Don't Let Family Lore Confuse You!

Shannah wrote to ask Olive Tree Genealogy about her Great grandfather William James Twiss

I have been trying to find out where my Grfa., TWISS, William James, had "landed" for over ten years, to no avail, from Cty. Cork, Ireland to New York, USA..  He was a mere 17 year old, at the time.  

The story I was told was that it was my Grfa. who had left Cork, Ireland, from Sept. to December of 1887 (I believe these are the months) on the Barque Julia, from Edinburough to Cork and to New York.  This particular Barque was a ship of supplies and the Captain was a friend of my Gr-Grpars., TWISS, Francis Edward Day, Sr..  It was my Grfa. who had suggested that he, himself, come out to Canada, first and they allowed it but he must go with someone they knew.  It was only a few days' trip and have researched into several ports along the eastern coast to no avail.  When he had landed, he had stayed with friends of his pars., (never knew who they were) Francis Edward Day and Ellen THOMPSON, in New York for a while then travelled up into BINBROOK, Wentworth Cty., Ontario, Canada to stay with our cousins/family there while his own pars. arrived through Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the following springtime.

 Shannah - 

Here is what I found which does not seem to agree with your family lore. That is not unusual as family lore can be family myth and is often incorrect or confused. Don't let it lead you down the wrong path when researching!

Source: Ancestry.com

Ed Twiss, age 40, farmer, his wife Ellen age 40 and three daughters Sarah
(20) Mildred (17) and Marcella (17) arrived 4 September 1888 at Halifax  on
board the steamer Peruvian. Their destination was noted as "Victoria BC"
Your ancestor is not with them on this journey.

The 1901 Census for British Columbia shows the family as Edward D. Twiss born 1839 Ontario, his wife Ellen born 1842 Ireland and two children - your ancestor William born 1872 Ireland and his sister Marcia born 1877 Ireland. Their year of immigration of Ellen and her children is given as 1889. 

We find Edward Day Twiss dying in July 1925 in British Columbia and his son William James dying in February 1953 in Vancouver British Columbia. His death registration found on FamilySearch indicates his date of birth as 11 November 1869, his father as Edward Day Twiss, his mother as Ellen Thomson and his wife as Sadie Jewell Brenton.

There are several death records on FamilySearch for your siblings of your William James Twiss: Mildred Jemima Twiss born 22 Sep 1868; Sarah Helena Nash Keen born 1866 in Kerry Ireland; Marcella Ellen Moodie born 22 Mar 1875 in Co. Kerry. Also William James Twiss marriage record 05 Jul 1906 shows he was born in Kerry, Ireland too. All these records come with images - how lucky is that!

I did find a few other items that might interest you - namely the marriage of William's father Edward to Ellen Thompson in Killarney Ireland. Her father is recorded as James Thompson. This might give you clues for more research in Killarney for the family.

 I found the birth of another son named Edward born 05 Sept 1872 in Ireland to Edward D. Twiss and his wife Ellen Thompson. Sarah Helena Twiss' birth was also found in the Irish birth records and her place of birth is recorded as Castle Island, Kerry Ireland. 

I am beginning to envy you all the records for your ancestors! And best of all here is your ancestor William James Twiss. A second birth record for William shows his place of birth as Annascall, Kerry Ireland. Now you have an exact date of birth and a location. Armed with this new information you have a lot of clues to help you in your search.

Summary of my findings:
Edward Day Twiss married Ellen Thomson/Thompson daughter of James in 1865 in Killarney, Kerry Ireland.  They immigrated to Canada 1888

Children:
* Sarah Helena Twiss  born 1866 in Castle Island, Kerry Ireland md 1 Nash m2 1893 B.C. John Keen, immigrated to Canada 1888
* Mildred Jemima Twiss born 1868 Castle Island, Kerry Ireland immigrated to Canada 1888
* William James Twiss born 1869 Annascall, Kerry Ireland md. 1906 B.C. Sadie Bointon
* Edward Twiss born 1872 Ireland
* Marcella Ellen Twiss  born 22 Mar 1875 in Kerry Ireland md. Walter Moodie
immigrated to Canada 1888

Don't Let Family Lore Lead You Astray!

Olive Tree Genealogy had an interesting question from Shannah about her grandfather.  My research findings point out the need to take family lore with a grain of salt and not accept it as gospel.

Here is Shannah's email:

I have been trying to find out where my Grfa., TWISS, William James, had "landed" for over ten years, to no avail, from Cty. Cork, Ireland to New York, USA..  He was a mere 17 year old, at the time.  

The story I was told was that it was my Grfa. who had left Cork, Ireland, from Sept. to December of 1887 (I believe these are the months) on the Barque Julia, from Edinburough to Cork and to New York.  This particular Barque was a ship of supplies and the Captain was a friend of my Gr-Grpars., TWISS, Francis Edward Day, Sr..  It was my Grfa. who had suggested that he, himself, come out to Canada, first and they allowed it but he must go with someone they knew.  It was only a few days' trip and have researched into several ports along the eastern coast to no avail.  When he had landed, he had stayed with friends of his parents., (never knew who they were) Francis Edward Day and Ellen THOMPSON, in New York for a while then travelled up into BINBROOK, Wentworth Cty., Ontario, Canada to stay with our cousins/family there while his own parents. arrived through Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the following springtime.

First I made a summary of the important statements in Shannah's email:

1. William James Twiss was born ca 1870 Ireland immigrated to N. America on the ship Julia in 1887
2. William's parents Francis Edward Day & Ellen Twiss sailed to Montreal Quebec in spring of 1888


Making a note of these statements  does not mean I accepted them as fact. It was obvious they were family lore passed on through the generations. 

After searching on Ancestry.com in census records to gain a better understanding of the Twiss family group, their names, ages and residence, I knew that Francis Edward went by Edward, when he was born, his given year of immigration and that he was in British Columbia from 1891 census on.

Turning to the Immigration records on Ancestry.com it did not take long to find Edward, his wife Ellen and 3 daughters sailing from Cobh, Ireland on the ship Peruvian. The Peruvian made stops at three ports: Baltimore Maryland, St. John Newfoundland and Halifax Nova Scotia. Beside the names of Edward and his family was the notation that they were headed to Victoria (British Columbia) Their arrival date was September 4, 1888. It is not clear if the family left the ship at St. John or Halifax but I suggest it was most likely Halifax. From there they could continue their journey to British Columbia.

 

TWISS family on Ship Peruvian September 1888

This is a typical example of family stories becoming mixed up over the years. My suggestion to Shannah for continuing the search for William is that she extend her year of immigration by 5 years on either side and not assume the ship name of Julia is correct.  She should also look for William in the 1891 census and all census years after that. The 1901 census provides an immigration year but she should still allow 5 years on either side of whatever is recorded. 

Clue for Shannah: In 1891 your grandfather is recorded as James W. Twiss and he is found with his parents and sisters in Victoria B.C. He is mis-indexed on Ancestry.com as the son of a Thomas Stephens but the image clearly shows him in the Twiss family. It's always wise to ignore the index information if a search result seems like a good possibility - always check the actual image if there is one.

3 Abandoned Children Find Each Other Years Later

This is an amazing and heart-warming story of three adults, each abandoned during a 3-year time span in Prince Rupert British Columbia, who have found each other. Each baby was left on a doorstep and found shortly after birth.

Janet Keall writes

 "Around my 18th birthday, I felt compelled to start this search [for birth family]. Over a 20-year period, I had no success until, in the last few months, I found a biological half-brother named Kevin and a biological half-sister named Kathie Rennie. We were all abandoned in Prince Rupert over a 39-month period."

It was DNA testing that proved the three were half-siblings.  Keall adds that "the three of us are now spending time together and getting to know our new-found families and have committed to unite on our family search for our biological mother and fathers."

Read the full story at Abandoned as babies, siblings find each other

The siblings' website at http://www.rupertsbaby.com/ provides more details. Perhaps a reader will recognize something that might help the siblings.

Celebrating Sisterhood - 100th Anniversary of Canadian Women's Right to Vote

2016 is the 100th Anniversary of Women first obtaining the right to vote in Canada. Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta were the first Canadian provinces to grant women this right. Canadian women who owned land however had the right to vote as early as 1791 but that right was taken away in 1849.

It was not until 1917 that British Columbia and Ontario followed suit and granted women the right to vote. I wish I knew if either of my grandmothers, who lived in Ontario, were involved in the struggle for women's rights, or at the very least were pleased with their new-found rights! But it is not something I thought to ask about when I was a young teenager.

1918 saw Nova Scotia come on board, then New Brunswick in 1919. Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland lagged behind, not granting women the right to vote until 1922 and 1925 respectively. But the biggest and most shameful holdout was Quebec. That province did not grant women the right to vote until 1940!

I have talked before about Canada's Famous Five, that group of 5 courageous and determined women who forced Canada to recognize women as "persons" in 1929.

You can read more about women's rights in Canada at A greater sisterhood: the Women’s Rights struggle in Canada

Ada Harland's WW1 Diary from Yorkshire England to Canada



Dec. 21, 1904
Ada as Helena
in
"A Midsummer Night's Dream"

Several years ago I purchased a tiny diary kept throughout 1914 during WW1 by Ada Harland. Ada lived in Falsgrave, Scarborough, Yorkshire England and wrote in her little book almost daily. The 3x2 inch book is difficult to read as Ada was a prolific writer and crammed as much as she could on to each page.

Along with the diary was a photo of Ada and a letter dated Dec. 31, 1914 from "Bertie" in Salisbury Plain England. Bertie was with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI). Ada and Bertie eventually married.

I did some genealogy sleuthing and found that Bertie was born Herbert Ashby in Scarborough Yorkshire England to parents John & Elizabeth. At some point Bert left England for Canada because in September 1914 he enlisted in the Canadian Army to fight in WW1.

Bertie and Ada were married in Yorkshire England in the first quarter of 1919 and in the fall of that same year Ada sailed to Canada on the ship Scandanavian to join her husband in Vancouver B.C.



One son Henry was born to the couple around 1920. In 1935 Henry and Ada can be found on Ships Passenger lists sailing to England in June and returning to Canada in August. Ada noted that she was going to Falsgrave Road in Scarborough so presumably they were visiting family and friends.

Bert died in British Columbia in 1960 at age 70 and Ada died in 1977 at age 87.

Here is Ada's first entry in her diary (Jan. 1, 1914)  Much of the writing is very difficult to read.

Jan. 1, 1914. Thursday.
At Ms. Vollums to supper. Walk with J.T. to Scarboro. Good---- [bye?] at 4.30 a.m. Bed. Up at mid-day

Jan. 2, 1914. Friday
Business writing. Writing all day until 8:30. To [crossed out] Dance. Had everyone. Supper with Ms. Foster. The 'stave' Last Waltz

Ada Harland's Diary: Death of Ada and husband Bert Ashby

In 2011 Olive Tree Genealogy began transcribing a diary kept  in 1914 by English woman Ada Harland. It is a small diary with a photo of Ada that I purchased years ago. The first post was called Ada Harland's Diary 1914 England 

Recently Ada's death certificate, and the death certificate of her husband Herbert (Bert) Ashby (who she talks about in the diary) became available online. I have added them here to complete the story of Ada and Bert.

Bertie was with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI)and during WW1 was stationed in England.

Bertie and Ada were married in Yorkshire England in the first quarter of 1919 and in the fall of that same year Ada sailed to Canada on the ship Scandanavian to join her husband in Vancouver B.C.

Bertie died in Vancouver in November 1960 and his widow Ada died in Vancouver March 1977.

WW1 Vernon Internment Camp Graves Being Restored

Pleasant Valley Cemetery in British Columbia holds the broken tombstones and neglected graves of many of those interred during World War 1. After WWI broke out, over 8,500 Canadians, many naturalized citizens, were taken to one of the 24 internment camps across Canada, including a large one in Vernon that ran from 1914-1920. Another 88,000 Canadians were forced to register and had to report on a monthly basis to officials.

Vernon Internment Camp - Greater Vernon Museum & Archives

The Vernon and District Family History Society and the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund are working together to repair the forgotten graves.

The names of the internees still buried in Pleasant Valley Cemetery are:

• Mile Hecimovich (d. 1917)
• Ivan Jugo (d. 1917)
• Timoti Korejczuk (d. 1919)
• Steve Sapich (d. 1917)
• Wasyl Shapka (d. 1918)
• George Vukop (d. 1916)
• Samuel Vulovich (d. 1918)

The names of the internees that were originally buried in Vernon and moved to Kitchener, Ontario (Woodland Cemetery) are:

• Bernard Heiny (d. 1918)
• Karl Keck (d. 1917)
• Leo Mueller (d. 1919)
• Wilhelm Wolter (d. 1918)

Read more  at  A dark past unearthed

Don't Let Family Lore Lead You Astray!

TWISS family on Ship Peruvian September 1888

Olive Tree Genealogy had an interesting question from Shannah about her grandfather.  My findings point out the need to take family lore with a grain of salt and not accept it as gospel. 

Here is Shannah's email:

I have been trying to find out where my Grfa., TWISS, William James, had "landed" for over ten years, to no avail, from Cty. Cork, Ireland to New York, USA..  He was a mere 17 year old, at the time.  

The story I was told was that it was my Grfa. who had left Cork, Ireland, from Sept. to December of 1887 (I believe these are the months) on the Barque Julia, from Edinburough to Cork and to New York.  This particular Barque was a ship of supplies and the Captain was a friend of my Gr-Grpars., TWISS, Francis Edward Day, Sr..  It was my Grfa. who had suggested that he, himself, come out to Canada, first and they allowed it but he must go with someone they knew.  It was only a few days' trip and have researched into several ports along the eastern coast to no avail.  When he had landed, he had stayed with friends of his pars., (never knew who they were) Francis Edward Day and Ellen THOMPSON, in New York for a while then travelled up into BINBROOK, Wentworth Cty., Ontario, Canada to stay with our cousins/family there while his own pars. arrived through Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the following springtime.

First I made a mental summary of the important statements in Shannah's email:

1. William James Twiss born ca 1870 Ireland immigrated to N. America on the ship Julia in 1887
2. William's parents Francis Edward Day & Ellen Twiss sailed to Montreal Quebec in spring of 1888

Making a mental note of these statements  does not mean I accepted them as fact. It was obvious they were family lore passed on through the generations. After searching on Ancestry.com in census records to gain a better understanding of the Twiss family group, their names, ages and residence, I knew that Francis Edward went by Edward, when he was born, his given year of immigration and that he was in British Columbia from 1891 census on.

Turning to the Immigration records on Ancestry.com it did not take long to find Edward, his wife Ellen and 3 daughters sailing from Cobh, Ireland on the ship Peruvian. The Peruvian made stops at three ports: Baltimore Maryland, St. John Newfoundland and Halifax Nova Scotia. Beside the names of Edward and his family was the notation that they were headed to Victoria (British Columbia) Their arrival date was September 4, 1888. It is not clear if the family left the ship at St. John or Halifax but I suggest it was Halifax. From there they could continue their journey to British Columbia.

This is a typical example of family stories becoming mixed up over the years. My suggestion to Shannah for continuing the search for William is that she extend her year of immigration by 5 years on either side and not assume the ship name of Julia is correct.  She should also look for William in the 1891 census and all census years after that. The 1901 census provides an immigration year but she should still allow 5 years on either side of whatever is recorded. 

Hint for Shannah: In 1891 your grandfather is recorded as James W. Twiss and he is found with his parents and sisters in Victoria B.C. He is mis-indexed on Ancestry.com as the son of a Thomas Stephens but the image clearly shows him in the Twiss family. It's always wise to ignore the index information if a search result seems like a good possibility - always check the actual image if there is one.

Bert's WW1 Letter to Ada, Jan. 1, 1915

 Please see the first entry and photo from Ada Harland's Diary which I began transcribing a year ago. Ada's daily entries are repetitious and brief and difficult to follow as she uses abbreviations and letters (almost like a code) probably due to space limitations. Included with the diary and photo was this letter from the man who eventually became Ada's husband.

F. Coy
1st B.C. Regiment
York Hill
Salisbury Plain


Jan. 1, 1915


Another day has passed into the limbo of forgotten things, likewise the record of an eventful year is closed. Today your letter arrived, a letter which means so much and yet is all to [sic] brief. Would you think me rude if I condense this letter somewhat.


Last night was New Year's Eve, and the boys celebrated by getting uproariously drunk, and made it an all night session. Only Rowe and myself refrained from participating in the festivities, and consequently were dubbed "Sissies".


Billie Brierton [see FN 1] early succumbed to the potent libations and by 10:30 I had him into bed where he remained entirely oblivious to the racket until this morning. To sleep was out of the question, so Rowe who is laid up with a poisoned knee, and myself had a long talk, and with the exception of a trifling disturbance the night passed uneventfully.


This morning the effects of the night's debauch were all to [sic] plain to see. E. Coy. [Company] cook staggered into the Cook House and asked me to get breakfast ready for his men as well as my own. All day I have done double duty cooking for 250 men practically without assistance, and to tell the truth I am just about ready for a good night's rest.


Your letter makes me realize what a selfish brute I really am, here I have been writing page after page about my own disappointment at leaving you, yet never have intimated in any way, or even allowed for the possibility that you thought so well of me.


What I have done to deserve such a love as yours I do not know, nor cannot conceive, to know that you love me is enough, and I will do everything I can and so conduct my life as to make myself worthy of this great love of yours.


There is no danger whatever of my assaulting your friend the Orderly Corporal although my fingers itch to get a hold on him. You see it is a serious offence to strike an N.C.O. [Non Commissioned Officer] and means a long term of detention.


Yes, the handkerchief bears your initial and I sahll carry it with me through the days to come, as Knights of old carried the gage of their lady love.


Now dear heart I must write, goodnight and take you in my arms for that long lingering breathless kiss you wish and hold you colse to my heart for the rest of time.


With all my love, from
Your own
Bert xxxxx


PS The Princess Pats have been in action and lost heavily. We expect to go within the next two weeks, and go to the firing line direct


LAK Bert x

FN1:

Sadly Billie Brierton (whose name was William) did not survive the war. His death is found in the CEF (Canadian Expeditionary Forces) War Graves. He was killed in action in France on 24 Apr 1915 and his body never recovered.

Billie's Attestation papers are online. He was 25 years old when he enlisted in 1914 and was sent to the same regiment as Bert. 

Ada Harland's Diary England: Feb 3, 1914

Feb. 3, 1914. Tuesday

Evening. Club. (Dance after school) Club slow. Very. Letter from B [could this be the first mention of Bertie in Ada's Diary?] Harder luck

Ada Harland's Diary England 1914: Bert's Obituary

This obituary for Ada's Bertie was published in Driftwood on Nov. 17, 1960.

Ada Harland's Diary England 1914: Jan. 3

Jan. 3, 1914. Saturday

In bed until 1 o'clock. Wrote in aft. Evening party. V.C. drove us. Had M. R., S.U and Miss R. to supper

Note: I must correct my earlier post where I said that Ada's husband-to-be Bertie was in the PPCLI. I misread his letter to Ada. He was actually a cook in F. Company of the 1st B.C. Regiment. In his letter to Ada he talks about the Princess Patricia's Regiment suffering heavy losses.

I thought readers might be interested in this notice I found which Ada placed in a newsletter called Driftwood on Nov. 24, 1960.

Driftwood was published on Salt Spring Island, B.C. The postal address for the editor was Ganges.

Ada Harland's Diary 1914 England



Dec. 21, 1904
Ada as Helena
in
"A Midsummer Night's Dream"

 Several years ago I purchased a tiny diary kept throughout 1914 during WW1 by Ada Harland. Ada lived in Falsgrave, Scarborough, Yorkshire England and wrote in her little book almost daily. The 3x2 inch book is difficult to read as Ada was a prolific writer and crammed as much as she could on to each page.

Along with the diary was a photo of Ada and a letter dated Dec. 31, 1914 from "Bertie" in Salisbury Plain England. Bertie was with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI) which co-incidentally was the same unit my youngest son was with as an infantry soldier for several years. Ada and Bertie eventually married and I thought it would be interesting to post her diary, and Bertie's letter here on my blog.

I did some genealogy sleuthing and found that Bertie was born Herbert Ashby in Scarborough Yorkshire England to parents John & Elizabeth. At some point Bert left England for Canada because in September 1914 he enlisted in the Canadian Army to fight in WW1.

Bertie and Ada were married in Yorkshire England in the first quarter of 1919 and in the fall of that same year Ada sailed to Canada on the ship Scandanavian to join her husband in Vancouver B.C.

One son Henry was born to the couple around 1920. In 1935 Henry and Ada can be found on Ships Passenger lists sailing to England in June and returning to Canada in August. Ada noted that she was going to Falsgrave Road in Scarborough so presumably they were visiting family and friends.

Bert died in British Columbia in 1960 at age 70 and Ada died in 1977 at age 87. At least we know the diary has a happy ending but I hope you read along as I go through it to see what happened to Ada in 1914 when WW1 had just begun.

I'm going to start with Ada's first entry in her diary (Jan. 1, 1914) and continue as best I can each day. Much of the writing is very difficult to read.

Jan. 1, 1914. Thursday.

At Ms. Vollums to supper. Walk with J.T. to Scarboro. Good---- [bye?] at 4.30 a.m. Bed. Up at mid-day

Jan. 2, 1914. Friday

Business writing. Writing all day until 8:30. To [crossed out] Dance. Had everyone. Supper with Ms. Foster. The 'stave' Last Waltz