Monday 30 October 2017

Scottish Clans and Tartans



First things first.  Not all Scots belong to one of the big clans.  My Tait family were border reivers of Middle March. Although they had close ties with the Kerr family, many of whom were wardens of the area, the Taits were not of a clan. 






Secondly, some families were Septs of a clan. Septs are families that follow another family's chief. My Mavor ancestors were Septs of the Gordon clan of Aberdeenshire. The Septs could be tied by marriage, by land, or just proximity. Either way, there was safety in numbers.   

I see that some clans had more than one tartan - sort of like hockey jerseys, one for home and one for away, there were tartans for war and dress tartans. 






The Scottish Tartan Register was established by an act of parliament in 2008. On their website you can search or register a tartan. I have found that two people have registered tartans for the Tait name.






There are many filters to search by, including tartan name (which I used "Tait"), designer and colours, and more.




Relevant Links














    

Sunday 29 October 2017

Canada 150 - Men's Wear Review






During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...





Men’s Wear Review






Throughout there are portraits of company and store owners or managers. 





Look for a personal section...





Relevant Links





Friday 27 October 2017

High Fives - October 27, 2017




High Fives are articles or blog posts I have read during the week that I find interesting, and perhaps are pertinent to my research. Sometimes there are only a couple and sometimes there are quite a few.




~by Hillary Waterman at JSTOR Daily
Abracadabra and beyond!


~by Helen Barrell at Free UK Genealogy
The mysteries of Mistley  


~by Matthew Komus at The Official Blog of Heritage Winnipeg
The haunted halls of Winnipeg.


~by Haunted Montreal Blog
Read about Houdini's Montreal connection. 


~by Jenny Lawson at The Bloggess
This is the only blog I read that is not genealogy related, and this one I had to share.
I’ve always wanted to build a dollhouse, but Jenny takes it to a whole other level. This link is to the third post, so use the links in the first paragraph to see posts one and two.  






For more exciting weekend reading, see what posts these bloggers liked...

Saturday – Gail Dever, Crème de la Crème

Sunday – Randy Seaver, Best of the Genea-Blogs



Thursday 26 October 2017

Mennonite, Amish and Hutterite Heritage




Mennonites are Christians of the Anabaptists denomination, named after Menno Simons of the Netherlands. Anabaptists also include hutterites and amish.  There are some Anabaptist religions among the Pennsylvania Dutch, but most of them were Lutheran or German Reformed.
    




I came across the MAID website the other day, which got me curious as to what else is available for genealogy research.  MAID stands for Mennonite Archival Image Database.  It holds images of Mennonite people, places and events all over the world. There are many mennonite communities across Canada. 

Herebelow are links to some genealogy resources for mennonites, amish and hutterites.


Relevant Links


















Wednesday 25 October 2017

Canada 150 - Furniture Dealers and Undertakers






During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...




Canadian Furniture World and The Undertaker






The first issue was published in September 1911. The binder for 1911 holds all 1912 issues as well.  Thereafter each binder holds a year of issues.  Check each month. Look for ancestor names throughout, but especially in the column titled Among the Retailers and Knobs of News.





In the Undertaker department, the column Professional Notes tells news of ancestors in the business.




In the issues are also directories of furniture makers, undertakers and associated trades.


Relevant Links


List of St Louis, MO Undertakers



Sunday 22 October 2017

Canada 150 - Farmers Almanack Halifax







During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...




Halifax Farmers Almanack 1833






Contains info on tides, weather and pilotage, names of justices, names of military and militia, fire wardens, bankers, etc... 








Relevant Links






Friday 20 October 2017

High Fives - October 20, 2017




High Fives are articles or blog posts I have read during the week that I find interesting, and perhaps are pertinent to my research. Sometimes there are only a couple and sometimes there are quite a few.



~by Rebecca Murray at Library and Archives Canada Blog
Rebecca tells how to find the records at LAC for maritime pilots.  You may also find them listed in the Sessional Papers


~by John at John Grenham – Irish Roots
I can imagine that some immigrants to Canada and the US felt the same way, not knowing our language.


~by DiAnn Iamarino Ohama at Fortify Your Family Tree
More organization tips from DiAnn. I’ve been haphazardly doing something like this for a long time, but this is a better, simpler method to use.


Celebrating 85 years of student journalism
~by Liam Dowd at University of Glasgow Blog
Use the link at the bottom to go to the Glasgow Guardian archives, then choose a date in the left column.


British and Irish Furniture Makers Online
~by John D Reid at Canada's Anglo-Celtic Connections
John points us to a website with a database of furniture makers and the Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers. 








For more exciting weekend reading, see what posts these bloggers liked...

Saturday – Gail Dever, Crème de la Crème

Sunday – Randy Seaver, Best of the Genea-Blogs



Wednesday 18 October 2017

Canada 150 - Fish and Game Clubs






During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...



Fishing Clubs

The Caledon Mountain Trout Club


The Caledon Mountain Trout Club was established as a private club in 1901 in the Region of Peel, Ontario. See back for list of members.

Tuesday 17 October 2017

The Automobile Industry



My Dad always bought second and third hand cars, and always from the same dealer near our home. He and my brother were always working on cars in our driveway. When the dealer received a car he thought my Dad would like he'd give him a call. I remember a few times Dad getting us out of bed and taking us for a test drive.  We thought it was fun trucking around town in our pyjamas. 


My grandparent's car


Sometimes the car would be for Mom, and the best was when we all took a spin in what would become our first station wagon. My brothers and I slept often in that vehicle... at late-night drive-ins, at house parties my parents attended, and on long road trips. That was the vehicle Mom drove when we went to the cottage for the summer.  One year my parents had bought ducks to keep at the lake and they were in a cardboard box at my brother's feet in the front seat.  Every time we stopped at a light or to get gas, one of the ducks would stick his head out the hole in the top of the box and quack until we started rolling again. 








Relevant Links


















Related Post:  Automobile Registration





Sunday 15 October 2017

Canada 150 - McGill Normal School







During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...



McGill Normal School 




The Normal School was designed to train teachers, and set teaching standards. The Montreal school was open from 1857-1907 when it merged into the School for Teachers at Macdonald College.  One of the conditions of entrance into the school, was to teach for at least three years after graduating. For more information, read the pdf about the History of the McGill Normal School. Records are held at the archives of McGill University. The school was located in Montreal on Belmont Street. 

"From 1857-1907 the McGill Normal School trained 2,989 teachers, to whom were issued 4,118 diplomas - 300 of academy grade, 1,452 of model school grade, 33 kindergarten and 2,333 elementary school diplomas."
Mary Ann (Annie) Lyons was my 1st cousin 2x removed (daughter of my 2x great grandfather's sister) and she graduated from the McGill Normal School. She received an Elementary Diploma in 1903, then went on to get a Model Diploma in 1906. In 1907 Annie enrolled at the Alberta College in Edmonton. 

On the webpage for the list of graduates, click to open and/or download the excel file. Also check other links on right column.

The McGill University Prospectus covering the years the Normal School was open, has a list of staff, instructors and professors for the Normal School.  Further back are names of graduates, but not for the Normal School... drat!




The McGill University yearbooks only start at 1898, so if you have an ancestor that graduated before then, you will most likely find his name in one of these calendars, that seem to start about 1861. 



Relevant Links





Friday 13 October 2017

High Fives - October 13, 2017



High Fives are articles or blog posts I have read during the week that I find interesting, and perhaps are pertinent to my research. Sometimes there are only a couple and sometimes there are quite a few.





~by DiAnn Iamarino Ohama at Fortify Your Family Tree
It is said our Falconer ancestors descend from Walter of Lonkyir, His son Ranulfus became the falconer to the king, and thus became Ranulfus Falconer.



~by Michael John Neil at Genealogy Tip of the Day
I have found a few of these newspaper articles with no first name.  I can usually tell who it is by the date, the place and by others mentioned in the article. Not always!  Another place that just Miss or Mrs is used is in the directories.  At least with the Mrs they usually put widow of... 







For more exciting weekend reading, see what posts these bloggers liked...


Saturday – Gail Dever, Crème de la Crème


Sunday – Randy Seaver, Best of the Genea-Blogs






Wednesday 11 October 2017

Canada 150 - Government Gazette of Vancouver Island






During our country's 150th anniversary celebration of confederation I will write posts titled Canada 150 with a link to a publication or website I find that may help you tell the story of your Canadian ancestors.
Click on the Canada 150 label on the right or at the bottom to see all the posts.

Today I have for you...


Government Gazette, Vancouver Island
1864-1866






On May 17, 1864 the first issue of the Government Gazette for Vancouver Island was published. It was two pages. 

In 1864-1865 there were extra editions to publish the Assessment Roll. Some land owners didn't even live on the Island...






From 1864-1866 there were published extra editions for Assessment of Trade Licenses...






The issue for February 4, 1865 gave list of road improvements PLUS names of settlers for the districts of Cowichan, Nanaimo and Comox







Relevant Links








Related Post:  Gleanings from the Gazette



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