07/07/07 to 07/07/07

On Saturday I had the pleasure of attending a 100th birthday event for prominent local genealogist Elizabeth Stevens Stuart.

Elizabeth's afternoon arrival at the community hall in Vernon, in a vintage car, was heralded by a piper befitting her Scottish paternal origins. The hall was filled with family, including from the eastern US, friends and well wishers.

Before retiring Elizabeth was a teacher. Many of her former students were there to remember her contributions in days gone by. She has retained a passion for learning, and put this into practice in her own life when she started using a computer, a Mac, when in her early 90s.

Elizabeth was and remains a driving force in the Osgoode Township Historical Society and Museum. Eight of her genealogical publications are listed in the catalogue at Library and Archives Canada. A visit to the Museum in Vernon, to the Elizabeth Stuart Room, will reveal a host of research materials for Osgoode Township including a complete nominal card catalogue of all the surviving censuses for the Township. Many other resources, including local family histories, can be found under Our Holdings at the Society web site.

At the event we learned that her genealogy didn't start well as her birth was not registered. She does appear in the 1911 census. Best wishes to Elizabeth for a continuing full life.