Monday, June 15, 2015

Canadian Week in Review - 15 June 2015


I have come across the following Canadian genealogy, history and heritage websites, social media, and newspaper articles this past week that were of interest to me, and I thought you might be interested in them, too.
This Week in Canadian History
In 1866, the first meeting of the Canadian Parliament was held in Ottawa, in the Parliament buildings, which were still unfinished. Construction on the building had begun in 1857, but was not finished until 1877.








In 1846, a fire ravaged St. John's, Newfoundland, leaving nearly 12,000 people homeless.
(Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library)
 
Social Media

(Photos) Canada Science and Technology museum asks for public feedback on redesign
The Canada Museum of Science and Technology wants to hear from Canadians on its proposed redesign to bring the museum back to life.
You can take an online survey at http://cstmc-smstc.fluidsurveys.com/s/CSTM_MSTC_2017/

Articles

Nova Scotia

Canada’s history told through immigrants’ voices
If you came from another country to live in Canada, do you remember what happened on your first day here? How did you feel? What surprised you?As the days went by, turning into weeks and then years, how did you adjust to your new life?

William Davis, Lost Miners Honoured With Route Name
The road leading from Dominion to New Waterford, Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Trunk 28, has been ceremonially renamed William Davis Memorial Trail, in honour of the Cape Breton miner, and all those lost in Nova Scotia's coal mines.

Spirits not dampened by rain at Black Loyalist Heritage Centre celebration
The rain caused some problems but didn’t dampen the celebration in Birchtown as hundreds of people arrived in the small community for the grand opening of the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre on June 6.

At the Historeum – By Jordan LeBlanc: Valuable piece of history recently donated to Colchester Historeum
A great piece of history was donated to us recently - an 1827 land grant and seal, Earltown, Colchester County. It came by way of Mary MacCara Reid of Halifax, who is the niece of Michelle Roads of California, who was the keeper of the grant.

Prince Edward Island

Province House restoration set to begin next year
The restoration work on Province House is not expected to begin until next year.

Acadian heritage signs to be showcased in Evangeline
Bilingual road signs saying 'Village musicaux/Musical Villages' are being posted at the entrance of each of the 14 small villages and municipalities in the Evangeline region.
New Brunswick

Traditional birch bark canoe built by arts students
College students have spent weeks scouring the woods for bark, roots, and special wood in order to build a traditional birch bark canoe.

Waterloo Row subdivision gets Fredericton council approval
The controversial subdivision of a property on historic Waterloo Row was approved by Fredericton council at its Monday meeting.
   City council voted 4-2 to allow homeowners Ayten and Marc Kranat to subdivide their lot at 58 Waterloo Row, choosing to take eight per cent of the value of the land in cash in lieu of public land.
Ontario

Congratulations to the 2015 AAO Award Recipients!
Two of the 2015 recipients of Archives Association of Ontario Awards were the Institutional Award Winner – City of Thunder Bay Archives, and the Corporate Award Winner – County of Perth and City of Stratford.

Dickinson Days kick off Manotick's summer
The Village of Manotick had its summer fair this weekend. Dickinson Days. First weekend in June.

Morris Saxe and the Canadian Jewish Farm School
Georgetown and Acton, two former towns in the picturesque Halton Hills region west of Toronto, were once home to the Canadian Jewish Farm School, an ambitious plan by an entrepreneurial farmer-humanitarian named Morris Saxe to give young Jewish orphans from Poland a better life in Canada.

Saskatchewan

Trail linking Saskatoon to Wanuskewin Heritage Park opens
http://ckom.com/story/trail-linking-saskatoon-wanuskewin-heritage-park-opens/559557
Trans-Canada Trail stretch 24,000 kilometres, linking 16,000 communities and 82 percent of Canadians.

Heritage rebates unlikely for Spadina Crescent home
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/Heritage+rebates+unlikely+Spadina+Crescent+home/11130384/story.html
Richard Maj, who owns a house on Spadina Crescent East that was once home to author Farley Mowat and other prominent Saskatoon residents, requested heritage designation for his house late last year before embarking on renovations approved by the city.

British Columbia

Walking tours in B.C.'s urban crush best way to see the sights
http://www.theprovince.com/travel/Sights+Walking+Tours+Urban/11112686/story.html
For shutterbugs, Vancouver Photowalks offers outdoor pursuits that expertly blend walking tours with tutored photography classes. These two-hour, small-group excursions are guaranteed to take in well-tread scenic spots, with cameras or phones in hand: enthusiasts can choose their skill level (Basic, Technical or Creative) or fine-tune their genre (Stanley Park walks mix natural and urban settings, while Night Photowalks document either Granville Island or Gastown’s expansive waterfronts).

Stories in the News
What’s in a name?

For years, genealogists have been concerned about name changes – usually in spelling. But what do you think about changing the names of places and streets in Canada because the original name were no longer in favor – no matter what the city or street was originally named?

We do have a history of doing this in the past. Perhaps the most famous one is the name of the city of Berlin that was changed to Kitchener in 1916 because the name was too closely aligned to Germany in the First World War.

The name-change did not come without controversy, for the majority of people wanted it to stay the same, but anti-German sentiment ruled the day, and the name was changed.

By the way, the name Kitchener was chosen because it was the name of Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, who died that year while serving as the Secretary of State for War of the United Kingdom!

Now, in Alberta, there is a argument that some people want the name of a Langevin Bridge and school names changed because Hector-Louis Langevin, a father of Confederation, was one of the architects of the residential schools.

But the writer asks what about Father Lacombe High School, Father Lacombe Care Centre, and the town of Lacombe, along with Calgary’s Bishop Pinkham Junior High, and Regina’s Dewdney Avenue – they are just a few that would have to be changed.

Some people are saying that is change the names would delete Canadian history. Agree or disagree?

If you agree with this position, there is a petition that has just come online at https://www.change.org/p/the-city-of-calgary-mayor-nahed-nenshi-rename-the-langevin-bridge-to-honor-aboriginal-residential-school-victims-now?recruiter=8251136&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=share_email_responsive  
But Quebec beat every one to the punch, when last week, it changed the name of two streets in Gatineau, Quebec (across the Ottawa River from Ottawa) because the former names had had links to the Nazis of the Second World War. It should be said that these two streets are in an area where the streets were named after Nobel Prize winners.

The streets have been changed from Alexis-Carrel and Philipp Lenard to Marie Curie and Albert Einstein Streets.

The reasoning for the change was that Quebec’s Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs began a campaign to get the city to change the street names. They argued that Carrel was a supporter of eugenics and that he had an active role with the Vichy France government. They also argued that Lenard was a supporter of Nazi thought who had apparently served as an advisor to Adolph Hitler in the early years.

Of course, it was done over the disinterest of the people who live on the streets involved, and Gilles Carpentier, the councillor for the district, took up the cause anyway and put a motion before the city council to rename the streets. The city council passed the motion by a vote of 14 to 5.

So does this all sound familiar? And what do you think? Will the genealogists of the future realized what has happened here?

Place name and street name changes in Canada are relatively common in Canadian history, which means that we should always check the name of the village, town, or city, and the streets within those villages, towns and cities because they not be the name they were once know as – they might have changed!

And that was the Canadian genealogy, history, and heritage news in Canada this past week!


Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed this week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/06/canadian-week-in-review-cwr-08-june-2014.html

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Saturday, June 13, 2015

The Royal Canadian Mint issues coin celebrating 400th anniversary of Champlain's discovery of Huronia


The Royal Canadian Mint issued this press release this week -
Four hundred years after French explorers led by Samuel de Champlain explored the territory that would become present-day Ontario, the Royal Canadian Mint has issued a silver collector coin celebrating the 400th anniversary of Champlain’s historic journey to Huronia. The coin was unveiled on June 11 in Ottawa, Ontario, during the official launch of the 2015 Festival Franco-Ontarien.
The reverse image of this 99.99% pure silver coin is designed by Canadian artist Laurie McGaw and is engraved to emulate the famed 17th-century astrolabe—long attributed to Champlain—found in Cobden, Ontario. Against this navigational tool is set a full-body portrait of Samuel de Champlain. Visible through the spaces between the astrolabe’s latitude and longitude crosshairs are engravings of scenes from Champlain’s journeys in Huronia, which also depict the Huron guides who were indispensable to his expedition. The unique reverse is engraved with the word “CANADA”, the date “2015” and the face value of “3 DOLLARS”. The obverse features the effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt.
This coin has a limited mintage of 10,000 and retails for $29.95.
The coin can be ordered directly from the Mint as of June 11 at 1-800-267-1871 in Canada, 1-800-268-6468 in the U.S., or on the Internet at http://www.mint.ca. The coin will also be available at the Royal Canadian Mint’s boutiques in Ottawa, Winnipeg and Vancouver, as well as through the Mint’s global network of dealers and distributors, including participating Canada Post outlets.

 
Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed this week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/06/canadian-week-in-review-cwr-08-june-2014.html

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Lambton County Archives wants to hear your First World War stories


If you have First World War stories, then Lambton County Archives in Ontario wants to talk to you! You stories can still be incorporated into their exhibit Lambton At War.
 
As early as 1865, a volunteer company was formed to protect the Canadian border and Lambton County that it shares with Michigan and are separated by the St. Clair River.
 
In 1872, this Lambton regiment was given the name the St. Clair Borderers.
 
During the First World War, the Borderers supplied troops to the fighting fronts through the 70th and 149th Battalions. Men from towns such as Watford, Petrolia and Sarnia boarded troop transport trains and made their way to England were they went onto fight in the Somme, at Vimy and Ypres.
 
And many Americans who had Canadian parents who had migrated to Michigan enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in the First World War.
 
And do you know a story of someone who sewed bandages, scavenged war materials, or put together Red Cross kits? Or perhaps you know stories of men and women who stayed behind and contributed to the war efforts by working on farms or in factories and who have interesting stories to tell.
 
They have an online submission form at http://www.lambtonmuseums.ca/exhibit/lambton-war/986-2/
 
The website of the archives is http://www.lambtonmuseums.ca/heritage/
 
 
 
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada
 

Friday, June 12, 2015

70th Anniversary, the Saskatchewan Archives


 
In celebration of their 70th Anniversary, the Saskatchewan Archives has prepared a new online exhibit which outlines the creation and development of their institution.

The exhibit includes many original photographs and documents that highlight the fascinating story of the Saskatchewan Archives.

You can visit their on site exhibit at http://www.saskarchives.com/Timeline

There is just tons of pictures to see, and documents to pursue.

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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!



 

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Extra news items




 Here are some news items which have come across the desk this week -

There will be a 1-day conference in Peterborough Saturday 03 October 2015 called Military Settlers.

It will be held by the Kawartha Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society.

Speakers will discuss the political and military situation in the UK and Canada, useful records, and several military settlement schemes.

Cost $35, includes snacks and lunch. Registration is essential. Watch for announcements.

The website address is www.ogs.on.ca/kawartha

This sounds like a meeting that I would like to attend if I lived closer to Trenton, Ontario.

June 20, 2015 is the 35th Anniversary Celebration for Quinte Branch of Ontario Genealogical Society will feature Reflections on 35 Years of Genealogical Endeavour.

It will be at the Quinte West Public Library, 7 Creswell Drive, Trenton, ON K8V 6X5
from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Everyone Welcome, bring a friend.

For more information visit www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canqbogs/

Meanwhile, you can Celebrate National Aboriginal History Month at the Canadian Museum of History by attending the following events -

Aboriginal Storytelling with Daniel Richer
Saturday, June 13
10 a.m. (English) and 11 a.m. (French)

Aborginial Storytelling with Jo Maple
Sunday, June 14
11 a.m. (English) and 1 p.m. (French)

Aborginal Music Celebrations
Tuesday, June 16
10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The website is at http://www.historymuseum.ca/home

Until next time, this is what crossed my desk this week.

http://ogsottawa.on.ca/
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

The OGS Blog is one you should read


Do you ever read the Ontario Genealogical Society blog?

Over the past month, someone has posted blogs such as Family Stories - Truth or Fiction?, Connection between Official Records, “Men of the Cloth”-Tracking Records for Preachers, Pastors and Priests”, and Researching Your Canadian World War 1 Soldier Ancestor- Part 1 and 2.

These posts provide a good overview of the subjects, although they do not give the nitty-gritty of the records available. You will have to go to the sites mentioned to get this, but if you want a good understanding of the basics of the record, you can get that here.

So if you have Ontario answers, be sure to keep the blog page in your research toolkit so you can access it anytime you wish.

The blog site is http://www.ogs.on.ca/ogs_blog.php

The website is https://www.ogs.on.ca/

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Last Day to take advantage of this offer!!!
Need help finding your ELUSIVE Canadian ancestors???
 
As a nod of the hat to the Ontario Genealogical Conference being held in Barrie, Ontario from May 29 to May 31, may we offer a month-long discount on our research and consultation services of 15% (ends 11 June at midnight).
 
Just go to Elizabeth Lapointe Research Services website at www.elrs.biz, or send an email with the subject "special" to genealogyresearch@aol.com to see how I can help you find that elusive Canadian ancestor!
 
Research Tip! While you are in Ottawa, if you have ancestors who lived here, a good place to check is the Ottawa Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society at http://ogsottawa.on.ca/
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Ancestry launches family history DNA testing service in Canada TODAY!


This press release was just received -

TORONTO (June 9, 2015) – Ancestry, the world’s largest family history resource, today launched AncestryDNA in Canada. AncestryDNA allows individuals to learn about their genetic heritage and discover new family connections in Canada and around the world.

When coupled with Ancestry’s database of more than 16 billion historical records, AncestryDNA will enable family history enthusiasts and novices alike to discover even more about their own past, including the ability to find entire new cousin matches around the world.

“Historical records on Ancestry.ca provide an insight into one’s recent past, but usually go around 200-300 years, so it’s incredibly exciting to be able to offer DNA testing that takes your family history experience back many hundreds and even thousands of years,” said Christopher Labrecque, Country Manager for Ancestry Canada. “AncestryDNA enables users to learn more than ever about where they came from and discover new family lines and relatives. It really is the ultimate family history experience.”

AncestryDNA details the breakdown of one’s ethnic origins, predicting the likely locations of a person’s ancestors across 26 worldwide populations, providing a glimpse into one’s ancestral past that goes back to a time before historical records began to be kept.

The service also introduces users to new family members through DNA member matches which identifies unknown relatives pulled from more than 850,000 people who have previously taken the test. Many users can expect to be connected with 3rd and 4th cousins, allowing them to further grow their family trees and discover family members they may not have known existed.

In a recent survey, more than three-quarters of Canadians stated they would consider having their DNA tested to discover more about where their ancestors came from. Many said they know very little about their own family history, with 42 per cent indicating that they do not know where their grandparents were born, and 30 per cent stating they do not know where their ancestors lived before coming to Canada.

How AncestryDNA Works

The test uses microarray-based autosomal DNA testing to look at more than 700,000 locations across an individual’s entire genome through a simple saliva sample. The AncestryDNA approach provides a much more detailed look at one’s family history than other existing Y-chromosome and mitochondrial DNA tests that only look at specific branches of a person’s family tree.

AncestryDNA kits are now available for purchase for $149 plus shipping at http://dna.ancestry.ca/


















 

 
 

Are your ancestors from Sweden?


Do you want to know who your first Swedish ancestor was and when he or she left Sweden and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your Swedish origins?

If so, on the Library and Archives Canada (LAC) website, there is a great place to begin your research. Here you will find a page dedicated to genealogical research on http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/history-ethnic-cultural/Pages/swedish.aspx

This page provides you with historical information, archival documents and published material from the Library and Archives Canada collection, as well as links to other websites and institutions.

If your ancestor came to Canada between 1865 and 1935, you might find his or her name on the http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists/Pages/introduction.aspx

Additionally, I listened to Dear Myrt’s Wacky Wednesday last week and she talked to Jason Olsen from MyHeritage.com about Swedish Lutheran Church Records. This is a census substitute called the Household Examination Books.

The website for the video is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lATwqjQ1HT4

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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

It has been a regular post every Monday morning since April 23, 2012.

Monday, June 8, 2015

Canadian Week in Review (CWR) - 08 June 2014



I have come across the following Canadian websites, social media websites, and newspaper articles this past week that were of interest to me, and I thought you might be interested in them, too.

This Week in Canadian History


 1817 - Launching of first steamship Frontenac in Kingston, Ontario in 1817. It plied the Great Lakes and made its inaugural trip west to the town of York.

Frontenac was sold for ₤1550 to John Hamilton in 1824, who sold the Frontenac after for scrap at Niagara in 1827. Before she could be scrapped, she burned to the waterline due to arson.





1798 - The second session of second Parliament of Upper Canada was held on Niagara-on-the-Lake until July 5, and it set up the county system, it marked valid marriages performed by non-Anglicans.






 1613 - Samuel de Champlain (c1570-1635) loses his astrolabe near Lac des Chats on the Ottawa River. One such instrument, supposedly found on June 7, 1867, is not old enough to be Champlain's.




Social Media

(Photos) Telling the history of the Fraser Valley with LEGO
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/telling-the-history-of-the-fraser-valley-with-lego-1.3098458
Artists have spent hundreds of hours creating a display out of LEGO that illustrates the history and future of the Fraser Valley.
   Their work is being featured in a new exhibit at the Surrey Museum entitled LEGO - A Fraser Valley. 

(Drone Video (Watch this: Unbelievable drone footage of Halifax
http://www.thecoast.ca/RealityBites/archives/2015/06/03/watch-this-unbelievable-drone-footage-of-halifax
It's a different perspective on some everyday Halifax sights. The dropping costs and improved quality of HD cameras and aerial drones increasingly offer a new way to view some common landmarks.

(Blog (First World War Veterans of Guysborough County
http://guysboroughgreatwarveterans.blogspot.com/
131 Guysborough County veterans who died while serving.

Nova Scotia

Tourists and local economy to benefit from Yarmouth's Heritage in Your Hand app
http://www.thevanguard.ca/Business/2015-06-02/article-4167576/Tourists-and-local-economy-to-benefit-from-Yarmouths-Heritage-in-Your-Hand-app/1
Esther Dares, a member of the group working on the project, came up with the idea of developing an app that would give people a new way to experience Yarmouth’s Sea Captains’ Homes and Mercantile Heritage Walk.

The big hole where a house once stood
http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/1290201-demont-the-big-hole-where-a-house-once-stood
I may not be the most observant reporter in the world, but I was pretty sure that the last time I drove down Armview Avenue there wasn’t a big hole on the Northwest Arm side of the street where it meets Tupper Grove, as there was late last week.
   When I finally found somebody to ask, it turned out I was right.

Prince Edward Island

Old Prince Edward Home land could become green space
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/old-prince-edward-home-land-could-become-green-space-1.3096113
Once a hospital, then a nursing home and palliative care centre, the 80-year-old building is situated on a prime piece of land next to Victoria Park.

Sea level surge changing coastal P.E.I.
http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/News/Local/2014-07-25/article-3812542/Sea-level-surge-changing-coastal-P.E.I./1
Prince Edward Island is slowly disappearing, parts of it anyway, and the UPEI Climate Research Lab demonstrated at a recent public meeting here just how climate change and rising sea levels are affecting the Garden of the Gulf.

New Brunswick

Sackville United Church building listed among Canada’s top ‘endangered places
http://www.cumberlandnewsnow.com/News/Local/2015-06-03/article-4169172/Sackville-United-Church-building-listed-among-Canada%26rsquo%3Bs-top-%26lsquo%3Bendangered-places%26rsquo%3B/1
With the former Sackville United Church building up on the chopping block, the site has been named as one of the top ‘endangered places’ in the country by Heritage Canada’s National Trust.

Ontario

Upper Canada Lands Records help trace a Butler Ranger from the American Revolutionary War
http://www.insidetoronto.com/news-story/5656365-lee-dickson-genealogy-upper-canada-lands-records-help-trace-a-butler-ranger-from-the-american-revol/
In the late 1980s, with skillful guidance from Archives of Ontario archivists and coupled with beginner’s luck, I managed to trace a line back to my United Empire Loyalist ancestors.

Manitoba

History, architecture well preserved in Winnipeg Exchange district
http://o.canada.com/travel/history-architecture-well-preserved-in-winnipeg-exchange-district
It’s not hard to picture Winnipeg's wild-west past as you walk through its historic Exchange District. The jails, saloons and brothels may be gone, but more than 100 buildings in the compact 20-block area have been preserved, along with rail tracks, ornate interior decor and old-fashioned advertisements painted on brick walls.

Saskatchewan

Saskatoon's Montgomery Place neighbourhood inches closer to heritage status
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/travel/Saskatoon+Montgomery+Place+neighbourhood+inches+closer+heritage+status/11100235/story.html#ixzz3c01lqBTN
A city committee has unanimously given its support for the Montgomery Place Community Association to seek national heritage designation for the neighbourhood.

WDM exhibit looks at history of funeral homes
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/exhibit+looks+history+funeral+homes/11098414/story.html
Death is a tricky topic for a family attraction. On Saturday, the Western Development Museum launched a new exhibit tackling just that.

Alberta

History: The Houcher Story
http://www.canadiancattlemen.ca/2015/06/01/history-the-houcher-story/
The man who grew the first carload of wheat in the Wetaskiwin district!! There’s a pioneering story there. Yet this is a mere sidelight of the thrilling saga of a courageous young couple who built up a prosperous ranch in a country that was a nemesis to some of the most powerful cattle syndicates in North America.

British Columbia

Shaughnessy to become Heritage Conservation District
http://www.vancouversun.com/Shaughnessy+become+Heritage+Conservation+District/11110014/story.html
A report going to council June 9 calls for First Shaughnessy to be named the city’s first Heritage Conservation District, which could dramatically change development in the historic neighbourhood.

Stories in the News

Residents of an Indian School, Regina, Saskatchewan, 1908. Original photograph by John Woodruff 

News that is trending in Canada this past week has revolved around the Aboriginal Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report on Residential Schools.

What does this mean to genealogists?

For years, we have been asked to prove that an ancestor is Aboriginal, and sometimes this has been a complicated thing to prove because many times the people just did not say self identify as Aboriginal or Métis in their census and vital records.

And now, just this past weekend, I have heard that the site in front of the Supreme Court of Canada is to be dedicated to the Residential School so that a monument can be built there. This will be interesting as time goes on because the planned Memorial to Victims of Communism will have to be moved across the street to the Garden of the Provinces and Territories, where it was planned to be in the first place.

From Manitoba comes the news that the people there want to transform one of its residential schools into museum. The Long Plain First Nation -- in Central Manitoba -- is seeking to reclaim the nearly 100-year-old Portage la Prairie Indian Residential School

To read more about it, go to http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/manitoba-reserve-hopes-to-transform-residential-school-into-museum-1.2403709

So keep your eyes on the news in the coming weeks, because I am sure this this is the first salvo fired in the round of discussions that will take place

If you are looking for Aboriginal records in Canada, here are some places they are kept -

Aboriginal Heritage - https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/aboriginal-heritage/Pages/introduction.aspx There is a section on Residential Schools within the sources in the Library and Archives Canada.

MemoryBC - http://guides.library.ubc.ca/content.php?pid=478071&sid=3920235 They have the name of the archives of the attendance records at Residentail Schools

Vancouver Public Library - http://guides.vpl.ca/genealogy/aboriginal They have excellent genealogical information on the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people.

And that was the Canadian genealogy, history, and heritage news in Canada this past week!



Need help finding your "ELUSIVE" Canadian ancestors???

As a nod of the hat to the Ontario Genealogical Conference being held in Barrie, Ontario from May 29 to May 31, we are offering a 15% discount on our research and consultation services (ends 11 June at midnight).

Go to the Elizabeth Lapointe Research Services website www.ELRS.biz, or send an email with the subject "special" to genealogyresearch@aol.com to see how I can help you find that elusive Canadian ancestor!

Research Tip! To research Ontario's early census records, you can go to Ontario's GenWeb site at http://ontariocensus.rootsweb.ancestry.com


Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

It has been a regular post every Monday morning since April 23, 2012.

The next issue will be 15 June 2015.

Sunday, June 7, 2015

Breaking the Ice 2015: HMS Erebus Revealed



You can now see and experience what the divers saw and experienced last spring when they found the Erebus, one of the ships in Franklin's Expeditions of the North West Passage. There is now an exhibit called  HMS Erebus Revealed and it is on the http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/culture/franklin/franklin2015.aspx website.

These artifacts have been lost to the Arctic Sea for nearly 160 years, and now they are available to us online to see.

Here is a photo album on the site, a dive diary, and little bits on information, like the Franklin Expedition carried 4,000 kilos of chocolate which could be put into water for as a drink of hot or cold chocolate!

Enjoy the time that you spend at the exhibit. I read all of it. and found it so interesting! 


Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Friday, June 5, 2015

Is the Never Forgotten National Momument going to be built?


 
I had heard of this before, and I am wondering if you have heard of the statue and park that is to be built on Green Cove in Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia.

The statue – Never Forgotten National Monument – will be an eight foot statue in memory of the 114,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders who gave their lives overseas in war and they never returned home.

Friends of Green Cove Cape Breton Highlands National Park says the park needs to be protected. They say is was never meant to house a statue such as this, and it should be moved somewhere else.

So what do you think? The project is going ahead, and it will be built on the land where it is intended to be built. It has already been approved by Parks Canada.

If you oppose the building if the park and statue, there is an online petition for you to sign at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/in-opposition-to-the-nfnmf-monument

The website of the Never Forgotten National Monument is http://www.nfnm.ca/

The Facebook page is at https://www.facebook.com/NeverForgottenNationalMemorial/posts/894974587208603

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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Did your Canadian ancestors originally come from Denmark?


Do you want to know who your first Danish ancestor was and when he or she left Denmark and arrived in Canada?

If so, the Library and Archives Canada can fill you in on the history and reason why the Danish people came to this country.

You can go to http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/history-ethnic-cultural/Pages/danish.aspx to get the historical information, archival documents and published material to help you.

If your ancestor came to Canada between 1865 and 1935, you might find his or her name on the passenger lists at http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists/Pages/introduction.aspx

By the way, the oldest Danish community in Canada is New Denmark, New Brunswick, first inhabited by Danish immigrants in 1872.

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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Keffer Writing Contest Winners



At the Ontario Genealogical Society Conference (OGS) held in Barrie this year, the winners were annouced for the Keffer Writing Contest this year, and they are -

First prize - Joyce H. Munro for her essay How Ker-Burns-Weld- Thompson Got His Name.

Second prize - Stephen Young for his essay The Disguised Origin of George R. Young Jr.

Third prize - D. Russell Morton for his essay Fill in the Blank.

Fourth prize - James Bangtson for his essay The Loyalist Connection Revised.

These essays will be published in Families, the journal of the OGS.

The website of the OGS is https://www.ogs.on.ca/

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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Another online resource in Canada


The McCulloch Heritage Centre in Pictou, Nova Scotia is starting to put their photographs and collections of historical significance to family history, with emphasis on the arrival of the Scots in 1773, online. The page is titled Find Your Scottish Roots

If you go to their site at http://www.mccullochcentre.ca/, and log in, you will see where they have started already to put on wills, photos, and there is lots more to come. Census records, diaries, photographs, wills, deeds and newspapers will be added in the future.

To go to the McCulloch Heritage Centre itself, their website is at https://mccullochhouse.novascotia.ca/about-mcculloch-house/mcculloch-heritage-centre

Happy Researching!

 

Canada Day lineup of performers



With the theme Strong. Proud. Free. Canadian Heritage will celebrate the 200th anniversary of Sir John A. Macdonald and the 50th anniversary of the Canadian flag on Canada Day – July 1st.

There will also be nods to the "Year of Sport" in Canada and the Franklin expedition, which uncovered in the Arctic one of Sir John Franklin's lost ships from 1846.

Here is the Canada Day lineup so far-
  • Reggae-inspired band -- Magic!
  • Quebec pop singer and songwriter -- Marc Dupré
  • Country singer -- Gord Bamford
  • Rockers -- Jonas and the Massive Attraction
  • Pop up-and-comer -- Francesco Yates
  • Pop singer and Star Académie finalist -- Andee
  • Iqaluit alt-band -- The Jerry Cans
  • Elite high school marching band from Calgary -- The Bishop Grandin Marching Ghosts
  • Winnipeg singer/songwriter -- Cassidy Mann
  • Pop and hip-hop artist -- Karim Ouellet
There will also be programming at Major's Hill Park in Ottawa and Jacques-Cartier Park in gatineau right across the river.

The day ends with the traditional fireworks around 10 p.m. on Parliament Hill.

They say that 350,000 people take in the festivities on Canada Day and one third are tourists.

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Need help finding your ELUSIVE Canadian ancestors???
 
As a nod of the hat to the Ontario Genealogical Conference being held in Barrie, Ontario from May 29 to May 31, may we offer a month-long discount on our research and consultation services of 15% (ends 11 June at midnight).
 
Just go to Elizabeth Lapointe Research Services website at www.elrs.biz, or send an email with the subject "special" to genealogyresearch@aol.com to see how I can help you find that elusive Canadian ancestor!
 
Research Tip! While you are in Ottawa, if you have ancestors who lived here, a good place to check is the Ottawa Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society at http://ogsottawa.on.ca/
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

 

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Ancestry.com redesigns its site



Although they say in their opening letter, which explains the changes that they have made to their site, it is supposed to be only open to American subscribers, but I found it was open to me – a Canadian.
 
So I went to take a look.
 
And I really like it.
 
They have adjusted the color on the search page, made it more appealing, and it seems to be cleaner than the previous search landing page.
 
I would give them a passing grade on this.

Go to www.ancestry.com 

Apparently they will redesign the Canadian site at www.ancestry.ca in the near future. 

Women of Digby County, 1950


 
Nova Scotia is a province of many different faces, and the Women of Digby County, 1950 is a virtual exhibit presented by the Nova Scotis Archives. 
 
It was first developed as a traditional exhibit entitled Women: Their Lives in Rural Nova Scotia, 1950. Launched in Digby in October 2011, it travelled to various locations throughout southwestern Nova Scotia over the following year, including a month's detour to the Nova Scotia Archives in April 2012. 
 
The exhibit celebrated the work of John Collier Jr., an eminent American photographer who spent time in Digby County during 1950 and 1951, and whose photographic record of those years is now among the collections held by the Nova Scotia Archives. 
 
 
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Need help finding your ELUSIVE Canadian ancestors???
 
As a nod of the hat to the Ontario Genealogical Conference being held in Barrie, Ontario from May 29 to May 31, may we offer a month-long discount on our research and consultation services of 15% (ends 11 June at midnight).
 
Just go to Elizabeth Lapointe Research Services website at www.elrs.biz, or send an email with the subject "special" to genealogyresearch@aol.com to see how I can help you find that elusive Canadian ancestor!
 
Research Tip! The Nova Scotia Archives is a wonderful place to research your ancestors in person. Their latest fonds is the Annapolis Royal Registry of Deeds (1763-1980). It includes 185 land transaction registers (‘deed books’), 1763-1954; deed registry will books, 1878-1867 (kept at the registry); and land grant registration books, 1854-1963. Contct the Nova Scotia Archives at http://novascotia.ca/archives/newholdings.asp
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
 
It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!


 

British Home Children and Descendants Association Family Picnic



There will be a picnic on July 11th starting at 1:00 pm at Victoria Park, Truro, NS in honor of the British Home Children.
 
This will be an opportunity to meet other Home Child descendants in an informal setting. Maybe you will meet others who came over on the same ship or even long lost relatives. Bring your children and grandchildren, your parents and grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins for a fun afternoon.
 
Take a walk along some of the trails, admire Joseph Howe Falls and the Gorge, climb the 175-step Jacob's Ladder, see the Bur Oak that was planted in memory of our BHC and have your picture taken sitting on the BHC memorial bench.
 
If you have questions, you can reach Catherine West at catherinebhcd@gmail.com or catherine.west@ns.sympatico.ca or 1-902-384-2097
 
The association will also be holding its 13th Annual Reunion on Saturday October 17th, 2015 at the Bible Hill Junior High School located at 741 Collage Road, Truru, Nova Scotia.
 
It will be an all-day affair from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and to pre-register or for information, please contact Catherine West at catherinebhcd@gmail.com or catherinewest@ns.sympatico.ca or 1-902-384-2097.
 
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Need help finding your ELUSIVE Canadian ancestors???
 
As a nod of the hat to the Ontario Genealogical Conference being held in Barrie, Ontario from May 29 to May 31, may we offer a month-long discount on our research and consultation services of 15% (ends 11 June at midnight).
 
Just go to Elizabeth Lapointe Research Services website at www.elrs.biz, or send an email with the subject "special" to genealogyresearch@aol.com to see how I can help you find that elusive Canadian ancestor!
 
Research Tip! If you researching Home Children, you can check the database at http://www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=4
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Check the Canadian Week in Review every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.
If you missed this week’s edition, it is at

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!