Anglo-Celtic Connections

This lecture from Gresham College investigates how and why the song ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ has become so popular, transcending its roots in the MGM musical Meet Me in St Louis to become a presence in the canon of secular popular Christmas songs.

Live and recorded examples from artists including Judy Garland and Sam Smith explain both how this remarkable song works and the process by which it became so popular. What gives this song its prayer-like quality?

Professor Broomfield-McHugh is joined by singer and actor David Bedella.

This plaque commemorating the Home Children of Liverpool that sailed to Canada has been installed in the Liverpool Parish Church (Our Lady and St Nicholas).

It’s a lasting legacy of Liverpool researcher John Dickenson’s devotion to his “chaps” from the Liverpool Sheltering Home (LSH) who went to Knowlton Distribution Home in Quebec, many of whom then returned to fight in the CEF.  One such is Herbert Bretherton, whose story is included in Gloria Tubman’s book A Genealogists’ Guide to Researching British Home Children.

John Dickenson cooperated broadly with Canadian home child researchers, seen in this photo in conversation with Marj Kohli and Gloria Tubman, at the BIFHSGO 20th anniversary conference at Library and Archives Canada.

If you have an interest in the LSH children, be aware that John’s books and research material have been left to the library at the University of Liverpool. He would have been delighted to know of the interest already shown in that collection.

The photo of the plaque is courtesy of The Revd Canon Dr. Crispin Pailing, Rector of Liverpool, via Gloria Tubman. 

There are 3.9 million new entries on Ancestry’s version of Find A Grave since August. The U.S. has 1.6 million additions, with the UK and Ireland adding 1.1 million. Canada added over a quarter million.

Note that the UK and Ireland, and Norway entries in the May column refer to the prior March 2023 update.

The actual Find A Grave site, where you can search 566,253 cemeteries in 249 different countries, has additional entries.

What to post on the blog during the festive period? In 2010 I began Yuletide R&R posts, sharing “a few links to some of my favourite YouTube items, classics of British comedy with some nostalgia items thrown in, that you, your British parents or even grandparents may have enjoyed. I hope you’re able to find a few minutes to enjoy.”

Since the first year and first item, still a favourite, the tradition (if one can call it that) continues while evolving.

I’m filling out the list and checking the Yuletide R&R list twice for this year. Do you have a favourite, old or new?

As of 1 October 2023, StatsCan estimates the country’s population as 40,528,396 and growing at a phenomenal rate. The quarterly increase of 430,635 people (+1.1%) was the highest population growth rate in any quarter since the second quarter of 1957.
Since forever, we’ve been thinking of Canada’s population as one-tenth that of the US — one Canadian for every ten in the US. Now it’s one for every 8.5.

No progress was reported on any of the Library and Archives Canada’s Co-Lab Challenges.

A shout-out for a presentation being given by Wayne Shepheard on Thursday, 21 December 2023, to the Family Tree Plus Gadgets Club meeting. It’s at 7- 8 pm UK time.

Wayne mentions it on his Discover Genealogy blog, adding, “You need to be a member of Family Tree Plus, either on a 7-day free trial, a one-month pass or a full member, which gets you access to all of their benefits in addition to the magazine subscription.”

https://discovergenealogy.blogspot.com/2023/12/tree-inconsistencies-presentation.html

Updates to newspapers.com for Canada in the past month, aside from present-year issues are:

The Twice A Week Standard
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada 
3,919 pages
1896–1907

Niagara Falls Review
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
991,354 pages
1914–2009

The Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
2,146,811 pages
1852–2017

Daily Record
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
7,727 pages
1908–1917

For England, a newly added paper is The Sutton and Cheam Advertiser, etc. Archive
Sutton, London, England
23,345 pages
1908–1960

Updated newspapers from England are:

The Standard
London, Greater London, England
151,492 pages
1827–1900

Daily Post (Merseyside ed.)
Liverpool, Merseyside, England
160,131 pages
1955–1999

The Gloucestershire Echo
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England
282,392 pages
1884–1999

The Tamworth Herald, etc.
Tamworth, Staffordshire, England
97,746 pages
1870–1999

Atherstone Herald
Atherstone, Warwickshire, England
65,360 pages
1886–1999

For Scotland, one paper was updated

The Lennox Herald
Dumbarton, Strathclyde, Scotland
65,622 pages
1866–2002

There were no additions of updates for Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Australia or New Zealand..

Although the title of this talk given last Friday refers specifically to Jewish genealogy, don’t let that put you off if you don’t have Jewish ancestry. Many of the resources described are more widely applicable, just illustrated with Jewish examples.

https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/landscape-of-dreams-jewish-genealogy-in-canada/

It’s available without a FTW membership until Friday. I particularly appreciated presenter Kaye Prince-Hollenberg’s comments about the limitations in the availability of historical documents in Canada compared to other countries and the confusion over old and new LAC websites.

Miscellaneous items I found of interest during the week.

All Ireland, Wills and Admons, 1515-1858 just added at Ancestry has 87,055 index records.  Information returned is name, will date, will place, occupation, description and “The Original Documents Referred to in This Index Do Not Exist. No Further Information, Other Than That Recorded Above, Has Survived.”

Legacy Half-off Offer Extended.

Genealogy Quebec Discount
25% off the yearly subscription available from 15 – 20 December.

Friends of the Ottawa Public Library Mammoth Book Sale
Saturday 16 December 2023

Thanks to this week’s contributors: Ann Burns, Anonymous, Basil ADAM, Brenda Turner, Christine Jackson, C Orr, gail benjafield, Kim, Nick Mcdonald, Pat Wood, Teresa, Toni, Unknown. Wayne Shepheard