Book Reviews

The May 2011 edition of the Ontario Genealogical Society's journal, Families, has been published, and the issue contains five book reviews (on pages 32 to 34) -

Crime and Punishment in Upper Canada: A Research Guide by Janice Nickerson (ISBN 978-1-5548877-05). As the review says, the records at the Library and Archives Canada and the Archives of Ontario "were waiting for someone to come along to and put them in readable order", and that person is Janice Nickerson.

If you have anyone involved in the justice system in Upper Canada form 1701-1841 (on either side of the law), you owe it to yourself to read a review of the book, and to get a copy of it.

Tories: Fighting for the King in America's First Civil War by Thomas B. Allen (ISBN 9780061241802). An excellent review of the book is given by Brenda Dougall Merriman. She aptly describes the author's intent to show how the Tories fought for America's right to stay British - and lost in the War of Independence.

British Home Children: Their Stories. Compiled by the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (ISBN 978-1-926797-47-2). A compilation of personal essays in which 36 children tell their life stories of how they came to Canada, and the life they lived here between 1869 and 1948.

Journey To The Past - The Lost Villages of Mississauga by Heritage Mississauga Foundation (ISBN 978-0-9867579-0-8) tells the story of Mississauga through its Lost Villages of the Heartland, and across the Northern, Eastern, and Western Frontiers.

Tracing Your Irish Roots is published by Moorshead Magazine (ISBN 978-0-9781592-6-9). A great collection of fifteen articles printed by the publisher since 2005, each article is reviewed in the book review.

Families is considered as a part of the member's benefit of membership in the OGS. You can join the OGS by going to their webpage www.ogs.on.ca/membership.php. Or, if you are in Hamilton, do drop by and see us in the Marketplace at the Hamilton Convention Centre on Friday through Sunday (May 13th-15th).

Families - May 2011 - Part I

The May 2011 issue of Families, the journal of the Ontario Genealogical Society, marks 50 years of publication this year.

The illustration on the cover of the journal is the first publication that was printed back in August 1962.

Three of the seven papers that have just been published in this issue are as follows -

"Jury Duty - A Opportunity for Genealogists" by Janice Nickerson - The lead paper in this publication, it shows the role that juries played in the justice system in Upper Canada from 1701 to 1841.

"Recording Your Own Life Story in a Family Photo Book" by Joyce Fingland - She tells us how she has taken old photos, edited and/or fixed them up, and then used them to illustrate a book she has written on family history called Our Family. It's also an excellent guide on photo restoration.

"Staff Magazines" by Gwen Patterson - This column is about two staff magazines published by the Bank of Montreal and the Workman's Compensation Board that were celebrating their anniversaries.

Tomorrow's blog posting will cover the remaining papers in this issue.

Families is considered as a part of the member's benefits of OGS. You can join the OGS by going to the webpage www.ogs.on.ca/membership.php, or if you are in Hamilton - drop by and see us in the Marketplace at the Hamilton Convention Centre on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday (May 13th to 15th).

Families - May 2011 - Part II

The May 2011 edition of the Ontario Genealogical Society's journal, Families, has been published. This list shows the other four papers of the seven papers published -

"Buggery or Slander: The Trials and Tribulations of Moses Winter" by Guylaine Pétrin - She talks about the court case that she discovered while doing research at the Library and Archives Canada, having found a number of petitions concerning Moses Winters from Etobicoke Township, York County (Ontario) in the 1830s.

"Overcoming Obstacles in Family Lore and More" by E. Gail Benjafield - She discusses one of the most useful tips in breaking through brick walls: checking the sources of "family lore".

"Uncle Bert's Book - A Royal Connection?" by Al Richards - He looks at his family history through an uncle's notebook to see if there is any validation to the notion that there may be British Royal Blood in his lineage.

"Genealogy Services at the Library and Archives Canada" by Nicole Waiter - An employee of Library and Archives Canada, she write about the services that the LAC offers free of charge to the public.

Families is considered as a part of the member's benefit of the OGS. You can join the OGS by going to the webpage www.ogs.on.ca/membership.php. If you are in Hamilton, please drop by and see us in the Marketplace at the Hamilton Convention Centre on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday (May 13th to 15th).

NewsLeaf - Part II

The May issue of NewsLeaf (Vol 41 No 2) also covers what has happened in the way of news in the Ontario Genealogical Society during the past four months, as found in Branch newsletters.

In New Briefs are some articles from the following Branches -

Brant - "New Web Source for War of 1812";
Norfolk County - "Port Dover's Fishing Fleet";
Halton-Peel - "The Diary Notes of Robert Gray of Burlington, Ontario";
Leeds & Grenville - "Burial Grounds in Leeds & Grenville";
Sault & District - "Story of William Henry Latham";
Hamilton - "Old Branch Newsletters";
Quinte - "Crouse-Wannamaker Lecture";
Lambton - "Vacation Turns to Research Trip";
Niagara - "Funeral Cards";
Kent - "An 'All Irish Issue";
Kingston - "Genealogy Presentations at Kingston"

The lead story in this issue covers the appointment of the new Executive Director of the OGS, Sarah Newitt. Read about what she hopes to accomplish in the next few years with the OGS. The issue also said 'Good-bye' to Fraser Dunford, now Executive Director Emeritus of the OGS.

NewsLeaf is considered as a part of the member's benefit of OGS.

You can join the OGS by going to the webpage http://www.ogs.on.ca/membership.php. Or, if you are in Hamilton, please drop by and see us in the Marketplace at the Hamilton Convention Centre on either Friday, Saturday, or Sunday (May 13th to 15th).

We would love to have you stop by and say "Hello!"

NewsLeaf - Part I

In May of every year, NewsLeaf (the quarterly newsletter of the Ontario Genealogical Society) doubles in size to accommodate reports from each of the Branches, as well as the news that has happened over the past four months.

The Reports in this issue are the Annual General Meeting Reports about the meeting that was held last year at the Conference, plus the Treasurer Report, along with reports from Region I and the Branches of Essex, and Lambton; Region II plus Reports from Elgin, Oxford; Region from Bruce & Grey, Huron, Perth, Waterloo, and Wellington Branches; Report from Region IV plus reports from Brant, Haldimand, Hamilton, Niagara, and Norfolk Branch; Reports from Huron-Peel, Simcoe, Toronto, and York Region Branch; Region VIII Branch Reports plus reports from Durham, Kawartha, Quinte Branch; Region VIII Region Branch and Reports from Kingston, Ottawa, Leeds & Grenville Branch; Region IX Branch Report plus Reports from Nipissing, and Sudbury Branch; and the Irish Palatine Branch.

If you would like to read the yearly reports on each of the Regions to see what special projects they are involved in, or what they have planned for the upcoming year, you must be a member of OGS to receive a copy of NewsLeaf. Or, if you are in Hamilton, drop by and see us in the Marketplace at the Hamilton Convention Centre on Friday, Saturday or Sunday (May 13th to 15th).

We Are Off!

We are on the road today as we travel from Ottawa to Hamilton to the Ontario Genealogical Society's 50th Anniversary Conference.

I have all of my papers in order (because I have a number of meetings to attend), and I have planned to go to areas close to Hamilton where I will do some client research on Thursday and Friday.

In the meantime, I have completed a number of blog posts which will uploaded to the blog once a day, and I will see you when I get back next Tuesday!

Thanks for dropping by!

Elizabeth

V-E Day in Europe

Sunday, May 8th, was the 66th Anniversary of Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day).

Over 1,159,000 men and women served in the Canadian Armed Forces during the Second World War (1939-1945), and 44,093 lost their lives.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said that "Leading up to that historic day, hundreds of thousands of Canadians left behind their families, friends and hometowns for the battlefields of Europe to defend the fundamental values that all Canadians cherish dearly - freedom, democracy, the rule of law and human rights. Hundreds of thousands of other Canadians laboured tirelessly on the home front to produce the war material needed by our soldiers in uniform as well as by our allies".

There are some records online for the Second world War, and they are located at -

www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/war-dead/index-e.html - There are members of the Canadian Armed Forces who died in service between 1939 and 1947, including those killed in action, those who subsequently died of injuries related to service, and those who died as a result of accident or illness while in service.

All other records are held by the Library and Archives Canada, and are not available for online access due to privacy laws.

www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/sub.cfm?source=history/secondwar - For a history of Canada in the Second World War, this is an excellent website covering The Battle of the Atlantic, The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, The Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and Dieppe, to name just a few of the battles.

www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/sub.cfm?source=collections/books/bww2 - You can search the Remembrance Book online, and the people are listed in the year in which they died.

www.museedelaguerre.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1931crisis_e.shtml - The Museum of War in Ottawa is a great place to go to when you are in Ottawa. They have extensive displays for you to check, and a exhaustive number of Second World War vehicles that can mean a great deal to your family history if your ancestor was in the Second World War.