My Top Genealogy Mystery: Elizabeth Jamieson nee Shuart born ca 1801-1805 NY/NJ

A Facebook friend recently posted her top 10 Genealogy Mysteries.  They aren't brick walls because there is probably an answer somewhere, just waiting to be found.

I thought this was a great idea and I am following suit with my Top 10 Genealogy Mysteries. Of course any help or suggestions for further research are welcome. 

Here is my Number 1 of 10 Genealogy Mysteries:

Elizabeth Jamieson nee Shuart born ca 1801-1805 in New York or New Jersey

Elizabeth Shuart was born circa 1801-1805 in New York or New Jersey. At some time before 1835 she settled in Upper Canada (present day Ontario) and married James Jamieson from Ireland. Evidence and clues point to her being the daughter of  Henry Shuart and Rachel De Graw.

The only confirmed census records I have found for Elizabeth is the 1851 census for Flamboro West, Wentworth County Ontario. The family consisted then of

* James Jameson, 65, b Ireland, cooper
* Elizabeth 50 b United States
* James 16 b Ontario
* Lydia 14 b Ontario (my ancestor)
* George 10 b Ontario

 James disappears after 1851.  I found their sons James and  George in Michigan in 1870 and George in 1861.

George Henry Jamieson

In 1870 George Jamieson is in Austin, Sanilac, Michigan and next door is his brother James Jamieson

In 1880 George is Boone, Wexford, Michigan

In 1900 and 1910 George is found in Peninsula, Grand Traverse, Michigan. In both these census records he states that his mother (Elizabeth Shuart ) was born in New Jersey. In 1920 in the same location he says she was born in England which is not correct, so quite likely someone else in the household provided the information to the census taker.

George states in census records that he immigrated to USA from Canada in 1863 or 1864 which means he should be somewhere in the 1861 census in Ontario and fits with my findings. 

George's death record shows the following:

George Henry Jamieson
Birth: 17 Mar 1843 - Canada
Death: 18 Sep 1929 - Peninsula, Grand Traverse, Michigan
Spouse: Emily Squire
Father James Jamieson
Mother Elizabeth Shuirit [sic]

James Jamieson Jr.

Now for the contradictions: In 1880 James Jamieson (brother of George above) is found in Chase, Lake, Michigan. He says his mother (Elizabeth Shuart Jamieson) was born in Pennsylvania.

In 1900 James is found in Amber, Mason, Michigan. Here he claims his mother's place of birth was New York.

In 1910 and 1920 James is in Ludington Ward 1, Mason, Michigan and again states that his mother was born in Pennsylvania.

James gives his year of immigration as 1860 and 1861 in various census records but I have not found him in any census for those years in either USA or Canada. I believe I have found him enlisting in the Civil War in a Michigan regiment as a Private on 14 September 1864 at the age of 26.

Lydia Jamieson Vollick

George and James' sister Lydia is my direct ancestor and she married Isaac Vollick sometime before 1858. She is found with Isaac in the 1861 census for East Flamborough Tp Wentworth County and I have a good record of their lives up to their deaths near Hillsdale, Simcoe County Ontario in 1917 (Lydia) and 1904 (Isaac)

Rumours

Rumour has it that Elizabeth Shuart Jamieson remarried twice after her husband James Jamieson's death. One marriage was said to be to a man named Decker, another to a man named Hunt.

I  found an intriguing 1861 census entry for 1861 Beverley Twp, Wentworth County Ontario

Decker, Richard, local preacher, 80 married 1806, b NY, Methodist

Elizabeth, 53 b Canada West

One name above is George Jamieson, age 18 b Canada West, labourer. This fits with James Jamieson and Elizabeth Shuart's son George's year of birth. 

Richard Decker appears to have died in 1868. See his gravestone. My next find was a marriage record in Beverley Twp, Wentworth Co. Ontario on 14 Oct 1869

Robert Hunt, 71, widower, farmer, born Ireland, Waterloo s/o John Hunt & Ann m Elizabeth Decker, 64, widow, born USA, living in Beverly, d/o Henry & Rachel ( no last name given). wtn. R.E. & S.A. Jameson of Beverley on 14 October 1869 in Beverly

Could this be my Elizabeth Jamieson? Henry and Rachel were the names of her parents.

Two more records in Grey County Ontario were found which add to the mystery and may or may not be for my Elizabeth.

Firsr is the death of Robert Hunt, farmer, 88, born Ireland died on April 4, 1887. Second is the death of Elizabeth Hunt, farmer's wife, 82,  died on April 11, 1887. Rev. Husband of Holstein was the informant in both these deaths and Dr. Brown was the doctor for both.  I believe these could very well be my Elizabeth Jamieson and husband Robert Hunt.

The Genealogy Mystery

Is this my Elizabeth Jamieson? Did she marry secondly Richard Decker and thirdly Robert Hunt? Did she die in 1887 in Grey Co. Ontario?

Summary of my findings for Elizabeth Shuart

• 1801-1806 born in USA to Henry Shuart & Rachel DeGraw
• 1851 census Flamborough West, Wentworth Co. Ontario with husband James Jamieson and children George, Lydia and James
• 1851-1861 probable death of James Jamieson
• 1861 census Beverly Twp, Wentworth Co. Ontario with husband Richard Decker and son George Jamieson nearby 
• 1868 Death of Richard Decker
• 1869 Marriage of Elizabeth Decker, widow, to Robert Hunt
• 1871 census  Elizabeth and Robert Hunt are  found in Egremont, Grey Co.
• 1881 census Elizabeth (born USA) and Robert Hunt are in Egremont, Grey Co.
• 1887 Deaths of Robert Hunt and Elizabeth Hunt in Egremont, Grey Co. Ontario

What do I want to know?

1. I want proof that my theories of Elizabeth marriages and deaths are correct OR proof that they are wrong!
2. I want to know when James Jamieson died and where he is buried.

Miscellaneous Information

Children of Henry and Rachel (DeGraw) Shuart are

• Joseph Shuart born ca 1790  married Christina
• Lydia Shuart born ca 1794 NY or Pennsylvania m1 Job Skinner and m2 James McGarry
• Margaret (Peggy) Shuart born ca 1798 NY or Pennsylvania  married Adonijah Taylor
• Mary (Polly) Shuart born ca 1798 possbily in Pennsylvania married Joseph Mellick
• Ellizabeth Shuart born ca 1801-1805 New York or New Jersey m1 James Jamieson m2 Richard Decker? m3 Robert Hunt?
• Hiram Shuart born ca 1810 possibly in Pennsylvania  married Catherine Alice Skinner.
• possibly Leah Shuart

All of these individuals settled in Ontario. It is believed that their mother Rachel (De Graw) Shuart also settled in Ontario as a widow.

Great News! 76,330 Digitized WW1 Files Available Online

In January 2014, Library and Archives Canada announced a project to digitize 640,000 Canadian Expeditionary Force personnel service files as part of the First World War commemoration activities of the Government of Canada.

Part of Digitized Service File for Nursing Sister Mary Geraldine McGinnis

Once digitized, the service files will be stored in a permanent, safe environment. We estimate that 32,000,000 pages will be available online once digitization is finished.

LAC has started posting the digitized files online. They are accessible via  Soldiers of the First World War: 1914–1918 database. As of today, 76,330 files are available online. Regular uploads of about 5,000 files will take place every two weeks. All digitized files are searchable by name, regimental number and rank.

LAC to Digitize WW1 Files by 2015

Library and Archives Canada has embarked on an ambitious and very much needed project to digitize the complete files of all WW1 Service people who joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF). 

Typical WW1 CEF Attestation Papers

Once completed, more than 18 million pages of service files will have been digitized and available online sometime in 2015. 

The service files include the two-sided attestation paper (already online as a searchable database on Library and Archives Canada and Ancestry.com),  which were completed when the soldier or nurse enlisted, a medical form, training and movement details, and other miscellaneous information. 

Each file is different. I have ordered dozens in the past and you never know exactly what will be found in each one or how many pages it might be. A file can range from a half-dozen pages to almost 100.

FInding Your Roots - Ben Affleck, Khandi Alexander and Benjamin Jealous

Another episode of Finding Your Roots with Henry Gates Jr. is on PBS tonight. In this episode Ben Affleck, Khandi Alexander and Benjamin Jealous learn their families have long been engaged in the battle for freedom and civil rights, principles passed down through generations of ancestors.

Season Two of Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. airs Tuesdays from September 23, 8:00PM EST through November 25, 8:00PM EST.  You will have to check your local listings for times and channel numbers

Nursing Sister Philips WW1 Photo Album page 3 Autograph 1915

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One.  

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain. 

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission. 

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page. 

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos" in the vertical menu bar on the right side of your screen. You can also click on that phrase at the bottom of this post.

Autograph.
 "This little knot I draw to day / Will tell you in it own sweet / way / That I for get thee not"
 A drawing of knots with a banner, South Staffordshire. 
Date June 15-6-15 Le Treport
Signed, Pte. Arthur Adams, 26 Peel St. Tamworth Staffs

Thanksgiving Traditions - Canadians Got the Date Right!

Do you remember your childhood Thanksgiving Days? What was the traditional Thanksgiving Day for you? What is it now? Has it changed very much? 

I don't remember anything special about Thanksgiving as a child except we got to eat Turkey with stuffing that my dad made. It was so good! There were four of us kids and only 2 drumsticks and we all wanted that prized piece of meat. 

We also got my mother's horrid mashed potatoes. Her version was to peel and boil potatoes then mash them roughly with a fork - no butter, no milk. They were dry as a bone and I used to smother mine with ketchup just to swallow them! 

Why am I talking about Thanksgiving? Because it is the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Tomorrow I am cooking a traditional Thanksgiving meal for 15 people. That's a very small and nice number for me to manage! 

We are having Turkey with stuffing and gravy, Mashed potatoes (the real kind, not my mother's), Roasted Root Vegetables, Stir Fried Broccoli, Meatballs in Marinara Sauce, Macaroni & Cheese (the grandkids love this), Butternut Squash Soup, and Fresh Homemade Bread. I'm also including Spider Eggs for the grandkids - hardboiled eggs with cut up black olives on top to look like spiders. Dessert is an assortment - two kinds of pie which my guests are bringing, vanilla ice cream with chocolate and whip cream, and my homemade pumpkin bread.

What will you be doing this Thanksgiving?

WW 1 Simpson Photo Album page 30

Continuing on with my WW1 Photo Album archive here is the 30th page in my mother's cousin Doris Simpson's album. My favourite photo on this page is the one of the late 1920s or early 1930s bathing beauties!

Verifying a Loyalist Ancestor

Sandy asked "Looking for anyone related to Peter Wyckoff (1765-1797) who married Catherine Plato (1769-1856). Her second marriage was to John Clendenning (1760-). Want to prove Loyalist ties for these two. Their son Peter (1794-1881) married Abigail Gilbert (1790-1834) daughter of Isaac Gilbert UE (1742-1822)."

My answer:

 There are 8 results for John Clendenning (and variant spellings) in the Upper Canada Land Petitions online database. 

To find out how to use the index information to find and view the actual petition(s) online, see Searching Ontario Canada Land Records, eh? 

You will also want to obtain the petition for Catherine Clendennan to see if it is Catherine Plato.

There are many Loyalist resources but you will want to start your search with these.

Are the Irish Bog Bodies Kings Sacrificed by Celts?

It's an interesting theory. The latest Iron Age bog body dating back to at least 2,000 BC was discovered near Portlaoise  in the Irish midlands by an alert bog worker and it bears the same hallmarks of ritual torture that two other famous bodies have.

Read the story at Bog bodies are kings sacrificed by Celts says expert

Warning! Opinion re Ken Burns Remarks on Finding Your Roots

Watching Finding Your Roots last night (I love this series) I was quite taken aback by Ken Burns comment that he was "more ashamed" of finding out he had a Loyalist ancestor  then he was of having a slave owner ancestor. 

Wow. What a terrible thing to say! Both sides - Patriot and Loyalist  (please don't call them Tories!) stood up for what they believed in and fought for those beliefs. It does not matter whether or not we agree with one side or the other, both sides should be respected and honoured for their strength and courage in holding firm to what they believed in. 

My Loyalist ancestors believed it was treason to rise up against the King. They suffered greatly both in their physical ways and financially with the loss of property. They were forced to flee the country they were born in to make a new life in Canada. Loyalists were responsible for opening Ontario and other provinces in Canada for settlement. They are as important to our history of our country as Patriots are to our American friends and cousins. 

Patriots likewise showed great courage in taking  a huge chance that they would win the fight. That took courage. They too suffered during the war. Both sides suffered atrocities at the hands of the opposing side. That's the nature of war. 

My own Loyalist ancestor was imprisoned and his wife and 10 young children taken from their home in northern New York, set the home on fire, and marched the family into the forest where they were left to die. Luckily Indians from Montreal found them and led them to Quebec where they were taken in by the British government as refugees. But do I bear a grudge against Patriots? NO! Why would I? Each side did what they felt was necessary.  There is not, nor should there be, any judgement on my part. Terrible things happened to individuals on both sides of the American Revolution.

I wish Ken Burns had shown a modicum of respect for the difficult choices his Loyalist ancestor made. I do not expect him to make the man his hero, but how about less judgement and less disdain for the Loyalist cause. His remarks left a very bad taste in my mouth.

Genealogy Should Be Free - Say What???

An offhand remark in a Facebook Group I am in started me thinking. A woman posted a query asking about a fee-based lookup service offered online. She asked if anyone had used it and was it a) legitimate and b) worth the money. 

As it happens I have used this service and think it is well worth the money, so I posted my experiences with it (all positive - reasonable fee, quick turnaround time, access to records I cannot access personally)

Then came the comment from a woman who said she would never use that site or any site that charged money for genealogy because, in her words, "Genealogy should be free". 

I didn't respond but I wondered if she realized how much time and money is put into gathering records to put online. Big companies are obviously a business entity and their objective is to make a profit, not to provide us genealogists with great grandpa's death certificate for free. Our plumber or electrician or dentist or grocery stores or clothing stores are not providing us with free services so I shake my head at the notion that a company or an individual should. 

If  "genealogy should be free" then by extension the basic necessities of life should also be free! That would mean that food, shelter, and clothing would all be free. Grocery stores should not be charging for food, farmers would spend their lives working for the joy of it... and on and on it would go. I wonder if those who believe that "genealogy should be free" can see how ridiculous a statement that is?

Some people do give their time and expertise for free some of the time. Doctors might travel to other countries to provide free medical care for a month or a year but when they go back home they charge for those same services. 

What is involved in a large company putting data online? The expense of acquiring the database - in time and possibly money. It can take months of negotiations to get a local archive or church to agree to having their records published. Then there is the time and money on hiring people to scan, transcribe and index the records. Add to that the personnel hired to set up and maintain the database, the programmers needed to run the website which the web developers created (these are all jobs that individuals are paid to do) 

What about an individual who has a lookup service such as the one first mentioned? In this specific case, this man creates indexes to previously unindexed records. That's a huge job! He has spent a great deal of time on this. Then he offers, at a very reasonable fee, to go to the Archives and retrieve a record if you find an ancestor in his indexes. Why on earth would anyone think he should do this for free? I say good for him for a) providing a way for those of us living far away to obtain those records and b)finding a creative way to make a bit of money from something he obviously loves doing

Not everyone is independently wealthy or financially stable enough to volunteer hundreds of hours to help other genealogists. Nor do some people want to do such charitable activities.

Genealogists familiar with my website Olive Tree Genealogy know that I have thousands of genealogy records online - for free. Yep, that's right - free. I spend my time and/or money gathering records to provide for other genealogists at no cost to them. How do I do this? I took ads to earn some money from my website. Why? Because it was a choice - continue working at my paid job outside the home and not have a website with these wonderful records OR give up my job, and devote my time to a website offering free genealogy records - and that meant taking ads as a way to help offset the income I lost by quitting my paying job. 

I also think the woman who made the original comment that she would never pay for genealogy, overlooked the fact that if she goes to a local library or archive, she is no doubt paying for some kind of transportation. Other expenses are often involved - money for lunches, for parking, for a babysitter, for photocopies..... rarely is anything actually "free". For me a huge factor too is the convenience of having records online and the ease of access which frees up my time to do other things.

The bottom line is that we live in a world where individuals are compensated for the work that they do. This is how our society functions. Why anyone would expect someone to work long hours providing the rest of us with a free service makes no sense. Sure it's wonderful if someone does volunteer their time and money to help others - and there are lots of volunteer organizations to be found for those who have the time and the inclination. But on a day to day basis, it is usually the case that we humans get up, go out to our jobs, then come home - and we expect a pay check at the end of it. And there's nothing wrong with wanting or needing to be paid for the work we do.

Convicted of High Treason During War of 1812

During the War of 1812,  most of the inhabitants of Upper Canada (present day Ontario) fought on the British side in defence of the colony. Some did their best to stay neutral but some preferred the American side and openly joined the invaders in the fighting.

Civil Secretary's Correspondence, Upper Canada Sundries
May-August 1815, No. 5, A1, Vol. 23

In November and December of 1813 the Canadian militia surprised a group of invaders near Chatham, Ontario. Among the prisoners were 15 residents of Upper Canada. They were sent to York to be tried in the court. Court proceedings began in Ancaster on 23 May 1814. Nineteen men were officially charged with High Treason. In June, the following men were found guity of treason:

Jacob Overholtzer, Aaron Stevens, Garrett Neill, John Johnston, Samuel and Stephen Hartwell, Dayton Lindsey, George Peacock Jr., Isaiah Brink, Benjamin Simmons, Adam Crysler, Isaac Petit, Cornelius Howey, John Dunham, and Noah Payne Hopkinsy. Dayton Lindsey.

Noah Payne Hopkins, John Dunham, Aaron Stevens, Benjamin Simmons, George Peacock Jr., Isaiah Brink and Adam Crysler were executed by hanging on 20 July 1814 at Burlington Heights.

Letter 28 July 1815 Informing Officials of the Deaths

Garrett Neill, Isaac Pettit and Jacob Overholtzer were sent to Kingston Gaol where they remained under sentence of death or transportation for the crime of High Treason. 

Their deaths in prison were reported in 1815 as Garrett Neil on March 6, 1815, Jacob Overholtzer on March 14, 1815 and Isaac Pettit on April 16, 1815 

We learn more details of these men in Vol. XII - Ontario Historical Society, (1923) THE ANCASTER "BLOODY ASSIZE" OF 1814. BY THE HONOURABLE WILLIAM RENWICK RIDDELL, LL.D., F.R.S.C., ETC. Justice of the Supreme Court of Ontario, 1923

Friday, June 17, Issac Petit (Pettit) was placed in the dock before the
Chief Justice. It was made to appear from the evidence that Petit had taken some part with the marauders, but he had refused to accompany them and had been branded as a coward; the case, however, was clear, and he was justly found guilty.

Petitions had already begun to pour in. Jacob Overholzer was described as "an unfortunate but honest old man" by many loyal inhabitants of the Township of Bertie as early as June 11. The Executive Council conferred with the Judges and the Attorney General, and after anxious consideration and careful weighing of all the facts, it was determined that seven might be saved from death; these seven, the Hartwells, Cornelius Howey, Issac Pitt[sic - Petit], Jacob Overholzer, Garret Neill and John Johnson were
respited till July 28, to enable proper enquiry to be made and proper terms fixed for commutation. 

The Chief Justice refusd to advise whom to execute but he recommeded that as the convicted men were all from the Niagara and London Districts, one at least from each District should be executed; at the same time he pointed out that the President had no power to pardon for Treason

In the latter part of the winter there broke out in Kingston Gaol, the dreaded Jail-fever which, under that name, or that of ship-fever, spotted-fever, etc., was the scourge of crowded gaols, ships and other confined places. It was a virulent type of typhus fever, then and for long  after believed to be "generated out of filth and overcrowding, bad diet and close, foul air", but now known to be due to the activity of the busy "cootie", as malaria to the mosquito, and the plague to the rat-flea.

Some of the unhappy prisoners were seized with the disease, and three died of it, Garrett Neill, March 6, Jacob Overholzer, March 14, and Isaac Petit, March 16, 1815.

If I Could Time Travel Just Once

I've been watching the TV Series "Outlander" on Sunday nights and really enjoying it. For those that don't know anything about it, it's a story of a young British nurse in the 1940s who is on her honeymoon in England. She is accidentally transported back to 1740s Scotland in a fluke of time travel. 

That got me thinking - if I had access to a time machine or some time travel method, but I could only be guaranteed of making one trip, where would I go and what would I do?

Would I just go back to the week before the 50 million dollar lottery was won, and buy a ticket? After all the winning numbers were posted online. Or would I solve a genealogy mystery by going back and asking my 2nd great grandpa Joseph McGinnis who the heck his parents were and where in Ireland he was born!

Perhaps I could save the Irish records from being destroyed in 1922? 

Or should I try to do something noble and altruistic like make sure the Titantic didn't sink or tackle an even bigger challenge that would affect more people in a positive way? 

Or maybe I'd just do something special just for me - like visit my dad who died when I was 14 and enjoy a wonderful day with him. What a beautiful memory that would make.

What would you do? Maybe you'd go to the future and not the past?

Nursing Sister Phillips WW 1 Album Roberta MacAdams Loose Photo 1

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One.  

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain. 

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission. 

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page. 

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos" in the vertical menu bar on the right side of your screen. You can also click on that phrase at the bottom of this post.

This photo of Nursing Sister Roberta Catherine MacAdams was loose in the album. 

Miss Roberta Catherine MacAdams. Lieut. C.A.M.C., Ontario Military Hospital, Orpington, Kent. 

A search of the online CEF database on Ancestry.com reveals that Roberta was born in Sarnia Ontario in 1880. Her father was Robert MacAdams. She joined the Nursing Sisters in January 1916.

The 1891 census for Sarnia lists 10 year old Roberta as the daughter of Robert born Ireland and Catherine born Scotland. We know that Roberta survived the war for in September 1920  at the age of39 she married Harvey Stinson Price. Harvey was a former soldier in the CEF and that makes me wonder if they met in one of the military hospitals in England.

 

 

Leith Skeletons Hold Tantalizing Clues to the Past

A 5 year project to rebuild the faces of almost 400 men, women and children discovered in a section of the South Leith Parish Church’s graveyard has yielded intriguing results.

The website Edinburgh News informs us that "One skeleton, of a woman aged between 25 and 35 who died anywhere between 1360 and 1435, was found to be 4ft 11in, 1.5 inches shorter than the average height for a medieval woman. She was found in a mass grave along with two other women and a child, but it is still unclear if this was related to the plague or some other infectious disease.A boy, aged between 13 and 17, was also found and estimated to have died between 1393 and 1445."
 
Read more at Buried secrets of medieval Leith uncovered

Franklin Expedition Ship ID'd as H.M.S. Erebus

In a previous blog post I talked about the ship from the Franklin Expedition being found by Canadians after 169 years. It has now been proven that the found ship was the H.M.S. Erebus which is believed to be where Franklin died. 

Hopes are high that artifacts belonging to Franklin may be found intact. 

Continue reading at Franklin expedition ship found in Arctic ID'd as HMS Erebus

WW 1 Photo Album Archive page 28

Continuing on with my WW1 Photo Album archive here is the 28th page in my mother's cousin Doris Simpson's album. I am not sure who is in these photos but they were likely taken ca 1920s. The older woman in the bottom photo looks like Auntie Cordie (Cordelia Cook Simpson) but I am not sure if the child with her is Doris.

Edwin Manktelow's WWII Dog Tag Goes Home

I am happy to announce that Case #22 Edwin Mankletow has a happy ending! The found dog tag has been sent to Edwin's son. Thank you to all my readers for their help tracking down Edwin's family.

Edwin's son receives his Dog Tags by mail and has it framed to hang beside the framed photo of Edwin in 1942

Edwin's grave

WWI Canadian soldiers' remains identified

After almost 100 years these WW1 Canadian soldiers' remains have been identified. The Department of National Defence released the names of four men who died during the Battle of Amiens in August 1918.

Wounded at Battle of Amiens
from Collections Canada

Their bodies were found  in 2006  in a back garden in Hallu, France, 120 kilometres north of Paris, by by 14-year-old Fabien Demeusere. Eight soldiers' bodies were uncovered but so far only 4 hav been identified. The remains of the eight soldiers will be buried next to each other near the graves of other soldiers from the 78th Battalion at a ceremony set for May 2015 at Caix cemetery in France.

• Clifford Neelands

Neelands was born in Barrie, Ontario, and moved with his family to Winnipeg. He worked as a real estate agent before joining the 78th Battalion. Lt. Neelands was one of six officers in the 78th who died in the Battle of Amiens.

• Lachlan McKinnon

McKinnon grew up in Scotland, arriving in Canada in 1913. He had worked as a butcher. After he enlisted, he was back in the U.K. by 1915. Before going to fight on the continent, he married a woman from Glasgow. Pte. McKinnon was seriously wounded in his left leg while serving as a rifleman on the Somme front in 1916.

• William Simms

Pte. William Simms of Canada's 78th Battalion died in the Battle of Amiens in France on Aug. 11, 1918. (Archives/Royal Winnipeg Rifles Museum) Simms was from a large farm family in Russell, Man. Pte. Simms took part in all the major Canadian offensives of 1917. One of his brothers also died in the war.

• John Oscar Lindell

Lindell was born in Sweden in 1884, came to Canada when he was about 20 and ended up in Winnipeg. Lance Sgt. Lindell worked as a railroad foreman before he joined the 78th battalion in 1915.


Continue reading this  story at WWI Canadian soldiers' remains identified

Mystery Marker Found in Wagoner Oklahoma Cemetery

The Three Forks Genealogy Society recently unearthed a mystery marker at Elmwood Cemetery  in Wagoner Oklahoma. The marker, found buried in the earth, read

 "The Year of Our Lord 1919, Bethel Hill A.M.E. Church." It listed the pastor as William J. Stanley and the church trustees as A.J. Foster, A.L. Rollins, R.A. Montague, J.L. Rollins, and J.H. Montague. 

Members of the Society have so far been unable to find out exactly who these individuals were and are asking for help from the public.

Continue reading this story at Group asking for public's help to identify mystery marker found in historic Wagoner cemetery

Credits: "Research" by jscreationzs on FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Nursing Sister Philips WW1 Photo Album 1916 Postcard L-3

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One.  

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain. 

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission. 

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page. 

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos" in the vertical menu bar on the right side of your screen. You can also click on that phrase at the bottom of this post.

This postcard, written in French, is dated September 1916. It is labelled "L-3"so I am assuming it was on the left side of page 3.

Find A Grave Community Day - Mark Your Calendars!

The following announcement was sent to Olive Tree Genealogy:

Find A Grave is an incredible resource offered for free. All of the information on the site is pulled together by an extraordinary group of volunteers around the world. With Find A Grave recently surpassing 100,000,000 photos on the site we are reminded of the dedication of the volunteers. But even with their strong determination, they can’t do it alone.

 

100 million photos is amazing, but it also reminds us that we have some work left to do. On October 18^th we are organizing a Community Day. A day to pull together people from all walks of life to a common purpose of helping the gravesites of our fellow brethren be remembered. We all have gravesite stories that touch us deeply. The internet has allowed us all to have those moments without having to leaves our homes.

For more information on how to participate in the Find A Grave Community Day, visit http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2014/09/22/find-a-grave-community-day-october-18th/

 

How I Wish I Could Ask Uncle Wally About His Family

Walter Fuller ca 1916

My grandfather Charles Fuller was born in Ramsgate England in 1893. He died young at the age of 48 in Guelph Ontario. In an odd twist of fate, his younger brother Walter, who was born in 1912 is still with us. Uncle Wally is now 102 years old!

How I wish that Uncle Wally was not deaf as a stone because I sure would love to ask him questions about my grandfather and his parents and grandparents. 

Can you imagine the stories that Uncle Wally could tell?

Another Year of Ontario Vital Statistics Registrations Added!

New records on Ancestry.com include one more year of Ontario Vital Statistics Records. Now you can search 1928 marriages, 1913 births (I'm anxiously waiting for 1914 for my father's birth registration!) and 1938 deaths.

• Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1801-1928
• Ontario, Canada Births, 1869-1913
• Ontario, Canada, Deaths, 1869-1938 and Deaths Overseas, 1939-1947

I'm very excited about this new year of records, but be aware that there are indexing errors. You may need to be creative, use wildcards, ignore first names and so on, in order to find an ancestor. Some errors that I spotted this morning in my own searches were:

"Percival" as "Persfuffal" and "Eileen" as "Celeen" and "Quebec" as " Iacbie" The images these were taken from were quite clear and legible.

That doesn't negate the value of the record set, but it does make searching them more of a challenge.

 

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

Lost and Found Bible Returned to Owner after 40 Years

When Betty Gibson collected debris that had been scattered by a tornado in 2006, she had no idea that the Bible inscribed “Presented to Deborah Savely by Mother and Daddy. June 1961" had been lost by Deborah in 1974.

Betty stored the Bible in her basement but found it while rummaging through the box. Determined to find the owner, she enlisted the help of other people who found Deborah after a great deal of research. The Bible was returned, much to Deborah's delight.


Read more at Lost Bible found in tornado debris after 40 years

Image Credit: "Old Bible" by Arvind Balaraman on FreeDigitalPhotos.net