My copy of "Connections" — the Journal of the Quebec Family History Society (QFHS) — arrived last week. The 28 page journal has a picture of the world-famous Quebec City hotel, the Chateau Frontenac, on the front page. Taken in 1943, it is an impressive invitation to the index on the inside of the journal.
One of the articles includes "New Kid On The Block: St. James United Church" (Robert N. Wilkins, p.6), a piece about a Methodist church hidden from view in Montreal by shops built in front of it! Now on public view once more, it was one of the largest churches of the Methodist faith built in the world. It seats 2,000 people!
In this church in 1906, Booker T. Washington gave a speech on anti-slaverly. Another time, Harriet Beecher Stowe gave a similar speech on that topic, too.
At the end of page 3 is "Researching Your Family Lineage in France" in which the QFHS is offering to "... carry out detailed family searches of your French-Canadian Family Lineage(s) from Quebec to France".
They will do detailed searches for $50.00 per search and a search will take, on average three to four hours to complete - an average of $15 - $20 per hour. Where else can you find research, that experience, yet done with a knowledge only available at the QFHS?
One other article to note is their two-part series on "The Land Register of Quebec: Part I - The System" by Sharon Callaghan (p. 17) in which she says " ... that there is now an on-line, searchable database in which you can trace the history of any property in Quebec".
Part II of the article will appear in the fall issue of "Connections". She will take you on a tour of the website, and will review the search venue at <www.mrnf.gouv.qc.ca/english/home.jsp>.
There are also two articles on Montreal: "The City of Old" and "Phoebe David (1736/37-1785)" on pages 20 and 21. These should not be missed, as they provide great reading.
If you have never thought about joining QFHS, maybe it's time to consider doing so. I have been aware of Derek Hopkins and the gang since 1994, and they have done wonders with the English part of Quebec family history.
To see what else is avaible, go to their website at <www.qfhs.ca>, or send them a note at <admin@qfhs.ca>.
A daily blog about Canadian genealogy, heritage, and history
Saturday, July 26, 2008
LAC Releases Marriage Bonds
On June 26th, the Library and Archives released the marriage bonds for Lower Canada (Ontario) and Upper Canada (Quebec) called "I Do: Love and Marriage in 19th Century Canada" <www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/love-and-marriage/index-e.html>.
There is a nominal database with more than 10,000 Upper and Lower Canada marriage bonds. Bonds issued in Upper Canada are for the years 1803 to 1865, and the bonds issued in Lower Canada cover the period from 1779 to 1858.
I put in my maiden name, Barclay, and discovered 5 results - four from the Lower Canada Marriage Bonds, and one result from the Upper Canada Marriage Bonds.
If you click on a name, you will be taken to the webpage which gives you such information as the residence, the name of the future husband/wife, his/her residence, the date the bond was signed, the reference number, the volumes, the bond number, and the microfilm reel number.
Besides the search results, there is also a online exhibition of the letters and journal entries of Mary Westcott and Louis-Joseph-Amedee Papineau.
One should note here that the Nova Scotia Archives also has their marriage bonds (1763-1864) online. They have over 12,000 records, and they have been on since October, 2007.
They are available at <www.novascotiagenealogy.com>.
There is a nominal database with more than 10,000 Upper and Lower Canada marriage bonds. Bonds issued in Upper Canada are for the years 1803 to 1865, and the bonds issued in Lower Canada cover the period from 1779 to 1858.
I put in my maiden name, Barclay, and discovered 5 results - four from the Lower Canada Marriage Bonds, and one result from the Upper Canada Marriage Bonds.
If you click on a name, you will be taken to the webpage which gives you such information as the residence, the name of the future husband/wife, his/her residence, the date the bond was signed, the reference number, the volumes, the bond number, and the microfilm reel number.
Besides the search results, there is also a online exhibition of the letters and journal entries of Mary Westcott and Louis-Joseph-Amedee Papineau.
One should note here that the Nova Scotia Archives also has their marriage bonds (1763-1864) online. They have over 12,000 records, and they have been on since October, 2007.
They are available at <www.novascotiagenealogy.com>.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
More Canadian Content Coming to Ancestry.ca
In May of 2007, the Library and Archives of Canada (LAC) and The Generations Network signed an agreement in which Ancestry.ca would index the Canadian Passenger Lists (1865-1935) in the future on the Ancestry.ca. Now it looks like they will publish it next year - 2009.
If you cannot wait that long and have a need to know right now, the LAC has the microfilm records in the building on Wellington Street in Ottawa. Go to the Passenger Lists, 1865-1935 in the Canadian Genealogy Centre . They explain that the passenger lists were actually the immigration list for those years. There are no immigration applications or files.
The list from 1865 to 1935 are arranged by port and date of arrival, and if you do not know the name of the ship, you must search the unindexed lists by year.
If you go to Nanaimo Genealogical Society page, certain parts of the passenger list has been indexed by the NGS.
Arrivals at the Quebec ports for the periods of the 29 of May, 1907 to 13 October, 1910 and they are starting a list from 1907, working backward to 1900. They have indexed nearly 500,000 records, so it is worth looking there to see if you can find the people you are looking for who came to Canada.
If you cannot wait that long and have a need to know right now, the LAC has the microfilm records in the building on Wellington Street in Ottawa. Go to the Passenger Lists, 1865-1935 in the Canadian Genealogy Centre . They explain that the passenger lists were actually the immigration list for those years. There are no immigration applications or files.
The list from 1865 to 1935 are arranged by port and date of arrival, and if you do not know the name of the ship, you must search the unindexed lists by year.
If you go to Nanaimo Genealogical Society page, certain parts of the passenger list has been indexed by the NGS.
Arrivals at the Quebec ports for the periods of the 29 of May, 1907 to 13 October, 1910 and they are starting a list from 1907, working backward to 1900. They have indexed nearly 500,000 records, so it is worth looking there to see if you can find the people you are looking for who came to Canada.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
WorldVitalRecords Releases Canadian Jewish Data
Jewish Data has partnered with WorldVitalRecords to release over 500,000 records (including tombstones, school yearbook pages, and Citizen Declarations) from hundreds of Jewish cemeteries across the United States, Canada, Germany, and Israel.
In Montreal, the Back River Cemetery (1876-1934), Berri Street entrance; Back River Cemetery (1901-1934), South Denis entrance; Shearit Israel - Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1825-1999); and a portion of Baron De Hirsch Cemetery on Rue de Savane have been transcribed.
There are 23,000 records listed. You can search by the last name and can receive the last name, the first name, the civil year of record, and the location of the record. There is also a picture of the tombstone.
Avraham Laber, President of Jewish Data, said, "Our goal is to provide a home for Jewish records in order to help people study Jewish history and genealogy. Here we have thousands of hours of research already done for people, and it only takes them a few seconds to access the records. If they would search for the same records on their own, it would cost them much more money and time."
I was at a recent convention where David Lifferth, the president of WorldVitalRecords.com, was giving a talk on "Innovative Family Tools to Connect Families", and "The Fastest Growing Genealogy Resource on the Web!"
He used to be the president of Ancestry.com, so he should know what he is talking about, and it seems that he does, with more than 500,000 monthly visits and over 25,000 subscribers.
WorldVitalRecords was founded in 2006.
In Montreal, the Back River Cemetery (1876-1934), Berri Street entrance; Back River Cemetery (1901-1934), South Denis entrance; Shearit Israel - Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1825-1999); and a portion of Baron De Hirsch Cemetery on Rue de Savane have been transcribed.
There are 23,000 records listed. You can search by the last name and can receive the last name, the first name, the civil year of record, and the location of the record. There is also a picture of the tombstone.
Avraham Laber, President of Jewish Data, said, "Our goal is to provide a home for Jewish records in order to help people study Jewish history and genealogy. Here we have thousands of hours of research already done for people, and it only takes them a few seconds to access the records. If they would search for the same records on their own, it would cost them much more money and time."
I was at a recent convention where David Lifferth, the president of WorldVitalRecords.com, was giving a talk on "Innovative Family Tools to Connect Families", and "The Fastest Growing Genealogy Resource on the Web!"
He used to be the president of Ancestry.com, so he should know what he is talking about, and it seems that he does, with more than 500,000 monthly visits and over 25,000 subscribers.
WorldVitalRecords was founded in 2006.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Ancestry.ca Releases 1891 Canadian Census
I remember it well (because I was there at the 2007 Ontario Genealogical Society Conference in Ottawa) when Tom Sullivan from My Generations.com and the people from the Library and Archives Canada (LAC) said that they had just formed a partnership to share information.
I waited to see what they would put on Ancestry.ca, and late last year, the Drouin Collection appeared, and then some of the U.S./Canada Border Crossings came on board, and now the (searchable) 1891 Canadian Census has been published online.
Taken on April 6th, 1891, the 1891 census contains 4.5 million searchable names and 90,000 images of the original census pages.
Some of the information (online) of each person in the household is -
The census itself was handed over to the LAC in 1985. If you want to find out more about it, you can go to the Canadian Genealogy Centre or pay a visit to the Centre itself and view microfim numbers T-6290 to T-6427 to see it for yourself.
The 1891 Census of Canada is available to Ancestry.ca subscribers, or through a 14-day free trial.
I waited to see what they would put on Ancestry.ca, and late last year, the Drouin Collection appeared, and then some of the U.S./Canada Border Crossings came on board, and now the (searchable) 1891 Canadian Census has been published online.
Taken on April 6th, 1891, the 1891 census contains 4.5 million searchable names and 90,000 images of the original census pages.
Some of the information (online) of each person in the household is -
- name of each person in family or household on April 6, 1891
- relation to head of family or head of household
- sex
- age
- martial status (single, married, widowed, or divorced)
- country or province of birth
The census itself was handed over to the LAC in 1985. If you want to find out more about it, you can go to the Canadian Genealogy Centre or pay a visit to the Centre itself and view microfim numbers T-6290 to T-6427 to see it for yourself.
The 1891 Census of Canada is available to Ancestry.ca subscribers, or through a 14-day free trial.
Monday, July 21, 2008
British Columbia Celebrates 150th Anniversary
I received the June, 2008 newsletter, "The British Columbia Genealogist" (Vol 37, No. 2) from the British Columbia Genealogical Society the other day. They are celebrating their province's 150th anniversary by producing a very lengthy and detailed journal.
Edited by the extremely capable Diane Rogers, it has stories of "Discovery in a Trunk - HAYASHI, UJIMOTO", "59 Mile House, Account Ledger 1911-1913 - RYDER", and "Marine Workers, Vancouver, 1926".
Also, it has two interesting stories called "the most improved genealogies".
One is named "A Sailor Takes A Trip" and the other is "Mary Is A Bad Luck Name". They tell about a recent discovery the writer has made which has made their genealogy more exciting than it was before the "find".
You can contact Eunice Robinson <eunice@dccnet.com> if you wish to put in your story into next year's "Most Improved Genealogist Contest".
They also have the latest news about their society, the trips they have planned, a family research week at the local library, and queries.
You can go to their site at <www.bcgs.ca>, or if you would like to contribute an article to the journal, the email is <editor@bcgs.ca>.
Edited by the extremely capable Diane Rogers, it has stories of "Discovery in a Trunk - HAYASHI, UJIMOTO", "59 Mile House, Account Ledger 1911-1913 - RYDER", and "Marine Workers, Vancouver, 1926".
Also, it has two interesting stories called "the most improved genealogies".
One is named "A Sailor Takes A Trip" and the other is "Mary Is A Bad Luck Name". They tell about a recent discovery the writer has made which has made their genealogy more exciting than it was before the "find".
You can contact Eunice Robinson <eunice@dccnet.com> if you wish to put in your story into next year's "Most Improved Genealogist Contest".
They also have the latest news about their society, the trips they have planned, a family research week at the local library, and queries.
You can go to their site at <www.bcgs.ca>, or if you would like to contribute an article to the journal, the email is <editor@bcgs.ca>.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
The Library and Archives Canada (LAC) Reduces Hours
Canada's national library and archives — located in the nation's capital, Ottawa — has had quite a year with making multiple changes in its open hours.
Back in the early 1990s, it used to be open 24 hours (both the library and archives), but as we inched towards 2000, the hours that it was open to the public began to decrease. This continued until last fall, when the hours took the largest cutback in the hours of operation.
Eventually, it was explained by the LAC that a reduction of monies budgeted did not align, and a lot of the records that genealogists were looking for were already online. Ergo, the cut in hours.
Now on July 7th, they have decided to post the new hours for the consultation rooms and the Canadaian Genealogy Centre, and they are -
Monday, Wednesday, Friday - Open from 9:00 am. to 4:00 p.m. (For the reading room where the microfilm and microfiche reader are located, the hours are 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.).
Tuesday and Thursday - Open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (For the reading room where the microfilm and the microfiche reader are located, the hours are 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.).
Saturday and Sunday - 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
One bit of advice, if you are coming to Ottawa from out of town, go to their website first (to check on new security measures and how to get your research card), find out the correct hours, and then come and enjoy your visit.
Their website is <www.collectionscanada.gc.ca>.
Back in the early 1990s, it used to be open 24 hours (both the library and archives), but as we inched towards 2000, the hours that it was open to the public began to decrease. This continued until last fall, when the hours took the largest cutback in the hours of operation.
Eventually, it was explained by the LAC that a reduction of monies budgeted did not align, and a lot of the records that genealogists were looking for were already online. Ergo, the cut in hours.
Now on July 7th, they have decided to post the new hours for the consultation rooms and the Canadaian Genealogy Centre, and they are -
Monday, Wednesday, Friday - Open from 9:00 am. to 4:00 p.m. (For the reading room where the microfilm and microfiche reader are located, the hours are 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.).
Tuesday and Thursday - Open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (For the reading room where the microfilm and the microfiche reader are located, the hours are 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.).
Saturday and Sunday - 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
One bit of advice, if you are coming to Ottawa from out of town, go to their website first (to check on new security measures and how to get your research card), find out the correct hours, and then come and enjoy your visit.
Their website is <www.collectionscanada.gc.ca>.
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