Unregistered Cemeteries in Ontario

Did you know that unregistered cemeteries in Ontario exist only at the whim of the local land owner?

From the Ontario Genealogical Society (OGS) website

The Ontario Genealogical Society is aware of about 1 200 unregistered cemeteries in this province. "Unregistered" means that the provincial government does not recognize it as a cemetery and so it has no legal protection. It can be removed at whim and without notice.

We have been attempting to get them registered but the Registrar, Cemeteries Act (Revised), has informed us that it is up to the owner of the land where the cemetery is located to apply to have it registered. The Registrar will not simply add them to his list as was done by his predecessor in the early 1990s. Leaving this situation in the hands of the land owners is not satisfactory as they have no incentive to register the cemetery.

OGS is asking for help. They have provided a list of unregistered cemeteries in every County/District in Ontario. If you see a cemetery that is of interest to you, the OGS asks us to write to our MPP asking why it is not registered. Names and Addresses are provided.

Please do your part to help protect these cemeteries where our ancestors are buried.

Great News! Complete census of Canada ONLINE

Great news! You can now search for ancestors in the 1861, 1871 and 1881 Canada census, plus view the actual census images.

The 1861 census of Canada is now online, searchable and indexes linked to images of the actual census pages.

Since Canada didn’t officially become a country until 1867, the first national census wasn’t held until 1871. The 1861 Census of Canada is a collection of five provincial censuses. Censuses were taken throughout different times of the year in the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Canada East (Lower Canada, or roughly southern Quebec), and Canada West (Upper Canada, or roughly southern Ontario). Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island only recorded the names of the heads of households, while New Brunswick, Canada East and Canada West recorded the names of everyone in the household.

The 1871 census of Canada is also online.

This database is an every name index to individuals enumerated in the 1871 Canada Census, the first census of Canada since confederation in 1867. National censuses have been taken every 10 years since 1871 and every five years since 1971. The 1871 census includes the four original provinces – Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, and Ontario. It is linked to actual images

The 1881 census of Canada, formerly online only as a transcribed text version is now available with indexes linked to actual online images.

Names of Americans in the Madeira Mamore Expedition of 1877-1879

Bob Moyer brings us this new and rather exciting database which he gathered from many different sources.

The Disastrous American Expedition of 1878 that included the contractors P. & T. Collins (Col. George Earl Church) and the laborers who went to Brazil to build a railroad was also called the "The Railroad of Death" and a "railroad from no-place to no-where".

It was estimated that a worker died for every sleeper that was laid in the jungle and the loss of workers was on a scale that rivaled the Panama Canal project. The purpose of this project is to create a database of names by transcribing newspaper accounts, books and other sources about the expedition.

Careful attention has been given to separate these names from the later Farquar Jekyll expedition of 1907-1912. Thousands of men from many countries lost their lives in both expeditions.

Most of the participants in the 1877-1879 were from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Deleware and New York.

View the list of names of men in The Madeira Mamore Expedition of 1877-1879

See the list of sources for Bob's research project

Genealogists! Help Needed to change Restricted Archives of Ontario Hours

The Archives of Ontario has moved to a wonderful new state of the art archives building. We now have the proper facilities to access and research our history but many people are unaware that with the move we now have restrictedhours of operation.

We need your help

* At the present time the hours of operation of the Archives of Ontario are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday to Friday only

* In effect this means that any Ontario taxpayer and visitor from outside the province who works fulltime and or lives at a distance not longer have access to their records.

* If we want to have evening and weekend hours we have to make our concerns known.

* We will not get the old hours of 8:15 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday to Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday back. A good compromise might be 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday to Friday and Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The benefit is that those who will visit during the extended hours will have archival staff on hand to advise and assist you them.

Why do we need your help?

* Not all records are available online or will be for the foreseeable future.

* To access the full range of records to research your family you do need to visit archives for such records as estate files, Crown land records, Private Property land records, education records, divorce files, maps, and private papers such as the T. Eaton Co.

What can you and/or your group do?

* Go to the Archives of Ontariowebsite and click on Feedback (left side of page half way down). They ask you to "Please take a few moments to send us your comments by filling in the form below." Politely request extended hours back. Fill in your email address and you will in time get a personal reply. We want to flood the Archives with requests so they can show the government the need for the extended hours.

* Contact your local MPP if a resident of Ontario

When contacting your MPP please politely emphasis your use of the Archives of Ontario, its importance to the province and that these are our records and it is our right to have access to them.

* Sign our petition - contact Kathie Orr at kathie.orr@sympatico.ca if you belong to a group who will be meeting over the next month or so and she will email you the petition. In your email please use subject line "Petition re Restricted Archives of Ontario Hours"

* Have your group and any other interested parties sign our petition.

* Encourage others to do the same.

We are counting on YOU to help make the Archives of Ontario a place where all can go to use the documented heritage of our province.

Send completed petitions to

Petitions
c/o Ruth Burkholder
Ste 103 -12140 Ninth Line
Stouffville ON L4A 1L2

or

Petitions
c/o Kathie Orr
405 - 100 Maitland St
Toronto ON M4Y 1E2

Millions of Immigration Files being Transferred to NARA!

WASHINGTON - The federal government is opening the immigration files of millions of refugees, war brides, "enemy aliens" and other foreign nationals in the USA in the
first half of the 20th century.

A gold mine for historians, genealogists, scholars and descendants, the files include private details on such public figures as Spanish artist Salvador Dali as well as family heirlooms confiscated from Chinese laborers.

The immigration service signed an agreement Wednesday to transfer at least 21 million files to National Archives facilities near San Francisco and Kansas City. A searchable index is at www.uscis.gov/genealogy.

The files were compiled under the Alien Registration Act of 1940. They include photos, visa applications, birth certificates, personal letters and transcripts of
interrogations of celebrities and unknowns.

Documents in Guerino DeMarco's creased brown file show the gardener was arrested in 1942 and held for three months at New York's Ellis Island after visiting his mother in Italy.

Another Italian, Raffaele Annunziata, registered when he arrived from Salerno in 1948. Like others, he certified that he and his kin were not "idiots," "imbeciles,"
"feeble-minded" or "insane," and that he was not a "professional beggar" or "anarchist."

... read more

St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia Pennsylvania Records from 1788 online

The following genealogy records for St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia Pennsylvania are being transcribed by Olive Tree Genealogy volunteers.

St. Mary's, built in 1763, was the second Roman Catholic institution in Philadelphia. It was the site of the first public religious commemoration of the Declaration of Independence. Members of the Continental Congress attended services four times from 1777 to 1781. George Washington worshiped at St. Marys on at least two occasions. Puritan-born John Adams came too.

Pew Rentals St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia Pennsylvania

Introduction | List of Names - Pew Rents 8 Dec 1787 | List of Names - Pew Rents & Arrears 5 Nov. 1787 | List of Names - Pew Rents 24 June 1788 | Debts 24 June 1788 | Debts 8 Dec. 1788 | List of Names - Pew Rents 8 Dec. 1788 | Debts 24 June 1789 | List of Names - Pew Rents 24 June 1789 | Arrears on Pew Rents 8 Dec. 1789 | List of Names - Pew Rents 8 Dec. 1789 | Debts 24 June 1790 | List of Names - Pew Rents 24 June 1790 | Debts 8 Dec. 1790 | Money Due 24 June 1789 | Money Due 20 May 1790 | Debts May 1791 | Miscellaneous Notes | Additions & Corrections

Interments (Burials) in St. Mary's Church New Chapel Burying Ground

1788 | 1789 | 1790 | 1791 | 1792 | 1793 | 1794 | 1795 | 1796 | 1797 | 1798 | 1799 | 1800

St. Mary's Catholic Church cemetery includes the remains of Commodore John Barry, known as the "Father of the American Navy"; General Moylan, aid to George Washington; Thomas Fitzsimmons, a member of the Continental Congress who helped draft the United States Constitution; and Michael Bouvier, great-great-grandfather of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

This is an ongoing genealogy project and volunteers are needed to help with transcriptions

Quaker Marriage Certificate 1858

I was antique hunting last month and spotted a beautful ornate framed marriage certificate hanging on the wall. Closer inspection showed it to be dated 1858, New York, and apparently a Quaker (Society of Friends) Certificate.

With the permission of the store owner, I am posting the details and names here. Wouldn't it be great if when we find something of genealogical merit in an antique store, we ask permission to copy the facts for posting online?

Here are the names and dates from the Marriage Certificate. I have tried to reproduce the layout of the signatures as the placement of names on the same line almost certainly indicates a relationship between the individuals.

Andrew Holmes, Monkton, County of Addison Vermont son of Jonathan Holmes & Arletta his wife, and Ruth Cary of Halfmoon, Saratoga Co. New York, daughter of William Cary & Hannah his wife (Deceased). Society of Friends

Married in Morean New York, 3rd month 1858

Signatures:
Andreas Holmes, Ruth C. Holmes
Jonathan De bol, Mary Jane De bol
Rufus Hazard, Sarah A. Hazard
Eben Spicer, Eliza A. Spicer

Underneath in two columns
1st column
Mallie A. DeVol
Lydia Mott
James M. Cooper
Ruth E. Nessler
Jervis Cary
Wm. Cary
Maria D? Cary

2nd column
Elizabeth Cooper
Egbert Cary
Mary Ann Cary
Benjamin Angell
Mary Angell
Kesia Lang

Source: St. Jacobs Antique and Book Market, The Old Factory, 8 Spring Street, St. Jacobs Ontario (Canada)

Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The Worlds of Henry Hudson

Apr 4 through Sep 27

Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The Worlds of Henry Hudson, presented in collaboration with the New Netherland Project, Albany, and the National Maritime Museum Amsterdam/Nederlands Scheepvaartmuseum Amsterdam, will employ rare 16th– and 17th–century objects, images, and documents from major American and Dutch collections to bring the transatlantic world to life and reveal how Henry Hudson’s epic third voyage of exploration planted the seeds of a modern society that took root and flourished in the New World.

Focusing on the economic, cultural, and ideological connections that ultimately linked two global cities, Amsterdam and New York, Amsterdam/New Amsterdam will illuminate not only the global significance of Hudson’s voyage, but also the creative context out of which the exploration and settlement of New York itself arose, highlighting the Dutch role in creating the very character of New York as a place of opportunity, tolerance, and perpetual transformation.

In 1609, Henry Hudson, an Englishman sailing for the Dutch East India Company, made the first exploration of what is now New York Harbor and of the majestic river that today bears his name, laying the foundation for the Dutch claim on the area. His voyage of discovery led to the creation of the Dutch West India Company and ultimately to the founding of New Netherland, including its trading post at the mouth of the river — New Amsterdam.

The exhibition will invite visitors to consider the voyages of Hudson in the context of the Dutch role in the Age of Exploration, and as the first link between the Dutch civilization and culture of the Old World and that of the colony that they would soon build in the New. The multicultural, dynamic colony that grew up there was profoundly shaped by its Dutch origins, which continued to influence its development even after the Dutch ceded the young colony to the British in 1664.

Lost WW1 Photographs

A treasure trove of First World War photographs was discovered recently in France. Published here for the first time, they show British soldiers on their way to the Somme. But who took them? And who were these Tommies marching off to die?

At least 400 glass photographic plates preserving the images were found in the loft of a barn at Warloy-Baillon and cast out as rubbish. In recent months, the plates, some in perfect condition, some badly damaged, have been lovingly assembled and their images printed, scanned and digitally restored by two Frenchmen.

Read the rest of this amazing story in The Independent. Readers are being asked to view the photographs and help identify locations, soldiers, regiments and so on.

You must register with LiveJournal before you can leave a comment, then wait for your email address to be verified. It can be frustrating, as it seems that many usernames are already in use. I had to try 6 times using different usernames before I was able to register.

I left a comment on the photograph called "A Shortage of Overcoats My username is olivetree99 and the comment was given to me by Neil Cameron who asked me to post on his behalf.

Please take a look at these wonderful photographs and give input if you have any information at all.

Finding Your New Netherland Roots: A Two-Day Workshop on New Netherland Family History

10 & 11 September: Finding Your New Netherland Roots: A Two-Day Workshop on New Netherland Family History. In celebration of the 400th anniversary of the arrival of Henry Hudson in New York, the NYG&B, in collaboration with the Holland Society, and the New York Public Library, offer a Dutch research program featuring several of the leading experts in Dutch studies. Sponsors include The Van Pelt Family Association, The Algonquin Hotel, and The Historic Hotels of America program.

In celebration of the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s arrival, this program will include presentations on the history of the Netherlands and its colony, as well as the persistence of Dutch culture in America, all designed to help you better understand the world in which your ancestors lived. The central focus of the program will be on resources and research methods to help you trace your roots through New York and New Jersey back to New Netherland and across the Atlantic, breaking through those brick walls that remain on your charts and expanding your knowledge of all your New Netherland ancestors.”

Thursday, 10 September will be a full day of lectures regarding Dutch research, culture, and history in the South Court Auditorium of the New York Public Library. Friday, 11 September offers a day of assisted research at the NYPL’s Milstein Division, and/or at the Holland Society Library.

In addition to the lectures and research, a number of festive social events will also be held. A gala banquet featuring Ms Peter G. Rose, the foremost authority on the food customs and diet of the colonial Dutch, will be held Thursday evening for an additional charge of $75. Ms Rose’s talk is entitled Art in Food and Food in Art.

A walking tour retracing the haunts of the early Dutch in what became New York will be held Saturday morning for an additional charge of $20.00.

The two-day program is available to members of the NYG&B and members of the Holland Society for $150. Non-members $200. Registration for the Thursday lecture program only is $90 members/ $125 non-members.

Thursday Lectures:

Social, Economic, and Religious Issues: Why the Dutch came to the New World.

The Dutch After 1664: How Did They Fare After the English Takeover?

Researching the People of New Netherland and Their Descendants: How to Identify and Make Best Use of the Available Sources

Beyond New Netherland: Some Tips on Researching Your Ancestors in the Netherlands

Case Studies: How Some Common New Netherland Genealogical Problems Have Been Solved

Our Speakers:

Christopher Brooks began researching his paternal grandmother’s Traphagen family in 1973. Utilizing a range of source material from American libraries, archives and his personal library, he has found that, with the maturing of the internet, much beneficial information relevant to New Netherland settlers is becoming available online to researchers through European archives. He lives in Kansas City, Missouri, where he works for a computer software company and is an avid researcher in New Netherland families and their European origins.

Firth Haring Fabend, a historian specializing in the Dutch in New York and New Jersey, is the author of the prize-winning books A Dutch Family in the Middle Colonies, 1660-1800, and Zion on the Hudson: Dutch New York and New Jersey in the Age of Revivals, both published by Rutgers University Press, and many shorter works. Her most recent book is Land So Fair, a historical novel and family saga set in New York and New Jersey in the eighteenth century with flashbacks to New Netherland.

Harry Macy Jr. edited The NYG&B Record from 1987 to 2006 and was also founding co-editor of The NYG&B Newsletter. He is a Fellow of The American Society of Genealogists, The Holland Society of New York, and The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.

Peter G. Rose, Dutch food historian, is the author of several books on the subject of the influence of the Dutch on the American kitchen and lectures nationally and internationally on the subject.

Janny Venema, Ph D. is a historian and translator of New York colonial Dutch documents, working on the Rensselaerswijck collection housed at the New York State Archives.

We are very pleased to provide the famous Algonquin Hotel http://www.algonquin hotel.com. as our host hotel. Deluxe Queen Bed or Twin $189.00 per night; plus 14.25% tax.

For additional information or to register please visit www.newyorkfamilyhistory.org or contact Lauren Maehrlein at education@nygbs.org or by calling 212-626-6853.

Using NewspaperArchive.com Part 2

Continued from Using NewspaperARCHIVE.com Part 1....



Step 6. Now you see the actual page of the newspaper. On the right you are provided with the Title, Date, page # and Precise location of the newspaper article.

I want to mention something very important before we go on! At the top, above the newspaper page and the Reader horizontal bar, are little icons for NewspaperARCHIVE.com The first is a beak <, then a shopping cart, etc. The beak < is what you use to get back to your search results. Do not use the back button on your browser!

Back to the newspaper page. It is displaying but I can't see my search terms highlighted. Sometimes they are, sometimes they are not.

Step 7 In this case, I don't want to start reading the whole page, so I click on the binoculars icon in the horizontal menu bar (4th icon from the left) Up pops a nice little search window that allows me to search the full newspaper page that is displaying



Now I see my term that I want (KING) in the Results window. Clicking on each of these in turn takes me directly to that word on the page. I can increase the magnification to any % I want. When I see an article I want to save, I have more choices.



Step 8 I can SAVE to my computer with the disc icon far left. I can PRINT the page. I can SELECT TEXT and select the text I want (this option never works well fo r me, it selects more text than I want and when I copy and paste it, the text is garbled) or, the option I like best -- I can use the SNAPSHOT TOOL.



I took a screen shot so you can see where it is (see the words SNAPSHOT TOOL near the top?) Click on that little icon and then outline the article you want to save. You are starting in the top left corner of your article and drawing a little dotted outline (box) around it. Your article that you have outlined is automatically saved to your clipboard. It is saved as a graphic so now you can PASTE it into any graphic program you like. I use Irfanview.



After saving your article, if you have used Snapshot Tool, be sure to click on the little HAND icon if you still want to look around the newspaper page.

In a future post on this blog I will talk about keywords and search strategies that I have found useful on NewspaperARCHIVE.com as well as what to do when you get a page of HITS but clicking on one you want to see brings up "no results" for the keyword or keywords you searched on. Meantime I hope you enjoy searching for your ancestors on NewspaperARCHIVE.com!

Using NewspaperArchive.com Part 1

I'm a huge fan of NewspaperARCHIVE.com and have been playing around with it for a few weeks now. I thought I'd show others some tips I've learned while using the site.

Step 1: Go to NewspaperARCHIVE.com

Step 2: Sign in if you are a member. You can subscribe if not a member or you can sign up for the Free Membership. Free Membership allows you to view 3 newspaper pages per day, at no cost.



Step 3: You have many choices and you may want to take some time to look around the site and read what is available (geared towards teachers, genealogists, writers, students, etc). I am going to jump right in to the Advanced Search. I have highlighted it for you in green. (near top of screen)

I am looking for newspaper pages concerning John & Iva King who lived in Battle Creek Michigan. They were supposedly charged with arson in the early 1900s and I hope to find evidence of this and any newspaper articles about the event.



Step 4: On the Advanced Search page you have many options:

Enter first name and last name of person you are searching for. I put JOHN KING

Enter various keywords. In "With all the words" I typed in the words ARSON IVA

I am leaving the other fields blank (With the exact phrase. With at least one of the words. Without the words)

Results per page: 30 is the maximum

Narrow by Publication Date: I selected "Between Years" 1910 and 1914

Narrow by Publication Location: I chose United States of America and Michigan



Step 5 Hit SEARCH. The new page loads with the number of hits and a brief excerpt. There are 3 hits for my search terms and the first 2 from the Evening Chronicle look like they are my John & Iva. I want to see those newspaper pages in order to figure out if my search terms (keywords) are too restrictive to catch all newspaper accounts, or if there are alternate search words I might want to use to look for more articles



You will see in the brief excerpt for a hit that the text looks rather weird and doesn't make total sense. That is because it is OCR text but never fear, the newspaper page will be exactly as printed on the day it was published!

Tomorrow I will show you how to use the Snapshot Tool, the Binoculars and also explain some of the idiosyncracies of the newspaper page images.

1881 Census Images online

The 1881 census of Canada offersinformation about Canada and Canadians.

Through the Library & Archives Canada online database, you can view digitized images of original census returns which list the name, age, country or province of birth, nationality, religion, and occupation of Canada's residents at the time of the 1881 Census.

The database is fully searchable and each "hit" is linked to the image of the actual census page.

Using Ireland Civil Registration Indexes to obtain Vital Stats Certificates: Step 3

Continuing from Step 2 of Using Ireland Civil Registration Indexes to obtain Vital Stats Certificates

The Irish marriage certificate I received was almost identical to English Marriage Certificates I have ordered and contained the following information:

When married
[First] Name and Surname [of bride and groom]
Age [of bride and groom]
Condition [of bride and groom - meaing were they single, widowed...]
Rank or profession [of bride and groom]
Residence at the time of marriage [of bride and groom]
Father's Name and Surname [of bride and groom]
Rank or profession of father [of bride and groom]
Church they were married in, Parish, City
Witnesses
Person marrying them

In case you are ordering another type of certificate, here is what you can expect to find on each:

A Pre 1997 Irish Birth certificate consists of date and place of birth, child's forename/s, fathers name, address and occupation, mothers name and maiden surname, name and address of person who registered the birth.

An Irish Death certificate consists of the deceased's name, date and place of death, marital condition, occupation, age at last birthday, cause of death, name and address of person who registered the death.

A pre 1957 Irish Marriage certificate consists of date and place of marriage, both spouses age, name, marital condition, occupation and pre-marriage address and their fathers names and occupations.

I think you will enjoy finding your Irish ancestor's Vital Records using these sites!

Using Ireland Civil Registration Indexes to obtain Vital Stats Certificates: Step 2

Continuing from Step 1 of Using Ireland Civil Registration Indexes to obtain Vital Stats Certificates, posted yesterday

At the GRO website I chose English and Marriage. An application form (in .doc format) will open. Depending what browser you use, you may get a choice to OPEN the file or SAVE it. I chose OPEN and the file opened in my browser window (IE6). The top part explains how to apply, either in person, by mail (post) or by Fax. The cost is provided and the choice of certificate.

The GRO office will supply a Certified Copy or a photocopy of an entry in the Registers of Births, Deaths and Marriages provided enough information is furnished by an applicant to enable the records to be identified. A photocopy of an entry will contain exactly the same details as a Certificate. A photocopy is ideal for genealogical purposes.

Next, and this is the really cool part - you can TYPE the required information right on the form in your browser window! You can also print the form off and fill it out by hand, but I like to type my details. Now here is a tip for you if you are typing right on the form in your browser. You must remove the same number of ..... as the characters you are typing (for eg MASSEY means I must remove 6 dots) so that the form fields still line up properly! Don't worry it is easier than it sounds.

Here you also fill out your payment details (Credit Card, Cash or Cheque). Be sure you tick off the box for PHOTOCOPY. Next you can SAVE the form to your computer so you have a copy, then PRINT page 2 (the Application) only. Note that cheques can only be written in Euro Dollars from an Irish bank so unless you have a bank account in Ireland, you can't use this option.

I ordered the photocopies mentioned on the form in Note 2 and which, at the time of this writing, cost 6 Euro Dollars for the first order and 4 Euro Dollars for additional orders. If you do not know how much a Euro Dollar is in your currency, you can use this handy Currency Converter online. At the time I wrote this post, 6 Euro Dollars converted to $8.26 US dollars or $9.44 Canadian dollars

After printing Page 2 of the form, you can either Fax or mail it to the address given at the top of the form. I mailed mine and about 4 weeks later, received my certificate in the mail.

Last step - what information is included on an Irish Vital Registration and what do they look like - will be posted tomorrow

Using Ireland Civil Registration Indexes to obtain Vital Stats Certificates

FamilySearch.org has Ireland, Civil Registration Indexes 1845-1958 online. This collection includes births from 1864-1958, marriages 1845-1958 and deaths 1864-1958

I wanted to use this index to order the full certificates from the GRO for Ireland. I was searching for a marriage for Rebecca Massey in Dublin Ireland.

At FamilySearch I got 1 page of possible hits and this was the information from the hit that was the one I wanted:

Name: Rebecca Massey
Registration district: Dublin South
Record type: MARRIAGES
Registration date - quarter and year: 1859
Film number: 101247
Volume: 5
Page: 212
Digital GS number: 4195893
Image number: 00401
Collection: Ireland, Civil Registration Indexes 1845-1958

You will not be using anything from the index entry other than the invididual's surname and first name, year of marriage and location (Registration district) but you will likely want to copy all the information and save it. It is important to go first to the indexes for Irish Civil Registration in order to be sure the event is there and to be sure of the year and location of the event.

Next step is to go to the General Register Office certificate order page. Note that The General Register Office (Oifig An Ard-Chláraitheora) is the central civil repository for records relating to Births, Deaths and Marriages in Ireland. The GRO records of marriages other than Roman Catholic marriages date back to 1st April 1845 . Records of Births, Deaths and Roman Catholic Marriages date back to 1st January 1864.

An important note here is that if your ancestors lived in Northern Ireland, you cannot use this GRO website. Those of us with ancestors in Northern Ireland must go to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland which holds different records. I'll talk about the PRO of Northern Ireland in a separate post, but for now, back to ordering our marriage registration from the GRO.

Next step at the GRO is to choose Birth, Marriage or Death and whether you want your Certificate Application Form in English or Irish

Step 2 will be posted tomorrow

Enter to Win a Lifetime Membership to Footnote.com!

Celebrate Memorial Day by remembering your loved ones with I Remember, a Facebook application created by Footnote.

Remember someone with I Remember and then share the page with 5 of your friends and you'll be entered to win a lifetime, All-Access membership to Footnote.com

Nova Scotia Black Loyalists Searchable Database online

Library & Archives Canada has a searchable database for Port Roseway associates.

During the American Revolution, the British and Loyalist forces evacuated New York in 1783. This research tool provides access to 1,498 references to Black Loyalist refugees who settled in Port Roseway, now Shelburne, Nova Scotia.

Search the database or visit the virtual exhibition Under a Northern Star

Ordering English Certificates of Birth, Marriage or Death online

Recently I searched for the marriage record of my great great grandfather Charles Fuller who married Georgiana Golding in or near Lenham, Kent England. I was hoping to find out who Georgiana's father was since she is recorded in the Lenham Church Registers as being the daughter of "the widow Hannah Golding" Since I knew from previous research that Hannah Golding's husband had died 4 years before Georgiana's birth he was not the father! But who was?

In the census years after her birth Georgiana was always recorded with the surname Golding so her marriage registration was my last (slim) hope of finding out who her father was. Perhaps it was a dead end, perhaps Georgiana never knew her father's name but I had to turn that stone to find out!

The General Register Office for England and Wales website has an online form where you can order Birth, Death and Marriage Registrations.

The first time you use the site you must register but it is free and easy. After that you do not need to register each time, you just log in using your email address and password.

After logging in (or registering) you will see a screen with choices as to what certificate you wish to order

There are 10 - the first 6 for events registered in England or Wales. They are Birth, Marriage, Civil Partnership, Death, Adoption and Commenorative Marriage Certificate

The last 4 choices are for overseas events that were registered with British authorities. The choices are Birth, Marriage, Death or Civil Partnership Certificate

Next you are asked if you know the General Register office index and the year when the event was registered. NOTE: You must have the GRO index for England & Wales Birth, Marriage, Death before 1900. So you need to go to FreeBMD website or Ancestry.com Free BMD index. This is where you will, with any luck, find your ancestor and the details you need to order the certificate.

FreeBMD is being indexed by volunteers from 1837-1983 and this index is then passed on to Ancestry.com where it is also available for free.

Once you check the radio button for knowing the GRO index, you are taken to a screen where you fill out your delivery address details. If you have registered previously, this information is already there next time you log in! A very nice feature.

The next screen is where you fill out your information, including the details you found on the Free Bmd website (GRO index reference information)

You also get to choose what kind of delivery service you want either Standard or Priority (higher priced)

The GRO Reference Information that is required is

Year
Quarter
District name
Volume Number
Page Number

All of this is obtainable from the FreeBMD website or Ancestry.com website free BMD index (if you find your ancestor there).

Searching the marriages on Free BMD I had a hit!
Marriages Dec 1858
Surname First name(s) District Vol Page
Fuller Charles Hollingbourne 2a 788

Clicking on "788" (the page) brings up a list of all brides and grooms on that page, usually only 4 names. So you can easily see if this is the correct index entry for your ancestors (providing you know both parties names, or at least one full name and one first name for the second party)

Clicking showed me Georgiania's name along with Charles so I now knew the GRO index details needed to order their marriage registration. This is what I needed:

Year 1858
Quarter Dec. 1858
District Hollingbourne
Vol 2a
Page 788

After logging in to GRO website I filled out my required information and sat back to wait. Within 3 weeks the marriage registration arrived in the mail. I was quite excited to open the envelope and see what it said, but reminded myself I should not get my hopes up.

It seemed most likely that Georgiana never knew her father and so that part of the certificate would be blank. Or, as I have seen on other marriage registrations I've ordered when the individual is an illegitimate birth, the father's first name would be given, but no surname!

To my surprise and delight, Georgiana's father was named in full. His occupation was also given. I now had enough information to start my quest for her father. But that is another blog post.....

Update CanadaGenWeb's Cemetery Project

CanadaGenWeb's Cemetery Project Update

Photos are now online for these Ontario cemeteries:

Elgin County:
- Edison Pioneer Cemetery
- Estherville Cemetery
- Kilmartin Cemetery
- Mellor / White Station
- Seville / Quaker Cemetery

Leeds County:
- St Patrick Roman Catholic Cemetery

Middlesex County:
- Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Section TB)
- Parkhill Union Cemetery
- Willey Cemetery

Norfolk County:
- Williams Settlement Cemetery

Peel County:
- Churchville Cemetery

Welland County:
- Weaver Cemetery

Wentworth County:
- Millgrove Municipal / Grove Free Burying Ground
- Mount Albion Cemetery
- St George's Anglican Church Cemetery
- Van Dusen Cemetery

York County:
- Islington Burying Grounds / Islington Pioneer