Videos and Handouts
2022
Monthly Meetings
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12 November 2022 Anxious Mothers, Voluntary Aid Workers and Military Nurses: Letters from Canadian women during the First World War Presenter: Dr. Melanie Morin-Pelletier Dr. Morin-Pelletier presented stories from the Canadian War Museum records about the role that women played in World War I, including as mothers, members of the Voluntary Aid Detachment and nursing sisters. Many stories were told from their letters home. |
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12 November 2022 Stories from the War As an RCAF bomb aimer during WWII, Richard Glanville “Dick” MacKinnon survived parachuting from a burning aircraft into occupied France. Though memories of that time remained for the rest of his life, he rarely spoke of his experience. When he died 20 years ago, he left behind a collection of war memorabilia—a scrapbook, mementos, letters, and newspaper articles, many of which he added over the years. Combining material from Dick’s collection, his own recorded memories, and additional research findings, this talk begins with the war years and ends with discoveries made after his death. The presentation tells the story of Dick MacKinnon and of people connected with him during the war—including his comrades who perished, and members of the French Resistance who risked their lives to shelter him. |
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8 October 2022 From Derry to the Pontiac – A Publishing Journey Presenter: Nancy Dale Conroy Nancy completed six years of research and writing on the Dales of Clarendon as of January 2022. The story traced the journey of the Dales from their home in County Derry to the wilderness of Clarendon township and documents how the family both survived and thrived. This presentation provided highlights of her experience getting the rough manuscript into book format and ultimately into the hands of readers. The book was self-published with the assistance of Friesen Press. The book combines genealogy, social history and family stories, in describing the adventures of the Dales. |
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8 October 2022 Alfred Guidal and his land occupancy maps of Ontario Presenter: Bruce Elliott While most Ontario genealogists know and make use of the county wall maps of the 1860s and the county atlases of the 1870s (many of which were reprinted a century later), fewer are aware of their 20th-century counterparts. This presentation explored the career of Alfred Guidal and the creation, form and locations of the land occupancy maps, atlases and directories he published in 1916-18. |
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10 September 2022 Laughlin McKinnon Presenter: Suzanne Lesage They were called Laughlin (Lachlan, Laughlan, Lochlin) McKinnon were Scots, Catholics, and lived on the Isle of Eigg in the Inner Hebrides in the middle of the 18th century. There were four of them on an island that boasted less than 500 inhabitants and even more unusual, three of them emigrated to Canada, one of them was Suzanne’s ancestor. The presentation was about the challenges of finding out which one was her ancestor who settled in the Province of Quebec in 1773 and the whereabouts of the other two. |
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11 June 2021 |
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| Sue Lambeth | |
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Lost Connections Found Using American Revolutionary War Pension Records to solve a family brickwall, Sue Lambeth discovered a surprising connection between two separate branches of her family tree - her Canadian maternal grandparents and their ancestors. Some of Sue's Revolutionary War ancestors fought as Patriots, while others supported the Loyalist cause or remained neutral in the conflict. This 'Great Moment' explored their surprising connections. |
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| Christine Jackson |
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Voices from a Silent Past |
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| Jennifer Hill | |
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Solving a 100-year-old mystery using DNA The identity of Jennifer Hill’s paternal grandfather was a family mystery so she decided to use her DNA results to try and find out who he was. Jennifer will talk about the steps she took to solve the mystery in the 100th anniversary year of her father’s birth. |
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4 June 2022 Mags is a Professional Genealogist specializing in Genetic Genealogy as founder of Grandma’s Genes in Ottawa. After earning her Bachelor’s Degree from Columbia College, she began to work her own Genealogy as a “hobby”. This 30-year “hobby” eventually led her to a Leader role with WikiTree, where she currently leads: The DNA Innovators Project, The United Empire Loyalist Project. |
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14 May 2022 Presenter Bob Butler Bob’s presentation discussed one’s genealogy objectives and the benefits of building a family tree online, or on a personal computer (PC). Web sites and PC genealogy programs were reviewed, both for standalone or synchronized use. Autosomal DNA testing is very useful to extend your family tree or to confirm branches where limited source information is available. Testing companies were compared and evaluated, not only on the number of matches they provide but on the number of common ancestors that can be identified. |
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14 May 2022 Presenter: Anne Coulter An old diary that begins in 1862, is passed down through three generations and sparks a scavenger hunt. Who wrote the diary and why was it a cherished family heirloom? How do you read the handwriting? Without living family members or any context, how do you tackle such a project? This talk showed how decoding the contents of a diary revealed a family’s history, provided colourful context and a glimpse into life in 1860s Toronto. Due to the pandemic, all the research was done from home and it is surprising what you can discover! |
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20 April 2022 Special Online Event Presenter: Dr. Joe Flood Dr. Joe Flood, administrator of the Cornwall DNA Projects, shared his expertise on the haplogroups and genetic lines of this historic county in southwest England, including:
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9 April 2022 Presenter: Mary McKee The 1921 Census of England and Wales is here. Findmypast presented an unmissable exploration of the biggest new arrival in family history. After years spent digitizing and transcribing this unique snapshot of our recent history, discover the stories and secrets contained within. Along with the historical context, tips for effective searching and using it to trace elusive relatives, we learned how the 1921 Census will help us understand our ancestors’ lives better. |
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9 April 2021 Presenter: Mags Gaulden “She said, ‘You know I am adopted…’” Betty Jean’s searched for her family once. In the 1950’s, when she and her husband visited the county records office to discover what they could about her birth. The file they were shown was empty. There was nothing to see. Many years later, when a call came in about family records that Betty Jean might have, her search began anew. Travel with Mags as she unravels the levels of intricacy involved in finding the birth family of Betty Jean, using forensic genealogy and DNA. |
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12 March 2022 The Irish Palatines have a unique heritage, one that continues to live on in descendants both in Ireland and in Canada. This illustrated presentation will give an overview of their story, look at aspects of their identity from 1709 up to the present time, and identify key sources for finding Irish Palatine ancestors. |
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12 February 2022 The twelve historical counties of Wales, plus Monmouthshire, were treated as part of England for resources such as civil registration. However, there are some important differences. These include the extensive use of patronymics rather than family names and the use of the Welsh language, particularly for house names. Very common surnames, such as Jones, also present difficulties. County record offices still relate to the historical, rather than the modern counties, and there are many important records held in the National Library of Wales at Aberystwyth.A number of useful books on Welsh research have also been published. |
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12 February 2022 For over six centuries, the archives of St George’s Chapel have been kept in the Lower Ward of Windsor Castle. These Archives belong to one of England’s few remaining royal peculiars and, along with its rare book library, offer an account of the history of property ownership by the church and the land’s occupants across England and Wales, tell about the Chapel's royal connections and present to researchers stories of those who lived and worked on the site. Looking through the Chapel’s history and records, Kristen Mercier will demonstrate how to best access records from the medieval to modern periods, and walk you through the history of record-keeping itself in over half a millennium at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. |
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8 January 2022 The Kirk Sessions of the Established Church of Scotland were responsible for the administration of their parish; they looked after the welfare of their parishioners as well as their discipline—in both spiritual and moral matters. The members of the Session—the minister and the elders—met regularly and their deliberations were recorded, often in great detail. So, whether your ancestor was a clergyman, a church elder, a poor man or woman seeking financial assistance or a woman with an illegitimate child there is a chance they will appear in the minutes and these can often provide information on ancestors that cannot be found anywhere else. |
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8 January 2022 We often focus our research on what we believe to be the “key” people in our direct line of ancestors; those who have a “story to tell,” or who take our research back even further. As a result, we can miss out on some fascinating information about our extended family. This talk will look at members of one family whose histories were overlooked in the initial research. Their stories add depth and breadth to our understanding of this family and its history, of the wider context in which they lived, and of their impact, if any, on society at the time. |
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