While it may seem a glaringly obvious point, it's a point worth keeping in mind when you discover an ancestor's obituary. That obituary or death notice[1. There's no bright line, no hard and fast rule for distinguishing, between a death (or mortuary) notice and an obituary. In general, a death notice was very brief, perhaps … Continue reading Obituary for Thomas and Alexander Moran
I've written about tuberculosis before. See, for example, Tuberculosis in Ontario; and also see a list of those who Died of Tuberculosis in the Ottawa Valley Irish database. Here's a family that was hit hard by the scourge of tuberculosis in a five-year period from 1915 to 1920: the family of Hugh Walsh and Mary … Continue reading Cause of Death: Pulmonary tuberculosis
Are you looking for someone who emigrated from Ireland to North America in the nineteenth century? Welcome to the club! The booming business of Irish genealogy indicates that we are not alone. And their early twenty-first-century descendants are not the first to have searched for some of these emigrants. In the nineteenth century, the friends … Continue reading “Missing Friends” advertisements
Canadian historical newspapers online: a great collection of links at Kenneth R. Marks' The Ancestor Hunt.
Newspaper obituaries often supply loads of genealogically useful information, along with interesting forename and surname spellings. Here, for example, is the obituary for my paternal great-grandfather Alexander Michael Moran (1871-1939). A fairly standard obituary, which informs readers of the death of A.M. Moran, and supplies practical information about the arrangements for his funeral and burial. … Continue reading Death of Alexander Michael Moran
Google News Archive was first launched about four years ago (in 2010, I think?), only to disappear at some point in 2011. Much to the disappointment of those whose idea of a good time is to google their grandparents, and perform deep and detailed searches of online, digitized copies of old newspapers from the comfort … Continue reading Google News Archive is back
Nowadays, you pretty much have to be famous (or perhaps infamous) to have a notice of your travel or holiday plans published in the newspaper. Not so in 1913! My great-grandparents Alexander Michael Moran and Anna ("Annie") Maria Benton certainly had no claims to local, much less national, celebrity: they were neither famous nor infamous. … Continue reading Newsworthy
I'd be interested in learning more about this case (and whether it ever got anywhere as a court case). From The Ottawa Journal, 20 October 1896, a notice that Robert and Eliza Jane Hemphill of Huntley had filed an action against Thomas E. and Mary Moran, also of Huntley township. The "Thomas E." almost certainly … Continue reading Sued for Slander?
