grey County:

- Cookes Presbyterian / Orange Valley Presbyterian / Old Presbyterian Cemetery

- Mennonite Brethren In Christ Cemetery

Lambton County:

- Hillsdale Cemetery

- Point Edward Veterans Memorial Park

Manitoulin District:

- Michael Bay Cemetery

Norfolk County:

- Barton Family Cemetery

- Bethel Brethern in Christ / Tunkard Cemetery

Peel County:

- Brampton Pioneer / Harrison-Hewgill Pioneer Cemetery

- Cheyne Cemetery

Simcoe County:

- St Mary's Catholic Cemetery

Wellington County:

- Abandoned / Old Anglican Cemetery

The Canada GenWeb have given it thanks to Alison Mitchell-Reid, Anne Chamberlain, Bonnie Lee Breadner, Brenda Marchese, Giselle Loder, Jim Anderson, Joanne Krywko, Kate Ford, Marilyn Whiting, Nancy Ross-Hill, Sharon Mattiuz, Tom Thompson, and William Cooke for help indexing, and to Alison Mitchell-Reid, Anne Chamberlain, Bonnie Lee Breadner, Carolyn Bechtel, Doug Tracey, Joanne Krywko, Kate Ford, Linda Doran, Marilyn Mallet, Nancy Ross-Hill, Penny Gallagher, Pete Carell, Sharon Mattiuz, Thomas Rowe, and William Cooke for photos of the cemeteries.

To view the site, go to http://canadacems.blogspot.com/2013/04/alberta-quebec-ontario-update.html

Writing Family History

There will be a workshop called Writing Family History at the Eastern Townships Resource Centre.

This interactive workshop will give participants tips and guidance on how to capture the emotion of their family’s stories while avoiding the dreaded “chronological boredom” when writing family history with Tracey Arial and Janice Hamilton.

Registration is limited.

The workshop will be held May 11, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It will be held at 2600 College, Bishop’s University Cleghorn Common Room, Sherbrooke (borough of Lennoxville)

For information, call Jody Robinson at 819-822-9600 ext: 2261 or email at etrc2@ubishops.ca

The website for the Eastern Townships Resource Centre www.etrc.ca/home.html

Eastern Townships Research http://simmons.b2b2c.ca There are a list of churches, cemeteries, census records, newspapers online, and there are full maps of the Eastern Townships at the site.

Société de généalogie des Cantons de l'Est www.genealogie.org/club/sgce/accueile.htm This is a research site which gives tutorials, and the organization has a library.

Celebrating Our Irish Roots Day

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013, there will be a meeting of the Quebec Family History Society from 1:30 pm to 4:00 pm at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, 173 Cartier Avenue, Pointe-Claire (Montreal), and you are asked to come and celebrate your Irish roots.

Join QFHS members Sharon Callaghan and Kelley O'Rourke for coffee, tea, and informal conversation to talk about Ireland and our ancestors who came from there.

Sharon is a lecturer and author of the book, Paths of Opportunity, a portrayal of the Irish Montreal experience of one family who arrived in Quebec in the 1840s at the start of The Famine. Kelley was a member of a small group of dedicated volunteers who played a significant role in restoring the St. Columban Cemetery, a predominantly Irish cemetery in the Lower Laurentians.

Come browse the books from our Irish collection. If you are new to genealogy, talk to our members about how to start researching your family history.

Bring a coffee mug, a friend, your own favourite books and resources on Ireland that have helped you in your research, or just bring yourself.

Everyone is Irish on Irish Roots Day, so join us.

Open to our members and the public. Admission is free.  Visit  www.qfhs.ca/events.php

GATINEAU VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Please join the Gatineau Valley Historical Society for an evening of poetry, song and images celebrating the Gatineau River as Phil Jenkins talks and sings about The Babbling River: The Gatineau Valley in Verse and Song

Apart from spending his teenage years in Liverpool, England during Beatlemania, Phil has been thinking about Ottawa and the Gatineaus for more than 40 years. He has written for a variety of magazines and is weekly local history columnist for the

Ottawa Citizen. 

He is the author Fields of Vision and An Acre of Time: The Enduring Value of Place, as well as River Song: Sailing the History of the St. Lawrence, and Beneath My Feet: The Memoirs of George Mercer Dawson.

He is also a singer/songwriter who performs solo, or with the group "Riverbend." He currently lives in the Gatineau Hills. 

Everyone welcome, and there are refreshments!

The meeting will be held Monday, March 18, 7:30 pm, at the Wakefield Library, Wakefield Community Centre, 38 Valley Drive, La Pêche – just north of Ottawa.

The website of the GVHS is www.gvhs.ca

Dick Eastman’s Blog: Finding Acadian Resources in Books and Online

In Dick's blog this morning, there is news about a newspaper column written by Roxanne Moore Saucier in which she tells us about a great way to discover and read about our Acadian ancestors – through books and online.

As he says, “the term French Canadian describes those with Quebec ancestry, while Acadian refers to the French who occupied what is now Nova Scotia and parts of New Brunswick until the British deported them in Le Grand Derangement of 1755”.

You can read Dick’s full article at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2013/03/finding-acadian-resources-in-books-and-online.html

To read Roxanne Moore Saucier column, see the Living Section of the Bngor Daily News at http://bangordailynews.com/community/finding-acadian-resources-in-books-and-online

And don’t forget the more than 100 family reunions scheduled for Aug. 8-24, 2014, during the World Acadian Congress, visit http://cma2014.com/rencontres-de-familles-prog.

What Lies Beneath: Cantley Before the Great Flood

Please join us for a joint meeting of the Gatineau Valley Historical Society and Cantley 1889 Society.

President, Marc Cockburn, will take us on multimedia voyage up the Cantley side of Gatineau river, using Google Earth and archival photos and maps to reconstruct how the river looked before much of its natural and built environment was flooded in 1927, as a result of the construction of the hydro dams at Chelsea and Farmer’s Rapids.

Come early to see a display of artifacts and images from the river and the logging era, and to stroll along, or view, the Gatineau River shoreline of La Grange.

WHEN: Monday, April 15, 7:30 p.m.

WHERE: La Grange de la Gatineau, 80 chemin Summer, Cantley (just northeast of Ottawa)

The web site of the Gatineau Valley Historical Society is www.gvhs.ca

The website of the Cantley 1889 Society is www.cantley1889.ca/english/index.html

Hostages Along the Border!

On Wednesday, February 27, the Morrin Centre in Quebec City will host a presentation on what American history often refers to as the French and Indian War. While many writers have focused on the trauma and homesickness experienced by the captives during their journey north, fewer have told the story of those who chose not to return to New England and subsequently integrated into life in Quebec.

Several of these former captives played an important role in the early history of Quebec, where their descendants live today. This presentation will be an opportunity to learn more about their story.

With words and pictures Jack Bryden will tell the fascinating story of the hundreds of English-speaking men, women and children captured in New England and brought as prisoners to New France before 1760.

The meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 27 at 7:00 p.m. at the Morrin Centre, 44 Chaussée des Écossais, Quebec City.

Admission is free.

For more information or to reserve your seat, call 418-694-9147 or visit www.morrin.org

Join QFHS at Celebrating “Our Canadian Roots Day”!

This press release was sent to me over the weekend –

To celebrate our brave ancestors who came to our home and native land, the Quebec Family History Society will host Celebrating Our Canadian Roots Day on Wednesday, February 20, from 1:30 to 4:00 pm, at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library.

This is part of the Society's monthly "Roots Days" program, created to bring together fellow genealogists in a friendly setting. You may drop in anytime for coffee, tea, Canadian sweets, and informal conversation to talk about your ancestors who came to Canada and browse books from the QFHS Canadian collection.

Bring in your books and resources about Canadian cities, towns and
communities, no matter how small the location, to share with others.

Whether your ancestors were Lower Canadians, pure laine, western farmers, Upper Canadians, Acadians, First Nations, Métis, voyageurs, gold rush seekers, British, Irish, French, Italian, or from anywhere else, join us.

Open to our members and the public. Admission is free.

Visit www.qfhs.ca/events.php

Discovering History in Cemeteries

On Sunday, February 24, 2:00 p.m. at the Ste-Elisabeth Parish Hall, 47 Ste-Elisabeth Road, Cantley, Quebec (just north of Gatineau – right across from Ottawa), there will be an illustrated talk given by Carol Martin, called Discovering History in Cemeteries.


Everyone is invited to our tea party – an illustrated talk, our annual meeting and some sharing of family photos, archives and memories of Cantley’s early years. Cantley 1889 is looking for contacts for material for our archives; you are encouraged to bring photos and momentos of your family’s past. …free admission, everyone welcome

The event will be held by the Gatineau Valley Historical Society.

The website is at www.gvhs.ca

QFHS slashes its membership fee by 45% for new members

The office received this notice from the headquarters of the QFHS this morning -

Montreal, February 1, 2013 -- The Quebec Family History Society (QFHS) today announced it has cut its membership fee by 45 percent, from $65 to $35, for new members. For the period February 1 to July 31, 2013, the society has reduced its regular membership fee for people who join for the first time. This special partial year membership offer includes the Summer 2013 issue of the society’s publication, Connections, and all the benefits enjoyed by its members, such as onsite access to billions of online records, access to the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library collection of 6,000 books, CDs and microfilms, and discounts on seminars and research.

QFHS Executive Secretary Joan Benoit, in charge of membership, said: “This is a terrific opportunity for new and experienced genealogists to join our society and discover the exciting world of family history research. We encourage anyone who has ever thought of joining a genealogical society to take advantage of our offer.”

The Special Offer Membership form and membership details are available on the QFHS website at www.qfhs.ca/cpage.php?pt=13 Payment can be made by cheque or money order. Cash payments can be made in person at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library in Pointe-Claire, Quebec. To keep costs down on this special offer, QFHS cannot accept credit card or online payments.

The Quebec Family History Society is the largest English-language genealogical society in Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1977, it is a registered Canadian charity that helps people of all backgrounds research their family history. Its members, in addition to researching their Quebec roots, research historical records in all Canadian provinces and territories, the United States, the British Isles, and Western Europe. At the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, members have free access to a collection of 6,000 books, manuscripts, and family histories, plus thousands of microfilms, microfiche, historical maps, and periodicals, and access to billions of online genealogy resources, including the Deluxe International Edition of Ancestry.ca.

The Quebec Family History Society
qfhs@bellnet.ca
www.qfhs.ca

Westmount Historical Association

The Westmount Historical Association of Montreal has set a plaque in the GLEN to explain the centuries of use by humans.

In the 1800s, Scottish immigrants who built large homes on the sunny slopes of Westmount walked beside the streams to reach the church and the railway station in St. Henri. In the early 1700s, the French farming families who were deeded land along Côte St. Antoine Road transported their farm produce to market in Ville-Marie through the GLEN.

Before that, the Native People of the area walked to the petite St. Pierre River.

You are urged to bring your children and your visitors to Montreal to view this important transportation link running between Westmount and St. Henri as it takes you under the magnificent CPR Railway Arch.

To read more about the Westmount Historical Association, go to www.westmounthistorical.org

They have extensive archives located at the Westmount Public Library, and they have 1800 photographs, along with smaller collections of ephemera, pamphlets and personal papers. They also have extensive subject files relating to the history of Westmount.

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

IRISH HERITAGE QUEBEC

There will be a talk by Clive Kiley, the Mayor of Shannon, Quebec, who will speak on about the history of Shannon, its present and its future.

Clive Kiley has been Mayor of Shannon for 16 years and is a well known figure in local municipal affairs.

All are welcome, admission is free. Refreshments will be served and parking stubs for the parking lot at St. Patrick will be validated.

The talk will take place on Monday January 21, at 7:30 p.m. at the McMahon Hall, 1145 De Salaberry, Quebec City.

For more information, contact Irish Heritage Quebec at 418-527-2238 or 418-704-3404. Or visit the website at www.irishheritagequebec.net

What Do I Do with All My Stuff?

There will be a meeting of the Quebec Family History Society from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm at the QFHS Heritage Centre and Library, 173 Cartier Avenue, Pointe-Claire. The topic What Do I Do with All My Stuff? and will be presented by Cecilia Karwowski and Gary Schroder.

The problem the modern genealogist often faces is finding so much information, documents, and photos that we drown under a sea of records. If we do not organize our records, important clues leading to other ancestors will be lost in a mountain of material poorly or not organized at all.

During this seminar, you will learn how to preserve the documents and photographs that you already possess and how to organize and arrange the material that you have accumulated, as well as new material that you plan or hope to obtain. The seminar will also examine the dangers inherent in simply keeping all your material on your computer, or as archivists would say "not having it at all."

The fee is $30 members, and $40 for non-members.

Reservations are required. Call 514.695.1502 or contact Jackie qfhs.communications@bellnet.ca

To go to the website, go to www.qfhs.ca

Domaine des pères Sainte-Croix at Lac-Simon, Quebec Has Been Saved!

Just got news yesterday from Chantal Crête that the Domaine des pères Sainte-Croix at Lac-Simon, Quebec has been saved!


She goes to say “A while back you posted the link of our petition to help us save the heritage of le Domaine des pères Sainte-Croix at Lac-Simon. I wanted to let you know that we have succeeded. Municipality of Lac-Simon adopted a reglementation last night to designate the whole site. Yes, Domaine des Pères is now protected under the Cultural Heritage Act. May I express my deepest thank you to you and all of those that have supported the cause. It goes to show that mobilisation can indeed create change”.

Congratulations, Chantal!

If you would like to read my other posts on the Domaine des pères Sainte-Croix at Lac-Simon, Quebec, you can read them at

November 20 - ONLINE PETITION! Domaine d'été des Pères Sainte-Croix http://genealogycanada.blogspot.ca/2012/11/online-petition-domaine-dete-des-peres.html

November 27 - Latest Update on Domaine d'été des Pères Sainte-Croix http://genealogycanada.blogspot.ca/2012/11/latest-update-on-domaine-dete-des-peres.html

Dick Eastman and Tourtière Genealogy

Dick Eastman wrote in his newsletter this morning about his French-Canadian ancestry, and the making of the Christmas meat pie in an article called “Tourtière Genealogy”. 

He talks about how he has it every Christmas, but he didn’t realize that people from different parts of Quebec have different views on meat pies – and it is tied in with their ancestry.

The article came about because of a story in The Montreal Gazette by Susan Semenak in which she talks about the beloved French-Canadian food tourtière called “The genealogy of your tourtière: The Quebec Christmas feast staple, the tourtière, can reveal where a person’s family comes from”.

To read about it, go to www.montrealgazette.com/genealogy+your+tourti%C3%A8re/7683786/story.html

To read Dick's article, go to http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2012/12/tourti%C3%A8re-genealogy.html


© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

Old Time Christmas

Father Christmas, horse-drawn sleigh rides, music in the Harvey House and the Schoolhouse featuring the Good, the Bad & the Ugly, Roger-Lee Martin, Marven Condo and Nancy Vignola, traditional food & drink, outdoor fires, Tea Room, carollers, kid’s crafts and skating on the pond. Doesn't it sounds great!
It will be available Wednesday, December 26, 12:00 noon to 3:00 p.m. at the Gaspesian British Heritage Village, 351 Perron Blvd. West, New Richmond, in the Gaspe Region, which is in Quebec.

And there will be a Family Day on December 28 from 1:00 p.m. to: 4:00 p.m. which will be presented by the Town of New Richmond. There will be Dogsled rides, decorating gingerbread men, outdoor fires, treasure hunt, music, face-painting and other activities.

And it will be held at the Gaspesian British Heritage Village, 351 Perron Blvd. West, New Richmond, Gaspe.

The entrance fee to both events is $3.00 per person

For more information, go to www.villagegaspesien.com

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

35th Anniversary of the Société de généalogie de l'Outaouais

The Genealogical Society of the Outaouais in Gatineau is asking you to remember the date of April 27th.

Because that will be the day that they will celebrate their 35th Anniversary by having a conference, an exhibition, and a banquet.

All are invited!

To keep up on the plans for April 27th, go to their site at http://genealogieoutaouais.com

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved

ONLINE PETITION! Domaine d’été des Pères Sainte-Croix

The Outaouais Heritage WebMagazine of the Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network has an online petition to help save a beautiful and unique piece of Quebec’s religious heritage.

The Domaine d’été des Pères Sainte-Croix located at 1565 chemin des Pères, Lac-Simon, is currently threatened by developers. Dating to the 1930s, this retreat was built to resemble a steamship on a majestic 45-acre property overlooking Lac-Simon, in the Outaouais region of Quebec, northeast of Ottawa.

Please sign the online petition calling upon the municipality of Lac-Simon to protect this building in its entirety. The petition is on
http://lacsimon.blogspot.ca/2012/10/sauvons-le-patrimoine-du-domaine-des.html

The website is at http://outaouais.quebecheritageweb.com/news/save-lac-simons-domaine-d%E2%80%99ete-des-peres-sainte-croix-sign-online-petition

© Elizabeth Lapointe All Rights Reserved