Mennonite Migration to Ontario

The Oxford County Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society will meet on Monday April 14th at 6:45 pm at the Woodstock Public Library, 445 Hunter St., Woodstock, and the speaker will be Laureen Harder-Gissing. 

Her topic will be Mennonite Migration to Ontario and Resources available in the Mennonite Archives. Ms. Harder-Gissing is the Historian of the Mennonite Church of Eastern Canada and is currently Archivist at the Mennonite Archives at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo.

Contact information is available at http://oxford.ogs.on.ca/eventspg.html

The Mennonite Archives is online at https://uwaterloo.ca/mennonite-archives-ontario

The Mennonite Historical Society of Ontario http://www.mhso.org/index.shtml

Give a VIMY for Vimy Campaign

The 100th anniversary of the Canadian victory at the Battle of Vimy Ridge in France will take place in 2017. 

A foundation called The Vimy Foundation was started in 2006 to honor the remembrance of the battle. They have been involved in producing education resources for thousands of teachers and schools across Canada and been involved in more than 10,000 student ‘pilgrimages’ to Vimy. They also have plans to build a state- of-the-art Education Centre to be unveiled in France on April 9, 2017 on the grounds adjacent to the Canadian National Vimy Memorial. 

The Government of Canada has committed $5 million to the project, but The Vimy Foundation is committed to match that commitment through the generosity of Canadians, and they have come up with a rather unique was that this can be accomplished.

The back of a $20.00 dollar bill has an image of the towering Vimy Ridge battlefield memorial in France, so the foundation is asking Canadians to donate $20 to the VIMY for Vimy Campaign. 

In exchange for your donation, you will receive a Vimy Pin and your name will be added to the list of Vimy 2017 supporters. 

To go to their site, please click https://vimyfoundation.ca/vimy2017

The Sinking of the Empress of Ireland

The Empress of Ireland was in a collision with the Norwegian collier SS Storstad in the early hours of 29 May 1914. Of the 1,477 persons on board the ship, 1,012 died. 

The Beaurepaire-Beaconsfield Historical Society will meet on Thursday April 17th at 7:30 p.m. at the Centennial Hall, 288 Beaconsfield Blvd, Beaconsfield (Montreal). The lecture will be in English, but there will be a bilingual question period. 

The lecture will be on the RMS Empress of Ireland, and the speaker will be Derek Grout who has written a book on the ill-fated liner Empress of Ireland which sank in the Gulf of St Lawrence, in front of Pointe-au-Père, in a collision in 1914. 

The hundredth anniversary of the sinking is May 29 and the book's release in Canada is scheduled for early April, in advance of the anniversary. Canada Post is supposed to be issuing two stamps to commemorate the event, and various museums across the country have scheduled special exhibitions, most notably the Canadian Museum of History (formerly Canadian Museum of Civilization) in Gatineau, across from Ottawa. 

At this lecture, you will be able to buy the book RMS Empress of Ireland, Pride of the Canadian Pacific's Atlantic Fleet by Derek Grout, at the price of $35.00. 

Everyone welcome. Free for members and $2 for non-member. You can become a member for just $5 per year. 

You can call 514-695-2502 for information, or you can go to http://www.shbbhs.ca 

For more information about the Empress of Ireland, you can go to
RMS Empress of Ireland http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Empress_of_Ireland 

Although this is a pay site, there is the passenger and crew list (FREE) at http://www.sea-viewdiving.com/shipwreck_info/empress_home/passengerindex.htm

Field Trip to the LAC

The Ottawa Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society is planning their second field trip to the Library and Archives Canada on May 3rd.

This field trip will take place on Saturday May 3, 2014 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm and this time the LAC and OGS members will focus on the process of requesting retrieval of documents. After the meeting, members will be welcome to stay and do some research. The LAC is open until 6 pm on Saturdays

As part of this trip, attendees will obtain their LAC User Card (required for anyone wishing to undertake research or to consult the holdings at LAC facilities), there will be a tour of the resources on both the 2nd and the 3rd floor.

Although this trip is geared towards anyone who has never done any research at Library and Archives Canada, or to anyone who hasn't been to the LAC in a while

This special event is only open to a maximum of 15 people so reserve your spot early!

The Library and Archives Canada is located at 395 Wellington Street, Ottawa.

Also, there is a meeting on April 26 at the Ottawa City Archives on 100 Tallwood Drive, Ottawa, and the talk will be about the subject of Using Social Media for Genealogy Research and it will be given by Ken McKinlay.

The meeting will be live streamed, and details are available on their website at http://ogsottawa.on.ca

Some OGS Branches Live Stream their meetings

More and more OGS Branches are Live Streaming their monthly meeting.

Niagara Peninsula Branch was the first one to try the new technology couple of years ago, then Ottawa Branch tried it, and then the Lambton County Branch, and the Kent County signed on so. Members at a distance can hear the meeting also, as well as members close at hand. And don’t forget the OGS Conference this year, as it will be Live Streaming some sessions as well. 

I attend the Ottawa Branch Live Streaming monthly meetings held on a Saturday of each month (except July, and August) especially in the winter time, because I can’t get to the meetings during the snowy season. But I don’t miss anything because I can see the PowerPoint presentation, hear the speakers, and have the ability to ask questions – so I am quite satisfied with the process. 

So, if you are a member of any of these societies, be sure to give it a try. 

Here are the meetings to be held in April – 

Niagara Peninsula Branch Meeting

Date: Thursday, April 10, 2014

Time: 7:00 – 9:00 pm

Location: First Grantham United Church, 415 Linwell Rd., St. Catharines

Speakers: Marjorie Stuart & Diane Clendenan

Topic: “Unregistered Cemeteries”

Brief Overview: Marjorie and Diane are the highly respected “Cemetery Ladies” for both the OGS & the Ontario Historical Society

Contact Info: http://www.ogs.on.ca/niagara 

Lambton County Branch Meeting

Date: Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Time: 7:30 – 9:30 pm

Location: 1400 Murphy Road, Sarnia, Ontario

Speaker: Lynn Clark

Topic: Adoption Update. Drop by and learn what’s new when searching for info regarding adoptions in Ontario.

Contact Info: http://www.ogs.on.ca/lambton/index.html 

Kent County Branch Meeting 

Date: Friday, April 11, 2014

Time: 7:00 pm

Location: St. Andrew’s Residence 99 Park St., Chatham, ON

Speaker: Elise Harding-Davis

Topic: BLACK MILITIA OF KENT COUNTY

Brief Overview: Elise Harding-Davis will discuss the involvement of the Black Militia in the War of 1812.

Contact Info: http://ogs.on.ca/kent 

Ottawa Branch Meeting

Date: April 26, 2014

Time: 1:00 pm

Location: City of Ottawa Archives, Room 115,

Topic: Using Social Media for Genealogy Research

Speaker: Ken McKinlay

Brief Overview: Ken will be talking about the various social media sites, such as Facebook, Google+, Twitter and blogs to name just a few places, that can be used to help in your own research through interacting online with others around the world via the world wide web.

Contact information: http://ogsottawa.on.ca

Fort Howe – Fort-Howe on Flickr

Credit: Library and Archives Canada, Acc. No. 1986-19-1
Fort Howe in New Brunswick, during the American Revolution, experienced continuous pressure from American forces including attacks on the colony and its inhabitants. 

After the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, which ended the war between Britain and the United States, there were calls from both the citizens of Saint John and incoming loyalists for better protection of the area, and the existing and damaged fort was replaced by Fort Howe. 

Sir William Howe, replaced General Thomas Gage as Commander-in-Chief of British North America, 1775-1778. He was present at the sieges of Louisbourg, Quebec and Montreal, and he defeated the American rebel forces in Fort Washington, Fort Lee, Brandywine and Gemantown before his resignation in 1778.

Over 200 people have viewed Flickr already. 

You may view it at https://www.flickr.com/photos/lac-bac/sets/72157641274749775

Canadian Week in Review

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

It has the latest news covered in New/Updated Websites, Social Media, and Newspaper Articles. 

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

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