July Ancestors (1)

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

12 July 1828 Donald McFadyen, retired soldier from the 91st Foot Regiment (later to be known as the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders), his wife Flory McLean, and five children set sail from Tobermory, Isle of Mull, bound for Ship Harbour [Port Hawkesbury], Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

15 July 1978 Victor Carl Freiberg died in Port Arthur, Ontario, at the age of 93. Victor was a tall man, fair-haired and blue-eyed. After his wife Marija died, he lived on his own for over 15 years with the assistance of the Latvian community and his grandson Fraser’s family. Ultimately he developed pancreatic cancer and was hospitalized. Victor was my grandfather.

18 July 1755 Thomas Dougall was baptized, son of John Dougall and Jean Weir, at West Calder, West Lothian, Scotland. His humble farming parents lived on the farm estate called Parkhead on the north side of Linlithgow Loch across the lake from the palace. Parkhead was in the parish of Linlithgow. Later Thomas married Marion Pollons—before 1781, no marriage record found—and he too lived and worked at Parkhead. What I still don’t understand is why both generations ignored the local church to travel several parishes away for children’s baptisms in West Calder, in what was then Edinburghshire. A genealogist would suspect deep family roots or ties there. Thomas became the father of my emigrant ancestor John, so he was my triple great-grandfather.

The "Old Smiddy" at Killin, Perthshire; photograph BDM, July 2010

18 July 1807 Duncan Fraser married Katharine Robertson at Killin parish church in Perthshire, Scotland. Killin is situated smack in the lovely Highland region known as the Trossachs. The couple produced eight children, probably born at Smithy ("Smiddy") Cottage, Monemore, Killin. Duncan was a master blacksmith and his trade was carried on by two sons and a son-in-law. One of the greatest things about blogging and the internet was my 4th cousin Elizabeth (Lizzie, love that name) finding me. A gravestone for Duncan and wife is not visible in the unkempt Killin churchyard. Lizzie and I share Duncan as our triple great-grandfather.

June Ancestors (2)

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

12 July 1828 Donald McFadyen, retired soldier from the 91st Foot Regiment (later to be known as the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders), his wife Flory McLean, and five children set sail from Tobermory, Isle of Mull, bound for Ship Harbour [Port Hawkesbury], Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

15 July 1978 Victor Carl Freiberg died in Port Arthur, Ontario, at the age of 93. Victor was a tall man, fair-haired and blue-eyed. After his wife Marija died, he lived on his own for over 15 years with the assistance of the Latvian community and his grandson Fraser’s family. Ultimately he developed pancreatic cancer and was hospitalized. Victor was my grandfather.

18 July 1755 Thomas Dougall was baptized, son of John Dougall and Jean Weir, at West Calder, West Lothian, Scotland. His humble farming parents lived on the farm estate called Parkhead on the north side of Linlithgow Loch across the lake from the palace. Parkhead was in the parish of Linlithgow. Later Thomas married Marion Pollons—before 1781, no marriage record found—and he too lived and worked at Parkhead. What I still don’t understand is why both generations ignored the local church to travel several parishes away for children’s baptisms in West Calder, in what was then Edinburghshire. A genealogist would suspect deep family roots or ties there. Thomas became the father of my emigrant ancestor John, so he was my triple great-grandfather.

The Old Smiddy at Killin, all tarted up today; photo BDM July 2010.

18 July 1807 Duncan Fraser married Katharine Robertson at Killin parish church in Perthshire. The couple produced eight children, probably born at Smithy Cottage, Monemore, Killin. Duncan was a master blacksmith and his trade was carried on by two sons and a son-in-law. One of the greatest things about blogging and the internet was my 4th cousin Elizabeth (Lizzie, I love that name) finding me. A gravestone for Duncan and wife is not visible in the unkempt Killin churchyard. Duncan was my triple great-grandfather. 

Silent Sundays

War of 1812 Commemoration, St James Park, 17 June 2012; photo BDM

The Power of the Record

Ian Wilson, former Archivist of Canada, illustrated the Power of the Record, that is, when we HAVE “the record” and have ACCESS to it. He spoke to the opening plenary of the Ontario Genealogical Society’s annual conference in Kingston, Ontario.

At issue are the astonishing, decimating cutbacks underway for Library and Archives Canada (LAC) in Ottawa. LAC is THE centre of our national documentary heritage. Genealogists and family historians are probably the largest user-group at that institution, whether we visit in person or view their materials via interlibrary loan.
 
Few genealogical societies are showing public support for the protests on their websites. Why is that? It seems individual Geneabloggers and comments on social media pages are doing the work to promote petitions and write letters.

James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, determined that the 21st century requires the slashing of jobs, country-wide programs, interlibrary loan of microfilm, and access in general to the institution itself. Why? Because digitization is the way to go and/or everything is already digitized; it’s not clear on which the Minister bases his shocking decisions. As Ian Wilson put it calmly in a nutshell, “The Minister has been misinformed.”

We have already lost acquisitions of historical Canadian material. We are losing knowledgeable custodians for preservation, conservation, reference services, and ironically, digitization. A Guelph Mercury headline said, “The federal government is systematically depriving Canadians access to our own history.”

Funeral at LAC; photograph by Jeffers Lennox

Everyone suffers! — archivists, librarians, journalists, researchers and students of all ages and interests — and ordinary Canadians looking for information they deserve to have. I cannot find words eloquent enough to express the damaging precedent we are facing. Others are expressing it:

■ One of the best, most informative articles is by archivist Myron Groover at http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2012/06/07/LibraryCuts/.
■ Canadian Association of University Teachers, http://www.savelibraryarchives.ca/
■ Canadian Library Association, http://www.cla.ca/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=12946
■ Jewish Public Library Archives http://www.jewishpubliclibrary.org/blog/?p=1738
■ Canadian Council of Archives Call to Action http://www.cdncouncilarchives.ca/action2012.html
■ National Archival Development Program http://www.change.org/petitions/make-it-better-write-a-letter-help-save-canada-s-national-archival-development-program
■ Mnemosyne’s Magic Mirror: http://www.mnemosynesmagicmirror.blogspot.ca/2012/05/archives-who-needs-all-that-old-stuff.html
■ And the ongoing posts from John D. Reid at http://anglo-celtic-connections.blogspot.com.

We need more headlines like:
Federal cutbacks to impact local libraries .. Ottawa East EMC
Nanaimo Archives in crisis after feds cut grants .. Nanaimo News Bulletin
Cuts to archives threaten our ability to preserve our precious heritage .. Montreal Gazette
Archivists protest in Ottawa .. CBC
Canada’s National Archives being dismantled and scattered .. Boing Boing
Cuts to Canadian archives suit the Harper Tories .. rabble.ca

I can only urge you and everyone you know to write letters immediately to James Moore, Stephen Harper, and your own Member of Parliament. Petitions are good, but a personal letter is better—the Power of the (written) Record!

© Brenda Dougall Merriman, 2012

June Ancestors (1)

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting (most of) the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

3 June 1963 Happy wedding anniversary to a very special brother, Hector Fraser Dougall, and his multi-talented bride, Elizabeth Burton! 

6 June 1916 On this day in Belgium, William Lauchlin McFadyen “died in War, unknown cause.” Born in 1891, he was my Dad's uncle but with four years' age difference they were more like brothers. Willie joined the 1^st Canadian Mounted Rifles (Saskatchewan Regiment) as a private in September 1915 and was in the deadly German bombing and overwhelming assault east of Ypres on 2 June 1916. Military historian Granatstein says “Nine-tenths of the Canadian forward reconnaissance battalion became casualties during the bombardment.”*[emphasis added] Willie is buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Bedford House Cemetery at Ieper (Ypres), Belgium. On the family stone in Sunnyside Cemetery, Manitoba, is written for him: “I go to prepare a place for you.”

* Jack Granatstein, Hell's Corner: An Illustrated History of Canada's Great War, 1914-1918 (Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 2004), 81.

 

13 June 1914 Peter Dougall died at 234 River Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, a few months shy of his 90^th birthday. He'd had a long and fulfilling life between his birthplace just west of Edinburgh, Scotland, and his final days in the city where some of his nine children settled. A devoted Presbyterian, he spent “many years of faithful service” in his long-time Renfrew, Ontario congregation. In his will he said, “I recommend that my family shall live harmoniously and good and useful lives and assist one another if needs be.” Peter's wife of more than 60 years, Catherine Fraser, survived him by only six months. Peter was my paternal great-grandfather.

McIntyre Road, Cameron Detour

The power of blogging: Originally dated 10 May 2012, this post has been extensively re-worked. A perceptive cousin pointed out an egregious error on my part about John Cameron’s age, and then provided more information from what I think of as the Cameron Collaborative. See how writing a blog post can draw out unexpected rewards?

Wheels within wheels, to confuse the metaphor. Sometimes the research road forks in several directions. Exploring all of them, tangential though they may be, can add or eliminate extra indirect evidence to a troublesome problem. 

Following Frasers Parts 19 and 20 ... the main goal is testing the hypothesis that these two women are sisters. So far we have no clues from the women, although like-minded Scottish and French customs identified married women by their birth surnames. Neither woman has been found in the 1861 census.

Catherine McIntyre was born ca.1777 in Scotland; she married John Cameron before about 1803.
Margery McIntyre was born ca.1785 in Scotland; she married John Fraser 17 August 1808.[1]

Margery is my ancestor. Her year of birth is consistent with her stated age at marriage, the 1851 census, and her burial record. She came to St Andrews East some time before her marriage. Her husband came to St Andrews East “from Inverness-shire” between about 1804 and 1806[2]—the years of birth in Scotland and Quebec, respectively, for the last two children of his first marriage.

Catherine is more of a challenge. Her age is available only in the 1851 census. If she and Margery are sisters, the gap in their ages could imply intermediate siblings. Catherine's husband in 1851 (and father of her children from 1803 to 1814) was John Cameron who may or may not be the man known as Preacher John Cameron, said to have come to St Andrews in 1802 “from Fort William, Scotland.”[3] 

We first turn to their husbands in case there are common denominators (records of their adult children could also be useful, but that is still in progress with no relevant results to date). The place names attached to Preacher John Cameron “from Fort William” and  John Fraser “of Inverness-shire” are compatible; Fort William was in Kilmallie parish, Inverness-shire. Those place names are secondary information from a derivative source.

Yet we know only that Catherine McIntyre was married to a John Cameron[4] ... the tangent! That John is definitely the man who fathered Catherine's children as per numerous baptismal entries and his will. That John was illiterate—clearly stated in his will (“ ... the said Testator having persisted therein had made his mark having declared that he could not write his name ...”)[5], in his land transactions, and at the baptism of a son in 1807 (“parents don't write”).[6]

So Cameron researchers are in as much a quandary as I: Is it possible to be a preacher without being able to read the Bible? Still ... the evidence does not preclude rhetorical ability in a pious pioneer to witness the faith and inspire others, based on his own aural learning. So I am told by colleagues with knowledge of similar situations.

The identity of Preacher John Cameron has been extremely difficult to pin down, aside from a few anecdotal statements in Thomas' local history compilation. There it was said:
■ he lived in Lachine for about a year after arrival from Scotland;
■ he came in 1802 to the St. Andrews area (Cote du Midi to be precise—the lots of which were slightly east of the River Rouge lots);
■ he preached in Gaelic;
■ he was a Volunteer serving six weeks at Lachine during the War of 1812;
■ he had sheep on his farm;
■ his eldest son Hugh later lived on the homestead;
■ a son also bore “the same cognomen,” i.e. Preacher;
■ grandson John owns the original land (when the book was published);
■ he had seven sons and six daughters;
■ he died about 1867.[7]
(The last two statements immediately above are not entirely clear if referring to John or son Hugh.)
       
After relaying the above information, Thomas refers us to another section of his book for more about the same man, where the Presbyterian incumbent of 1896 wrote:

“The district was much in need of Gospel ordinances, no minister having ever been settled in it. Mr. Easton of Montreal occasionally came to attend to the Presbyterians. An Episcopal minister preached once a fortnight to the people of that body, while a good man, Hugh Cameron of Cote du Midi, was wont to exhort the people, and even, it is said, sometime to baptize children. He was usually spoken of as 'Hughy the Minister,' and his descendants are still distinguished by the cognomen of 'the minister.'”[8]

Woops! John or Hugh? Here is an example where the often-valuable clues provided by a local history (derivative source) run amok. Stories about the same individual fail to coincide. I have not heard John Cameron descendants mention a son also known as a preacher or 'minister,' or of the appellation lingering in the next generations. Who had the better memory—the local historian giving the tale to the clergyman (who arrived in Quebec more than fifty years after the fact) or the informant for the Cote du Midi section of the book? Alas. 

What I know from the historical record (original sources) is that not only was a John Cameron in the parish of St. Andrews interacting occasionally with my John Fraser, but a Hugh Cameron was even more visible at Fraser church sacraments. A network of Cameron researchers has done extensive work to find relationships. My thanks to them for sharing with me even though my main McIntyre interest skirts the edge of their large project.

The will of John Cameron (naming his wife Catherine McIntyre) does not mention a son Hugh. He does refer to his eldest son Donald! Now it's not unusual for older children to have been provided for, before a man executes his will, but generally they are acknowledged. In fact, he mentions eight children by name, although researchers still wrestle with the possibility of some from a previous marriage. Therein lies the crux for descendants of an early Hugh Cameron, who is present in various records of the period. Was he a son unacknowledged in the will?

John Cameron executed his 1836 will “in the dwelling house of said Testator at the place [???] Riviere? rouge” [as transcribed by a descendant]. He later deeded River Rouge land to younger sons Alexander and Angus in 1845.[9] The document refers to “where the donor currently lives,” specifically lot 28 in the River Rouge settlement.

The 1851 census enumerates elderly John and wife Catherine between married daughter Catherine (Cameron) Lavigne and son Angus, the lot 28 recipient. The next folio indicates the Lavigne family was the sole family in one residence, whereas Angus Cameron has two families occupying his home (the column for type of residence and number of families “belongs” to Angus, not his parents in the two lines above him in the personal schedule). Even if most of his lifetime the Preacher was known to be “of” Cote du Midi, he may have moved in his old age to one of his children for care. At this point I conclude John and Catherine Cameron were living with son Angus, probably since 1836 at the least.

I should not lose sight of the possibility that “my” John Cameron could have owned property in both River Rouge and Cote du Midi and could indeed be one and the same as the Preacher. More work can be done in earlier census returns (household heads only: 1825, 1831, 1842) to compare and correlate John Cameron occurrences. Do we have two “senior” men living in the same general area at the same time? Four names appear in the 1842 census for Argenteuil, but two can probably be eliminated because of occupation or single person status. Perhaps we will be able to analyze enough evidence to say John Cameron—age 88 and the husband of Catherine McIntyre in the 1851 census—is also the father of Hugh and thus the Preacher. Camerons are discussing DNA testing of known descendants of both Catherine’s husband and Hugh, the Preacher’s alleged son.

The previous version of this post concluded that Catherine's husband seemed to have three strikes against his being the Preacher—which doesn’t directly affect the sister hypothesis. Now my mind is open again.

Recently I learned the Preacher John Cameron homestead location at Cote du Midi is known to his descendants. Most surprising to me was the discovery (uncovery might be a better word) this month of a burial ground on that farm. Its existence had been long suspected but was apparently heavily obscured by bush and undergrowth. Descendants have second- or third-hand information that ten people are buried there. Hopefully another expedition can ascertain, with the appropriate tools, if there are sunken stones or markers of any type. In an ideal world, we’d find that it’s the resting place of Preacher John Cameron and identifiable members of his family.

Besides the potential of DNA testing, another big challenge is access to more Quebec-based documentation, i.e. off-line, on-site materials, especially land transfer records and wills. The fact remains that if my John Cameron was not the Preacher, I can forget the assumptive Fort William origin—once a weak point in my rationale, but a fascinating byway on my McIntyre road journey. It’s safe to say this is not the end of my detour, by any means.

[1] St. Gabriel Street (Montreal, Quebec) Presbyterian register of baptisms, marriage, and burials, 1808, Fraser-McIntyre marriage, p. 47; Archives of Ontario (AO) microfilm MS 351 reel 1. Also, “Quebec Vital and Church Records, Drouin Collection,” digital image, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca/ : accessed 19 April 2008) where he is indexed as John Francer.
[2] Cyrus Thomas, History of the Counties Argenteuil, Quebec and Prescott, Ontario (1896; reprint Belleville, ON: Mika Publishing, 1981), 149.
[3] Thomas, 144.
[4] John Cameron household, 1851 Census Canada East, County Deux Montagnes, enumeration district 11, parish of St. Andrews, sheet 21, stamped p. 41; Library and Archives Canada (LAC) microfilm C-1147.
[5] Cour supérieure, District judiciaire de Terrebonne, Répertoire du notaire Michel-Gaspard Thibaudière de LaRonde (1825-1882), (Saint-André Avellin, Québec), document no. 3211, 20 September 1836 and codicil 13 August 1840, will of John Cameron; Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Quebec (BAnQ) at Montreal, CN606, S5.
[6] “Quebec Vital and Church Records, 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection), digital image, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 5 March 2012), baptism Allan Cameron, 30 October 1807, “parents don't write”; citing St. Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec).
[7] Thomas, 144.
[8] Thomas, 106.
[9] A transcription of the John Cameron notarial document was provided by third-party Cameron researchers; the citation is incomplete until details can be provided or unless I can see the original documents: District of Montreal, County of Two Mountains, notaries J.Geo. Lebel and F.H. Leclair of St. Hermas, document no. 944 (20 January 1845), John Cameron to Alexander and Angus Cameron.

© Brenda Dougall Merriman 2012

May Ancestors

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in 

this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books. 

4 May 1934 William Charles Dougall died in Vancouver at the home of his daughter Mabel (Dougall) Jaeger. Will apparently trained in his father's blacksmithing trade which later became a carriage-building business in Renfrew, Ontario. He followed his older brother John Fraser west to Winnipeg where they established their own carriage making business; perhaps brother Thomas was also initially involved. It is said the tragic death of his brother John Fraser in 1916, and business irregularities, affected him deeply for the rest of his life. He may have been prone to depression from then on. One of Will’s hobbies was making rustic furniture. He and his wife Jessie Isabella (Belle) McFadyen moved to the west coast in 1920. After Belle died in 1927, Will lived on a small farm in Whonnock, British Columbia. He is buried in Ocean View Burial Park, Burnaby, BC. Will was the grandfather I never knew.

13 May 1810 John Dougall (“Dougald”) of West Calder, Edinburghshire (later Midlothian), Scotland, son of Thomas Dougall and Marion Pollons, married Marion Hastie of Whitburn, Linlithgowshire (later West Lothian), daughter of John Hastie and Margaret Brown, at Whitburn parish. There is an apocryphal family story that Marion, daughter of a landed tenant, was engaged to be married to a young man of suitable means. The man broke the engagement to marry someone else and Marion rebounded to marry John Dougall, “a humble but god-fearing” man. We often hear variations of stories like this, where one party married (or eloped) beneath their class. After their oldest son Thomas sent encouraging words of life in Canada, and their second son John died of injuries from a horse, the couple emigrated to Quebec. They were my great-great-grandparents (photograph at this blog post).

16 May 1869 Margery (McIntyre) Fraser died on this date at St. Andrews East, Quebec (aka St-André Est). Her death is recorded in St. Andrews Presbyterian church register, although no marker exists in the cemetery (nor for her husband John Fraser). I have not been able to determine her whereabouts in the 1861 Canadian census. I know she was born in Scotland ca.1786, but her family and origins are still a mystery. A working hypothesis is that she came to Canada with a married, older sister, Catherine (McIntyre) Cameron. Margery was my great-great-great-grandmother.

Historical Toronto: Ships in Drydock

Ships in drydock: that’s how I think of them ... on the cryptic monument occupying quiet space at Front and Jarvis Streets. I’m certain it’s meaningless to 98% of the passers-by. It was to me. It has a bench on each side. People like to sit there, especially when the sun is out. It’s a prime spot for a moment’s restoration amid the St. Lawrence Market bustle ... the elderly, the incapacitated, the bored, can wait for their shopper-companions; a street person will take a break from wheeling her cart of worldly goods. 

Rene Robert Cavalier Sieur de La Salle "Griffin" 1678

Commodore Sir James Yeo Flagship 1814 "St. Lawrence" 1812-15

 The captions above show the circumferential wording on each of the two medallions. Toronto Historical Board plaques at either side tell us the medallions were created by noted sculptor Emanuel Hahn and carved by Louis Temporale for installation on the Clifton Gate Memorial Arch at Niagara Falls. We are told the original intent was to commemorate “early pioneers,” including a passing mention of William Lyon Mackenzie (not to denigrate the man and his contributions to Upper Canada) but oddly, what has all this to do with iconic ships?

A little more investigation revealed an embarrassing history (i.e. what the plaques omit; then again, there’s only so much room on a plaque). The said Memorial Arch was duly built and dedicated in 1938; it was demolished in 1967. Some time later these two rescued art works were reinstalled on what was once our town of York waterfront. Ah-ha, ... waterfront ... ships. The tenuous connection? Not exactly.

The concept of the Memorial Arch, under the supervision of an Ontario government cabinet minister, had two purposes: to celebrate one hundred years of responsible government in Canada, and to welcome visitors entering our country across the Niagara River. The phrase responsible government inevitably conjured unhappy shades of the 1837 Rebellion, provoking some still-tender sensitivities a century later. Criticism arose over some of the monument’s historical allusions. Prime Minister Mackenzie King, despite having been consulted about the design, deplored the inclusion of some American names associated with the Hunters’ Lodges raiders—one gets the impression that the design changed a few times betwixt paper and actual construction!

Clifton Gate Memorial Arch, date unknown, Looking at History

The Memorial Arch was doomed to a lifespan of less than thirty years. Impeding the widening of the Niagara Parkway was a big excuse for removing it. As far as I can ascertain—accounts vary—nearly all the carvings disappeared except for what’s now displayed on Front Street and at William Lyon Mackenzie House. Anyone of historical bent can pursue the details at many websites such as “The Offending Arch” at Historical Narratives of Early Canada:   
http://www.uppercanadahistory.ca/tt/tt14.html,
and Looking at History: https://sites.google.com/site/lookingathistory/the-rebellion-trilogy/three-rebellions/remembering-rebellion-the-infernal-arch.

What I find incomprehensible and disgraceful is much loss of the art. There were four panels of tributes: explorers; Loyalists; the War of 1812 and Tecumseh; and reformer William Lyon Mackenzie (grandfather of the then-PM). The Front Street plaques do not mention that renowned illustrator C.W. Jefferys designed the four large panels. Neither Jefferys nor the equally renowned Hahn lived to see the dismantling.

Let’s have a closer wee look at the subjects on our lonely medallions, which seem to be almost forgotten in the panoply of official heritage plaques.


La Salle (1643-1687) was a very early explorer, the first European to travel the length of the Mississippi River. On a subsequent exploration trip, La Salle became stranded in Texas and was killed there. Le Griffon was a 45-ton barque he had built on the Niagara River above the falls, in order to sail the upper Great Lakes. The ship disappeared on a return voyage from Lake Michigan to New France with a load of furs. Finding Le Griffon is sometimes called the “holy grail” of Great Lakes shipwreck hunters. Indeed, one underwater exploration group believes it recently located the site, but the discovery is in limbo under a tsunami of international litigation. Clearly La Salle and Le Griffon were part of the tribute to explorers.

Yeo (1782-1818) was a naval officer appointed commodore and commander-in-chief on the lakes of Canada in March 1813. He arrived in Upper Canada just after the invasion of York, knowing it was crucial to protect the Kingston shipyards and the lake lifeline to troops in Niagara. In practice, Yeo’s position was subordinate to Sir George Prevost, the army general and British North America governor-in-chief. Prevost and his army officials caused no small problems for the naval commander, not to mention the general’s blunders at Lake Champlain. The great warship St. Lawrence was launched for Yeo in early fall of 1814, a newly effective threat to the American navy—only long enough to serve for a few months before winter came. Word of the war’s end followed soon after. So we know where Yeo and his flagship belonged on the ill-fated Arch.

James Lucas Yeo was a brilliant officer whose selfless devotion to duty contributed in large measure to his early death. He deserved well of his country, and he has justly earned an honoured place among the heroes of the War of 1812.[1]

I love surprises in my neighbourhood.

In memory of the invasion 199 years ago on April 27th.


[1] John W. Spurr, “YEO, Sir James Lucas,” Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online (http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=2722 : accessed 30 March 2012).

© Brenda Dougall Merriman, 2012

The Tolstoy Connection

A morsel of validation! A family emigration story from Latvia gets a helping hand from local history.

The Family Story:

Janis (John) Jurikas (1880-1954) was originally given passage money by a member of the Tolstoy family in London, in order to reach Canada.

My Earlier Thoughts:

The intriguing story may have some truth although Count Leo Tolstoy, the renowned author, was apparently never in England (he died in Russia in 1910). Count Tolstoy was known for his generous sponsorship of group emigration for Russian Doukhobors. Some of those groups came to western Canada in 1898 and 1899.(1) I could not ascertain that any of Leo Tolstoy’s children or descendants happened to be in London at an appropriate time for Janis Jurikas. If the financial assistance took place, perhaps it was before he went to England.

What is certain is that John entered Canada at least twice. Iwan [sic] Jurikas, a general labourer age 26, came to Halifax 12 April 1907 on the ship Sicilian from Glasgow — also with a Johan Tukum (probably a cousin), age 28 and a carpenter.(2) Their destinations were Port Arthur and Fort William, Ontario, respectively. Then Iwan Jurikas, a “Lish” [sic: possibly a corruption of Lettish] native born in Russia, age 29, previous occupation painter, arrived in Montreal via Liverpool on the ship Cedric in April 1910.(3) John or brother Paul, or both, were in New York by 1912 when Victor Freibergs married their sister Marija.

Recently Found:

"It is interesting to note, that within the boundaries of the Russian Empire, Limbaži was considered a place of exile, to which the government sent unruly freethinkers-noblemen. And so in 1899 Lev Tolstoy's associate, lawyer Bodyansky, was sent to Limbaži. He had already sold his estates and bought land in Canada for those being persecuted by the Czarist regime. After Bodyansky's departure to Canada from the "Limbaži exile", his children remained on good terms and in contact with students in Limbaži. They sent to Limbaži a variety of Tolstoy's writings. The gendarmerie in town questioned and arrested a number of people. After that, some of the oldest students - Daugulis, Jurikas and Eglitis - were also exiled from Vidzeme province."(4) [emphasis added]

The reference to Bodyansky more than likely means the nobleman and “Tolstoyan activist,” Alexander Mikhailovich Bodyansky, later associated with Doukhobor settlements in Canada.(5) The movement espoused “communalism” and certainly begs for a bit more background in my Jurikas family history, especially regarding Tolstoy's social theories. Did his group help subsidize individual emigrants to spread his ideals? In 1899 Janis Jurikas was about eighteen-nineteen years old. It's not difficult to imagine the impression such free thinking would make on young men thoroughly unhappy with alien domination of their lives and culture.

Janis Jurikas ca.1948

Epilogue:

About a decade of John's life in Canada and the United States remains unaccounted for. Whether he worked to spread Tolstoyan ideals is not known. In 1921 he travelled from the U.S. to meet his brother Paul who was working in Vladivostock, where they prepared to visit a liberated Latvia. John dedicated himself to working the family farm near Limbaži until he and his family were removed in the infamous Soviet confiscations and deportations. His widow and daughters were allowed to return in the 1960s to occupy the sadly neglected old family home once again.

(1) Dave Obee, Destination Canada: A Genealogical Guide to Immigration Records (Victoria, British Columbia: Dave Obee, 2010), 11.

(2) “Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935,” digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 26 March 2010), Sicilian (1907), entry for Iwan Jurikas.

(3) “Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935,” digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 26 March 2010), Cedric (1910), entry for Iwan Jurikas.

(4) Vecie Limbaži [Old Limbaži], full reference to follow, kindly translated by Antra Celmins; email correspondence Celmins to Merriman, 18 March 2012.

(5) John McLaren, Despotic Dominion: Property Rights in British Settler Societies, 226, digital image, Google books (http://books.google.ca/ : accessed 17 April 2012).

© Brenda Dougall Merriman, 2012

 

Frasers Part 20, A Property Puzzle

Catherine McIntyre was born ca.1777 in Scotland; married John Cameron before about 1803.[1]

Margery McIntyre was born ca.1785 in Scotland; married John Fraser 17 August 1808.[2]

Following on my previous Fraser post, I was assembling information on points of intersection between John Fraser and John Cameron. The hypothesis is that their two wives were sisters. The women provide almost no clues themselves; their husbands might tell us more. To be continued later, but one piece of information loomed larger than others: is it a stepping stone to brothers-in-law, or a roadblock? I haven't convinced myself of the overall importance of the point, but it needs addressing. Or maybe I should say it took me into a tangent on maps. What genealogist can resist maps?

From G.R. Rigby, A History of Lachute (Lachute, QC: Giles Publishing House Ltd, 1964).

The two men had contiguous properties on the River Rouge Road by St. Andrews, Seigniory of Argenteuil, according to the metes and bounds description in two land documents of 1845.[3] John Cameron was transferring properties to two sons—all lots then being measured in arpents. Lot 29 was three (frontage) by twenty-eight (depth) arpents, a shape typical of French river lots. The rear of lot 29 abutted the boundary line between the seigniories of Argenteuil and Deux Montagnes. Lot 28 was three by thirty arpents. The latter is the one of interest; John Fraser's land was named as one of the “bounds.” The date of Cameron's acquisition of the properties has not been determined yet, but it was obviously prior to 1845.

Bouchette's 1814 map is the classic post-conquest map of Lower Canada. The line from D to E on the right signifies the boundary between the old seigniories, later counties, of Argenteuil and Deux-Montagnes. It looks to me like there are no more than a dozen lots on the south side of the River Rouge.

 

Cameron's lot 28 was “ ... bounded in the front by the said River Rouge, in the rear by a certain Grignon, on one side by the land of John Fraser and on the other by the above designated land which is Number twenty-eight, where the donor currently lives, ...”.[4] [emphasis added] This seems to place John Fraser on lot 27. 

Probably Bouchette, 1814

The second map is not dated, nor is its source cited, on the website in question.[5] I believe it's a portion of the 1814 Bouchette map which Rigby adapted in a line drawing for his book.You can see the boundary line again. The roads and layout of lots along the Rouge look the same. I scarcely need to mention the lack of lot numbers!

So where would lot 28 be, according to this?!

Were lots numbered in one consecutive series along one side of the river and continued over to the other side? Or did the north and south (sometimes called east and west) sides have their own separate numbering? Did the numbering extend into the Deux-Montagnes seigniory (because the river did)?

Bouchette, 1831

Here is Bouchette again in 1831, a good generation after settlement.[6] Houses and buildings are shown! ... how accurate would they be? But again, no lot numbers. However, I know from the 1861 census and specific land records that John Fraser's land included lots 21 (acquired in 1824), 22 (1806), and 23 (1818). Therefore I'm having some trouble with contiguous!

Cadastre map St-Andre East parish, no date

 All Quebec properties were re-numbered in the cadastral reform of the second part of the nineteenth century. The cadastre map shows many more than a dozen lots each side of River Rouge, within the old seigniory and parish limits.[7] Did something change between 1831 and ca.1870? Or were Bouchette's smaller number of squarish-looking lots simply the surveyor's artistic licence? The cadastre numbering, continuing from the Côte du Midi section, ascends numerically from the village along the south range of the river and continues from east to west on the north range.

Then John Fraser's original property numbers became lot 592 (formerly lot 21), lot 593 (22 ), and 594 (23). The highlight shows his lot 594 (23). How do I know this? Because with time and patience, professional researchers in Quebec were able to access both the registered notarial documents and the seigniorial records. We need to go through the same exercise with John Cameron's seigniorial record(s).

Even if John Fraser and John Cameron were located on adjoining lots, am I putting too much weight on proximity to infer a relationship? After all, a man has many neighbours! It can be argued that Fraser and Cameron are no more or less “associates” than all the settlers along the river bank.

Still, how could lot 28 border with John Fraser's lots 21 to 23?

A thought almost too grim to contemplate: What if the John Fraser mentioned in Cameron's document was my other John Fraser? ... the blacksmith “of St. Andrews.” Instead of hammering happily away in the village, did he have a farm where he practised his trade? Not too likely, I think. Not only had he died or disappeared shortly before 1842, his widow could not be found in that census. She spent her later days living with a brother on one of her father's original properties. It wouldn't hurt to investigate all the lots from 20 to 29. Much easier said than done, in two sets of complicated records. It's either an extended visit to BAnQ in Montreal or hire a researcher again.

[1] 1851 Census Canada East, County of Two Mountains, District 11, parish of St. Andrews, stamped p. 41, John Cameron household; Library and Archives Canada (LAC) microfilm C-1147. “Quebec Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection) 1621-1967,” digital images, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed March 2012), baptism of “Jean” Cameron, 18 July1803; citing St. Benoit Catholic register (Saint-Benoît, Quebec) 1799-1805.

[2] St Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1808 register, p. 47, Fraser-McIntyre marriage; Archives of Ontario (AO) microfilm MS 351 reel 1.

[3] A transcription of the John Cameron notarial document was provided by third-party Cameron researchers; the citation is incomplete until they provide details or unless I can see the original documents: District of Montreal, County of Two Mountains, notaries J.Geo. Lebel and F.H. Leclair of St. Hermas, document no. 944 (20 January 1845).

[4] Ibid.

[5] “The Seigniory of Argenteuil,” Comte d'Argenteuil (www.comte-argenteuil.com/SA1.jpg : accessed 21 March 2008).

[6] Joseph Bouchette, Topographical Map of the District of Montreal (London: James Wyld, 1831); digital image, David Rumsey Historical Map Collection (www.davidrumsey.com/ : accessed 9 April 2012).

[7] “Collection numérique de cartes et plans – Impression,” Bibiothêque et Archives nationales de Québec (http://services.banq.qc.ca/ : accessed 2 August 2009).

April Ancestors

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

11 Apr 1912 Victor Karl Freibergs, son of Otto Freibergs and Ilse Hendricksons, and Marija Jurikas, daughter of Janis Jurikas and Katrina Tukums, were married by Rev. Isaac Sturges, the Latvian rector at St. Cornelius Russian Orthodox Church In New York City. The wedding took place at 442 West 47^th Street and was witnessed by John J. Kalnins, the Latvian Consular Agent in New York. An original marriage document signed by all parties is in my possession. St. Cornelius, located on Governors Island in Manhattan, was later called St. Cornelius the Centurion, a chapel of New York's Trinity Episcopal Church. Victor was then living in Port Arthur, Ontario (now Thunder Bay) where he and his bride took up residence for most of their lives. They were my maternal grandparents. 

 

12 April 1808 John Fraser, son of Duncan Fraser and Catharine Robertson, was baptized at Killin, Perthshire, Scotland. John came to St. Andrews East, Argenteuil, Quebec, about 1830-1831. Little is known of his life (and nothing about his death) except he practised as a blacksmith in the village and may have had family relations on either side of the Ottawa River. His brother William became a respected doctor in Montreal. John disappeared from the radar about 1839 after the conception of his last child. Further details were posted here. He was my great-great-grandfather.

22 April 1906 Victor Freibergs arrived in Canada at the port of Saint John, New Brunswick on the Lake Michigan. Within a very short time he was bound for Montreal by train, arriving there the next day. He found a boarding house to stay in while seeking employment. Like many immigrants, he had to deal with the Russian Consul in Montreal to sort out his status and prepare for Canadian citizenship, a process that went on for some years. Victor never returned to his native Latvia.

Bye Bye

Photograph BDM, April 2011

The Toronto Sun newspaper commissioned this unique mural for the long side of their new building. Created in 1993 by John and Alexandra Hood, it depicted 200 years of Toronto's history and dominated its stretch of Front Street. Last year, after selling this part of the structure, the mural was torn down. It has been replaced by a Dollarama, an LCBO outlet, a pet food store, and a bank branch.

March Ancestors (2)

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

25 March 1937 Hector Fraser Dougall married Clara Helen Freiberg at St. Paul's United Church, Port Arthur, Ontario. The United Church of Canada was not very old at that time; it amalgamated previous Methodist, a large proportion of Presbyterian, and Congregational denominations. The ecumenical choice for the ceremony is of interest to me because although the groom's family background was solidly Presbyterian, the bride's parents came from Lutheran and Russian Orthodox backgrounds. Hector and Clare were my parents and lived in Port Arthur, Ontario.

21 Mar 2007 Brenda's blog was born. Under the Zodiac sign of Aries (not my personal sign). Whatever can I deduce from that? The traditional 5^th anniversary symbol is wood. That's representative of my head sometimes. Oh, BUT ... Now we have modern guidelines. The 5^th seems to be silverware now. Not just any old silver … silverware. I guess that's for anyone who wants to send me some Wallace sterling Rosepoint salad forks.

26 March [Julian calendar] 1872 Marija Jurikas was born at Krūmiņi farm, Lāde parish, Limbaži region, Latvia. She was the third of seven children born to Janis Jurikas and Katrina Tukums. Like many Latvians, the family had converted to Russian Orthodoxy in the 1840s. Later in the nineteenth century came a “Russification” period in Latvia and so the Jurikas children were comparatively well-educated. Marija, my grandmother, was a seamstress who headed for the bright lights of St. Petersburg.

More at: http://brendadougallmerriman.blogspot.com/2007/11/marija.html

26 March 1913 Clara Helen Freiberg was born in Port Arthur, Ontario (now Thunder Bay), daughter and only child of Latvian immigrants Victor Freiberg and Maria Jurikas--sharing a birthday with her mother. Clare became a journalist with the local newspaper, and in later life became involved with various creative arts.

We Go to Kindergarten ...

... because the editorial we reached five years old. Let's have cake .. pass the Caramel Crunch. That's right, chocolate addicts, none of your brown goo. I am of the tiny minority who regard chocolate as a repellent, mind-altering substance. For once, it's not about you. Not to my credit or anything; we all have addictions. Take whipped cream, for example.

Red hair in Red Shoes

At this stage, many of my colleagues reflect on their growth and goals. I'd rather not because I still don't know if I'm writing for them or for a nebulous family posterity or just for obsessive moi. The blog is a hodge podge—something like my mind—of all three. Cruising the Suez Canal and riding camels apparently induces severe writer's block so I'm thankful we are over that hump for the time being. I'm also grateful for my readers who stick around.

Despite often living in the eighteenth century, I do prefer looking forward than reviewing the recent past where one can only sing always look on the bright side of life. It's just as well my family history books are not being bought up by the carload because all you cousins are contacting me now. If I weren't answering 9,000 emails I could be organizing all that new information. Luckily the incoming contains plenty of fodder for my favourite pastime of analysis and problem-solving.

By some minor miracle my board-certified status was renewed yet again; for the next five years it's a solid island in a turbulent shipwrecked world. Uh no; why that image? An oasis of sanity in my desert. pphhtttt ... you get it.

Like all well-rounded family historians, I have a life outside genealogical circles and don't always eat at my computer admiring other people's blogs. I strictly regulate my time on Facebrick (learning new slang, but actually using it has been problematic) and Google+ (more mature discussions, we say) but it's always a case where time expands alarmingly. I've been known to speak in person to my offspring and made a visit to my hometown this past summer.

I have a garden; a tiny urban garden where I valiantly battle for soil rights with a stupid unreasonable tree that some misguided landscaper plopped in years ago. My volunteerism lurches between a couple of secretary positions and regular deposits to the clothing bank. My political activism went into a coma in 1978 but revives periodically, mainly in defence of my performing artists home against berserk fire department officials and similar outrageous conspiracies for which the resident creative souls require patient exposition.

Furthermore, to prove I have a life, every few weeks I panic to see if my scattered friends remember me so we can talk of books, movies, climate change, health-related crap, that fabulous Jane Fonda, and celebrity chefs. I spatchcock posts into my other blog for occasional relief from all this tension.

If I weren't answering 9,000 emails some of this would make sense and I could spend more time writing.

© Brenda Dougall Merriman, 2012

On the Streets

Thank goodness for owners and developers who retain and restore buildings of historical and aesthetic charm.

King Street East; photograph BDM 2010

DOUGALL Part 10, An Update

From a new cousin via MyHeritage, I have learned the date of death for George Dougall and more about his daughter Jane. The best part was receiving photographs of George Dougall and his wife. In turn, I was able to provide information about George, his other children, and a family photograph. This is an update to my published Dougall family history, with the original narrative condensed and tailored to blog formatting. It made me aware of how much I now use online materials for information and clues. New information appears in this colour.

George Dougall (1818-1904)

George Dougall was born 24 May 1818 in West Calder, Edinburghshire, Scotland, the fourth son of John and Marion (Hastie) Dougall;[1] he died 28 Sep 1904 in Montreal.[2] On 2 March 1842 he married Agnes Moffat at St. Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church in Montreal.[3] Agnes was born 23 April 1819; she died 22 September 1879 in Montreal.[4]

George, who became a tailor by occupation, had emigrated with his parents and siblings to Lower Canada in 1834. After some time in Laprairie they moved to Beech Ridge at St. Andrews East in Argenteuil County. Land records for the County of Argenteuil revealed it was George who first acquired the property known as his father’s farm, lot 20 south side Beech Ridge, St. Andrews, Argenteuil, from Thomas Cochran in 1839.[5] From that time George was the seigneurial tenant of record. He may have actually lived in Montreal during that time, or at least by the time he married.

Despite the gap between seigneurial records and the cadastral system between 1873 and 1884, we can see that George’s family was still involved with the Beech Ridge property almost fifty years after the purchase. On the death of his wife Agnes, who had a substantial interest in the property, her heirs (her surviving children) transferred their claims to their father.[6] Then George Sr., the same day in 1884, sold the farm to John Francis Mitchell of Beech Ridge. By that time, the cadastral system was in place and the farm was designated lot 713, Saint Andrews, Argenteuil District.

In 1871, George, a “cutter,” lived in St Antoine Ward of Montreal.[7] The occupations of his children at that time are shown below in parentheses. I doubt Blogger is going to handle the original formatting for children, so I will have to make do. Individual numbers have been omitted.

Agnes Moffat Dougall (1819-1879)

Children of George2 (John1, ThomasA, JohnB) Dougall and Agnes Moffat:
i. JANE3 DOUGALL, born 13 December 1842, was baptized 15 January 1843 at Erskine Presbyterian Church, Montreal.[8] She became a teacher and married widower Sampson Paul Robins, son of Paul Robins and the late Ann Vickery, 4 July 1871 in Montreal.[9] John Dougall was a witness. On the marriage record, Robins’ first wife was noted as the late Elizabeth Hare. He was born 27 January 1833 in County Kent, England, and died 9 February 1930 in Montreal.[10]

Jane Dougall and Sampson Paul Robins

In 1881, Robins was a city schools superintendent.[11] In 1884, he acted as attorney and agent for his wife and two of her brothers in settling her mother’s estate.[12] Jane’s father George Dougall Sr. was living with them in 1891.[13] Jane Dougall and Sampson Paul Robins had two children: George Dougall Robins, 4 June 1872–26 July 1972 and Sampson Paul Robins, 26 November 1874–8 February 1952.[14]

Births, baptisms, most marriages, and some burials for the next children of George Dougall and Agnes Moffat were found in the original records of Erskine Presbyterian Church, Montreal, by researcher Salli Dyson. Some events confirmed or newly uncovered were found via digital images in the Drouin Collection at Ancestry.ca or in other sources, as indicated.

ii. JOHN DOUGALL, born 1 February 1845, baptized 16 February 1845 (millwright). He is likely the manufacturer who died 25 March 1883 in Hochelaga, Montreal.[15] S.P. Robins and W. Drysdale were witnesses at the burial on the 27th.

iii. JAMES JOSEPH DOUGALL, born 25 July 1847, he was baptized 12 September 1847 (carpenter). He died 17 May 1940 in West Kildonan, Winnipeg, Manitoba.[16] He married on 28 February 1883 his first cousin Ellen Dougall, the sixth daughter of his uncle James Dougall and wife Agnes Fenton of Cowansville, Quebec.[17] James McCrudden and Clara H. Dougall were witnesses. Ellen was born 8 February 1856 and died in Winnipeg later than 1940.[18] Their daughter told me the couple is buried in Manitou Cemetery, Manitou, Manitoba.

James J. was living at Pembina, Manitoba, when he married. He and Ellen cultivated a pioneer farm there. After many years of hard work, they rented their farm in 1919 and moved to 125 St. Anthony Avenue in Winnipeg. They had two unmarried daughters: Agnes Benning Dougall (1884-1967), a teacher who cared for her elderly parents, and Elizabeth Jane Dougall (ca.1885).
 
iv. GEORGE MOFFAT DOUGALL, born 1 October 1849, baptized 18 November 1849 (clerk). He died 15 July 1881 in Woodstock, Ontario, at a young age.[19] George Dougall “the younger” married Agnes Jane Kirkby, daughter of Robert Kirkby and Ann Harrison “of England,” on 5 April 1875 at 261 St. George Street, Montreal.[20] George became an organ maker[21] but after his death Agnes worked as a dressmaker.[22] Their known children were Angus (ca.1877), Peter Moffat (1878), and Agnes (1881).

v. THOMAS HASTIE DOUGALL, born 17 December 1851, baptized 11 January 1852; he died 2 December 1852 and was buried two days later on the 4th by the Erskine pastor.

vi. ROBERT McBRIDE DOUGALL, born 28 September 1853, baptized 13 November 1853 (joiner); he  died 28 May 1892 in Montreal. Robert married Annie McCrudden 22 March 1877[23]. The 1901 census shows his widow Annie, a chef, with children William (ca.1879), George (ca,1879), Edna (ca.1886), and Robert (ca.1890).[24]

vii. PETER DOUGALL, born 5 December 1855, baptized 13 January 1856. He died 27 December 1939 at Pembina, Manitoba.[25] He married Helen Anderson who predeceased him in 1935.[26] Peter was a naval engineer in the Merchant Marine before migrating to Manitoba and taking up a farm near his older brother. Peter and Helen had one child, George Lorne Dougall (1883). 

I find sites like MyHeritage and Geni.com difficult to navigate and very frustrating source-wise. Maybe I should say non-source-wise. My experience so far indicates emphasis on name collecting. And the charts are cumbersome to work with. Charts are all very well as tools, but my preference is definitely narrative genealogies, or at least give me a printable lineage! Colour me old-fashioned.

© Brenda Dougall Merriman, 2012 

[1] John Dougall family bible, as transcribed by his granddaughter Helen Locke (the original bible is long missing). Baptisms appear in West Calder registers for the first three sons but not George and the next children.
[2] Peter Smith website, MyHeritage (http://www.myheritage.com/site-379873/smith#newsfeedLocation)—where the date is 22 September. “Quebec Vital & Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital image, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca/ : accessed 12 March 2012); Erskine Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1904, folio 17, burial George Dougall.
[3] St. Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1842, folio 12, Dougall-Moffat marriage.
[4] Unfortunately I learned no further information from the MyHeritage site about Agnes: e.g. parents, place of birth, etc.
[5] Seigneurie d’Argenteuil Records, Registres de Comptabilité, (1849-1860) no. 149, and (1863-1876) no. 463; Bibliothèque et Archives nationales de Québec (BAnQ), Montreal Branch, microfilm nos. 3383 & 3823.
[6] Cadastre System Records, Saint Andrews, Quebec, cadastral lot 713, document no. 9148, notary Hugh Brodie, 18 December 1884, Robert McBride Dougall et al to George Dougall; Argenteuil Land Registry Office.
[7] 1871 Census Quebec, District 106, Montreal, St Antoine Ward, subdistrict B, division 2, p. 83, George Dougall household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 9 October 2010). Microfilm uncited, but St Antoine Ward is on Library and Archives Canada (LAC) microfilm C-10046-10048.
[8] Erskine Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1842, folio 2, baptism Jane Dougall.
[9] “Quebec Vital & Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital images, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca/ : accessed 5 December 2009); Erskine Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec),1871, folio 32, Robins-Dougall marriage.
[10] Peter Smith website, MyHeritage.
[11] 1881 Census Quebec, District 91, Hochelaga, Subdistrict E1, Hochelaga Village, pp. 39-40, Samson Robins household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca/ : accessed 5 December 2009), citing LAC microfilm C-13221. Three older girls (Lillian, Bertha, Edith) appear to be children by Robins’ first wife, judging by the enumerated birthplace of their mother. 
[12] Cadastre System Records, Saint Andrews, Quebec, cadastral lot 713, document no. 9149, notary Hugh Brodie, 18 December 1884, George Dougall to John Francis Mitchell; Argenteuil Land Registry Office.
[13] 1891 Census Quebec, District 154, Hochelaga, Subdistrict G, Hochelaga, Division 1, p. 5, S. Robins household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 5 December 2009), citing LAC microfilm T-6396.
[14] Peter Smith website, MyHeritage.
[15] “Quebec Vital and Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital images, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 12 March 2012); citing Erskine Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1883, folio 5, burial John Dougall.
[16] James J. Dougall, Manitoba death registration no. 018207 (1940); Government of Manitoba Vital Statistics database (http://vitalstats.gov.mb.ca/Query.php : accessed 12 March 2012).
[17] “Quebec Vital & Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital images, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 12 March 2012); East End Rue Lagauchetière Methodist Church (Montreal, Quebec), 1883, folio 5, Dougall-Dougall marriage. 
[18] “Mrs. James J. Dougall,” undated, uncited newspaper clipping in loose notes of daughter Agnes B. Dougall.
[19] “Ontario, Canada, Birth, Marriage and Death Records,” digital images, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 13 October 2009); George Dougall, Ontario death registration no. 014589 (1881), citing Archives of Ontario microfilm MS 935 reel 28.
[20] “Quebec Vital & Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital images, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 6 December 2009); St-Jean French Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec),1875, folio 2, Dougall-Kirkby marriage. 
[21] 1881 Census Ontario, District 166, Oxford North, Subdistrict Woodstock Town, Division 2, pp. 34-35, George Dougal household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 6 December 2009), citing LAC microfilm C-13267.
[22] 1891 Census Ontario, District 104, Oxford North, Subdistrict f, Town of Woodstock, Division 2, p. 64, Agnes Dougall household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (www.ancestry.ca : accessed 6 December 2009), citing LAC microfilm T-6360.
[23] “Quebec Vital and Church Records 1621-1967 (Drouin Collection),” digital images, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 9 October 2010); St Marks Presbyterian Church (Montreal, Quebec),1877, folio 4, Dougall-McCrudden marriage.
[24] 1901 Census Quebec, District 175, Montreal, Subdistrict a, St Antoine Ward, polling subdivision 74, p. 12, Annie Dougall household; digital image, Ancestry.ca (http://www.ancestry.ca : accessed 9 October 2010). Microfilm  uncited, but the ward is on LAC films T-6533-4.
[25] Peter Dougall, death registration no. 39-06-048423 (1939); Government of Manitoba Vital Statistics database (http://vitalstats.gov.mb.ca/Query.php : accessed 6 December 2009).  
[26] Agnes B. Dougall to Hector F. Dougall, loose notes 1930s-1950s.

Wordless Wednesday

Happy 178th birthday on your official incorporation, Toronto ... 5 March 1834.

March Ancestors (1)

For the sake of brief entries, I am not footnoting the facts in this ongoing memorial. Sources have been noted either in other blog posts or in my family history books.

2 March 1852 Peter Dougall married Catharine Fraser at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, St. Andrews East, Quebec. Peter was a native of Midlothian, having emigrated to Argenteuil Seigniory/County with his parents in 1834. Catharine was a Quebec native and a double Fraser—her father John Fraser from Perthshire, and her mother Ann (Nancy) Fraser of an Inverness-shire line. Peter and Catharine lived long and productive lives mainly in Renfrew, Ontario, raising nine children there. In their old age they moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba, to be near some of their children. They were two of my great-grandparents.

Update: Missed this, first time around:
3 March 1811 Ann (“Nancy”) Fraser was born at River Rouge, civil parish of St. Andrews East, Lower Canada, and baptized upriver at Chatham as the daughter of John and Margaret Fraser on 14 June 1812. Nancy’s parents drove seven miles from River Rouge to Chatham for baptism by Anglican minister Rev. Richard Bradford because St. Andrews had no resident Protestant clergyman yet. The Frasers were accompanied by John and Catherine Cameron who were taking their son for baptism. John Cameron and Peter Dewar, two River Rouge neighbours, were sponsors for Nancy’s baptism. I hope to make a case that Nancy's mother Margery (Margaret in some records) McIntyre and John Cameron's wife, Catherine McIntyre, were sisters. Nancy is part of my Inverness-shire Fraser line, and was one of my great-great-grandmothers.

14 March 1894 William Charles Dougall married Jessie Isabella (Belle) McFadyen at Sunnyside (now Springfield), Manitoba. The wedding took place at Belle's family farm home. A Winnipeg newspaper account listed every gift the couple received, from crystal and china to linens. The bride's “beautiful costume” was also noted, unfortunately without further description. Seventy guests sat down to dinner after the ceremony; “dancing and amusements were indulged during the evening.” They lived in Winnipeg most of their lives, raising a family of three. Will and Belle were my paternal grandparents.