Ontario Ancestors, along with three of its branches and a special interest group, is this week hosting virtual meetings, including two that are hybrid. They are all open to the public and free.
For those who like to plan ahead, Ontario Ancestors recently published its monthly webinar series.
The following times are in Eastern time.
Monday, February 27, 7:30 p.m. — Toronto Branch
City of Toronto Archives: Resources for the Genealogist by Jessica Algie and John Dirks
The evening will begin with a mini-presentation from Gordon McBean, called Maybe She is Not Mine! Righting a Wrong. What happens when the obvious person is not really the right person!
Main presentation: Do you have family tree roots in Toronto? You can discover a lot about a person by researching where they lived. Jessica Algie, from the City of Toronto Archives, will demonstrate, step-by-step, how to find your ancestors in municipal archival records. We’ll start with online resources including maps, city directories and photos, before diving into local tax assessment rolls, which can be treasure troves of information.
Finally, archivist John Dirks, will give you a sneak peek at an exciting, newly processed collection, Fonds 602, First Unitarian Congregation of Toronto, now available for research at the City of Toronto Archives. This collection is of particular interest to genealogists as it includes vital statistics registers of marriages, child dedications and memorial services. Register.
Wednesday, March 1, 10:00 a.m. — Scottish SIG
Building Your Family Story discussion group led by Christine Woodcock
Sign up for all five free sessions and attend when you can. These are held the first Wednesday of each month from February 2023 up to and including June 2023. The dates are as follows: February 1, March 1, April 4, May 3 and June 7. All meetings are an hour and will start at 10:00 a.m. Register.
Thursday, March 2, 7:00 p.m. — Ontario Ancestors
In Her Own Words — Lives of Women by Diane Richard
We love to explore the lives of our ancestors. Documenting our female ancestors can often prove more challenging. They are less likely to appear in many of the public records created at the time – land, estate, court, tax records, and more. One great resource to learn more about our overshadowed female ancestors is via their own words. Personally written diaries, journals, correspondence, and more as found in private collections a.k.a. manuscript collections at many archives and library collections, are priceless.
Until recently with the advent of Archivegrid and online digitized finding aids, it had been challenging to identify and locate these types of materials. These personally written records are now more accessible than ever to us. Let’s explore how are you identify and access these materials as relevant to your research. We’ll explore the lives of a few southern women through the personally written documents which they created and which survive.
These women provide unique perspectives on not only their lives and on those women living in their community. Register.
Saturday, March 4, 10:00 a.m. — London & Middlesex Branch — Hybrid meeting
A gentle introduction to the holdings of Western Archives by Joanne Paterson
Searching in the archives can be very rewarding for the family historian. It can also be daunting and a little frustrating, and it needn’t be. With some planning, and armed with your research questions, you can find interesting titbits to enhance your family’s story. In this presentation, Joanne will demonstrate:
-
- tips and tricks to navigate the collection
- how to prepare for an onsite visit to the Reading Room of (University of) Western Archives
- some collection highlights that may be of interest to the family historian
Learn more and register here.
Saturday, March 4, 2:00 p.m. — Simcoe County Branch — Hybrid meeting
Putting Down Roots by Linda Corupe
Land ownership was something to which almost every Upper Canadian settler aspired. This presentation examines the various routes that could be taken in order to achieve that, and ends with a discussion of the different ways in which that property could then be lost. Learn more and register here.
