Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Do you need help?


I don't know about you, but I need help sometimes with answering my questions about software and websites.

This came to my mind when Dear Myrt announced earlier this week that she was going to do a special Wacky Wednesday episode on Friday simply called HELP.

It took an hour to listen to her, and she made a good points – you should read ALL of the website, because many times, the answer ARE already there.

If you are a member of her Dear Myrt Genealogy Community at https://plus.google.com/communities/104382659430904043232 you can see the video there, or if not, you can listen to the Google+ Hangout on Air on the You Tube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOlBsUUUqfA
 
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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!


Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Ontario's Agricultural Past

The Archives of Ontario has a new travelling exhibit called Ontario's Agricultural Past.

The new exhibit examines how farming in Ontario has transformed the land and created communities, and how food reaches our tables. 

Notice the poster from the Archives of Ontario which was printed in 1869. It says Ontario has land to give away to immigrants from Great Britain, Europe, and the United States!


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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Monday, October 5, 2015

Canadian Week in Review 05 October 2015


I have come across the following Canadian genealogy, history and heritage websites, social media, and newspaper articles this past week that were of interest to me, and I thought you might be interested in them, too.

This Week in Canadian History

September 29, 1668 - Captain Zachariah Gillam reaches Rupert River on the ketch Nonsuch with Médart des Groseilliers. 

They built the Charles Fort, make a treaty with the local chief and spend the winter trading fur. 

The financial success of this venture lead to the creation of the Hudson's Bay Company. 



Social Media

(Photos) Taverns and Troublemakers exhibition showcases Ottawa's temperance movement


Newfoundland

Nine people invested in Order of Newfoundland and Labrador


In recognition of their outstanding contributions to the province, nine people were invested into the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador. 

Nova Scotia 

Derelict buildings a growing problem in rural Nova Scotia


Nova Scotia's rural municipalities are experiencing an unwelcome crop of derelict buildings.

There's no official count of how many abandoned structures each municipality holds. But the costs of monitoring and demolishing them quickly add up 

Archeology enthusiasts unearth artifacts at Dartmouth park


There was a public archaeological dig at the site of what is believed to be a worker's cottage or bunkhouse from the original construction phase of the Shubenacadie Canal between 1826 and 1831.

More than 300 workers, many from Ireland and Scotland, arrived in 1826 to begin construction. Work on the waterway wouldn't wrap up until 35 years later.

Amherst heritage building unlikely to get reprieve from destruction


A historic Amherst building, built of the region's famous red sand, will be lost to the town if money can't be found to repair it. 

Known as the BMO building — even though the bank moved out in the 1920s — the downtown building on the corner of Victoria and LaPlanche streets was most recently the home of the Amherst Police Department until the building was condemned in the 1990s.

Alberta 

Day in History, Sept. 29, 1928: Flight over Barren Lands the greatest air trip in Canadian history


Clennel (Punch) Dickins, well-known Edmonton bush pilot, was at the controls of the Western Canada Airways plane — the first pilot to fly 6,379 kilometres over the Barren Lands between Hudson Bay and the Mackenzie River basin. 

Canadian news stories this week

October is Women’s History Month


Her Story, Our Story: Celebrating Canadian Women

Since 1992, Canada has celebrated Women's History Month. October has been selected because of the historical significance of the "Persons Case" decision of 1929, a landmark victory in the struggle of Canadian women for equality. The highlight of the month is the celebration of Person's Day on October 18th. The theme for Women’s History Month 2015 is “Her Story, Our Story: Celebrating Canadian Women”.  

This theme highlights the outstanding achievements of women who have shaped the nation in which we live; as pioneers taking the first bold steps into the unknown, as innovators accelerating progress, and as activists at the vanguard of social change. Canada’s history is rich with examples of women who have made a difference in the world and all Canadians can benefit from getting to know their stories.

Some facts you may not know about Canadian women are - 

In 1813, Laura Secord walked 32 kilometres to warn Lieutenant James Fitzgibbon of impending danger of attack by the Americans during the War of 1812.

In 1908, Lucy Maud Montgomery of Prince Edward Island published Anne of Green Gables. It became an instant bestseller, selling more than 19,000 copies in the first five months. It remains one of the bestselling and most beloved books of all time.

During the First World War (1914–1918), more than 2,800 women served with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, with the majority serving overseas in hospitals, on board hospital ships, in several theatres of war and in combat zones with field ambulance units.

In 2009, Commander Josée Kurtz became the first woman in Canadian history to assume command of a major warship when she took control of the frigate HMCS Halifax.

You can read more about the Women's History Month at http://www.swc-cfc.gc.ca/commemoration/whm-mhf/educator-educateur-en.html

And that was the week in Canadian news!

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Two databases upgraded at FamilySearch



There are two databases that have been recently updated on the FamilySearch web page -

Family Origins,Quebec, Quebec Federation of Genealogical Societies, 1621-1865 

This is an index of the family origins of French and foreign immigrants who settled in old Quebec from 1621 to 1865. The index includes individual names, gender, birth dates, baptism dates, area where the individual migrated from, parent's names, and marital status

You can search the index at https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2558681

Prince Edward Island Death Card Index, 1721-1905 

This database has also been updated. It is from index and images of index cards. Information comes from various sources, newspapers, cemeteries, churches, etc.


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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!


Thursday, October 1, 2015

Three new historical databases updated at Ancestry.ca



The Alberta Newspaper BMD Index, 1889 – 2012, the database which has the birth, marriage and death records of ancestors who lived in Alberta, Canada, have been updated on Ancestry.ca.

You can see the historical records at http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=70598 

They also have updated two more historical records - 

The Montreal, Canada, non-Catholic Burial Index, 1767-1899 or the Index des sépultures non catholiques, Montréal, Canada, 1767 à 1899 has been updated at http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=70766 

The Montreal, Canada, non-Catholic Marriage Index, 1766-1899 or the Index des mariages non catholiques, Montréal, Canada, 1766 à 1899 has been updated at http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=70767

These two databases come from the National Library and Archives of Achives (Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec) (BanQ).  

Happy Researching!!

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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Churches are robbed in our backyard



Word has reached us that another church - l'Église de Saint-Joachim, in the small town of Chute-à-Blondeau, Ontario, about 80 miles southeast from Ottawa - has been robbed.

More than 120 years of archival records were stolen (these records were back to 1887), and $1,000 was taken from the safe. 

Across the river from Hawkesbury, in Grenville, Quebec, the Notre Dame des Sept Douleurs Roman Catholic Church was robbed of $250.00 and there was a robbery of a church in Hawkesbury itself in the summer.

No arrests have been made so far.

I understand that they were there to take the money, but I not understand why they would take the archives – to sell. Maybe?

Let us hope this all stops, soon, and life return to normal.

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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

New Canadian Ancestry.ca


Last night, I received notification from the Canadian arm of Ancestry that they would be changing the landing page and adding some features to Ancestry.ca. 

They said that Ancestry.ca "would appear with new storytelling features and a streamlined design, the new Ancestry site will help Canadians move beyond names and dates, enhancing the stories of their ancestors’ lives. 

A few new features include: 

LifeStory, which uses events, sources and relationships you’ve collected in your family tree to create a holistic, time-based narrative of these moments;

Historical Insights will now appear within your ancestor’s life story, giving you context about the events that impacted their lives; 

Facts and Galleries will transform how you view, arrange and share the details of your ancestors’ lives.

As you begin to explore the updated site, please let us know if you have any questions, or need any help navigating the new features". 

Ancestry.com put on this new landing site and the other features about a month ago. It is clear that they are aiming towards the “new customer” (someone who has never used Ancestry before), and are not placating the “seasoned” researcher to find and improve on their research - those that have already found ancestors.

It would be my fervent wish that Ancestry would improve their search algorithms so that it doesn't give me WHITE instead of WAITE, and Halifax, Nova Scotia instead of Halifax, England, or Halifax, Virginia. I have to use the browse feature instead of the search feature.

Pat Richley-Erickson of Mondays with Myrt, a Google+ Hangout on Air, suggested yesterday that
a clearing house of complaints should be set-up so that we can put our frustrations online, instead of not having them answered by the Ancestry people. 

If you are not a member of her genealogy community on Goggle+, you can go to YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_ap4JKxu58 and view it there. 

I will keep you posted on this development.

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Check the Canadian Week in Review (CWR) every Monday morning for the latest in Genealogy, Heritage, and History news in Canada.

If you missed last week’s edition, it is 


It’s the ONLY news blog of its kind in Canada!