Genealogy Canada

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Kent Branch (OGS) Showcases New Records on YouTube

Yesterday morning, I listened to the Kent Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society on the YouTube Channel at http://youtu.be/UzNZo18W2C8. The Branch heard about new online genealogy records at the Chatham-Kent Library.

Last year, the library successfully secured a grant from the Ontario government, and published new records online at http://www.chatham-kent.ca/PUBLICLIBRARIES/GENEALOGY/Pages/Genealogy.aspx.

These records include -

75 local directories published between 1875 and 2007
almanacs published by Soutar’s, a publishing company, between 1881 and 1890
municipal documents
Kent Historical Society publications
books by local authors

So visit the Library online to view these records, and see if your ancestor is there.

If you haven’t done so already, remember to check the Canadian Week in Review on Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/01/canadian-week-in-review-05-january-2015.html

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

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

Canada’s first prime minister records

It has been 200 years since the birth of Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, and our interest in him and his life has never diminished. And since we are now celebrating the 200^th anniversary of his birth on January 11th, the interest is higher than normal.

The Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has an extensive and varied collection of records related to him, including a virtual exhibition that includes personal papers, photos, artwork, and publications. Within the LAC’s holdings are over 100,000 letters to and from family and close friends, which gives researchers a rare glimpse into his personal life.

You can listen to a podcast Let us be Canadians: Sir John A. Macdonald at http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/news/podcasts/Pages/sir-john-macdonald.aspx, or you can go to the fonds at http://collectionscanada.gc.ca/pam_archives/index.php?fuseaction=genitem.displayItem&lang=eng&rec_nbr=104008 .

If you haven’t done so already, remember to check the Canadian Week in Review Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/01/canadian-week-in-review-05-january-2015.html

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

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Provincial Archives of New Brunswick birth, marriage and death records

I have done quite a bit of work through the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick website http://archives.gnb.ca/Archives/?culture=en-CA over the past years, and one thing that I recommend if you are researching the births, marriages, and deaths records (BMD) is that you read the Finiding Aid at http://archives.gnb.ca/Documents/FindingAids/GovernmentRecords/RS141-EN.pdf and the Information page at http://archives.gnb.ca/Search/VISSE/Introduction.aspx?culture=en-CA.

They have added the 1919 birth and death records to the search engine in November and December of last year, and have added digitized images of the originals for that year, as well.

So good luck in researching, and let me know how you have done using theses records.

If you haven’t done so already, remember to check the Canadian Week in Review Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/01/canadian-week-in-review-05-january-2015.html

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 Archives Association of Ontario offers online courses

The Archives Association of Ontario (AAO) is an organization that supports archival associations, those working in archives, as well as users and supporters of archives. It is made up of 300 members from across the province. It involves itself in a network of archives and archivists providing programs, education, and advocacy.

They are offering online courses, some of which may interest you.

The courses are -

Caring for Paper-Based Collections
January 20

Creating Access to Your Collections
January 27

Exhibiting Your Collections
February 10

Caring for Oversize Paper Artifacts
February 17

Caring for Scrapbooks
February 24

Writing Your NEH Preservation Assistance Grant (Free)
February 25

Spring sessions include new webinars on digital topics as well as caring for photographs, and emergency preparedness.

Registration is at https://www.nedcc.org/preservation-training/training-calendar/

Friday, January 9, 2015

National Genealogy Conference in Canada

A travel agency from Guelph, Ontario is where you will register if you want to go to the National Genealogy Conference in Canada at Historic Pier 21 in Halifax, Nova Scotia on July 17 - 19, 2015.

The registration fee of $895.00 (Canadian Funds) per person includes the following -

All taxes
Full conference program with exceptional genealogy keynote and workshop speakers
All food and beverage within the conference schedule
The opportunity to submit personal information to have The Scotiabank Family History Centre research immigration information for your family prior to arriving at the conference.
Guided tour plus additional on-own time at the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, immigration portal of Canada from 1928 - 1971
A professionally guided tour of Halifax, including a visit to the Titanic Graveyard. Experts will be on hand to enhance your experience. Following the tour will be dinner at the Five Fishermen Restaurant, housed in a historic building with ties to the Titanic story.
Networking opportunities and information sharing with genealogy enthusiasts from near and far.

Of course, your registration fee does not include the airfare to Halifax, or accommodation.

I am interested to know if any of my readers are going. What is your opinion on the cost of the conference? Is this a reasonable price to pay for a genealogical conference in Canada?

To register, go to http://www.visiontravel.ca/heidiwilker

If you haven’t done so already, remember to check the Canadian Week in Review Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/01/canadian-week-in-review-05-january-2015.html

It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!
It has been a regular post every Monday morning since April 23, 2012.

new.FamilySearch.org Will Be Turned Off on 01 February 2015

WARNING! This does not mean that FamilySearch.org is closing down!

I think there has been confusion over the closing of new.FamilySearch.org as has been evident of Thomas MacEntee's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/tmacentee?fref=ufi&pnref=story. Only this site will be disabled and closed down. FamilySearch.org will remain open. This is planned to take place on 01 February, 2015.

As the website says, “On February 1, all public APIs (application programming interfaces) will be turned off, as will be the ability to access the program. This step is necessary as we enter the final phase, which is to transfer and synchronize all of the remaining data from new.FamilySearch.org to FamilySearch Family Tree. It is anticipated that this final phase of data testing, transfer, and retesting will require a year to complete. Once this phase is completed in early 2016, new.FamilySearch.org will be completely shut down”.

To read the rest of the press release, go to https://new.familysearch.org/

If you haven’t done so already, remember to check the Canadian Week in Review Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is at http://genealogycanada.blogspot.com/2015/01/canadian-week-in-review-05-january-2015.html

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

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

Thursday, January 8, 2015

Kent Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society "virtual" meeting

Just a reminder of the Kent Branch monthly meeting this coming Friday night in Chatham. They would like you to join them, and if you are not in the area, then please join them "virtually" via live streaming.

Here are the details -

The meeting will held January 9, 2015 Friday at 7:00 PM on the topic "CK Library - Digital Collection". The Chatham-Kent Public Library recently launched its new digital collection. Staff from the library will tell the attendees all about this valuable resource.

Public is welcome at St Andrews Residence at 99 Park St, Chatham. Please join us live online at this link http://ogs.on.ca/kent/?page_id=688

The society’s website is http://ogs.on.ca/kent/

Their Facebook page is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/kentbranchogs/

I will be joining the meeting by live streaming because I want to learn about the Chatham-Kent Public Library's new digital collection.

The genealogy page (which is great, by the way) of the Chatham-Kent Public Library is at http://www.chatham-kent.ca/PublicLibraries/Genealogy/Pages/Genealogy.aspx.