The table below indicates the months for which handouts and/or videos are available.
| Conference 2016 (8 - 11 September) |
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| February | March | April | May |
June |
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| September | October | November | |||
Videos and/or handouts are only available for selected monthly meetings. To see any of the videos or handouts, please log in to your membership account.
Conference 2016 (8 - 11 September)
Easter 1916, a Family Affair
Niall Keogh
Niall delivered this year's Don Whiteside Memorial Lecture during the conference opening ceremonies. The year 2016 marks the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising, an armed rebellion against British rule that shaped Ireland’s future. For six days in April 1916, volunteer forces occupied locations around Dublin in a bid for an independent Ireland. The Easter Rising of 1916 and the British reaction to it defined Ireland in the 20th century and, arguably, into the 21st. Niall discussed his recent research on the British Administration and the Easter Rising, and took a look at the leaders on both sides. He examined how the Easter Rising was also a fratricidal conflict, with 35 percent of the British soldiers killed during the Rising being Irish-born.
A Sense of Place / A Sense of Self
Maurice Gleeson
Maurice delivered this presentation during a special reception at the Irish Ambassador's residence in Ottawa on the eve of the conference opening.
DNA and Genealogy: Everything You Wanted to Know But Were Afraid to Ask
Maurice Gleeson
In his first seminar, Maurice provided an overview of the three main types of DNA test, what they tell you, and how to use them in practice, including what to do after getting your results. Y-DNA, passed from father to son, is an excellent tool for surname research. Mitochondrial DNA is useful for researching the direct female line but only in specific circumstances, which Maurice explained with a royal example. Autosomal DNA testing reveals other aspects of your genetic inheritance.
Researching Your Irish Family History from the Comfort of Your Home
Maurice Gleeson
In this seminar, Maurice provided an overview of various resources (most of them free and online) that will help direct your research into your Irish family tree. His presentation started with surname origins and travels through time, exploring the various resources that are available for each period in Irish history, culminating with modern sources. In recent years, a huge number of Irish records have become available online. Maurice guided the participants through the various records available to maximize the chances of tracing Irish ancestors . . . without having to leave home.
Using DNA to Identify Soldiers of the Western Front
Maurice Gleeson
In 2009, the undisturbed remains of 250 WWI soldiers, mostly Australians, were discovered in a mass grave in northern France. A crime-scene-type environment was created and the remains were painstakingly exhumed. DNA was extracted successfully from the vast majority of the soldiers, and then began the arduous task of trying to compare the DNA from the soldiers with the DNA of possible living relatives. This closing plenary followed the fascinating story of how these soldiers were exhumed, identified and reinterred, of how DNA played a key role in this identification process, and what the implications of this project mean for the thousands of WWI soldiers who remain undiscovered and unidentified, lying under the green fields of France to this day.
Connecting with Cousins Through Autosomal DNA
Maurice Gleeson
Autosomal DNA (atDNA) testing examines over 700,000 DNA markers on your chromosomes. It may uncover “matches” that help you reconnect with long-lost cousins, and possibly those with genealogical evidence you’ve been searching for. This presentation looked at how you can use atDNA in your own family tree research, how to interpret your results, and how to use them to best effect.
Monthly Meetings 2016 (selected monthly meetings)
10 December 2016
Copyright for Family History
Marnie McCall
Marnie's talk covered the basics of copyright, the meaning of public domain, copyright in your own work, using copyright material of others in your research or presentations, and copyright in family photos and letters.
There is no video of this event.
Great Moments in Genealogy
From Ireland You Say Mary Ann Flannery
Duncan Monkhouse (starts at 00:00)
Duncan Monkhouse talked about his search for Mary Ann Flannery's ancestors. He started with an explanation of how Mary Ann fits into Duncan’s family tree, where she lived and what her life was like. He then defined the brick wall that initially inhibited locating any information about Mary Ann ancestors, how the wall was broken down, and what was located behind the wall.
The Drowning of Charles Dougherty
Susan Davis (starts at 24:35)
When Susan Davis pursed church records, Charles Dougherty’s name showed up as a witness to the baptism of one of Philip Thompson’s children. Within a few short years, the men’s name would show up again, this time for their funerals. The records indicated they both drowned 6 July 1901. Further research led to an article in The Sherbrooke Examiner. It reported that four men drown while crossing the St Francis River after a hard day’s work of log driving. Charles was 50 and left behind a large family in East Angus, Quebec, including Susan’s great-grandmother.
Extra! Extra! Read All about It! Cousin Lyman and Power of the Press
Glenn Wright (starts at 43:12)
We all recognize that newspapers are an essential source for family history, but very few of us can claim a newspaper editor in the family tree and the implications that this has for research. From the mid-1850s to 1934, Erastus Jackson (1829-1919) and his son Lyman (1856-1934) published and edited the Newmarket (Ontario) Era newspaper. Although some of Glenn Wright's family members lived in Newmarket for several years, the Jacksons, related through Erastus’s wife, Sophia Wright, frequently reported on the extended Wright family. Better still, detailed social news and notes, published in every edition over the course of several decades, solved long-standing research mysteries, proving again that newspapers can be an invaluable source of family information.
The Tender Tale of a First World War British War Baby with Canadian Roots, Discovered Almost a Century Later
Suzanne Eakin (starts at 56:37)
Suzanne Eakin talked about a short film (8.5 min.) that documents the poignant story of Dave Travis, radio presenter for BBC, Essex, who finally found his paternal roots. In 2013, considering topics relevant to the upcoming centenary of the First World War, he casually suggested to Sarah Ensor, archivist at the Essex Record Office, that she try to uncover the identity of his paternal grandfather. All he knew was that he had been a Canadian airman, lost in action, prior to his father's birth in January 1917. To his utter astonishment and delight, Sarah promptly found his grandfather, announcing his name to Dave on his show, live, on air: Kenneth Mathewson, of Montreal. Sarah then tracked down the Mathewson family in Canada. A 100% DNA match ensued, as well as two trips to Canada by Dave and his wife Caroline to meet the Mathewson clan who have eagerly embraced this grandson of their family's beloved son, lost in the First World War a century ago.
12 November 2016
First in, Last out: But What Came between 1914 and 1919?
Irene Ip
Irene’s father told her many stories about his life in the army, before and during the war, but she was too young to understand their context, and he died before she was ready to question him. When she decided to try to fill in the gap, she thought that she would have to rely on imagination since the family had preserved so few letters and papers. As her father had served in the Royal Field Artillery, which left no written account, she could not benefit from the many regimental histories that are now available. In her presentation, Irene explained how she was able to fit the stories and few pieces of hard information into the broad context of the Division’s activity and how her father came to be one of the few surviving “Old Contemptibles.”
14 May 2016
Skimming the Surface of British Merchant Marine Records
Barbara Tose
Barbara spoke about the more than 35 types of records pertaining to merchant shipping and mariners that were produced by British government agencies and businesses from 1845 until the mid-1900s. She skimmed the surface of three types of records that can provide information about your merchant mariner ancestors: ships’ records, Crew Agreements, and Master and Mate certificates.
There is no video of this event. A handout available below for members .
9 April 2016
The Search for Alban Leaf
Jane MacNamara
Jane demonstrated the use of many English record types in a period well before census and civil registration. The search for the subject of this case history, Londoner Alban Leaf (1681-1756), takes us from manorial records and parish registers in Yorkshire, to Faculty Office marriage license allegations at Lambeth Palace and an ancient church in Smithfield, to manors in rural Essex, and to intriguing records of inheritance in all locations.
See "The Search for Alban Leaf" on the website.
There are no video or handouts for this event.
9 January 2016
Tips for Making the Most of Your UK Family Research Trip
Dena Palamedes
Dena offered a number of tips for planning travel and packing light on your family research adventure to the UK.
There is no video for this event.