Findmypast adds 4 million Yorkshire records

The following is from Findmypast:

Findmypast.co.uk has today, 30 September 2014, published online for the first time almost 4 million parish records in partnership with the Yorkshire Digitisation Consortium. The Yorkshire Collection comprises beautiful scanned images of the original handwritten registers held by six Yorkshire archives and spanning the years 1538 to 1989. Fully searchable transcripts of the originals enable anyone to go online and search for their Yorkshire ancestors by name.
The first phase of this landmark project, released today, includes nearly a million parish records from North Yorkshire County Record Office, Doncaster Archives and Local Studies, East Riding Archives and Local Studies Service, Teesside Archives and Sheffield Archives and Local Studies, as well as over 3 million parish records and Bishop’s Transcripts from the Borthwick Institute for Archives (University of York), which cover the whole of Yorkshire including West Yorkshire.
As the provenances of the records are defined by historical, rather than modern boundaries, areas now outside of today’s Yorkshire are also covered, such as County Durham. On completion this will be the most comprehensive online repository of Yorkshire family history records anywhere in the world.

Book Review: Ignored but Not Forgotten: Canada's English Immigrants

Lucille Campey's eleventh book is her third on English immigration to Canada following a series on Scottish immigration. It extends coverage in her previous books in the English series Seeking a Better Future: The English Pioneers of Ontario and Quebec and Planters, Paupers, and Pioneers: English Settlers in Atlantic Canada across the Prairie Provinces to the West Coast while summarising the previous works on the East. Additional chapters focus on the 20th century exodus, as a percentage of Canada's population immigration just before World War One far exceeded today's levels, child immigration, the perception of the English immigrant and, the journey to the eventual destination in Canada.
As with her previous books, Lucille has scoured archives in Canada and the UK for material that allows her to illustrate general patterns with anecdotal material bringing out personal stories, all carefully documented in nearly 100 pages of notes and bibliography.
In the census of 1921 Canadian residents born in England outnumbered the Scots and Irish-born combined. But the English in Canada didn't go about trumpeting their Englishness in parades and banquets. The Irish, Scots and Welsh retained homeland patriotic societies and traditions. St George's Societies enjoyed a transient existence but have virtually disappeared as the English chose to integrate into the Canadian mainstream. The English soon saw themselves as Canadians of British origin. Yet, Lucille writes, the English retained an allegiance to their home town, county or region, an interesting observation worth debating.
This book can be recommended to anyone seeking an overview of English migration to Canada and a guide of the many sources for in-depth research.
Ignored but Not Forgotten: Canada's English Immigrants, published by Dundurn, is available in paperback from various booksellers and in eBook formats.

Durham Diocese records at FamilySearch

September 26 saw browse images of various Durham Diocese records added to FamilySearch:

England, Durham Diocese, Renunciations, 1767 and 1794
England, Durham Diocese, Original Will Strays, 1743-1900
England, Durham Diocese, Registered Wills 1526-1858
England, Durham Diocese, Allertonshire Peculiar Stray Probate Bonds, 1732-1768
England, Durham Diocese, Allertonshire Peculiar Administration Bonds and Inventories,
England, Durham Diocese, Probate Inventories, 1676-1846

All are linked to an index on Durham University's website at: http://familyrecords.dur.ac.uk/nei/data/advanced.php

Genealogy at the OPL in October

October is an active month for genealogy at the Ottawa Public Library.

October 2 sees part 1 of Genealogy on the Internet being offered at the Greenboro branch at 10 a.m. - noon.

October 7 has Using Ancestry Library at the new Beaverbook branch from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

October 25 brings outreach officer Stewart Borden from the Archives of Ontario discussing the archives website and interlibrary loan service at the Main Library - 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

October 29 sees part 2 of Genealogy on the Internet offered at the Main Library at 9:30 a.m. - noon.

There are other presentations offered in French.

As always you can book an appointment with one of the OPL's genealogy specialists:

Johanne Chesnichesky at the Cumberland Branch, 613 580-2954 *39884
Diana Hall at the Main Library. 613 580-2424 *32139
Patricia Barlosky at Centrepoints Nepean. 613 580-2424 *41481

Find out more on these and opportunities in November at http://biblioottawalibrary.ca/en/program?f[0]=taxonomy_vocabulary_21%3A241

Workshop on Upper Canada & Canada West Research: Call For Speakers

Speaker opportunity notice.

Toronto Branch OGS and the Canadiana Department of the North York Central Library will be co-sponsoring a one-day workshop on pre-Confederation Ontario family history and local history research. Speakers are sought.

The topic is broad but lectures should emphasize sources, research techniques, or historical background that will be helpful in research — or a combination of the above. Workshop attendees will all be active  researchers. You are invited to submit proposals for lectures on any aspect of pre-1867 genealogical or local history research that fits the above criteria.

We need lectures for audiences at all levels of expertise. Each session will be one hour long, including five to ten minutes for questions. Lectures should be illustrated – we will provide a computer projector and a laptop for use in the sessions. Speakers will also be expected to provide a 

handout of supporting material (up to four pages), which we will photocopy for all registrants.

Speakers will be paid $100 per lecture hour, plus modest expenses for travel and accommodation.

Please submit your lecture proposals by e-mail. Keep them brief and informal, at this point. (We may ask for more details later.) Be sure to include your mailing address, phone number and a brief bio with your proposal.

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2014

To submit proposals or ask questions about the event, please contact Jean McNulty at courses@torontofamilyhistory.org.

To learn more about the Toronto Branch OGS, please go to the home page of our website at www.torontofamilyhistory.org. 

British Home Child Day

Today, Sunday 28 September is British Home Child Day in Ontario. Jumping the gun the Ontario East British Home Child Family,Township of Athens & Athens Heritage Society jointly sponsored a commemoration event in Athens on Saturday, 27 September.

Following a opening event with local dignitaries attended by about 65 people activities took place in three locations. The role of British Home Children in World War 1 was remembered.

Local organizations, which included BIFHSGO and OGS, mounted displays at the Joshua Bates Centre. In this photo you can just see a corner of the British Home Child quilt. John Sayers was on hand to help people with their research.

There were several home child trunks on display. I had forgotten that being so close to Brockville many of the children settled in the area came from Scotland with the Quarriers organization. Also on display were miniatures of medals awarded to Home Child VC winner Claude Nunnery.

A special display mounted at the Athens Museum included this list of some home children settled in the Athens area.

I didn't have the opportunity to visit the third venue, the Baptist Church, where a series of set presentations and an open mic opportunity were featured.

The total attendance likely exceeded 100.

UPDATE:  Find additional photos from the event at https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154634701600557&set=pcb.10154634705730557&type=1&theater

Kirsty Gray in Ottawa

A date for your diary:

Sunday, November 2
2:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Woodroffe United Church, Banquet Hall, 207 Woodroffe Ave.
UK Rockstar Genealogist Kirsty Gray will deliver two lectures:
Searching for Names: Challenges, Pitfalls and the Downright Ridiculous
Solving Problems Through Family Reconstruction.

This event is sponsored by OGS Ottawa Branch and BIFHSGO. Admission is $10 per person at the door. A break with light refreshments will be served between the two lectures.

Remains of WW1 Canadian soldiers identified

Eight years after they were discovered mitochrondrial DNA from the remains of four soldiers of the 78th Battalion, Clifford Neelands, Lachlan McKinnon, William Simms and John Oscar Lindell, has enabled them to be identified.

 

Another body is thought to be that of Albert Edward Ahmed, a Barnardo's home child.

Three additional soldiers remain unidentified. All eight are believed to have died during the Battle of Amiens in 1918.

 

Read the CBC story at http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/wwi-canadian-soldiers-remains-identified-1.2779824

Friday promise doesn't last

On September 19 Findmypast announced:

Every Friday from now on, we will be bringing you thousands of new records to explore over the weekend on our dedicated Findmypast Fridays page. 

One week later the "announcement" is about a school admission dataset released days earlier! Was it released prematurely? Or was something else not delivered on time? Just asking.

Did Your Ancestor Play Cricket?

CricketArchive aims is to provide "a comprehensive archive of cricket scorecards and player information. We aim to include the details of as many matches, players, grounds, leagues, tournaments as possible."

Much of the content is current. Historical material, which may contain information on cricket matches that have been played in a community of interest (including Ottawa) or on a cricket-playing ancestor, is included. Search from http://cricketarchive.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi

British Home Child Day 2014

It looks like a fine fall, even summer-like day so I'm heading to Athens, Ontario on Saturday. If you're nearer Toronto there's a parallel event at Black Creek Pioneer Village on Sunday

The Athens and Area Heritage Society in collaboration with the Ontario East British Home Child Family are hosting a full day of activities dedicated to British Home Children.

The Home Boys who enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force to fight in World War I will be honoured. The medals, including the Victoria Cross, awarded to Private Claude J.P.Nunney for his
service will be on display.

Events will be held in various locations in Athens. The Joshua Bates Centre and
the Athens Museum will open at 9 am for the day with various displays all relating
to Home Children.

The opening ceremonies will commence at 10 am in the park.

The Baptist Church will host various presentations throughout the day. One
speaker will be the daughter of a Home Child, Joan O’Malley, who sewed the first
Canadian flag. Other activities include walking tours, assistance with genealogical
searches, children’s activities, music, and refreshments. The day will conclude
with a dinner at the Cedar Valley Restaurant.

British Home Child Day activities at Black Creek Pioneer Village on Sunday, include:

• Book launch of Belonging, Sandra Joyce's sequel to The Street Arab - The Story of a British Home Child
• Performances by members of Barb Perkin's HOMECHILD Musical, Folk Singer Marion Parsons, as well as Highland and Irish Dancing - and of course, there will be bagpipes and drums!
• Author Marjorie Kohli will give a presentation on the contribution British Home Children made in the First World War.
• Rose McCormick Brandon will host an open mike session with British Home Child stories including two British Home Children.
• A multi-media installation inspired by the lost childhood of British Home Children by international artists Nerea Martinez de Lecea and Michele Woodey
• MP Judy Sgro, York West, former Minister of Immigration, will also be on hand to help in the celebrations
• This day will culminate in a SPECIAL DINNER to be held in the Village: reserved tickets, including parking, admission and a three course meal. Please see below for more details.

London prison records new on Ancestry

From series PRIS 11 at The (UK) National Archives, Ancestry has made available 28,849 records in:

London, England, Marshalsea Prison Commitment and Discharge Books, 1811-1842 
As described by TNA the main contents are: day commitment books record(ing) the name of the debtor brought into custody, the names of the creditor and attorney, with the damages and sums concerned. There's an entry for the commitment of Charles Dickens' father to the prison.
It also includes "Admiralty prisoners, confined after courts martial, with one further volume containing warrants for the commitment and discharge of such sailors."

From TNA's PRIS 10 series Ancestry makes available 32,198 records in:

London, England, King's Bench and Fleet Prison Discharge Books, 1734-1862
TNA lists the following collections in this series:
account books (including room rent and turnkey's and watchmen's wages)
chummage registers (recording cell occupancy numbers at weekly intervals)
class books (containing statistics on the financial status of individual prisoners in the Queen's Prison and on the accommodation situation)
commitment books (rough copies of those for the Queen's Prison for the relevant period)
abstract books (condensed versions of certain Fleet Prison commitment books)
day books (recording daily deliveries, discharges and final settlements of debts of prisoners, along with the names of the attorneys concerned)
Deputy Keeper's journals of prison inspections of the Queen's Prison (a daily record of the state of the prison buildings, cells, and number of prisoners detained)
Fleet Prison entry books for discharges (recording the dates of discharges of debtors)
Queen's Prison discharge book (the Keeper's own condensed version of discharge records for the relevant period)
account books used as exhibits from bankruptcy cases (accounts of private companies relating to two sets of debtors)
habeas corpus books for Fleet Prison and Queen’s Prison (recording transcripts of the writs sent to the prison keepers ordering them to deliver prisoners to be charged at various courts)
Marshal’s day or note books (containing jottings and reminders by the prison marshal)
Memoranda books (on a variety of subjects relating to discipline in the prison and on visitors allowed or forbidden within the prison precincts)
Documents relating to the release of prisoners during the Gordon Riots, June 1780 (during the riots prisoners from the King’s Bench and Fleet Prisons were set at large by the rioters; the records relate to the recapture of the freed debtors in accordance with the Release of Prisoners by Rioters Act of 1780 and the Destruction of Prisons by Rioters Act of 1781)
discharge books arising from insolvency acts
letters to the Governor, Queen's Prison
Fleet prison registers (recording the name and number of the prisoner, when and by whom he was committed, the amount of debt he owed or a note of his imprisonment for contempt, the date of discharge and other remarks)
indexes to unidentifiable books (listing names of prisoners; undated, possibly from Marshalsea Prison)
prisoners committed and discharged (containing rough lists of names of prisoners and dates of commitment or discharge)
nightly report books, Queen's Prison (recording the number of watchmen on duty, their state of sobriety, the name of the superintendent and further remarks)
day rule books (function unclear, but listing names of prisoners, some in receipt of regular money payments), most probably relating to the Fleet Prison

50% off Findmypast

You may have had the opportunity to try the Findmypast site at the BIFHSGO conference; perhaps you won one of the door prizes they offered or took advantage of the 50 free credits available to all attendees.

Now there's a 50% off offer - that gets my attention - available from findmypast.co.uk until the end of September.

Get your 12 month Britain subscription today for just £49.75 (usually £99.50). Your discount will be applied automatically, but should you have any trouble, simply type the code SEPT50 into the promotional code box at the bottom of the payment page and click 'apply'.

I'm a long time findmypast subscriber, now through the .com site. Their unique resources, especially the digitized British newspapers, keep me renewing. And in case you wonder, I get no kickback from publicizing this offer.

By the way, Findmymypast and findmypast are used interchangeably on the company websites.

UPDATE: The British Newspaper Archive is also offering a discount, 40% off a 12 month subscriptions until the end of September, that's £47.97. You'll need to enter the code SEPTEMBER12 on the subscription page.

The LAC website has changed

"In order to provide you with better service, we are currently redesigning our website. If you have difficulty finding what you are looking for, feel free to contact us."

That's been the notice that's greeted visitors to the Library and Archives Canada website for two years. Now, as of  September 24th, it's changed.

Will the redesign mean the better service promised? Check it out. Can you find things that were obscure before? Send your comments to LAC, and share your impressions in a comment below.

The Scottish Valuation Rolls for 1875

The Scottish Valuation Rolls for 1875 are now available on the ScotlandsPeople website. For the first time, the index is Free to Search and can be browsed free of charge until the 31st December 2014.

That's right ... you read FREE amd SCOTLANDSPEOPLE in the same sentence!

This latest addition comprises over 900,000 index entries and almost 72,000 digital images taken from 141 volumes of Valuation Rolls. All the Rolls are fully searchable by name and address, and researchers can investigate people living, working and playing all over Scotland.

Read more at www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/Content/Help/index.aspx?2307

Ancestry Update Ontario BMDs

Ancestry has updated Ontario BMD records sourced from the Archives of Ontario. Lesley Anderson, consultant with Ancestry, informs that the update includes:

• The right side or second page of several ledgers, previously missing from the browse, now added.
• Several marriage records with years 1907 and 1926 are corrected to 1901 and 1920, respectively.
• Other corrections are made to record or browse data based on member services tickets.
• Additional fields are opened for corrections in the image viewer.
• No new records are added, so this collection presently comprises:

- Births, with 2,172,124 records covering 1869-1913.
- Marriages, with 3,393,369 records for 1801-1928 including Ontario county, district and Roman Catholic origins as well as province-wide civil registration.
- Deaths, with 2,190,030 records comprising Ontario civil registrations of deaths, 1869-1938 and registrations of Ontario overseas deaths for 1939-1947.

HSO Meeting: Collecting and Recording Ottawa's History

The first meeting of the season, next Friday, 26 September 2014, for the Historical Society of Ottawa features a presentation "Collecting and Recording Ottawa's History" given by Rick Turcotte. There's more information at http://hsottawa.ncf.ca/coming.html.

Ken Bird R.I.P.

Word has come of the passing of Ken Bird.The Ontario Genealogical Society has lost a dedicated member who served as OGS President, the society's first Executive Director and, most recently, Regional Director for Region IV.

King and Country 100

A milestone for Toronto Branch of OGS, now with 100 local school war memorials indexed in their King and Country database. Read about it at http://torontofamilyhistory.org/kc-update-sep2014/

Findmypast adds some Fermanagh parish records

Some Fermanagh researchers may find these parish record additions at findmypast to be of interest.

• Baptisms comprise 3,312 records between 1796 and 1873 from 189 townlands in Devenish parish.
• Marriages comprise 941 records between 1800 and 1875 from 195 townlands in Devenish parish.
• Deaths comprises 1,877 records between 1801 and 1874 from 323 townlands in Devenish parish
• Burials comprise 10,376 records dating from 1669 and 2011 in 21 cemeteries in seven parishes: Ballinamallard Church Of Ireland; Benmore Church Of Ireland; Boho Church Of Ireland; Carrick; Garrison Roman Catholic; Inishmacsaint Island; Killadeas Church Of Ireland; Lisbellaw Church Of Ireland; Monea Roman Catholic; Old Derrygonnelly; Old Magheracross Graveyard; Old Slavin RC; Rossorry Church Of Ireland; Slavin Church Of Ireland; St. Faber's Roman Catholic; St. John The Baptist R.C. (?); St. Joseph's RC, Mullaghdun; St. Michael's Church Of Ireland; St. Molaise Church Of Ireland; St. Patrick's RC, Derrygonnelly; Sydare Methodist

A message to Canadian genealogists from Library and Archives Canada

Last Friday evening, at the opening of the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa annual conference, Cecilia Muir, LAC's Chief Operating Officer brought greetings from the new Librarian and Archivist: M. Guy Berthiaume.

He also asked that she share the five key priorities he has outlined for LAC. He does not see these changing in the foreseeable future, nor does he see this as a ‘vision’- a concept he feels is too grandiose.

These priorities are:
1. to acquire resources that represent Canada;
2. to improve the way we preserve both analogue and digital items;
3. to offer quality services to Canadians and to ensure access;
4. to adopt a more collaborative approach;
5. and to develop the 21st century strategies and infrastructure we need to manage our heritage.

He also asked that she share his four commitments, which he sees as the way in which LAC can fulfil our obligations as an organization and to help achieve those priorities:

1. First, LAC will be an institution dedicated to serving our clients, all our clients, including government, donors, universities, researchers, students, genealogists and the general public.

2. The second commitment is to be an institution that, drawing on the strength of all its staff, is at the leading edge of archival and library science and new technologies (such as web harvesting, digitization, digital preservation, etc.)

3. The third commitment is to be an institution proactively engaged with national and international networks in an open and inclusive way.

4. Finally, our fourth commitment is to be an institution with greater public visibility, highlighting the value of our collection and services.

Cecilia Muir added that:

• LAC needs to connect the dots for a public which has lost track of who we are, what we do, and why we matter. 
• There is a need to re-brand LAC as it were, promoting our place in the life of Canada and all Canadians. To tell our story in new ways. 
• Genealogists are an important clientele for LAC, and are therefore part of that story. Your research brings a very human and personal dimension to our collections and to Canadian history.  Your work brings to life the individual stories that make up our national fabric. 

Comment

These are encouraging words which we look to be followed up by action and meaningful continuing consultation with all client communities.

FreeBMD September update

The FreeBMD Database was updated on Friday 12 September  2014 to contain 241,001,812 distinct records.
Major changes this update, more than 5,000 entries, are: for births 1958. 1962, 1964-66, 1970-73; for marriages 1952, 1962, 1964-66, 1968, 1970-73; for deaths 1971-73.

Findmypast adds England and Wales National School Admission Registers and Log-books 1870-1914

Drawn from 25 archives and schools throughout England and Wales the new National School Admission Registers and Log-books 1870-1914. collection at findmypast includes 2,562,402  historical records from 1500 schools.

According to the collection documentation "This release includes records from 1500 schools from 12 counties across England and Wales – Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Devon, Huntingdonshire, Kent, Lancashire, Middlesex, Surrey, Wiltshire and Glamorganshire – and also Westminster.

Each record comprises a transcript and a colour image of the original register. The amount of information listed varies, but the records usually include a combination of the following information about your ancestor:

Transcript

First name(s)
Last name
Birth year
Birth date
Event year (either the year a student was admitted in the admission register or the year an entry was written in the log-book)
School name
Town
County
Country
Name of parent(s)
Image

The image may contain additional details, including:

Admission number
Admission date
Re-admission date
Claim to exemption from religious instruction (if any)
Residence
Father’s occupation
Previous school
Reason for leaving previous school
Date of leaving previous school
Details of any illnesses or other reasons for absence
Exam results"

There's a story in every entry. What's that behind 11 year old George Mogan found in the North London Certified Industrial Truant School? His father was in Canada and sent an allowance.

BIFHSGO 20th Anniversary Conference Photos

It's been a busy weekend with official attendance of 268 at the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa conference, this year featuring English family history research, Immigration from Great Britain, including Home Children and Genetic Genealogy.

Two of the Friday pre-conference seminar sessions included one with Paul Milner, left, on British military records to 1919, another with Sylvie Tremblay and Paul Marsden from Library and Archives Canada speaking on new and lesser known LAC resources.

In conjunction with the LAC pre-conference seminar there was a tour of the facility at 395 Wellington Street. Here conference co-chair Gloria Tubman is explaining some of the items in display from the collection of interest for the Canadian genealogist with British ancestry.

Debbie Kennett, Britain and the Commonwealth's premier Rockstar genetic genealogist gave several presentations and was busy throughout the conference with one-on-one consultations.

Friday evening's Don Whiteside Memorial Lecture featured Jennine Hurl-Eamon from Trent University speaking on "The Girl I Left Behind" -- the 18th century British soldier in love, here seen (left) speaking with BIFHSGO president Barbara Tose.

The DNA panel session with local speakers (l-r) Bob Mallett, Dave Cross, Bill Arthurs and Arthur Owen attracted a keenly interested audience.

The conference was an opportunity for intense discussion on British Home Children by (l-r) Gloria Tubman, John Dickenson and Marjorie Kohli.

There are many more photos by BIFHSGO photographer Dena Palamedes on the Society Facebook page.

Rockstar Genealogists Comments

Many comments to the poll sang the praises of those they voted for, and more generally:

"A great list. Aren't we lucky to have so many wonderful experts to learn from!!"

Some were not complimentary:

"Some of these have got to be a joke!"

Despite have opened nominations for five days with good publicity on various social media many people took the trouble to write comments included names of other people - 76 in all:

Deborah Abbott
Cameron Allen
Emily D. Aulicino
Stewart Baldwin
Bernice Bennett
Lloyd Bockstruck
David Bowie
Marwood Braund
John Anderson Brayton
Melinde Byrne
Joe Buggy
Angie Bush
Bruce Buzbee
Sharon DeBartolo Carmack
Sarah Cato
Shannon Christmas
Alex Daw
Laura DeGrazia
John Blythe Dobson
Elyse Doerflinger
John Donaldson
Bruce Elliott
Guy Etchells
Sr Mary de Lourdes Fahy
Aiden Feerick
R. Yves Gagne
Henry L Gates
Paul Gorry
Caitlin Gow
Karen Mauer Green
Alan Greenspan
Boyd Grey
Linley Hooper
Daniel Hubbard
Kathy Johnston
Margaret Jordan
Shamele Jordon
Michael Lacopo
David Allen Lambert
Jenny Lanctot
Elizabeth LaPointe
Lisa Lee
Denise Levenick
Barbara Vines Little
Leslie Mahler
Kenneth Marks
David McDonald
Julie Miller
Nicola Morris
Sean Murphy
Shelly Murphy
Michael John Neill
Kenneth Nordtvedt
Eileen M. ÓDúill
Ugo Perego
Paul C. Reed
Barbara Renick
Cynthia Richardson
Douglas Richardson
Miriam Robbins
Gary Boyd Roberts
Melinde Lutz Sanborn
Pam Sayre
Rick Sayre
Kerry Scott
Ginger Smith
Helen Smith
Diahan Southard
Paul Stone
Bryan Sykes
Nat Taylor
Neil D. Thompson
Angela Walton-Raji
Debbie Parker Wayne
Stephen White
Jane E. Wilcox

Some thought the whole thing a waste of time.

"... this Rock Star poll is rather silly and borderline unprofessional."

When the dust settles I'll ask for comments to see if the community wants to continue this poll into a fourth year, if so whether continuing with an open nomination process which could mean 250 or more names to look through is still the way to go, and whether there's scope for further geographic or other segmentation.

The first Ottawa WW1 death

Thomas Hardingham, the first WW1 Ottawa soldier buried at Beechwood cemetery, died exactly 100 years ago today.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission entry gives his name as Thomas William Hardingham which is also the name in his entry in the burial record at Beechwood Cemetery, cause of death is gunshot wound.

His civil death certificate gives the additional information that his age was 27 and that he lived for 6 hours following the wound.

There is a report in the Ottawa Citizen for 22 September of Pt Thomas Hardingham receiving a wound on the Rockcliffe range. The Ottawa Journal for the following day records his death with the name Thomas Hardingham.

I was unable to locate an attestation paper for him!

He appears in the 1911 Canadian census in Quebec with immigration in 1908. There are two records of voyages to Canada, the original in 1908 and a return after a visit in 1912. He appears in the 1901 and 1891 census with his family including father Charles and mother Jane,

There is an entry in the civil registration birth index for Thomas William Hardingham in the March quarter of 1888 in (Great) Yarmouth, Norfolk.

He is included as T W Hardingham on the war memorial at Great Yarmouth, the tenth person associated with that town to die in the war. His parents contributed 2 guineas to the erection of the memorial.

There are two Beechwood gravemarkers in section 29, plot 122; a standard CWGC stone and the original which reads:

In sacred memory of Thomas William most dearly loved and only son of Charles and Whippertie HARDINGHAM of Gt Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, killed in machine gun practice Sept 21,1914 aged 26 yrs “One of the best”

Urban Walkabout Map for London Researchers

If you're visiting the Society of Genealogists or London Metropolitan Archives and looking for somewhere to eat, more upscale than grabbing a sandwich at Prêt à Manger, take a look the Urban Walkabout Map of Clerkenwell and Farringdon.
When visiting the LMA it's a short walk to Exmouth Market with choices for all tastes. I've not been so fortunate finding a place to my liking near the SOG. Perhaps someone familiar with that area would be kind enough to post some suggestions.

Commonwealth Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by residents of Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales.

1. Janet Few
1. Chris Paton
3. Dick Eastman
4. Kirsty Gray
5. Thomas MacEntee
6. Lisa Louise Cooke
7. Judy G. Russell
8. Else Churchill
9. Debbie Kennett
10. Celia Heritage

Seven of the ten are women.

97% of people nominated received votes.

70% of respondents identified themselves as women.

45% of voters were from the England and Wales, 31% from Canada, 21% from Australia and New Zealand, and 3% from Scotland.

Five of the top ten are from England, four from the US and one from Scotland.

International Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by all.

1. Judy G. Russell
2. Roberta Estes
3. Megan Smolenyak
4. CeCe Moore
5. Dick Eastman
6. Thomas MacEntee

7. D. Joshua Taylor
8. Lisa Louise Cooke
9. Thomas W. Jones
10. Bennett Greenspan

Here are some statistics:

Five of the ten are women.
100% of people nominated received votes.
75% of respondents identified themselves as women.
66% of voters were from the US
All in the top ten are from the USA
The top non-US vote getter was Debbie Kennett.

Those above the break received at least half the number of votes as the top vote-getter.

OGS Qunite Branch Meeting

Saturday September 20, 2014    1 p.m - 3:30 p.m.    
Topic: Discovering the Lennox & Addington Archives
Presentation by Shelley Respondek
Lennox & Addington County Archivist

Local repositories are vital for researchers, providing many collections not accessible elsewhere. Knowing what is available is important as we create our research plans.

Quinte West City Hall Library
7 Creswell Drive, Trenton, Ontario

Branch information at www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canqbogs/

Ancestry from Toes: a feat of imagination

When you read words like "Some say that ..." and "****s often claim that ... " you know you're in a fantasy realm. Those two phrases are used in a recent My Heritage English blog post "Discovering Ancestry: Through our toes?"

A diagram with the title "BASED ON THIS WHAT ARE YOUR ROOTS" shows configurations with toes of various lengths named Egyptian, Roman, Greek, Germanic and Celtic."
I'd like to think My Heritage is treating this as "a bit of fun."

It does make you wonder though when the article includes the sentence "In Imre Somogyi's book, "The Language of the Feet," he writes how ancestry can be determined just by the shape of our feet."

I was unable to find any other reference to that book. The closest I could find by Imre Somogyi is "Livros Linguagem dos Pés do Seu Bebê."

His most widely available book is "Reading Toes," There's even a copy in the Ottawa Public Library.
As you'd expect for a work of this type it's full of anecdotes; not a hint of any peer reviewed scientific basis for the claims.

As someone said in reviewing another book,  "It is not a book to be lightly tossed aside. It should be thrown with great force."

DNA Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by those identifying themselves as genetic genealogists.

1. Roberta Estes
2. CeCe Moore
3. Judy G. Russell
4. Megan Smolenyak
5. Bennett Greenspan
6. Blaine Bettinger
7. Dick Eastman

8. Tim Janzen
9. D. Joshua Taylor
10. Stephen P. Morse

Here are some statistics:

Four of the ten are women.
98% of people nominated received votes.
71% of respondents identified themselves as women.
All are from the USA
The top non-US vote-getter was Debbie Kennett who didn't quite make the top ten

Those above the break received at least half the number of votes as the top vote-getter.

USA Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by those from the USA.

1. Judy G. Russell
2. Roberta Estes
3. Megan Smolenyak
4. CeCe Moore
5. Dick Eastman

6. Thomas W. Jones
7. D. Joshua Taylor
8. Thomas MacEntee
9. John Philip Colletta
10. Bennett Greenspan

Here are some statistics:

All are from the area
Four of the ten are women.
88% of people nominated received votes.
79% of respondents identified themselves as women.

Those above the break received at least half the number of votes as the top vote-getter.

Ancestry adds Birmingham, England, Rate Books, 1831-1913

1,038,957 records are in this collection of rate books, roughly equivalent to property tax assessment rolls, from the following locations: Birmingham, Handsworth, Aston, Harborne, Northfield, Kings Norton, Erdington, Balsall Heath, Yardley, Edgbaston

The records include who occupied the house, who owned the house, the type of dwelling, the name or situation of the property, how much rent was collected, and the rates paid. In some cases you may need to page forward for the rent and rate details, which appear on the next page. There are many more records for the later years.

BIFHSGO Conference 2014

For conference organizers it's always a bit of a relief to know that major speakers have made the journey safely. On Wednesday Lucille Campey and Debbie Kennett, accompanied by spouses, both landed in Ottawa.
Lucille came with her new book, Ignored but Not Forgotten: Canada's English Immigrants, released earlier this week by Dundurn. I'm looking forward to reading it when I get my hands on a copy.
Debbie will be making available a special offer from Family Tree DNA and extending her stay in Canada to meet up with cousins from her Cruwys line.
You can still register to attend the BIFHSGO conference this weekend by turning up at Library and Archives Canada. See everything on offer at www.bifhsgo.ca/

FLAC Annual Giant Book Sale

Books! Books! Books! Used and New, English and French, Vinyl LPs, CDs and much more!

Join Friends of Library and Archives Canada for their 20th Annual Used Book Sale

Saturday and Sunday
September 20 & 21, 2014, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

NEPEAN SPORTSPLEX
1701 Woodroffe Avenue, Ottawa
HALL F, via entrance # 2 (rear of building)
See map at http://www.friendsoflibraryandarchivescanada.ca/en/news/whatson.php

For more information call: (613) 943-1544

England/Scotland/Wales Rockstar Genealogists for 2014

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by those from Great Britain.

1. Janet Few
2. Kirsty Gray
3. Else Churchill
4. Celia Heritage

5. Dick Eastman
6. Debbie Kennett
7. Michael Gandy
8. Chris Paton
9. Nick Barratt
10. Jackie Depelle

Here are some statistics:

Nine of the ten are from the area
Six of the ten are women.
71% of people nominated received votes.
64% of respondents identified themselves as women.

Those above the break received at least half the number of votes as the top vote getter.

Tomorrow the blog will reveal the USA and DNA top Rockstar Genealogists.

Ireland Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by those from Ireland.

1. Steven C. Smyrl
2. Claire Santry

3. John Grenham
4. Fiona Fitzsimons
5. Brian Donovan
6. William Roulston

Here are some statistics:

All are from the area
Two of the six are women.
37% of people nominated received votes.
58% of respondents identified themselves as women.

Those above the break received at least half the number of votes as the top vote-getter. The list is truncated by a significant gap in the number of votes received.

Tomorrow the blog will reveal the USA and DNA Rockstar Genealogists.

Autosomal DNA Inheritance Illustrated

Kitty Cooper's DNA Mapper is a much appreciated utility within the genetic genealogy community. Using the Chromosome Mapper to make a four generation inheritance picture, Kitty's recent blog post, shows a real case of chromosome painting by someone fortunate enough to have DNA test results from four grandparents.
It's easy to see which from each of the granddaughter's chromosome pair came from the paternal and which from the maternal side. Also whole chromosomes at 7 and 21 come intact from different great-grandparents.
Wouldn't it be nice if our chromosomes naturally came coloured like this!

Canada Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists for 2014 as voted by those from Canada.

1. Dick Eastman
2. Chris Paton
3. Thomas MacEntee
4. Lisa Louise Cooke
5. Judy G. Russell
6. Glenn Wright
7. Geoff Rasmussen
7. Megan Smolenyak
9. Brenda Dougall Merriman
10. Lisa Alzo

Here are some statistics:

Two of the ten are from Canada.
Five of the ten are women.
81% of people nominated received votes.
75% of voters identified themselves as women.

All on the list received at least half the number of votes as the top vote getter.

Tomorrow the blog will reveal the England/Scotland/Wales and the Ireland Rockstar Genealogists.

England and Wales, BMD Registration Indexes, 1837-1920 at FamilySearch

Since the start of the month FamilySearch.org have been adding civil registration birth, marriage and death indexes for England and Wales to their database. Taken from the transcription of the GRO indexes made by FindMyPast, they were made independent of the transcriptions by FreeBMD. The indexes include name, record type, year, quarter, district, county, volume, and page number, information that can be used to order certificates from www.gro.gov.uk/GRO/content/certificates/default.asp

Australia/New Zealand Rockstar Genealogists

Join me in congratulating the top Rockstar Genealogists as voted by those from Australia and New Zealand.

1. Shauna Hicks
2. Judy Webster
3. Jill Ball
4. Chris Paton
5. Pauleen Cass
6. Thomas MacEntee
7. Dick Eastman
8. Cyndi Ingle
8. Sharn White
10. Nick Barratt
10. Kirsty Gray
10. Pat Richley-Erickson (DearMyrtle)

Here are some statistics:

Five of the twelve are from the area
Eight of the twelve are women.
69% of people nominated received votes.
76% of respondents identified themselves as women.

All on the list received at least half the number of votes as the top vote-getter.

Tomorrow the blog will reveal the England/Scotland/Wales and the Ireland Rockstar Genealogists.

Getting Connected with your Past in Ottawa

Well known Canadian genealogist Lesley Anderson is again offering classes and workshops through the Ottawa Catholic School Board. From the guide description:

"Getting Connected with your Past!

Join these fun and interesting courses designed for those who would like to find out about their ancestors. We will be looking at what you need to get started and what resources are available both on the Internet and in the community.

Genealogy – Level 1
Come and rattle those bones in your family tree!
This is a fun 8-week course on how to get started using both online computer resources and offline community resources. We will concentrate on using Ancestry.com’s genealogical databases and other Internet websites. We will be discussing: Getting Organized, Good GenealogyWebsites, Civil Registration, Parish Records and Census Records. Two classes will be spent on
field trips.
Fall Dates 2014
8 Weeks, 7:00 pm-9:00 pm $110 + HST
Holy Trinity Wed Start Oct 1

Genealogy – Level 2
We continue on our quest to find our ancestors… This course will discuss: Review of Level 1 Resources, Passenger Lists, Online Family Trees, Military Records, Newspapers, Wills and
Other Records. We will concentrate on using the Ancestry.ca website and other Internet resources.
One class will be taken up with a field trip.
Winter Dates 2015
6 Weeks, 7:00 pm-9:00 pm $78 + HST
Holy Trinity Wed Start Jan 28

Searching Effectively on Ancestry
This workshop will provide an overview of Ancestry. Topics include: getting started, membership/logging in; customizing your home page; quick links and message boards;
shoebox; keywords; card catalog; viewing, printing and saving images; Ancestry Member Connect; what’s new and where to find help! We’ll also look at the various searches: global search, category search and websearch, as well as the different search options: exact matches, variations and wildcards. Note: participants will have access to Ancestry.ca/World Deluxe.
Fall Dates 2014
Workshop, 9:00 am-12:00 pm $25 + HST
St. Pius X Sat Oct 4
Winter Dates 2015
Workshop, 9:00 am-12:00 pm $25 + HST
St. Pius X Sat Jan 24

Starting your Online Family Tree
The workshop will cover the following: managing your online tree (privacy settings, inviting others
& viewing); profile pages; tree hints – auto searching; attaching records to someone in your tree; source citation; viewing & printing a family tree – group sheets & pedigree charts; member
connect – merging info from other family trees & contacting other members. We’ll also answer the questions what happens when I leave ancestry as a paying member? Finally we’ll have an overview of Family Tree Maker 2012 Software for computers. Note: participants will have access to
Ancestry.ca/World Deluxe.
Fall Dates 2014
Workshop, 1:00 pm-4:00 pm $25 + HST
St. Pius X Sat Oct 4
Winter Dates 2015
Workshop, 1:00 pm-4:00 pm $25 + HST
St. Pius X Sat Jan 24"

Find out more at http://continuingeducation.ottawacatholicschools.ca/content.php?doc=28,
and look for the details on page 23 of the program guide (linked from the top ribbon).

Rockstar Genealogists: Gold Medalists

Join me in congratulating those receiving the most votes by those living in the specified countries/areas, the "gold medallists," our 2014 Superstar Genealogists. None are repeats from last year.

Australia/New Zealand

Shauna Hicks

Shauna Hicks is a retired librarian/archivist living in Queensland who operates a small personal part time business specialising in local and family history research. She is a lead presenter for Unlock the Past, a series of history and genealogy events in Australia and New Zealand. Her business website is www.shaunahicks.com.au/ while she blogs at http://diaryofanaustraliangenealogist.blogspot.com/

Canada

Dick Eastman

Dick has been involved in genealogy for more than 30 years and worked in the computer industry for more than 40 years. A long-time blogger, since before the days of blogs, Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter is the world's most popular genealogy blog. It brings news with a US emphasis. Dick's particular forte, which makes his blog a must read for many internationally, is technology developments relevant to genealogy.

England, Scotland, Wales

Janet Few

Dr Janet Braund Few holds the advanced diploma in family history and genealogy awarded by the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies, and lectures regularly on family, social and local history. A prize-winning author and freelance researcher specialising in the southwest of England, Janet spends time living in the seventeenth century as her alter ego “Mistress Agnes,” imparting information about life in the time of the English Civil War. Janet website and blog posts are at http://thehistoryinterpreter.wordpress.com/

Ireland

Steven Smyrl

Steven C. Ffeary-Smyrl has practised as a specialist in legal and probate genealogical research for over twenty years. A Fellow of the Irish Genealogical Research Society he was a founding member and is a past chairman of the Council of Irish Genealogical Organisations. He is author or co-author of several Irish genealogical publications and contributes a regular column to the quarterly Irish genealogy magazine, Irish Roots.

USA

Judy Russell

Judy G. Russell, a Colorado native, has a bachelor’s degree in journalism, a political science minor and a law degree. As a genealogist she is a member of numerous societies and holds credentials from the Board for Certification of Genealogists® where she is a Trustee. As well as being an author and blogger at The Legal Genealogist Judy lectures extensively with more than 20 appearances scheduled before the end of the year.

DNA

Roberta Estes

A professional scientist and business owner Roberta has been an obsessed genealogist since 1978. She founded DNAeXplain in 2004 following a successful 25 year career as President of Information Access Strategies, Inc. Roberta manages over 20 surname projects and is teamed with Family Tree DNA to offer personalised DNA analysis for customers and custom analysis for surname projects.

Over the next few days the blog will reveal top ten Rockstar Genealogists lists as follows:

Wednesday: Australia/News Zealand and Canada
Thursday: England/Scotland/Wales and Ireland
Friday: USA and DNA
Saturday: International and Commonwealth

Rockstar Genealogists: Silver and Bronze Medalists

Here, as voted by those living in the specified countries/areas, are the Rockstar Genealogist "silver and bronze medallists."

Australia/New Zealand

Silver: Judy Webster -- www.judywebster.com.au/

Bronze: Jill Ball -- http://geniaus.blogspot.com

Canada

Silver: Chris Paton -- britishgenes.blogspot.com/

Bronze: Thomas MacEntee -- http://hidefgen.com/

England/Scotland/Wales

Silver: Kirsty Gray -- www.family-wise.co.uk

Bronze: Else Churchill - https://twitter.com/SoGGenealogist

Ireland

Silver: Claire Santry -- www.irishgenealogynews.com/

Bronze: John Grenham -- www.irishtimes.com/profile/john-grenham-7.1837409

USA

Silver: Roberta Estes -- http://dna-explained.com/

Bronze: Megan Smolenyak -- www.megansmolenyak.com/

As voted by those who identified themselves as genetic genealogists

DNA

Silver: CeCe Moore -- www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com/

Bronze: Judy G. Russell -- www.legalgenealogist.com/

Congratulations to the medallists.

The "gold medallists", Superstar Genealogists, will be posted tomorrow.

DNA Advances Genealogy

Social media were in the forefront of promoting the Rockstar Genealogist poll this year; lots of tweets, blog posts and Facebook mentions. Thank you.

I have to single out Roberta Estes who made a personal commitment on her DNAeXplained blog.

"If any of the above mentioned genetic genealogists  (CeCe Moore, Tim Janzen, Blaine Bettinger, Bennett Greenspan, Debbie Kennett, Katherine Borges and herself) are in the list of 2014 winners I’ll donate $250 to the War of 1812 Preserve the Pensions Digitization Project."

Roberta explained that by taking advantage of matching programs her donation would grow to $1,000 which would preserve 2200 pages. Read the details here.

While as a Canadian digitizing US War of 1812 records isn't a particular personal priority I love the choice. DNA data (evidence) is used effectively only in conjunction with conventional genealogical evidence. Roberta's choice creates a tangible new synergy.

Data for the poll overall showed 32% of those responding identified themselves as genetic genealogists, the highest percentage in Australia/NZ, the lowest in Ireland. Better get counting out the pennies Roberta, with those numbers chances are at least one of the seven will be found in the top ten winners list. We won't wait long to find out.

Genealogy Volunteer Rockstars

Now that this year's Genealogy Rockstars voting is done, and before the results are announced, let's give a thought to and recognize the thousands who volunteer serving on Boards and interest groups, organizing and running events, producing publications, transcribing and indexing resources, and much more.

We may not hang on their every word, crowding into a room to hear them. Often they prefer to keep a low profile. Yet I'm confident every Genealogy Rockstar recognizes that without volunteers family history would be, at very most, an impoverished pursuit.

It would be inappropriate, as well as impracticable, to list and vote on Genealogy Volunteer Rockstars. Hopefully you recognize them locally, it's important to do so. If you'd like to send a comment listing your local Genealogy Volunteer Rockstars I'll be pleased to add it on below this post.

Withdrawl from Rockstar Genealogist poll

I've received the following email from Elizabeth Shown Mills

John, with much respect for the excellence you are encouraging among those who research, write, and teach, I have a request to make: Having come in first both prior years, I should be disqualified—just as recipients of APG’s Smallwood Award are not nominated again in future years. Please drop my name.

Even though a large number of votes are cast for Elizabeth I'll respect the request and not tabulate votes for Elizabeth for Rockstar Genealogist rankings for 2014.

The Ottawa Citizen, Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1879-1885.

This new Ottawa Branch publication by Dolly Allen and Joan McKay includes all birth, marriage and death notices published in The Ottawa Citizen from 1879 through 1885. It bridges the gap between previously published birth, marriage and death collections for Ottawa newspapers. As the capital of the new Dominion of Canada grew quite rapidly in the years following Confederation, this publication contains a wealth of vital data, particularly for most prominent politicians, both local and
national. As usual at the time, the death notices provide interesting reading on their own. Ottawa Branch Publication No. 14-02. ISBN: 0-7779-5014-2 is available online through the Ontario Genealogical Society e-store  http://www.ogs.on.ca/ogsnewcart/ or by mail order through the Ottawa Branch catalog at http://ogsottawa.on.ca/publication-price-list/.

Thanks to John Patton for the tip.

Over Half a Million Additions to Findmypast

Findmypast has announced they will add  thousands of new, and often exclusive, records every week on Friday.

This week's total is just over half a million new records including:

Dorset Marriages 1538-1902 - over 191,726  records added to the existing collection from around 339 churches, chapels and Quaker Meetings within the county.
London Poor Law Records, 1581-1899 - 22,344 Poor Law records from 66 London parishes
Northamptonshire Hearth Tax, 1674 - 22,491 records that form a complete index to the lists for 1673–1674.
Archbishop of York Marriage Licenses 1613-1839 - 305,032 records containing the details of people who made applications for marriage licences

More Lancashire Cemetery Records at Deceased Online.com

Information on 350,000 burials and cremations now added to Deceasedonline.com is courtesy of Richard Gray.

"Blackburn with Darwen burial and cremation records available on family history website
One of the North West's first councils to digitize records for global access
All burial and cremation records for Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council have been digitized and added to the specialist family history website www.deceasedonline.com.
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council (BDBC) is a large area in the county of Lancashire, a little to the north of Greater Manchester and sandwiched between the City of Preston and Borough of Burnley. With a rich cultural and social history, the area is strongly associated with the industrial revolution throughout the 18th and 19th centuries and particularly textiles and was nicknamed 'Cotton Town'.
The digitized records on Deceased Online are for all three cemeteries and crematorium managed by BDBC : Blackburn Cemetery (aka Whalley New Road); Darwen Cemetery; Pleasington Cemetery; and Pleasington Crematorium. In total, there are records for nearly 350,000 burials and cremations representing over 1 million data items which comprise
Digital scans of all burial and cremation registers
Details of each grave indicating all those buried in each grave
Maps indicating the section within each cemetery where each grave is located
All records from the first burial in each site
The earliest records date from 1859 and the latest are from 2003.
Users of the Deceased Online website can search the database for free and if and when they find the searched-for subject, they can then choose to pay a modest fee for records which can be downloaded and saved. This means that global researchers are able to access the records 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
Previously, searches for these records would have had to have been done manually in old, large registers and Council staff undertaking this work would charge rates depending on the level of work required. The availability of the online digitized records means that Council staff will no longer need to do this and the rates paid by researchers via the website are less than those previously charged.
In addition, under statutory legislation, burial and cremation records need to be managed and preserved by all local authorities so their digitization and online availability mean that the Council has protected the records for future access and for staff administration.
The North West and Blackburn and Darwen areas have a rich history and are very popular with family historians and genealogists with many countries worldwide.
Deceased Online has digitized records for other nearby authorities including Bolton, Cheshire West and Chester and Trafford and other major local councils will also be adding their records to the website in the near future."

The Origins of Domestic Gothic Architecture in Ottawa

On September 26-27, 2014, Carleton University’s History Department, Heritage Ottawa, and the Pinhey’s Point Foundation, will co-sponsor a landmark colloquium on Ottawa’s domestic Gothic architecture, including tours, lectures, an exhibit, and a keynote address by Dr Timothy Brittain-Catlin from University of Kent School of Architecture in the UK.

Deadline for registration for the tour is 17 September. Find out more at http://www.carleton.ca/history/2014/department-hosts-colloquium-ottawa-gothic-september-26-27-2014/

Thanks to Bruce Elliott for the tip.

Osgoode Harvest Festival and Crerar's Honey Centennial

The Osgoode Township Historical Society and Museum newsletter includes publicity on their Harvest Festival on September 13 as well as an interesting article "Crerar's Honey Celebrates 100 Years." Here, with permission of the author Janet Crerar Corry, is the start of that article.

"The Crerar family immigrated to Canada in 1852 from Perth Scotland. Duff Gilbert Crerar, in 1914, set up his first hives of honeybees near Vernon in what was then known as Osgoode Township. While away serving in World War I, Duff's father Peter tended to the hives. Upon returning, Duff picked back up the beekeeping element of his mixed farming on the family land.

Bees were a fascinating insect to Duff so upon marrying Audrey Hughson in 1926 the young couple moved the current hives to their new matrimonial home and farm. While Duff kept sheep and bees he also rounded his income out as a tax assessor. Audrey and Duff formed the early foundation of what was to become Crerar's Honey Limited many years later. They had two sons Ian born in 1934 and Peter in 1937. Ian  in 1951 took over the honey business in its entirety upon the death of his father.

Duff had expanded in the 1940s the number of colonies and had made the principal income that of the beekeeping end of things. Winning several awards for his quality product he displayed and sold the honey at the Toronto CNE, Ottawa CCE, Royal Winter fair, and local fairs. Being named "Honey King of Canada" was a particularly distinguishing title

At age 55, dying of health related issues from his war service years; Duff's legacy became Ian's full-time job at the young age of 17. A family friend helped Ian to get started and from there the business boomed. In 1954 Ian married Bette Carscaden a farm girl from neighboring Russell. Together with their marketing skills, commitment to producing a quality product, and desire to work with the public turned Crerar's Honey into a full time – year round operation. Not only farm gate sales but also branching into the retail and wholesale markets in the city of Ottawa and surrounding villages. Ian too obtained the "Honey King of Canada" title in 1957 just as his father did before him."

Artefacts from the Crerar's collection will be on display at the Harvest Festival.

Rockstar Genealogist reminder

Forgot where to find the Rockstar Genealogist poll? Sorrty, voting is now closed.
If you'd like to review the list of nominees before proceeding to the vote they're at http://goo.gl/XZqI0F

As I write this 75% of those who've take the poll identify themselves as women. 31% self-identify as genetic genealogists.

Of the women 29% self-identify as genetic genealogists compared to 38% of the men.

Was your relative on the Franklin Expedition?

The announcement on Tuesday of the discovery of one of the ships of the Franklin Expedition by Parks Canada led me to wonder, who are the seamen whose remains might still lie among the wreckage?
Here, taken from a compilation of muster rolls at http://www.ric.edu/faculty/rpotter/muster.html and sorted by last name, are the officers and men of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror. Ages given would relate to the departure from England in 1845.

Andrews Joseph Captain of the Hold age 35 HMS Erebus
Armitage Thomas Gun-room Steward age 40 HMS Terror
Arthur Daniel Quartermaster age 35 HMS Erebus
Aylmore Richard Gunroom Steward age 24 HMS Erebus
Bailey John Able Seaman age 21 HMS Terror
Bates John Able Seaman age 24 HMS Terror
Bell   William Quartermaster age 36 HMS Erebus
Berry Alexander Able Seaman age 32 HMS Terror
Best   Charles Able Seaman age23 HMS Erebus
Blanky Thomas Ice Master HMS Terror
Braine William Private age31 HMS Erebus
Bridgens John Subordinate Officers' Steward age 26 HMS Erebus
Brown James W. Caulker age 28 HMS Erebus
Brown Samuel Boatswain's Mate age 27 HMS Erebus
Bryant David Sergeant age31 HMS Erebus
Burt   Thomas Armorer age 22 HMS Erebus
Cann George J. Able Seaman age 23 HMS Terror
Chambers George Boy age18 HMS Erebus
Closson William Able Seaman age25 HMS Erebus
Collins Henry Foster Second Master HMS Erebus
Coombs Charles Able Seaman age28 HMS Erebus
Couch Edward Mate HMS Erebus
Cowie John Stoker HMS Erebus
Crispe Samuel Able Seaman age 24 HMS Terror
Crozier Francis Rawden Moira Captain HMS Terror
Daly James Private age 30 HMS Terror
Darlington Thomas Caulker age 29 HMS Terror
Des Voeux Charles Frederick Mate HMS Erebus
Diggle John Cook age 36 HMS Terror
Downing John Quartermaster HMS Erebus
Dunn Francis Caulker's Mate age 25 HMS Erebus
Evans Thomas Boy age 18 HMS Terror
Fairholme James Walter Lieutenant HMS Erebus
Farr   Thomas R. Captain of the Maintop age 32 HMS Terror
Ferrier Robert Able Seaman age29 HMS Erebus
Fitzjames James Commander HMS Erebus
Fowler William Purser's Steward age 26 HMS Erebus
Franklin Sir John Captain HMS Erebus
Geater Josephus Able Seaman age32 HMS Erebus
Genge Edward Subordinate Officers' Steward age 21 HMS Terror
Gibson William Subordinate Officers' Steward age 22 HMS Terror
Goddard William Captain of the Hold age 39 HMS Terror
Golding Robert Boy age 19 HMS Terror
Goodsir Harry D.S. Assistant Surgeon HMS Erebus
Gore  Graham Lieutenant HMS Erebus
Gregory John Engineer HMS Erebus
Hammond John Private age 32 HMS Terror
Handford   John Able Seaman age 28 HMS Terror
Hartnell   John Able Seaman age 25 HMS Erebus
Hartnell Thomas Able Seaman age23 HMS Erebus
Healey Joseph Private age29 HMS Erebus
Heather William Private age 37 HMS Terror
Hedges William Corporal age 30 HMS Terror
Helpman E.J. Clerk in Charge HMS Terror
Hickey Cornelius Caulker's Mate age 24 HMS Terror
Hoar    Edmund Captain's Steward age 23 HMS Erebus
Hodgson George Henry Lieutenant HMS Terror
Honey Thomas Carpenter HMS Terror
Honey Samuel Blacksmith age 22 HMS Terror
Hopcraft Robert Private age38 HMS Erebus
Hornby Frederick John Mate HMS Terror
Irving John Lieutenant HMS Terror
Jerry    William Able Seaman age 29 HMS Terror
Johns Robert Able Seaman age24 HMS Erebus
Johnson Thomas Boatswain's Mate age 28 HMS Terror
Johnson William Stoker age 45 HMS Terror
Johnson Charles Able Seaman age 28 HMS Terror
Jopson Thomas Captain's Steward age 27 HMS Terror
Kenley John Quartermaster HMS Terror
Kinnaird Goerge Able Seaman age23 HMS Terror
Lane  John Boatswain HMS Terror
Lawrence   Edwin Able Seaman age 30 HMS Terror
Le Vesconte H.T.D. Lieutenant HMS Erebus
Leys    David Able Seaman age 37 HMS Terror
Little Edward Lieutenant HMS Terror
Lloyd Henry Able Seaman age26 HMS Erebus
Male Reuben Captain of the Forecastle age 27 HMS Terror
Manson Magnus Able Seaman age 28 HMS Terror
Mark William Able Seaman age24 HMS Erebus
McBean Giles Alexander Second Master HMS Terror
McConvey Thomas Able Seaman age24 HMS Erebus
McDonald Alexander Assistant Surgeon HMS Terror
McDonald David Quartermaster age 45 HMS Terror
Morfin John Able Seaman age25 HMS Erebus
Murray John Sailmaker age 43 HMS Erebus
Orren William Able Seaman age34 HMS Erebus
Osmer Charles Hamilton Purser HMS Erebus
Pearson Alexander Corporal age30 HMS Erebus
Peddie John Smart Surgeon HMS Terror
Peglar Harry Captain of the Foretop age 37 HMS Terror
Pilkington William Private age28 HMS Erebus
Plater Thomas Stoker HMS Erebus
Pocock Francis Able Seaman age24 HMS Erebus
Reddington Phillip Captain of the Forecastle age 28 HMS Erebus
Reed William Private age28 HMS Erebus
Reid James Ice Master HMS Erebus
Rhodes William Quartermaster age 31 HMS Terror
Rigden James Captain's Coxwain age 32 HMS Erebus
Sait Henry Able Seaman age 23 HMS Terror
Seeley Abraham Able Seaman age34 HMS Erebus
Sergeant Robert Orme Mate HMS Erebus
Shanks William Able Seaman age 29 HMS Terror
Sims David Able Seaman age 24 HMS Terror
Sinclair Robert Captain of the Foretop age 25 HMS Erebus
Sinclair William Able Seaman age 30 HMS Terror
Smith William Blacksmith age 28 HMS Erebus
Smith Luke Stoker age 27 HMS Terror
Stanley Stephen Samuel Surgeon HMS Erebus
Stickland  John Able Seaman age24 HMS Erebus
Strong William Able Seaman age 22 HMS Terror
Sullivan John Captain of the Maintop age 28 HMS Erebus
Tadman Thomas Able Seaman age28 HMS Erebus
Terry Thomas Boatswain HMS Erebus
Thomas Robert Mate HMS Terror
Thompson George Able Seaman age 27 HMS Erebus
Thompson James Engineer HMS Terror
Torrington John Leading Stoker age 19 HMS Terror
Tozer Solomon Sergeant age 34 HMS Terror
Walker James Able Seaman age 29 HMS Terror
Wall    Richard Ship's Cook age 45 HMS Erebus
Watson Thomas Carpenter's Mate age 40 HMS Erebus
Weekes John Carpenter HMS Erebus
Wentzall William Able Seaman age 33 HMS Terror
Wilkes Henry Private age 28 HMS Terror
Wilson Alexander Carpenter's Mate age 27 HMS Terror
Wilson John Captain's Coxwain age 33 HMS Terror
Work Thomas Able Seaman age41 HMS Erebus
Young David Boy age18 HMS Erebus