Canadian Week in Review 24 March 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.

Websites

No new website this week.

Social Media

Reading the Gazette’s slavery ads
http://genealogyalacarte.wordpress.com/2014/03/22/slavery-in-18th-century-quebec
Read about this article on slavery in Quebec that Gail Dever points to in her blog.

Laying down the law: Court of Appeal celebrating its 100th year (with video)
ttp://www.edmontonjournal.com/Laying+down+Court+Appeal+celebrating+100th+year+with+video/9632063/story.html
Read the history of the Court of Appeals in Alberta.

Kent County Ontario Canada Genealogy Blog
http://kentcountyogsblog.blogspot.ca
They have just started this blog. Stay tuned for further developments.

New Stories

Nazi memorabilia sale draws fire
http://www.leaderpost.com/life/Nazi+memorabilia+sale+draws+fire/9624736/story.html
The Saskatoon Gun Club Collector's Show had a show recently where a collector showed German medals and weapons from the First and Second World Wars.

National stamp collection has a new home at Canadian Museum of History
http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/cmlink/gmg-glacier-media-group/canadian-press/life/travel/national-stamp-collection-has-a-new-home-at-canadian-museum-of-history-1.902322
Some good news! The Canadian Stamp Collection will reappears as a permanent exhibition comprises all 3,000 or so postage stamps issued in Canada from 1851 to the present on March 28 at the Canadian Museum of History.

Canada Post celebrates Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry 100th Anniversary with commemorative envelope
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1794715
The PPCLI was officially authorized as a regiment on the August 10, 1914. Recruiting was completed in eight days!

Explore heritage trails with go!PEI passport
http://www.journalpioneer.com/News/Local/2014-03-17/article-3652915/Explore-heritage-trails-with-go!PEI-passport/1
Forty trails have been identified across PEI, and you can read about each one at http://www.gopei.ca

Search for kin subject of film: Reunion caps story of wartime couple 
hthttp://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/search-for-kin-subject-of-film-250732741.html
Sgt. Peter Partridge from Manitoba served in the Second World War, fell in love with an English girl, an had a son named Peter Ian. Discover how his daughter found her relatives in Manitoba, and a film has been made of her discovery. (Special thanks go to Jackie Corrigan for sending this story to CWR).

Opinion: How does a province say sorry? http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Opinion+does+province+sorry/9642743/story.html
Read the opinion of Dr. Henry Yu is a historian and associate professor of history and principal of St. John’s College at UBC on his views of the treatment of Asians by the BC government and of their inpending apology.

Preserving history in Clarington http://www.durhamregion.com/opinion-story/4419813-preserving-history-in-clarington
More than 100 German prisoners were held at Camp 30 in the 1940s, sent to Canada to keep them an ocean away from the conflict amid fears that Great Britain might fall to the Germans.

British home kids — indentured servants?
http://www.orilliapacket.com/2014/03/21/british-home-kids--indentured-servants
Sandra Joyce, the author of The Street Arab — The Story of a British Home Child, and Lori Oschefski recently spoke on the British home Children at the Orillia Museum of Art and History.

French Canadian Genealogical Society Gains in Membership
http://www.thenorthfieldnews.com/news/2014-03-20/News/French_Canadian_Genealogical_Society_Gains_in_Memb.html
A tip of the hat to our cousins to the south as The Vermont French- Canadian Genealogical Society has announced that they have reached their 1,000th member since its formation in 1996.

Mireille Silcoff: Irish by choice, or, If a Latvian Jew can claim the Emerald Isle, anyone can
http://life.nationalpost.com/2014/03/15/mireille-silcoff-irish-by-choice-or-if-a-latvian-jew-can-claim-the-emerald-isle-anyone-can
Read how a Jew born in Dublin, Ireland dealt with his "Irishness." (Special thanks goes to Gail Dever, Special Correspondent to the CWR).

New Brunswick, Maine, promoting themselves as tourist destinations
http://www.sackvilletribunepost.com/Business/2014-03-22/article-3658946/New-Brunswick,-Maine,-promoting-themselves-as-tourist-destinations/1
New Brunswick is collaborating with the State of Maine to promote themselves as unique Two-Nation Vacation tourist destinations. One thing to note is the holding of the 2014 the Congrès Mondial Acadien, which will take place Aug. 8 - 24.

Story of the Week

May 9th will be a National Day of Honour

Friday May the 9th will be a National Day of Honour when the men and women who served in Afghanistan will be honoured with a parade in Ottawa, and various other events across Canada.

The last of the soldiers who served in Afghanistan - 94 Canadians returned home to their loved ones this past Tuesday March the 18th.

Since the Canadian military mission in Afghanistan began 12 years ago, 158 soldiers have lost their lives - one diplomat, one journalist and two civilian contractors were also killed. More than 40,000 Canadian armed forces members have been deployed to Afghanistan since October 2001.

May the 9th will be quite a day in Ottawa.

There will be the parade that will start at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa and travel to Parliament Hill, forces members injured during the mission will pass the last Canadian flag flown in Afghanistan from Canadian Forces Base Trenton to the parade in Ottawa, and the flag will journey through six cities in six days. there will be a moment of silence to reflect upon Canada's sacrifices.

As well, the Afghanistan Memorial Vigil, which was constructed by troops in Kandahar and repatriated to Canada, will be on display on Parliament Hill during the parade.

A video timeline has been put together by the CBC at http://www.cbc.ca/news/canadian-soldiers-in-afghanistan-a-video-timeline-1.2568551

Reminder: Check the Canadian Week in Review next Monday for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada. It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in country! The next post will be on 31 Match 2014.

Lost Landscapes: Up the Gatineau! with Google Earth

Join the Gatineau Valley Historical Society as they mark Earth Day with an historical virtual tour up the Gatineau River. Society President, Marc Cockburn, will take you on multi-media voyage from Hull up to Low and beyond, using Google Earth and archival photos and maps to reconstruct how the river’s landscape looked before much of its natural and built environment was flooded in 1927.

The meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at 7:30 pm, at The Wakefield Centre, 38, ch. Valley, Wakefield, QC

The website of the society is at http://www.gvhs.ca

Wellington County OGS Region III Meeting - Ask the Experts

On Saturday, April 19, 2014, there will be a full-day meeting from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Harriston Community Centre, 111 George Street South, Harriston, ON, and the title of it is Ask the Experts. 

The morning portion will feature three different genealogical professionals who will give presentations on their area of expertise. In the afternoon, the experts will sit on a panel and answer your research questions. 

To get your questions answered, please submit them ahead of time through the branch website, or in person. 

The Experts will be  

• Cindy Preece 

o Archives Administrator, Wilfrid Laurier University Archives & Special Collections

•  Karen Wagner

o Archivist at the Wellington County Museum and Archives

• Expert Panel

o A special presentation on “Preserving Your Family Heirlooms”

The cost will be $20.00 per person for pre-registration or $25 per person at the door, and there will be a $10.00 charge for lunch. 

The territory covered by Wellington Branch encompasses Guelph and Wellington County and its historical townships - Minto, Arthur, West Luther, Maryborough, Peel, Pilkington, Nichol, West Garafraxa, Eramosa, Erin, Guelph and Puslinch.

Their website is http://www.ogs.on.ca/wellington/index.html

Soldiers of Song

The Stirling Festival Theatre in Stirling, Ontario will present the play Soldiers of Song on Sunday April the 12th at 2 pm. 

The play will honour the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War with a special show that pays homage to one of the most distinctive musical acts in Canadian history – The Dumbells.

The Dumbells were a group of Canadians who were soldiers during the day and entertainers at night during the First World War. 

As the Library and Archives Canada site says “They were a makeshift stage of packing boxes in First World War France to become the toast of the nation for over a decade. They became arguably the most famous of the Canadian Army "concert parties," those entertainment units that were devoted to building the morale of the troops on the front lines”.

Their website is www.stirlingfestivaltheatre.com 

For background information on the Dumbells, go to the Library and Archives Canada site at https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/gramophone/028011-1007.1-e.html

Canada’s worst mine disaster

There will be an exhibit at the Provincial Archives of Alberta from now until May 31, 2014 and the exhibit is about Canada’s worst mine disaster at Hillcrest Collieries in Hillcrest, Alberta.

On June 19, 1914, 189 miners lost their lives at Hillcrest Collieries in what is still Canada's worst mine disaster. One hundred years later, the Provincial Archives of Alberta reconstructs the events at Hillcrest and their impact on this coal mining community by highlighting important archival documents preserved within its holdings.

Visit the Provincial Archives of Alberta during regular facility hours to view this commemorative centennial exhibit, and the admission is free.

The Provincial Archives of Alberta is located at 8555 Roper Road, Edmonton, Alberta. 

They have a new website and it is at http://provincialarchives.alberta.ca 

Here is a report on the disaster in the Cranbook Herald at http://www.crowsnest.bc.ca/hillcrest.html

History Matters: Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples Past and Present

Heritage Toronto is pleased to present an exploration of the latest archaeological insights into the lives of Indigenous people in Southern Ontario prior to contact with Europeans.

A panel discussion called Before Ontario: Archaeology and the Province’s First Peoples will take place on Wed Apr 02, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at the Toronto Reference Library Atrium, 789 Yonge Street, Toronto, ON Phone: 416-395-5577.

Join the editors and some of the contributors to Before Ontario: The Archaeology of a Province (2013) for a panel discussion. Panelists include:

· Dr. Marit Munson

· Dr. Susan Jamieson

· Dr. Anne Keenleyside (Trent)

· Dr. Ron Williamson of Archaeological Services Inc.

· Chief Kris Nahrgang of the Kawartha Nishnawbe First Nation

· Dr. Neal Ferris (Western Ontario)

· Dr. Andrew Stewart of Strata Consulting

The panel will be moderated by Shawn Micallef, a noted journalist and Toronto Public Library’s Writer-in-Residence in Fall 2013.

This panel discussion is presented in collaboration with http://activehistory.ca and Heritage Toronto at http://heritagetoronto.org

Preserving Ireland's Genealogy

This was just sent out from FamilySearch.org on St. Partick’s Day.

Website Gathers St. Patrick's Day and Other Irish Family Stories and Photos by Glen Greener

“St. Patrick died on March 17, 481, but St. Patrick's Day lives on all over the world demonstrating how prolific Irish roots have permeated cultures globally over the years. A sampling of the many areas St. Patrick's day is celebrated in includes: Argentina, Canada, Great Britain, Japan, Malaysia, Montserrat, Russia, South Korea, Switzerland, and the United States. 

FamilySearch.org is celebrating St. Patrick's day by encouraging descendants of Irish immigrants to preserve and share their Irish family memories online through photos and stories. Family historians can also freely search over 30 million historic Irish records online or begin building their Irish family trees.

Ireland provides one of the most interesting and challenging genealogies for family researchers, and there are a lot of them. Over 100 million people worldwide claim some Irish heritage. 

A loss of records by fire and problems recording Irish emigrants who boarded ships after the original departure can seem like barriers to genealogists trying to "get back across the pond." The family histories are often available in the emigrant's new country, but finding the lines back in Ireland can be difficult.

Chris Paton, a former BBC television producer, author, and a professional genealogist, says, "Ireland has probably experienced more tragedy when it comes to the preservation of resources for family historians than any other region of the British Isles. Many of the nation's primary records were lost during the civil war in 1922 and through other equally tragic means." 

There is good news, says David Rencher, Chief Genealogical Officer at FamilySearch. "The government of Ireland now considers genealogy an economic resource. It is one of the main reasons for tourism. In the past five years, more resources have been made available than were in the previous 15 years."

Rencher comes by his love of Irish ancestry naturally. Both sides of his family hail from the Emerald Isle. And he's always fascinated by the traditions of celebrating St. Patrick's Day all over the world.

There are good resources online: FamilySearch.org, findmypast.com, ancestry.com, the public records office of Northern Ireland, and the national archives of Ireland. Counties are coming forward with quality publications of local histories, and the Irish government wants to help those with Irish roots to plan their search. 

Rencher says, "People need to find out specifically where their Irish ancestors hail from. County records are important. Parish records are becoming more available." 

Finding the home town and county of your ancestors is helped by surnames which are often good indicators of where in Ireland someone is from. Employment records in America can contain a birthplace in Ireland. Cemeteries in Ireland are valuable because it was not uncommon for relatives to have a tombstone erected in Ireland although the deceased was buried in another country.

The names of neighbors and friends in a possible village of origin could open up help and hospitality. "The Irish are very generous with their time when people are searching for their Irish roots. Most towns have someone who people regard as the local historian who wants to help. Local libraries are also valuable resources. In any case, people on a pilgrimage to find their family's history in Ireland are welcomed with open arms," Rencher said.

According to Rencher, the best method is to, "Start with what you know and branch out to what you don't know. What artifacts do you have in your home? A Presbyterian Church token has a mark that can tell what congregation in Ireland it's from. Other members of a family might have naturalization certificates or church records. Irish families are so large that artifacts could be with any number of cousins."

It's also important to document the ancestors you find along with any stories or pictures. With 100 million Irish descendants around the world, it's a strong possibility someone you don't know can add details to your history if they can find your photos and stories on free preservation sites likeFamilySearch.org. DNA results can also help identify where others in your family line are located. 

Because of death and emigration to other countries, the population of Ireland was the same in 1900 as in 1800. Irish emigrants went all over the world for many reasons—mostly looking for new opportunity and a new life. Many had to leave when their landlords moved a tenant off the property so a new tenant could pay higher rents. Others went into military service or worked as indentured servants, working for seven years to pay off their costs of emigrating. Many moved to England, Canada, and America to work as miners and laborers. 

Some got a new start in a developing country. If you had to guess the name of a founder and first president of a newly independent nation in South America, would you guess O'Higgins? If you did, you'd be right. Bernardo O'Higgins became the Supreme Director of Chile in 1817.

On St. Patrick's Day, the saying is, "Everybody is Irish for one day," and that might be literally true. Irish is the second most common ancestry in the United States. It's the fourth largest in Canada. Mexico has 600,000 Irish descendants. And this just names a few. 

Whether you're marching in a St. Patrick's Day parade, helping turn the Chicago River green, wearing garish green socks, or just having some corned beef and cabbage at home, take the time to share your favorite Irish family photos and stories online at FamilySearch.org. So even if you don't think you have any Irish in you, it's now a lot easier to double check”.