Friday, April 19, 2013

Call for Speakers – OGS Conference 2014

The Conference 2014 at Niagara Branch are looking ahead to line up speakers for Conference 2014 in St. Catharines at Brock Universit. The conference will be held May 1st to 4th, 2014.

The conference theme will be GENEALOGY WITHOUT BORDERS.

They say, in part, that “Although borders are an important aspect in defining a country, they also often delineate an area of genealogical study. In the past, genealogists often had to travel across borders to complete family histories in their genealogical area. Today's genealogist can often cross these borders while sitting at a desk. We can trace the movement of settlers from European countries and from the American states and other provinces to Ontario. We invite seminar proposals with this theme in mind.

Our Saturday and Sunday, May 3rd and 4th seminar sessions are generally fifty minutes length with ten minutes for discussion. We also have workshops on Friday, May 2nd, which are of three hours duration. We invite lecture and workshop submissions on a broad range of genealogical topics which will help to solve family history problems by any of the following methods

Use of technology in genealogy (DNA, internet, software etc.)

Records at a distance (especially Eastern USA and European)

War records, 1812, W.W. 1

Land Records, census, directories

Early Ontario records, prior to 1869 and their repositories

Proposals are also solicited for the broader genealogical categories including the histories associated with the War of 1812, methodology, analysis and problem solving used in genealogy

If your proposal is accepted, you will be notified early summer and we will request that you provide a 4 page summary of your talk or workshop for our syllabus by Dec. 31st, 2013. This should include references and web addresses mentioned, sample screen images etc. It will be submitted electronically (in Word, RTF or PDF format).

Please include your approximate travel costs, economy class to St. Catharines, Ont. Canada. Besides remuneration, food and lodging will be based upon the number of lectures given and transportation expenses will depend upon the speaker's home address. Workshop fees may be negotiated.

We are looking for speakers who would be open to being streamed out from the conference to those members who cannot travel but still wish to join us. As well we are looking for speakers who may be interested in speaking but cannot travel as we can stream you in to the conference”.

Questions can be directed to conference2014@ogs.on.ca

The website is at www.ogs.on.ca/niagara

Thursday, April 18, 2013

UPDATE: Ancestry.com has FREE Marriage Records

I usually don’t write about Ancestry.com (I just concentrate on Ancestry.ca), but if you want to find marriage records of your immigrant ancestors (especially if they were married in the United States before they came to Canada), you have free access until the 21st.

The site is at www.ancestry.com/cs/us/family-marriages

GENWEB UPDATE: Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario Cemeteries


The Canadian GenWeb has issued an update to the Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario cemeteries as follows -

ALBERTA

Lacombe:

-  Bentley Cemetery

QUEBEC

Huntingdon County:

- Tallen Family Burial Ground

ONTARIO

Brant County:

- Farringdon Cemetery

- Mount Hope Cemetery

Bruce County:

- Douglas Hill Cemetery

- Queen Hill Cemetery

Elgin County:

- St Thomas Cemetery

Essex County:

- Victoria Memorial Gardens

Grey County:

- Cookes Presbyterian / Orange Valley Presbyterian / Old Presbyterian Cemetery

- Mennonite Brethren In Christ Cemetery

Lambton County:

- Hillsdale Cemetery

- Point Edward Veterans Memorial Park

Manitoulin District:

- Michael Bay Cemetery

Norfolk County:

- Barton Family Cemetery

- Bethel Brethern in Christ / Tunkard Cemetery

Peel County:

- Brampton Pioneer / Harrison-Hewgill Pioneer Cemetery

- Cheyne Cemetery

Simcoe County:

- St Mary's Catholic Cemetery

Wellington County:

- Abandoned / Old Anglican Cemetery

The Canada GenWeb have given it thanks to Alison Mitchell-Reid, Anne Chamberlain, Bonnie Lee Breadner, Brenda Marchese, Giselle Loder, Jim Anderson, Joanne Krywko, Kate Ford, Marilyn Whiting, Nancy Ross-Hill, Sharon Mattiuz, Tom Thompson, and William Cooke for help indexing, and to Alison Mitchell-Reid, Anne Chamberlain, Bonnie Lee Breadner, Carolyn Bechtel, Doug Tracey, Joanne Krywko, Kate Ford, Linda Doran, Marilyn Mallet, Nancy Ross-Hill, Penny Gallagher, Pete Carell, Sharon Mattiuz, Thomas Rowe, and William Cooke for photos of the cemeteries.

To view the site, go to http://canadacems.blogspot.com/2013/04/alberta-quebec-ontario-update.html

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

FTM's Top 40 Genealogy Blogs in 2013


Thank you Family Tree Magazine for picking this blog as one of the Top 40 in this year’s list.

They say that –

“This daily blog about Canadian genealogy, heritage and history is crafted by Elizabeth Lapointe, a member of the Ontario Genealogical Society and editor of its newsletter. Though not technically an official blog of the society, this newsy and tip-filled site reads like a lively one”.

And we must not forget the other Canadian blogs that were mentioned –

• The Armchair Genealogist

• Olive Tree Genealogy

My congratulations to all of the bloggers who made and didn’t make the list.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The NEW FamilySearch is FINALLY Here!

The new FamilySearch has just gone online!

The website is much “cleaner” than it was before, much more organized, and more “user friendly" than it was before.
There has been over 85,000 visitors per day to the site, and they view over 5 million records per day.

Try the site out at www.familysearch.org, to see how it works for you.

Diary of Henry Jones

Lambton County Branch Meeting of the OGS will hold its regular meeting on Sunday, May 14, 2013 at 7:30 pm at 1400 Murphy Rd., Sarnia when they will present the Diary of Henry Jones 1832 by George Bice.

*Note: This meeting will also be available online via Live Meeting

Henry Jones brought settlers from Scotland to Lambton County to establish a communal settlement in the late 1820s. He was a believer in socialist theory, and his diaries are kept in the Lambton County Archives.

Lambton County Archives www.lclmg.org/lclmg/?TabId=110

They hold many records including –

Cemetery records - Lambton, Kent and most of Middlesex Counties

Local newspapers

Church records

Family surname files

Family histories

Directories

Historical atlases

Municipal records

Township papers

Ontario Vital Statistics

Lambton O.G.S. library

Lambton County Archives: History from the Vault http://lambtoncountyarchives.blogspot.com/2011_06_01_archive.html The Lambton County Archives also has a blog, where the Henry Jones’s diaries are written about quite extensively

Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?BioId=38113 Gives the history of Henry Jones, a community founder of Maxville, Ontario (near Brights Grove, Ont).

Go to the Lambton County Branch of the OGS at www.ogs.on.ca/lambton

Monday, April 15, 2013

New/Updated CANADIAN Websites, Blogs, Facebook, and Newspaper Articles – 15 April 2013

I have come across the following Canadian websites, blogs, Facebook, and newspaper articles this past week that were of interest to me, and I thought you might be interested in them, too –

Websites

There are no new/updated websites this past week.

Blog

TONI Coordinators Needed http://ogsottawa.blogspot.com/2013/04/toni-coordinators-needed.html Mike More, past chairman of the Ottawa Genealogical Society, has put a post on the blog looking for a TONI coordinator.

Your Community Blog
Toronto teens win Heritage Minute contest with epic trek story www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2013/04/toronto-teens-heritage-minute-commemorates.html Eamonn O'Keeffe, a 15-year-old high school student and history buff from Toronto, has created a Heritage Minute about the 110 kilometre march from New Brunswick to Kingston that was completed by the New Brunswick's 104th Regiment of Foot in 1813.

Facebook - Video – You Tube

Heritage Train www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zcWv8RSrBs Take a ride on CPR's Heritage Train travelling out of Josephburg, Alberta by watching a YouTube video.

Newspaper Articles

3D technology deciphers tombstones from 18th century www.sackvilletribunepost.com/News/2013-04-09/article-3216315/3D-technology-deciphers-tombstones-from-18th/1 Grant Aylesworth , a Mount Allison anthropology professor, is using new technology to preserve the past. He is reading the “illegible” tombstones from the 1700s using 3D software technology.

Consider economics, user dynamic in rural library services - Bridgewater deputy mayor http://southshorenow.ca/archives/2013/041013/arts/Consider_economics_user_dynamic_in_rural_library_services___.html.php Read what the deputy major has said about a “user-pay” system that may be considered as a possibility at a recent town- hall meeting about saving the town's library.

Princess of Wales' Own Regiment's 150th year honoured by Canada Post www.sacbee.com/2013/04/09/5328087/princess-of-wales-own-regiments.html
The Regiment's first deployment came in 1866 when it was sent to the Niagara region to deter Fenian attacks from the United States. Its members have served as part of the Canadian Forces in every major conflict since then.

In Alberta, World Heritage sites include Dinosaur Provincial www.calgaryherald.com/travel/Photo+Vote+Your+photos+Alberta+heritage+worthy+sites/8222405/story.html In an article, the newspaper points out that Alberta has World Heritage sites, including Dinosaur Provincial Park, Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks. They want the readers to send in photos to the newspaper in honour of World Heritage Day.

Alberta government donates funds for upgrade of Lacombe's archives http://www.lacombeglobe.com/2013/04/11/alberta-government-donates-funds-for-upgrade-of-lacombes-archives As part of her “Culture Connects” tour, Alberta Culture Minister Heather Klimchuk toured various historical sites around the city to promote them and remind Albertans how important their past is to their future.

Pictures and Story of the Week

Obee 10 Top Tips: How to Bust Through Your Genealogy Brick Wall www.youtube.com/watch?v=33NcRbkm-eQ&list=UU9Qr-Qu_vz66fh4d9rdXaOQ&index=1
There are more RootsTech 2013 YouTube videos on the Internet, and I came across one done by Lisa Louise Cooke, where she interviews a Canadian genealogist and speaker - Dave Obee.

As Lisa Louise says “Apply the Top 10 Genealogy Research Tips that Dave Obee gives Genealogy Gems Winner Sarah Stout at #Rootstech to your own research and get results”

You can read all the details on Sarah's ancestor's incredible story and the complete list of tips at Lisa Louise Cooke's blog at
http://lisalouisecooke.com/2013/04/winner/

Dave is the Houston Lecturer this year at the Ontario Genealogical Society where he talks about Seven Habits of Highly Successful Genealogists - Seven things to remember as you conduct research and compile your data.

He is also giving four lectures at the conference–

Lecture # 1 – Family History in Western Canada

Lecture # 2 – Introduction to Eastern European Family History

Lecture # 3 – Destination Canada

Lecture # 4 – Travel Smart with Technology

Dave’s website is at Dave Obee’s Family History Page www.daveobee.com

To read more news about the conference, go to www.ogs.on.ca/conference2013/registration

Look for more articles next Monday April 22nd.