This week’s Ontario Ancestors virtual presentation topics include… Library and Archives Canada, DNA, French Canadian research, Scottish research, MyHeritage, and mind mapping

Posted on October 14, 2024 by Gail Dever

The folks at Ontario Ancestors are taking a break for today, Thanksgiving Monday, but the rest of the week is filled with 10 virtual and hybrid presentations. All are open to the public, and all but two are free.

A special mention goes to the Sudbury District Branch which is celebrating its 45th anniversary. Their one-day event includes presentations and tours. And here’s what’s great for those of us who aren’t able to make it in person. They’ve made at least three of the presentations available for free by Zoom.

The following start times for the presentations are in Eastern time.

Tuesday, October 15, 1:00 p.m. — Scottish SIG
Scottish Registers of Deeds by Fergus Smith

Register to watch online.

Tuesday, October 15, 7:00 p.m. — Nipissing District Branch
Mind Mapping for Genealogy by Crystal Foisy

We will learn what mind mapping is and, using examples, how we can use it in our genealogy research. This is a hybrid event. Attend in person at the North Bay Public Library or register before October 15 to watch online.

Wednesday, October 16, 7:00 p.m. — Thunder Bay District Branch
AncestryDNA’s Timber, ThruLines & SideView by Blaine Bettinger

The Timber, ThruLines, and SideView tools at AncestryDNA are widely misunderstood. In this lecture, we will examine these tools and how they can be utilized to expand our research. Register to watch online.

Thursday, October 17, 12:00 – 7:30 p.m. — Sudbury District Branch
45th Anniversary Celebration

This year, the Sudbury District marks 45 years as a branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society aka Ontario Ancestors. For a schedule of the activities planned for the day, visit their website and click on Pamphlet side 2 for a complete schedule. 
 
The event will be open to all, with some presentations also being available on Zoom. Online presentations include MyHeritage, DNA and French Canadian research. Register to watch online.

Attend in person at the Greater Sudbury Public Library, Mackenzie Branch. The library is partnering with the branch to provide lots of information for those interested in pursuing their family’s history.

Thursday, October 17, 7:00 p.m. — Ontario Ancestors
Genealogy Journaling Workshop by Clare Wilson

Researching your family tree is a journey of self-discovery. Therefore, it is important to not only record what you discover in relation to your family history, but to record the journey in doing so and how it made you feel.

Another important thing to document are the family stories that have been passed down through the generations. It is so important that these are not lost and can be passed on down the family.

This workshop will include discussions on how to record your journey, the items you might like to consider using to record your thoughts and stories, and some journaling ideas to get you started.

This series is free to all Ontario Ancestors members. Non-members can purchase the series for $30 or individual webinars for $15. To register, visit the Ontario Ancestors website.

Friday, October 18, 7:00 p.m. — Niagara Peninsula Branch
What’s Happening at the Grimsby Historical Society by Ev Page

Ev Page is excited to share the ongoing historical discoveries and the exciting work currently being undertaken by the Grimsby Historical Society. Register to watch online.

Saturday, October 19, 10:00 a.m. — Kingston Branch
The Ontario Name Index (TONI): An Introduction by Mike Moore

This is a hybrid meeting. Attend in person in the Champlain Room at the Seniors’ Centre, 56 Francis St., Kingston, or register to watch online.

Saturday, October 19, 1:00 p.m. — Ottawa Branch
Exploring Library and Archives Canada Online by Ken McKinlay

Over the past few years the website for Library and Archives Canada has undergone a number of changes. For some long-time users of the old site, this has caused moments of frustration. In this talk we take a look at the new site, touch upon using the new census search system, and explore other resources they have made available to us. Register to watch online.

Saturday, October 19, 1:00 p.m. — Quinte Branch
What does our genealogy centre do? by Janet Comeau

The Seventh Town Historical Society is based in Ameliasburgh, and operates the Marilyn Adams Genealogical Research Centre, an organisation dedicated to collecting and preserving family histories – with a special focus on Prince Edward County and area.

This is a hybrid meeting. To attend in person in the Multi-purpose room at the Quinte West Public Library in Trenton, email quintemembership@ogs.on.ca to provide your name(s), or register to watch online.

Saturday, October 19, 1:00 p.m. — Scottish SIG
Where are the records? by John Pelan

John Pelan will give us an overview of the Your Scottish Archives website. John provides organizational leadership for the Scottish Council on Archives, and working with trustees, staff and stakeholders, develops its strategic direction. He also leads on the development of a new portal which aggregates data from collections across Scotland — Your Scottish Archives.

This series is free for members of the Scottish SIG. Go to the Members Only area to register and get the Zoom link.

For members of Ontario Ancestors, but not the Scottish SIG, the three webinars in the series will cost $15. For non-members, the fee is $25.  To register for the series, visit the Where are the Records series page.

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Qualicum Beach Family History Society’s webinar on accessing images in FamilySearch

Posted on October 13, 2024 by Gail Dever

The Qualicum Beach Family History Society in British Columbia will host the free webinar, Be a Super Sleuth: Accessing Images in FamilySearch, delivered by Jill Morelli, on Wednesday, October 16, at 7:00 p.m. Pacific time.

Did you know that now over 95% of the online records of FamilySearch are not accessible by a surname search? Did you know that FamilySearch was now putting their newly digitized records in Images and NOT in the Card Catalog? How do you find these records and access the information you need? We will explore the access options Images to you and how to “read” the record for maximum efficiency. Also covered will be the new Beta Lab all-word document search.

Register by Monday
The deadline for registration is Monday, October 14, and it is required for non-members. To register, send an email to presentations@qbfhs.ca.  Learn more about this week’s webinar, along with the next one by Dave Obee in November, on the Qualicum Beach Family History Society’s website.

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This week’s crème de la crème — October 12, 2024

Posted on October 12, 2024 by Gail Dever

Some of the bijoux I discovered this week.

Crème de la crème of genealogy blogs

Blog posts
New Ontario Newspapers Online by John Reid on Anglo-Celtic Connections.

“Porter Talk”: Podcasting and the Power of Oral History by Stacey Zembrzycki on Active History.

Court Records Added to FamilySearch AI Search by Jennifer Dunn on Copper Mine Genealogy.

7 Ways to Get the Most from Genealogy Documents (Part 1 of 2) by DiAnn Iamarino Ohama on Fortify Your Family Tree.

Genealogy Education through Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) by Lisa Stokes on Family Locket.

Named Fellow for the New Netherland Settlers project by Yvette Hoitink on Dutch Genealogy.

AncestryDNA Updated Their Ethnicity Estimate (Now Called Origins) by Randy Seaver on Genea-Musings.

DNA Study by Marcia Crawford Philbrick on Heartland Genealogy.

Genetic Networks, Part 5: Use Ancestry Pro Tools’ Enhanced Shared Matches by Rick T. Wilson on MyFamilyPattern.

The Real Reason 23andMe Is Struggling: What They Got Wrong About DNA Testing by Amy on Untangled Family Roots.

Articles
How to Make a Family History Trivia Game by Lynn Bonsey, Family Tree Magazine, Cincinnati, Ohio.

7 Genealogy Activities You Can Do With Kids and Genealogy Projects for Kids of All Ages by Sunny Jane Morton, Family Tree Magazine, Cincinnati, Ohio.

For more gems like these throughout the week, join the Genealogy à la carte Facebook group. When you submit your request to join, you will be asked to answer two quick questions about your family history research.

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Plenty to learn on YouTube channel of Ontario Ancestors’ Essex County branch

Posted on October 11, 2024 by Gail Dever

Did you miss the virtual presentation, Photo Restoration and Storage, delivered by Dana Palmer this week at the meeting hosted by Ontario Ancestors’ Essex County branch?

If you did, no problem.

The recording is now available on the Essex County branch’s YouTube channel.

Also available on the YouTube channel are these recent presentations:

The Detroit Shoemaker — My Journey to Writing by Barbara Reaume Sandre

New Look at the FamilySearch Website and Online Resources (also how to best use FamilySearch for your Canadian research) by Julia A. Anderson

Huron Dioceses Archives Resources by Dez Nacario

Essex County branch has almost 60 educational videos on its YouTube channel.

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Quebec Federation of Genealogy Societies awards literary prize to André LaRose, author of book about a family in Beauharnois

Posted on October 10, 2024 by Gail Dever

The Fédération québécoise des sociétés de généalogie (Quebec Federation of Genealogy Societies) has awarded its first Roland J. Auger Literary Prize to André LaRose for his book, Joseph Barthélémy Robert et son cercle familial, 1826-1951. Portrait d’une famille d’entrepreneurs de Beauharnois.

The prize was created to be awarded annually to a member of a genealogical society. Its purpose is to promote works on family histories, ancestor biographies and parish monographs, and to interest the public in them.  The recipient receives a $1,000 grant. 

Mr. LaRose’s book, published in 2023, is about two generations of the family of Joseph Barthélémy Robert, from 1826 to 1951. It is the story of a family of entrepreneurs from the town of Beauharnois, southwest of Montreal.

In its decision, the jury highlighted the quality of the sources consulted to document this family history.

Joseph Barthélemy Robert was a successful manufacturer who specialized in woollens. He was also a pioneer in the field of hydroelectricity and the man behind the electrification of the town of Beauharnois and the founder of Beauharnois Light, Heat and Power, which was eventually sold by his heirs for $3 million in 1927.

Joseph Barthélemy Robert was a French Canadian Catholic and his wife, Sarah Roberts, was an English Canadian Presbyterian. After their marriage in 1855 at Montreal’s Anglican Christ Church Cathedral, the couple settled in Beauharnois.

The couple had five children baptized in the Catholic religion. They gave their children French first names, but raised them in English and as Presbyterians.

Unfortunately, the Robert family left no descendants. Their only grandson died at a young age.

Mr. La Rose, who is originally from Beauharnois, is an historian by training, and a translator and editor by trade. He is also a specialist in the history of the seigneury of Beauharnois, which was the subject of his doctoral thesis.

In the 1970s, Mr. LaRose became interested in genealogy while working for the Programme de recherche en démographie historique (Historical Demography Research Program) — also known as PRDH.

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Provincial Archives of New Brunswick releases 1973 marriage registrations

Posted on October 9, 2024 by Gail Dever

This week should be called New Brunswick Family History Week with all the recent opportunities to find relatives.

Newspapers.com recently added 10 papers from New Brunswick, Ontario Ancestors’ Lambton County branch last evening hosted a virtual presentation about researching New Brunswick ancestors, and the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick yesterday morning published 6,895 digitized images for 1973 registrations of marriage.

In April, the provincial archives published the 1928 late registrations of birth. These records can be searched in the same link as the one for the marriages.

What we haven’t yet seen this year are the 1973 death registrations for New Brunswick. Last year, the 1972 death registrations were made available online in April.

So, if you have relatives or ancestors who lived in New Brunswick, you’re probably doing the happy dance.

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Remains identified of WWI soldier Cpl William Benjamin Cunningham who was killed during Battle of Passchendaele

Posted on October 8, 2024 by Gail Dever

The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces have confirmed that the grave of a previously unknown soldier is that of Corporal William Benjamin Cunningham, a Canadian soldier of the First World War.

Cpl Cunningham was buried as an unknown soldier in Tyne Cot Cemetery in Ypres, Belgium in 1920.

Corporal W. B. Cunningham.
Source: Provided to Department of National Defence by Reid and Debbie Cunningham, relatives of Cpl Cunningham.

His identity was confirmed through historical research conducted using numerous archival sources that included war diaries, service records, casualty registers, and grave exhumation and concentration reports.

William Cunningham was born near Hayfield, Manitoba on December 30, 1895, the second son of Hugh James Cunningham and Syllindia Isabel Cunningham (née Harper). He worked as a clerk in Brandon, Manitoba, and served in the 99th Manitoba Rangers militia unit before enlisting with the 181st Overseas Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF).

In April 1917, Lance Corporal Cunningham arrived in England to train with the 18th Reserve Battalion, CEF. In August 1917, he was taken on strength by the 44th Canadian Infantry Battalion and joined his unit in France. In September, Cunningham was promoted to the rank of Corporal.

That fall, during the Third Battle of Ypres, also referred to as the Battle of Passchendaele, the Canadian Corps’ main objective was to capture the village of Passchendaele, Belgium. In an assault that began on the morning of October 26, 1917, the 10th Infantry Brigade of the 4th Canadian Division (of which the 44th Battalion was a part) attacked along the eastern ridge on which ran the Zonnebeke-Passchendaele Road.

In just three days of fighting, 45 men of the 44th Battalion were killed. Of those, 29 were declared missing with no known grave.

According to his files, Cpl Cunningham was killed in action on October 27, 1917 during intense shelling while fighting at a forward outpost past the Canadians’ front lines. For unknown reasons, his remains were not identified.

He was 21 years old.

Headstone
A headstone rededication ceremony will take place at the earliest opportunity at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Tyne Cot Cemetery.

Cpl Cunningham is commemorated on Panel 28 of the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, which honours the soldiers killed in the Ypres Salient in Belgium during WWI who have no known grave.

He is also commemorated on his family headstone, located in the Brandon Municipal Cemetery in Brandon, Manitoba. The epitaph reads, “He that giveth his life shall find it.” An image of his headstone in that cemetery can be found on Findagrave.

Since it was founded in 2007, the Canadian Armed Forces’ Casualty Identification Program has identified the remains of 36 Canadians. In 2019, the Program officially took on the additional responsibility of identifying the graves of Canadian service members buried as unknowns, and has since identified 12. There are currently 40 active investigations involving remains, and 38 involving graves.

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MyHeritage extends free DNA transfer offer to October 13

Posted on October 8, 2024 by Gail Dever

MyHeritage has extended its special DNA transfer offer for a few more days. Until October 13 at 11:59 p.m., you can upload your DNA data to MyHeritage and get full access to all DNA features for free, forever.

This will save you the usual US$29 unlock fee per file.

MyHeritage supports uploads from Ancestry, FamilyTreeDNA (Family Finder) and 23andMe. 


So, what do you get with the unlock fee? For each new DNA file that you upload this week, you’ll receive free access to all advanced DNA features, including the Ethnicity Estimate and Genetic Groups, DNA Matches, and all tools to analyze your relationship to your matches.

How to download and upload
Unsure how to download your DNA info and how to upload it to MyHeritage? Roberta Estes explains in her blog post, DNA File Upload-Download and Transfer Instructions to and from DNA Testing Companies, step by step, how to download and upload your DNA data.

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Newspapers.com adds 10 New Brunswick papers

Posted on October 7, 2024 by Gail Dever

The good times continue for researchers looking for Canadian newspapers on Ancestry’s subscription site, Newspapers.com.

Within the last few days, they added 10 newspapers from New Brunswick for a total of 17 papers to search online from that Atlantic province. Some of the papers go back to a publication date from more than 100 years ago.

As of late yesterday, there were 550 Canadian papers on the site.

The new newspapers are:

The Moncton Transcript, Moncton, New Brunswick, 1905-1982
The Times-Transcript, Moncton, New Brunswick, 1875-2024
Saint John Times Globe, Saint John, New Brunswick, 1919-2001
The St. John Standard, Saint John, New Brunswick, 1909-2002
Kennebecasis Valley Times, Saint John, New Brunswick, 1989-1992
Telegraph-Journal, Saint John, New Brunswick, 1874-2024
The Northern Light, Bathurst, New Brunswick, 2010-2024
The Tribune, Campbellton, New Brunswick, 2002-2024
The Kings County Record, Sussex, New Brunswick, 2010-2024
Victoria Star, Grand Falls, New Brunswick, 2011-2020

With the recent addition of the Daily Gleaner from Fredericton, New Brunswick, this website has become quite an important research tool for family historians researching their relatives and ancestors in New Brunswick.

Whether you subscribe to Newspapers.com or not, you can easily find which Canadian newspapers are available. Just click on Papers in the top drop-menu. Next, select Canada above the default map of the United States. From there, you can select a province or you can enter a city name in the Filter by paper or location box.

Don’t have a subscription? You can sign up for a free one-week trial to view all of the newspapers. Warning: Newspaper research is highly addictive.

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Ontario Ancestors’ webinars this week — Connecticut Yankee or Loyalist?, New Brunswick research, and photo restoration/storage

Posted on October 7, 2024 by Gail Dever

Three Ontario Ancestors branches will host a free virtual presentation this week, and each one is open to the public. The topics cover an interesting range of topics: a Connecticut Yankee who also served in the King’s Rangers, researching ancestors in New Brunswick, and photo restoration and storage.

The following times are in Eastern time.

Monday, October 7, 7:00 p.m. — Leeds & Grenville Branch
A Connecticut Yankee in the King’s Rangers by Pamela Vittorio

Though genealogists rely most heavily on original documents to prove family relationships or identities, using artifacts, though unusual, may help untangle a same-name mystery. 
 
Between 1780 and 1783, Oliver Graham’s name appeared on both Connecticut and Loyalist militia rosters. Were there two men named Oliver Graham? One who had volunteered in Connecticut, fought with Seth Warner’s regiment in Vermont, and was captured during the Burning of the Valley; and the other, a private with the King’s Rangers who received many acres of Crown Land after the Treaty of Paris was signed?

A detailed paper trail from research in Canadian archives and two US states, combined with a nineteenth century watercolor painting and a Colonial powder horn, help confirm one man’s identity. Register to watch online.

Tuesday, October 8, 7:00 p.m. — Lambton County Branch
Researching Your New Brunswick Ancestors by Daphne Wetmore

Register to watch online.

Tuesday, October 8, 7:00 p.m. — Essex and Kent Branches
Photo Restoration and Photo Storage by Dana Palmer

Dana will discuss how to ensure your precious family photographs are preserved for future generations. She will demonstrate tips and programs to restore photos and best practices for photo storage. Register to watch online.

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