Author: John Reid

If you can spare 72 minutes I recommend viewing the YouTube video ‘Malignant destiny? Recovering the lost collections of the Public Record Office of Ireland’.

It tells the story of the buildings and collections at the Four Courts in Dublin destroyed in 1922, and also the work of the archivists before and after that tragic event. As genealogists and family historians, it’s easy to overlook the generations of effort and expertise that lie behind the production of a document requested from an archive or online.

A new YouTube video recounts the story of The Blitz for the month of large German daylight raids starting on 31 August 1940.

They’re very popular. I missed one this month as I was too late trying to register. Here’s the programme for September for which registration is scheduled to open today.

Friday, 3 September, 9 am EDT: Recovery from the Black Death in late-medieval Britain and Ireland, by Paul Dryburgh, TNA Principal Records Specialist (Medieval Records).

Wednesday, 8 September, 2:30 pm EDT: Writing John of Gaunt, The Red Prince: a conversation with Helen Carr.

Friday, 10 September, 9 am EDT: Recovery and Regeneration after the Great Fire of London (1666), by TNA Early Modern Record Specialist Philippa Hellawell.

Tuesday, 14 September, 9 am EDT: Top Level Tips: Wills and other Probate Records before 1858, by Ruth Selman, TNA Principal Early Modern Records Specialist.

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/

Miscellaneous items I found of interest during the week.

British Comedian Sean Lock RIP

Britain, Knights of the Realm & Commonwealth Index
Findmypast this week updated this collection of “the good and the great”, notable knights and dames with the latest entries from the Queen’s Honors lists.

UK Ministry of Defence record transfer

(MOD) began the transfer of just under 10 million personnel records to TNA for all three services, Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force, where the individual has a date of birth prior to or up to 1939. The records will be transferred to Kew in batches over the next 6 years.

Historical Society of Ottawa September Zoom Presentations
Wednesday 15 September 7 pm. Rockin’ on the Rideau: Ottawa’s Golden Age of Rock & Roll, by Jim Hurcomb
Wednesday 29 September 7 pm. Tunney’s Pasture – The Story Behind Ottawa’s Field of Dreams, by Dave Allston

Repairing ozone layer is also reducing CO₂ in the atmosphere – new study

For Margaret:   CIHM = Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions.

Thanks to this week’s contributors: Anonymous, Gail B., Judy H., Margaret Dougherty, Teresa, Toni, Unknown.

Since the end of March, a median of 6.2% of records have been added to the Find a Grave Index on Ancestry. Leading in increases, nearly 20% more index records, is the UK and Ireland. Canada’s total is up by 5.2%. An updated figure for the US is not yet available.

Country	Dates	18 August 2021	31 March 2021
U.S.	1600s-Current	?	161,058,083
Global	1300s-Current	18,108,373	17,547,571
UK and Ireland	1300s-Current	13,076,152	10,918,486
Australia and New Zealand	1800s-Current	9,342,735	8,986,286
Canada	1600s-Current	8,528,651	8,104,545
Germany	1600s-Current	1,647,357	1,507,399
Italy	1800s-Current	232,222	216,616
Norway	1800s-Current	204,100	197,584
Brazil	1800s-Current	130,664	129,786
Sweden	1800s-Current	115,898	106,588
Mexico	1800s-Current	48,638	44,507

The actual Find a Grave website shows fewer records available than advertised by Ancestry.

Find 17,307 entries in this database searchable by any combination of First name(s), Last name and Regimental number.
Results returned will add Casualty Year, but it’s not to be trusted. Check the linked image of the original card. Most I looked at were post-Second World War, probably men on National Service.

Now with 2,076,936 records, 315 parishes alphabetically from Acton to Willeston, the Findmypast Greater London Burial Index has expanded with records from:

Southwark, St George the Martyr Workhouse, 1835-1874  — over 10,000 additions
Southwark, St Olave, 1848-1866 — over 2,000 additions.

There are also a few additions from Chiswick, 1856-1866, which now has 30,367 records.

Three parishes in this London collection have over 100,000 records: Bermondsey, St Mary Magdalen, St Andrew Holborn, and Newington, St Mary.

The folks at Canadiana.ca continue adding to the Serials collection, 520,000 pages in 2020-21 despite COVID restrictions. They are about 95% of the way through making available material from the CIHM collection, the original purpose of the Canadiana initiative, and thinking about what comes next.

In the meantime we’re teased with information on serials titles to appear soon. There are 111 additions to the “Coming Soon” list. 28 have “Annual” as the first word of the title, 24 “Minutes” and 21 “Report.” Dates are from 1829 to 1925.

Some of the more interesting titles are Maritimes newspapers: Watchman – Saint John, N.B. (1875-1877), Saturday gazette – Saint John, N.B. (1887-1888), Guardian  – Bay Roberts, NL (1910 – 1925), Fredericton Globe (1891-1893), Evening gazette – Saint John, N.B. (1889-1891). Also the Victoria Weekly Times (1893-1895).

Find the complete list of “Coming Soon” and “Recently Added” items here.

I’m informed LAC is picking up the pace of digitization of item to be added to the Héritage collection. First priority is items requested by researchers, then filling in gaps in series already represented.

Through the Indigenous Documentary Heritage Initiative, Library and Archives Canada announce $739,305 to support 19 projects by First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation organizations throughout Canada. They include six in Manitoba, four in Ontario, two each in BC and Alberta.
Other funding for similar targetted projects is provided by the Documentary Heritage Communities Program. Out of $1.5 million for 2021-22 it allocated $454,051, 30%, to First Nations, Inuit and Métis community projects.
Combined these two LAC funding programs allocated 57% of the total funding for the two initiatives to indigenous initiatives in 2021-22.

Here’s a report on progress, or more accurately complete lack of any progress, with Library and Archives Canada’s Co-Lab Challenges since last month.

Arthur Lismer’s Children’s Art Classes, 0% complete.

John Freemont Smith remains 89% complete.

War Diaries of the First World War: No. 2 Construction Battalion remains 99% complete.

Canadian National Land Settlement Association remains 98% complete.

Molly Lamb Bobak remains 88% complete.

Diary of François-Hyacinthe Séguin remains 98% complete.

George Mully: moments in Indigenous communities remains 0% complete.

Correspondence regarding First Nations veterans returning after the First World War remains 99% complete.

Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 remains 95% complete.

Legendary Train Robber and Prison Escapee Bill Miner remains 99% complete.

Japanese-Canadians: Second World War, remains 3% complete.

The Call to Duty: Canada’s Nursing Sisters remains 93% complete.

Projects that remain 100% complete are no longer reported here.

Other Co-Lab activities not part of the Challenges may have happened; seemingly we’ll never know.

News from Patty McGregor Books.

Now Open: A small bookroom in my home. I carry a selection of used, rare and/or out-of-print books and ephemera related to genealogy and family history research. If you have seen my selection at various book shows and genealogy conferences in the past, you will know the type of titles I carry. The majority of the books relate to Canada, but there are some US and British/Irish subjects as well. Also available – a number of vintage cookbooks and travel books. You can also check my website as most of my genealogy-related inventory is listed online at www.pasttimes.ca/.

Visits to my little shop are by appointment only. For the time being, no more than 2 people at a time and face masks are required. If you live in the Ottawa area or are planning a trip to Ottawa and want to look at my selection, you can email me at pmcgr@rogers.com to book a time. For purchases, we accept cash, personal cheque or electronic transfer. 

Patty McGregor Books is part of the Gathering Place at bifhsgo2021.ca

“For the first time on Ancestry, we’re releasing indexed records of Canada’s war brides, available in the updated UK and Ireland, Outward Passenger Lists, 1890-1960 collection.” Note that this is not a specifically war bride database and not all war bride voyages are included.

Ancestry has updated Flintshire, Wales, Anglican Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1994 to 1,371,630 records and images of the original.

U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999 now has 737,178,249 records