The National Holocaust Monument

Canada is going to erect The National Holocaust Monument in the National Capitol Region (Ottawa-Gatineau) of Canada. .

Although construction has yet to start on the Monument, as the press release says “it will bring Canadians of all faiths together to remember the millions of innocent men, women and children counted among its victims. The Monument will help ensure the memory of the Holocaust is never lost. The hope is that by teaching current and future generations of Canadians the roots and causes of this atrocity, future acts of genocide will be prevented”.

Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research in Canada http://www.holocausttaskforce.org/memberstates/member-canada.html

The Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre http://www.mhmc.ca/en

The Vancouver Holocaust Centre Society http://vhec.org/index.html

Holy Cross Roman Catholic, Halifax, Nova Scotia

The ChronicleHerald.ca, an online newspaper http://thechronicleherald.ca/HCW/1265125.html, has a story in the paper about Halifax’s oldest Roman Catholic cemetery.

The story says “Five years ago, Holy Cross, which is a final resting place for 25,000 people, had reached a state of disrepair. Many of the 2,500 tombstones near the corner of South and South Parks streets had been toppled and broken as a result of vandalism, weathering and neglect. In addition, the cemetery’s 150-year-old chapel was crumbling”.

The cemetery had been established in 1843.

The project was helped by the Charitable Irish Society of Halifax and An Cumann, a non-profit Irish association.

Holy Cross Cemetery Trust http://www.holycrosscemeteryhalifax.ca/history/index.html A volunteer organization which has worked over the past years to restore Holy Cross Cemetery and its historical Chapel, started and completed on the 31st of August, 1843 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Find a Grave http://www.findagrave.com/php/famous.php?page=cem&FScemeteryid=639382 There are two records on this site – the burial of Charles Robertson, and Sir John Sparrow David Thompson.

Hands-on Early Ontario Land Records Course

Toronto Ontario Genealogical Society has added new course to their 2011 schedule -

This course will provide an introduction to the land granting process and the main types of Crown Land Department records, and how to use the various finding aids and collections at the Archives of Ontario to document your ancestor's acquisition of (or attempt to acquire) land in Upper Canada. Hands-on practice following several case histories through the records will help you proceed confidently with your own searches. Registrants must have e-mail and Internet access, and will be expected to do some assigned background reading before each class. Spaces are strictly limited. Please reserve early.

Prerequisite: Basic course or equivalent experience.

Schedule: Tuesdays, 5:30-7:30 PM, October 18, 25, and November 1, 2011 (a three week course).

Location: Archives of Ontario, 134 Ian MacDonald Blvd, Toronto M7A 2C5 (York University)

Instructor: Jane MacNamara

Fee: $50 ($45 for OGS members).

Registration information, and what other courses are available, please go to the Toronto Branch website at http://www.torontofamilyhistory.org/courses.html.

African Nova Scotian Diaspora: Selected Government Records of Black Settlement, 1791-1839

Here is a press release that I received from the Nova Scotia Archives -

"The Nova Scotia Archives is pleased to present a significant new online resource features unique documents reflecting the struggles and survival of African Nova Scotians, as the world marks the United Nations' International Year for People of African Descent.

It contains over 500 digitized and fully searchable government documents relating to early African Nova Scotian immigration and emigration. Many of the documents are rich in the names and reflect the experiences of Black Refugees who came here at the close of the War of 1812.

You can visit the exhibit at: http://gov.ns.ca/nsarm/virtual/diaspora"

Lauren Oostveen
Public Information Officer
Nova Scotia Archives
Department of Communities, Culture & Heritage
6016 University Avenue
Halifax, Nova Scotia
CANADA B3H 1W4
Ph:902-424-6073
oostvelj@gov.ns.ca

New/Improved Canadian Websites and Blogs Week 4

Here are some of the websites, and blogs that I have come across the week ending Sept 25, 2011

Major Boutron et compagnies http://majorboutroncompagnies.blogspot.com Genealogy about Estienne Boutron Major from Franche Comté to Nouvelle-France, and his lineage in North America, particularly in Quebec, Ontario, Michigan, and Louisiana.

A Latvian Canadian Story http://chelli11.wordpress.com A blog which covers French-Canadian genealogy, individual family history, Italian genealogy, Latvian genealogy, and Ukrainian genealogy .

Gumbo Genealogy http://gumbogenealogy.blogspot.com An Acadian genealogy with individual family histories, and Louisiana genealogy .

Rock of Ages: Grave Concerns http://leprechaunrabbit.wordpress.com The President of the Alberta Genealogical Society, known as "The Leprechaun Rabbit", has a blog about the cemeteries of Alberta.

Evans Books: Publications by Gwen Barry www.booksbygwen.ca I received an email from fellow Ottawa genealogist, Bonnie Miller, about this site in which Gwen Barry has published books on her own family lines and the history of Megantic County, Quebec. As Bonnie says, “What was even more useful for me was the free extensive genealogy database of the early families who lived there and where they eventually migrated to, as well as the links and references to other sources”.

Following the Ancestral Trail of Notable Canadian Families: Mitchell, Pearson, McKelvey & James http://web.me.com/jonathan_mitchell Jonathan Mitchell follows the Irish immigrant in the Canadian countryside.

Recensement de l'Acadie de 1671 (Census of Acadie, 1671) www.zonecousinage.com/recensement/acadie1671.html Site is in the French language, and gives the person's name, their age, and occupation.

AncestorStalker: A Leader In Professional Genealogical Research http://services.ancestorstalker.com Offers genealogy including DNA analysis for a fee. $

Irish Family History And Genealogy Contributed By Guest Bloggers And Brought To You By TheWildGeese.com http://thewildgeesegenealogy.blogspot.com This brand new sites invites people to write about their Canadian and other Irish Ancestors. It will focus on Irish Family History, and this week it is about a Nova Scotian Irish family.

Luxegen Genealogy and Family History www.luxegen.ca/category/genealogy Written by Joan Miller, with an emphasis on the prairie provinces and Quebec with surnames - Kerr, Wilson, Henderson, Irvine, Woodland, Aumack, Miller. Catch Joan's latest interview on Geneabloggers radio, plus “Genealogists – Capture Your Family’s Interest”, her latest blog post.

Think before you 'Delete'

In the most recent edition of the Moncton, New Brunswick newspaper, The Times & Transcript, Diane Lynn Tibert — a freelance writer based in central Nova Scotia — writes about the impact of emails in “Think before you 'Delete'".

She says that “E-mail is simply an alternative method of corresponding with others. The difference between e-mail and letters is that for the most part email leaves no history”.

Read about what she has to say about emails and genealogy at
http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/travelleisure/article/1440544

Tantramar Seniors' College

The college, located in Sackville, New Brunswick, is offering over 50 courses this fall in Sackville, NB; Amherst, NS; Moncton, NB; and The Greater Shediac Area, NB.

One of the courses is -

An Introduction to Memoir Writing

Tues 10:00 am to noon with Marilyn Lerch in Lafford Space. First class is Oct 11 with 8 classes. No maximum. Tuesday, September 27, 2011 in Trinity-St Stephen United Church Hall from 3:00 to 5:00 pm.

They will also be offering courses in genealogy, museums, and in researching cemeteries.

The website for the college is http://tantramarseniorscollege.ca. You can contact them at tsccoordinator@nbnet.nb.ca