Passing of John Becker, Editor, OGS Families

From John Becker's wife, Gwenne, comes this news -

"Dear friends and colleagues of John's:

I am saddened to tell you that John passed away on Wednesday, September 22, 2010. His cancer had caused him much pain in the last few months. However, he still enjoyed bantering with the nurses at Princess Margaret Hospital and he became a favourite on the floor.

I have attached an expanded version of the obituary that appeared in the Globe & Mail this morning.

Gwenne"

=====================

John Adams Becker

July 18, 1932 – September 22, 2010

We honour the passing of loving husband, father, mentor, and dear friend on Wednesday September 22, 2010.

John was a man of passion, commitment, and an ethic of making a difference. In addition to a long career in university administration, he devoted much of his life energy to volunteer work.

Hart House was a major influence in his life and work during his years at the University of Toronto (SPS 5T5) and after, first as a member of the Finnish Exchange program, then as Undergraduate Secretary. He continued his administrative career at McMaster and York Universities from which he retired in 1989.

York was a formative experience for John. He spent over 20 years in various capacities and developed numerous long-term friendships which continued into retirement. The York community was a passion for him and retirement begged the question “was there life after York”.

He was happy to find a very fulfilling life after his retirement. He worked in the family firm, Becker Associates, and was instrumental in steering it in new directions. He also had time to indulge his love of researching family trees, and to develop a new passion for water colouring. Recently he served as volunteer editor of Families, the journal of the Ontario Genealogical Society.

John’s prostate cancer was first diagnosed in 1997 and was kept in check by the wizards at Princess Margaret Hospital during the years since then. Only in early 2010 did he begin to have any symptoms. For the last few weeks he was in the care of the loving staff at the Palliative Care Unit at PMH. Our family cannot thank them enough for the comfort they provided to John and to us.

John leaves his loving wife of 54 years and best friend, Gwenne (née Belsten), daughter Christina, and sons Adam (Benoit Desmarais), and Paul (Christian Garate), grandchildren Carolina, Max, and Lorraine. He also leaves his brother Dean (Lois Kelly Becker) and twin brother Keith (Neil Macvicar).

The absence of his energy, good humour, and caring will leave a large hole in our lives.

A private family service and cremation have been held. On October 13 a celebration of John’s life will be held at Trinity St. Paul’s at 427 Bloor St. West, Toronto, 3:00 – 6:00 p.m.

If friends and family wish to make a donation in John’s memory, the family would ask that it be made to the Hart House Finnish Exchange, University of Toronto.

New LAC Database - "Upper Canada Land Petitions"

Just received within the hour from Sylvie Tremblay of Library and Archives Canada -

Launch of "Upper Canada Land Petitions"

Ottawa, 23 September, 2010 - Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is pleased to announce the launch of a new online database, "Upper Canada Land Petitions (1763–1865)".

Through this online database, researchers can access more than 77,000 references to petitions for grants or leases of land created done by individuals who lived in present-day Ontario between 1763 and 1865.

The database is available at: www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/upper-canada-land/index-e.html.

About Library and Archives Canada

The mandate of Library and Archives Canada is to preserve the documentary heritage of Canada for the benefit of present and future generations and to be a source of enduring knowledge accessible to all, thereby contributing to the cultural, social and economic advancement of Canada. Library and Archives Canada also facilitates co-operation among communities involved in the acquisition, preservation and diffusion of knowledge, and serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions.

The Genealogy Services www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogy include all physical and online genealogical services of Library and Archives Canada. They offer genealogical content, services, advice, research tools and opportunities to work on joint projects, all in both official languages.

The contributions of many LAC staff were instrumental in the success of this project, and their efforts are much appreciated.

For more information, please contact webservices@lac-bac.gc.ca.

OGS Announces New Editor of "Families"

Note: The Ontario Genealogical Society (OGS) is the largest genealogical society in Canada. And I am proud to have been appointed (and to serve) as the editor of its journal, Families. - Elizabeth

"As released to OGS members in an e-Announce, August 14, 2010

The Board of the Ontario Genealogical Society is pleased to announce the appointment of Elizabeth Lapointe as editor of the Society’s journal Families.

A graduate of Acadia University, Elizabeth is an author, journalist, and blogger. She has been editor of the OGS newsletter NewsLeaf since 2006 and is the founding editor of its electronic sister publication e-NewsLeaf. She is a Past President of the Ottawa Chapter of the Professional Writers Association of Canada, and a Director of the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors. She is the author of several books on genealogy and of hundreds of newspaper and online articles on genealogy and local history.

She is the guest editor for the August issue of Families and will assume full editorship with the November issue. "

QFHS Office Closure

A recent notice from the QFHS -

Dear QFHS Members,

The Office and Heritage Centre of the Quebec Family History Society will be closed from Thursday, August 26, 2010 and will reopen Tuesday, September 7, 2010.

Regards,

Jackie Billingham

jbillingham@sympatico.ca

I'm Back!

Hello, Dear Readers!

I'm back from my sojourn, and what a trip it was!

But that's for later - I still have to write it.

For now, I have a press release from my good friend, Gwyneth Pearce of the Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society, about an upcoming workshop on Scottish family history in June next year.

One thing to note is that Scottish genealogy expert, Dr. Chris Paton, will be coming to speak. The organizers are also looking for other presenters, so if Scotland is an area of interest of yours, you may wish to answer their call.

On a personal note, it's good to be back. I look forward to bringing you more news from the Canadian genealogy front.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Elizabeth

=========================

Saturday, 6 November 2010

The Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society and the Canadiana Department of the North York Central Library have joined together to sponsor "The Women in our Past: Strategies and Resources for Researching Female Ancestors", an all-day workshop to explore new and varied approaches to researching those often elusive women in our families. With expert speakers from across Ontario, this event will offer participants a deeper understanding of the circumstances that governed and shaped the lives of our female ancestors – from family relationships, domestic service and the justice system to the fur trade, migration and world war. Find out how and where to search for relevant records and learn about the latest developments in maternal-line DNA analysis. The workshop will be held in the Auditorium of the North York Central Library, 5120 Yonge Street, at the North York Centre subway station. Early registration rates are available until 30 September 2010. For program and registration details, visit www.torontofamilyhistory.org/women.html. To check availability, call 416-733-2608 (voice mail) or e-mail info@torontofamilyhistory.org.

Saturday, 18 June 2011

The Ontario Genealogical Society, Toronto Branch and the Canadiana Department of the North York Central Library will be co-hosting a one-day workshop on Scottish Family History. The principal speaker will be Chris Paton from Scotland who will give presentations on the Scottish church, Scottish land records/house history and the use of guild records (specifically the handloom weaving industry in Perth). A call has been issued for other speakers who would like to be part of this workshop. Proposals are invited for both full-length presentations on topics related to Scottish genealogy and shorter case study presentations. The submission deadline is 1 November 2010. For further information about the workshop program and the call for speakers, visit www.torontofamilyhistory.org/Scottish-Call.html.

Dear Readers

As you have seen from my infrequent postings to this blog as of late, I have been busy doing other "genealogical" things, and I really haven't had the time to post on a regular basis.

Plus, I have just taken on another job.

John Becker, the editor of Families (the journal of the OGS) has taken ill, and is unable to complete the August issue. So I have taken over the editorship of the August issue as Guest Editor.

Those of you who have been involved with publications know that it is very intensive work, and since I am also the editor of NewsLeaf (the newsletter of the OGS), I don't imagine I will see too much of the summer from now until the middle of July, when the two publications go to the printer.

So if you will bear with me while I work on these three OGS publications (yes, I also edit e-NewsLeaf, the e-mail newsletter), I will be posting a bit less during the next few weeks.

Of course, you can always read me in NewsLeaf, e-NewsLeaf, or Families by simply joining the Ontario Genealogical Society at www.ogs.on.ca. NewsLeaf and Families are issued four times a year (Feb, May, Aug, Nov), while e-NewsLeaf is issued eight times a year (Jan, Mar, Apr, June, Jul, Sept, Oct, Dec).

But I have more good news for my readers - if you were not aware, there are over 200 previously posted blogs in the archives to keep you company in this dry time - see the section marked "Blog Archive" at the right side of the page. You can search by date, or if a more direct approach is desired, use the custom search box for the site, powered by Google.

In any event, I look forward to getting back to the blog, and in the meantime, I wish to say -

"Thank you for your patience, and continued support!"

Regards,

Elizabeth

Glenn Wright Interview

As some of you may have noticed, I have conducted an in-depth interview with a Canadian genealogist in the June 2010 issue of Family Chronicle that just came out the other day.

The person I interviewed was Ottawa's own Glenn Wright, who is retired from Library and Archives Canada (LAC), and has now taken up genealogy as his second career. He is the first of what I hope will be a regular feature for Moorshead Magazines (either Family Chronicle or Internet Genealogy). I interviewed him in October at the LAC just before a BIFHSGO meeting and found him to be an interesting fellow, full of genealogy tidbits - which he shares with everyone in the interview.

He is the first genealogist I have interviewed in this exciting and innovative new feature, and there will be others coming out in the near future. Notable genealogists I have interviewed include Boston's David Allen Lambert of NEHGS (the Online Genealogist), and Shelburne, Nova Scotia genealogist Eleanor Robertson Smith of the Shelburne County Archives and Genealogical Society, both of whom will appear in future issues.

FamilySearch Adds 300M Records

Over the past week, I've been keeping an eye out for what's been happening in Salt Lake City at the NGS Conference, and I have been reading Dick Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter and Randy Seaver's Genea-Musings blogs, as well as Thomas MacEntee's Geneabloggers, the Mormon Times newspaper, and of course, the NGS blog.

A few Canadians (that I know of) have been down to the conference including Alison Hare (she gave two lectures there, and will appear at the upcoming OGS Conference 2010), Ed Zapletal and Rick Cree from Moorshead Magazines, and Louise St. Denis from the National Institute of Genealogical Studies.

As well, Chris McPhail from the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) was there to pick up first prize in the Anglo-Saxon Connection newsletter category, for their newsletter, Anglo-Celtic Roots. Congratulations to BIFHSGO, and to Chris, as editor!

If I missed any fellow Canadians there, please send me an email, and I will mention you here.

One thing which we can check on at home is the new beta version of the FamilySearch website, FSBeta.FamilySearch.org.

FamilySearch president, Jay Verkler, says that this is the result of the Worldwide Indexing Project, and that they will add about 300-million more names to it.

He said "the flow of names to the Web will continue as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints seeks to index all of the approximately 3.5-billion names stored on microfilm in the Granite Mountain Records Vault. It will take about 10 years to index all the records, a task previously projected to take more than a century to complete."

I spent this afternoon putting in the names of my genealogy, and although nothing was added to my search, there are million of names left to go, so the BARCLAYs, HALEYs, WEBSTERs, MORTONs and so on will show up somewhere in time, I am sure.

Hamilton Branch Newsletter

The Winter 2010 edition of the Hamilton Branch (OGS) newsletter contains various notes and articles, and one of the best articles is by Brian Pearson called, "What are the ODDS".

It seems as if Brian was born in Northern England in the middle 1940s, and in 1987, when he went back to visit his stepmother, she gave him some stuff that his father had owned. In amongst the papers he found his father's birth certificate.

Guess what? His father and his wife had been born in the same house - 60 years apart!

In addition to this story, there are book reviews, items that have been added to their library, queries, and an article on the National Burial Index for England and Wales, 1538-2003.

You can visit the Hamilton Branch online at www.hwcn.org/link/HBOGS or send them an email at hbogsadmin@mountaincable.ogs.

Discovering Family History Closed

Ed Zapletal, the publisher of Moorshead Magazines, has announced today that his newest magazine, Discovering Family History, is closing with the March/April 2010 release.

It had been in production over two years, but as he has put it in his news release, "Although DFH was selling very well on the newsstands, with the stores taking an increasing number of copies each issue, we weren't simply able to get the new subscribers numbers to increase at a fast enough rate".

It is always sad to see a publication end its run, but as Ed says, the numbers to keep it in existence were just not there.

However, Family Chronicle and Internet Genealogy are going along just fine, and expect them to be around for a long time.

This year, Family Chronicle is 15 years old, and Internet Genealogy is five years old.

Over the years, I have written a number of articles for Ed in all three publications, and appreciate the chance to have written for DFH, as well as the other magazines.

I wish Ed and Rick and the staff at Moorshead Magazines continued success.

"News and Views" - Leeds and Grenville Newsletter

News and Views—the newsletter of the Leeds and Grenville Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society—arrived recently, and, as usual, is full of interesting articles and information.

The first article is on the Graham Burying Ground (sometimes known as the Luckey Farm Burial Ground) in Kitley Township.

Originally published in 1996, the article has been brought up to date by Larry Driver when the question arose as to who owns the land now. You will have to read the article to find the answer.

"Lost and Found in Elizabethtown" is an article by Terrance Edwards on how he explored the life of George Boulton of Lyn. In "A Short Story about Schools in Maitland, Ontario", the reason is given as to why all the schools were built, inlcuding pictures of some of the schools.

On the other pages, they have reports for 2009, upcoming meetings and special events, and queries.

Their website is www.leedsandgrenvillegenealogy.com and their email is leedsgrenvillegenealogical@bellnet.ca.

News and Views Editor, Myrtle Johnston, is always on the lookout for articles and queries. She can be reached at myrtlejohnston@hotmail.com.

FamilySearch Offers Workshop on Toronto

This year's OGS Conference is sponsored in part by FamilySearch, "Where Generations Meet".

Stephen Young, a project manager with FamilySearch, will lead a workshop in "New Toronto Research Tools" on Saturday afternoon, and will also deliver a newly-scheduled Saturday lunchtime learning lecture on new developments at FamilySearch.

What you may not know is that Young was born in London, Ontario, although he now works for the Utah-based LDS Church.

Currently, he is working on a book about his father's experience in the Canadian Navy Volunteers Reserve during World War Two.

He can be reached at YoungSC@familysearch.org.

OGS Conference 2010 is Nigh

Hello again,

It's been over a month since I have posted on the blog.

I feel bad about this, but the work demands on my time have been great since December, which didn't leave much time for the blog.

My time was taken up with doing the May issue of the Ontario Genealogical Society's print newsletter, NewsLeaf (this is the big issue, complete with reports), three issues of the electronic e-NewsLeaf, ten magazine articles, two conferences, and so on and so forth ... phew!

But I am back now, just in time for Conference 2010 in Toronto next month.

This week, I received this press release from the organizers of the conference, and I thought I would pass it along to you in case you are still deciding...

Elizabeth
_________________________________________________________________



Let's spread the word outside our usual circles ...

We need your help to make sure news of these special Conference 2010 programs gets to the people who need to know.

Do you know anyone who is?
· of Dutch descent
· of Italian heritage
· wanting the scoop on how "libraries" can help people trace their roots

Our information-packed Conference has it!

Dutch Ancestry Stream (Saturday, May 15) - three expert speakers on finding your Dutch Ancestors, researching European records & strategies, and a case study on how it's done - perfect for anyone you know with Dutch ancestry

Italian Ancestry Stream (Saturday, May 15) - four lectures on Italian family history research, finding Italian records & how to get started and a fascinating case history of Italian immigrants finding their way to Canada - help spread the news to your Italian friends and neighbours

Libraries & Genealogy (Thursday, May 13) - Ontario Library Association is presenting a full-day workshop designed for people looking for local family information and for novice and experienced providers of family history and genealogy services - make sure your local librarians are aware of this opportunity.

Just a few weeks away ...

OGS Conference 2010 will be held May 14-16 at the Doubletree by Hilton-Toronto Airport.

There's still time for new registrants. Complete details of program, speakers and registration can be found on the conference website.

Pass this on to anyone you think might be interested! In fact, please "tell two people, and so on, and so on". We appreciate your help!
_________________________________________________________________

Ontario Genealogical Society | 40 Orchard View Blvd., Suite 102 | Toronto | ON | M4R 1B9 | Canada

Quinte Branch - Online Finding Aid

The following is an announcement regarding an update made by the Quinte Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society (OGS) to its online finding aid.

It was sent in by Bob Dawes, the IT Coordinator of Quinte Branch.

==========================================================

The Quinte Branch of the Ontario Genealogy Society has expanded its online Names Index Database finding aid by adding a self-help document.

Even though the finding aid's primary purpose is to find a reference in the group's research library, there is a lot of information that can be extracted from the search tool by itself. For example, there are newspaper birth, marriage and death notices where the page reference identifies the publication date which would be close to the event date.

In other cases, just being able to decode the library reference code of a family genealogy to its actual title by cross-referencing the search results with the online Library Catalogue means you can look for it in other libraries or online. Using this new self-help tool will enable researchers, at a distance, to do their own initial investigative work without having to contact a branch volunteer to do it for them. The document is supplied in PDF format so it can be downloaded and printed for local use.

With over one million surname references, this database is a significant resource for genealogists researching ancestors in the Bay of Quinte region of Ontario, Canada. The new self-help guide can be found under "Using the Names Index Database Finding Aid" on the Quinte Branch homepage at www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canqbogs.

Ontario Family History Research Course

The following item was sent to me by Gwyneth Pearce of the Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society -

For those with Ontario roots, the next 4-week Ontario Family History Research course offered by the Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society starts on March 9th.

To register, visit the Branch website at www.torontofamilyhistory.org/courses.html.

Here is the course description:

ONTARIO FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH

Searching for ancestors in Ontario? This course will provide a brief historical
background and introduce records essential to Ontario research including land and property records, vital statistics (pre- and post- 1869), estate records, census, directories and maps – with emphasis on 19th century sources.

Course: 4 sessions, Tuesdays 7–9 PM, March 9–March 30

Location: North York Central Library, Meeting Room 2

Instructor: Jane MacNamara

Fee: $66 ($60 for OGS members)

Connections

I always enjoy receiving Connections from the Quebec Family History Society.

This time, it's the Winter 2010 issue, and I wasn't disappointed.

For articles, they have "The Haunted House of Sir George A. Drummon", "Patriots' Prison", and the "Edifice Gilles Hocquart", all written by Robert N. Nixon.

"Treasure in France", by Ransom Vrooman, and "Surviving the Russian Quagmire 1942-1945", by E. Peter McLoughlin, round out the article in this edition.

Although I haven't had the chance to go to any of their meetings yet, I like to read about them, and I hear that they will have the conference in June next year - that will be a treat that I am looking forward to with great anticipation!

Besides reading the articles, I also like to read the newest library acquisitions since the last issue, the Queries section, and a chance to see what is new on the computer page, and in genealogical software.

So, if you have English ancestors in Quebec, or have some who lived in Quebec, and you don't belong to the society, maybe it's time you checked out the Quebec Family History Society www.qfhs.ca because they offer a lot for the money.

BC Genealogists

December (which I thought was going to be a quiet month) turned out to be among the busiest I have ever had as far as writing articles is concerned.

Now that I have a few weeks free, I will try to post blogs more often. This is a special blog because it is about The British Columbia Genealogist, and it's all about sports. The BC Genealogist is tipping its hat to the Olympics that will be there in February.

They have a number of articles on different sports and its stars, such as Lionel E. YORKE, who played Lacrosse; Baseball in the Fifties from Merritt, BC; Tommy PHILLIPS, Hockey Player; George ELLEY, Stanley Park Race Runner; Eleanor McKENZIE and Ron MILLER, Olympic Athletes; the Dawson Creek Ladies Curling Club; and the Vancouver Y.M.C.A.

There are other articles about the trip some of the members took to Salt Lake City, a profile of the South Peace Roots Group, and Manitoba Reunions in Vancouver, 1910.

This is always a very-well put-together newsletter, with lots of interesting articles.

The website is www.bcgs.ca.

The Nova Scotia Genealogist - New Issue

Their newsletter just came in this past weekend in its new large format, and it looks good.

There are three articles of interest this edition and they are -

• "The Death of William Ackhurst" by K. Lamb

• "A Note on the Family of Robert Westcott of Warwick and North Kingston, Rhode Island and Newport and Falmouth, Nova Scotia" by B. Owen

• "Ferdinand Traunweizer, an Itinerant Jeweller from Poland to Texas, Part I" by S. Lomas.

In their 'Sources of Research' section, they have published the database put together by Earle Ripley of Saskatoon of the "His Majesty's Nova Scotia Regiment of Fencible Infantry, Part II".

If you want to contact Earle, he can be reached at condomble@shaw.ca.

Also, there is a list of surnames found at the Dartmouth Heritage Museum on page 135 of the newsletter.

The site of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum is at www.dartmouthheritagemuseum.ns.ca, and their email is museum@bellaliant.com