To All the Mothers on My Direct Line

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the women in my direct line that brought forth and nurtured their children.Without them I wouldn't be here today.

Jill Frances McMullen, Winifred Violet Warrener, Frances Mary Howe, Elizabeth Murdoch, Henrietta Jane Whitfield McGregor, Annie Elizabeth Starr Chipman, Margaret Stewart, Isabella McCulloch, Mary Ann Kay, Henrietta Jane Whitefield, Eliza Ann Wells, Catherine McKinnon, Maria Elizabeth Jenkins, Sarah Eliza Starr, Margaret Orr, Janet Campbell, Mary Smith, Isabella Birnie, Ann Rudsdale, Ann Pape, Susan Fair, Florence Bardge, Ann Fraser, Mary Foley, Jane Innes, Ann McDonald, Sarah E Pickel, Maria Waring Little, Sophia Araminta Cogswell, Thamar Troop, Mary McEwan, Margaret Houston, Margaret Pettigrew, Eleanor Maynard, Jane Philips, Sarah Howell, Hannah Baxter, Elizabeth Sherwood, Mary Ann Fowler, Mary McGown Dickie, Elizabeth Beckwith, Esther Fairweather, Jemima Sawtelle, Lydia Parker, Ann Osborne, Lydia Huntington, Katherine Chipman, Jean Allen, Elizabeth Handley, Margaret Homes, Hope Howland, Elizabeth Young and Elizabeth Tilley.

There are so many more yet I don't know their names but I will keep striving to find them.

Library and Archives Canada RG 8, C Series How-To

Library and Archives Canada has a great collection of pre-confederation military files available on their site in what they call the RG 8, C Series files. From their page on British Colonial Era that collection is described as:

"This series covers the period from the American Revolution to the mid-1800s. It includes a wide range of documents relating to the British Army in Canada, Loyalist regiments, the War of 1812, the Canadian militia, etc. A nominal/subject card index and the actual records are available on microfilm. References located in the index provide a brief description of the document, date, C Series volume number and a page number. After consulting the index, refer to the list of microfilm reel numbers for the actual records."

On the third floor at the Library and Archives Canada building at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa there is a set of wooden card catalogue boxes containing the index cards for the RG 8, C Series microfilms. These cards have also been digitized and placed online under "British Military and Naval Records (RG 8, C Series) - INDEX ONLY". I will be the first to admit that I find the online index to be time consuming to use and not as easy as flipping through the paper cards. But they are accessible to everyone without having to physically visit LAC.

However, before you start using this collection I would strongly recommend that you read the Help Page that Library and Archives Canada provides on searching this collection. The key index on that page is the breakdown of what names and regiments are on which microfilms that hold the index cards.


Here is a sample of one of those digitized index cards:

On the card is the person's name, a description of what the microfilmed document contains, a "C" number and a page number or two. In this case, the card points to volume 169 pages 139 and 143.

On problem is that the "C" number on the index card doesn't refer to the microfilm "C" collection. (Confused? So was I for a long time.) So the challenge is going from the "C" volume number on the index card to finding the document on the correct the "C" microfilm. To do that you need to go to the "RG 8, C Series: Microfilm Reel Numbers for Records (arranged by volume number)" page [NOTE: Due to a bad link on the LAC web site you can find this page archived by the Wayback machine at http://web.archive.org/web/20140331103002/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogy/022-909.002.07-e.html]. In this case, after looking through the page, I see that volume 169 is on microfilm C-2774.

Now you need to get to "British Military and Naval Records (RG 8, C Series) - DOCUMENTS" page so you can view the right microfilm. Finally you jump around the C-2774 digitized images of the microfilm until you find volume 169 and pages 139 and 143 in that volume. Fortunately at the bottom of the microfilmed images you will normally find the volume number. Most of the microfilms have multiple volumes records on them so it may take a bit of work to get to the right part of the microfilm. Additionally, the page number is often written in the top corner of the page.

Here is the image from the digitized microfilms that the index card referenced:

The best part about the digitized images is that they are normally of superior quality to the microfilms found on the open access stacks at Library and Archives Canada. In total it took me about 5 minutes of work to locate the microfilm, volume and specific page. Since I live so close to the Library and Archives Canada building in Ottawa I still find it easier to use the physical card catalogue when browsing and then I go online to view the document. But for those that don't live in Ottawa, this collection is a wonderful source if you have an ancestor that served in Canada prior to Confederation.

Why can't I find the records listing my ... ?

Sorry for the almost two month long absence from posting here. I had to step away from genealogy research since I was getting a little frustrated and tired doing my research. So ... back to the blog.

One of the common questions I see from beginners is, "Why can't I find the records listing my ... ?"

It is a reasonable question with an answer that many new researchers don't like to hear, that most of the information of genealogical concern is still not online. The well-known sites like FamilySearch, Ancestry, MyHeritage, etc. are trying to make a dent but even with their efforts in digitizing the records that they can negotiate to gain access to (some places just say no) there will still be the challenge and time delay of indexing the images.



So where do you start then if you can't find the record you want?

Step 1: Always look for the answers at home first. If possible, ask for copies of birth and marriage certificates. Don't forget about those newspaper clippings (birth announcement, weddings, obituaries) that are held that often talk about family members. Call up or write to (e-mail or otherwise) the other living family members and ask them questions about what they might have in their possession or even recall (take dates from their memories with a large grain of salt).

Step 2: Find out what libraries and archives exist in the areas that the people you are looking for resided in. Contact those places to find out if they have any details on the family lines. Some of the archives and libraries have placed name indexes on-line that can aid in your searches.

Step 3: Reach out to other researchers for help. Attend genealogy and historical society meetings to learn more about the time period and additional research techniques and resources. If you are a Facebook user, take a look at the "Genealogy Links on Facebook" PDF pulled together by Katherine R. Willson for a list of Genealogy related groups. Before asking a question in those groups you may want to read my two part post on "When Asking for Help ... Part 1 and Part 2"

Step 4: Look in those other resources other than birth, marriage, death and census records. Have you looked into wills & probates, military service records, immigration and passenger lists, and newspaper articles? Many of those documents aren't readily available on-line and you may need to ask or hire someone to get copies of the files for you.

Finally, don't give up in your searching. Documents and resources are appearing all the time.

Why research the female line?

Recently I came across a question in one of the genealogy groups on Facebook where it was asked "Shouldn't I also be researching the female lines?" and it actually made me pause. From the context of the rest of the posting, the poster had only been researching the male line up to this point.

For most of us researching in English speaking countries such as Canada, United States of America, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia normally the male line is the easiest to research. Often the male's surname doesn't change through their life, the men are the ones with long term occupations and they are the poor souls that are drafted or voluntarily join the military to fight in the wars. Simply put, males, in our patriarchal society, seem to have the most records.

But if you are only researching the male line then you are missing out on 50% of the family, 50% of your heritage and potentially a whole bunch of information on the lives of your ancestors.

In my own case, I've always researched the female lines along with the male lines. On many occasions the documents found for the women have led to additional clues as to the whereabouts of missing male ancestors. Sometimes what has been found has been eye opening. One example was the discovery of the separation agreement between Wills Frederick Knox and Submit Howe that was recorded on 5 Mar 1824 in the "New Brunswick, County Deed Registry Books, 1780-1930" collection on FamilySearch.org. Because I was looking for her information I was able to find one of the key documents needed to prove a relationship between her, her brother, and subsequently to her father, Lt. Caleb Howe. Out of that discovery I also took the opportunity to learn more about the history of property when it came to women living in the British Empire. You see, she couldn't receive the land she brought into the marriage but instead, upon her separation, her brother had to be the party of the second part to get the land for her. Strange but that is how it was written in the document.

So to answer the question, "Shouldn't I also be researching the female lines?", the answer is a resounding:

YES

30th Gene-O-Rama in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

From the Ottawa Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society:

The 30th Gene-O-Rama takes place less than a week away on March 21-22 at the Confederation Education Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. If you haven't already registered, there is still time! Registration information can be found here: http://ogsottawa.on.ca/gene-o-rama/

We are really excited for this year's event! We have lined up some great presentations for you. Here are just a few you can look forward to:

• Excited to learn more about the largest collection of genealogical information on the planet at Gene-O-Rama? Even if you have used FamilySearch.org before, Shirley-Ann Pyefinch will tell you about all the newest features! 

• Get ready to identify your genes! Canada's Anglo-Celtic Connections blogger John Reid is ready to untangle your 'Genetic Genealogy'.

• Local genealogy guru Glenn Wright and Ancestry.ca's Lesley Anderson will be educating us about the Military settlements in Richmond, Perth and Lanark - and since many Canadians can trace their ancestry to Eastern Ontario, there should be useful information for almost everyone!

• Wherethestorytakesme.ca author Jane MacNamara from Toronto will be telling us about the evolution of women's property rights in Ontario - and the records associated with land ownership contain some of the richest genealogical treasures out there.

• Hoping to learn more about your First World War ancestor? The work being done by volunteers at the Rideau Township Historical Society and the Rideau Branch of the City of Ottawa Archives should showcase sources you can use while learning more about the young men from Rideau Township who gave their lives during that global conflict.

• Hoping to overcome your brickwall at Gene-O-Rama? Ken McKinlay is ready to educate you about various ways to work around them, using real-life examples! 

In addition to speaking at the conference I will also be the host of the Research Room. So if you are attending, please drop by and say hello!

Speakers announced for British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa Conference

Speakers announced for British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa Conference

OTTAWA, 8 March 2014 — The British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) has announced the speakers for the annual conference, to be held 19-21 September, at Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa.

For its 20th anniversary year, the society will celebrate with an ambitious program which will help family historians delve into their British Isles roots.

The society expects to welcome more than 250 attendees at the event, which has three special themes:

• English family history;
• Immigration from the British Isles, including Home Children; and
• Genetic genealogy.

“Our nation’s capital is also its family history capital. Every year we have welcomed folks from far and near, researching their ancestors in collections at Library and Archives Canada and learning about resources for discovering their British and Irish roots at our conference” said BIFHSGO President Glenn Wright.

This year’s conference speakers will include:

Dr. Lucille Campey — emigration historian, author of numerous books on British Isles emigration to Canada who will launch her latest book Ignored but not forgotten - Canada's English Immigrants at the conference.

Gail Dever — BIFHSGO webmaster, social media expert and blogger at Genealogy à la carte.

John Dickenson — a former professor at Liverpool University who now researches Canada’s Home Children, especially their involvement in the First World War.

Dr. Janet Few — freelance researcher and prize-winning author specializing in the south-west of England who will give a streamed-in presentation on North Devon immigrants to Canada.

Paul Jones — retired publisher, “Roots” columnist for Canada’s History magazine who speaks
frequently on offbeat topics at family history events.

Debbie Kennett — an avid genetic genealogist, author of DNA and Social Networking (2011) and The Surnames Handbook (2012). Debbie is Honorary Research Associate in the Department of
Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London.

Paul Milner — an internationally recognized speaker specializing in British Isles research, author
of Discover English Parish Records and Genealogy at a Glance: English Research.

Gary Schroder — long-time President of the Quebec Family History Society and a frequent
guest on Quebec radio and television promoting family history research.

In addition, speakers at pre-conference seminars on September 19 will include, from Library and Archives Canada, Paul Marsden and Sylvie Tremblay.

BIFHSGO looks forward to welcoming you at its 20th anniversary conference. Reserve 19-21
September 2014 in your agenda now and look for more details coming soon on the society website at
www.bifhsgo.ca.

BIFHSGO Contacts:
John D. Reid, Conference Program Chair, conference@bifhsgo.ca
Mary-Lou Simac, Publicity Director, publicity@bifhsgo.ca

Genealogy Red Flag ... What Next?

There you are ... happily entering in the various census records of a distant relative when you suddenly realize that the listed daughter of the head of household appears too old to be the daughter of his wife. What do you do now?

That was the case when I was recording the 1920 census details¹ of Manuel Bell Thorne with his wife Etta and 5 year old daughter Mariam. Only problem was that I had found what I believed was the index to the marriage of Manuel to Etta M. Draper in the Minnesota Official Marriage System (MOMS) that took place on 28 Aug 1919 in Hennepin County, Minnesota.

Red Flag

What I did next is fairly simple ... I stopped what I was doing.

OK, there was a little more to it than just that. Here is the process I when through to try to understand what was going on.

1. I stopped the data entry (recording where I had been in my work so I can pick up where I left off).
2. I then reviewed the records I had previously found concerning Manuel Bell Thorne for anything I might have missed or had recorded in my research notes (you do keep research notes, right?).
3. In his US World War I draft registration card² I had noted a Mae Elizabeth Thorne listed as the nearest relative and she was residing at the same address as Manuel. Could this be a possible wife?
4. Back to MOMS for a search but nothing was found.
5. A search on Ancestry.ca resulted in finding an indexed entry for a marriage of Manuel B Thorne to Mae E McMahon. Yet it pointed to a database on FamilySearch.org. (More of these databases are appearing on the various sites as FamilySearch has been partnering with the other genealogy research web sites.)
6. So off to FamilySearch.org to look for that entry. There were two records for that marriage: one that was the index entry in the "Minnesota, Marriages, 1849-1950" collection of a marriage taking place on 15 Jan 1914 in Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota, USA³ and the other was in the "Minnesota, County Marriages, 1860-1949" collection with an image of their Application for Marriage License⁴ in Hennepin County, Minnesota, USA.
7. Back to MOMS yet again for another search but this time using Mae McMahon as the search criteria. There I found the index entry for the marriage of Manuel Thome and Mae E McMahon.
8. The details of that marriage were then recorded in my database since I believe that is the correct marriage.
9. A To Do item was also added to order the microfilm containing the marriage registration from the Family History Library so I can verify all the details and find out what else was not recorded in the index.
10. Finally, I linked Manuel's daughter Mariam Thorne not as a daughter of Etta M. Draper but as the daughter of Mae Elizabeth McMahon. A To Do entry has also been created for 2015 to search for and hopefully order Mariam's birth registration to answer the question as to who is her mother.

Yet I had an unanswered question ... did Mae E. Thorne die or was there a divorce? I already had a To Do item to order the marriage registration for Manuel B. Thorne and Etta M. Draper so that would probably answer the question. But it would be some time before I would be placing the order. So I did a quick search on the Minnesota Historical Society's Minnesota Death Certificates Index for a Mae Thorne. There I found the index entry for a Mae E. Thorne that died 20 Jan 1919 in Hennepin County, Minnesota, USA. Looks to be the right person based on name and county and she did die several months before Manuel married Etta. So another To Do item was created to order her death registration to confirm that she is the right person I am looking for.

Always keep a look out for those "What the heck?" kind of red flags when you are reading and analyzing the records. If it doesn't make sense then stop and think. Don't continue and blindly accept what is written. The informant may not know the truth or the record you are looking at may not actually hold the answers. If you are using an application to record and track what you have found, does it has a potential problem report that you can run? If so, run it periodically. This report can help you identify details such as :

• missing children, 
• marriages that take place when either party is possibly too young,
• wrong years entered in for events, and
• events that may have taken place after a death (possible wrong record?)

So pay attention to what you are recording. If it doesn't make sense ... STOP!

---

1. 1920 U.S. census, Hennepin County, Minnesota, population schedule, Minneapolis Ward 13, enumeration district (ED) 237, sheet 9B, dwelling 186, family 222, Household of Manuel B Thorne; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com/ : accessed 7 Mar 2014); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T625, roll 838; 
2. Ancestry.com, "World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database on-line, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com/ : accessed 6 Mar 2014), entry for Manuel Bell Thorne, serial no. 1129, order no A1990, Draft Board 13, Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota; Original data: United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm.
3. "Minnesota, Marriages, 1849-1950," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FDDX-M9H : accessed 07 Mar 2014), Manuel B. Thorne and Mae E. Mcmahon, 15 Jan 1914.
4. "Minnesota, County Marriages, 1860-1949," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VKNB-QT7 : accessed 07 Mar 2014), Manuel B Thorne and Mae E Mcmahon, 1914.