If ever you asked him what position he had played for the Ottawa U Gee-Gees, my father would invariably reply, with his characteristic diffidence and self-deprecating sense of humour, “What position did I play? Benchwarmer!” Well, whatever his position,…
Continue reading →Edward Francis “Frank” Finnerty was born at Arnprior, Renfrew Co., Ontario on January 7, 1885, the fourth of the nine known children of John Finnerty and Catherine Benton. He was baptized on January 9, 1885 (St. John Chrysostom, Arnprior), with…
Continue reading →On June 26, 1847, the Ottawa Daily Citizen published a list of “Names of persons who contributed to the relief of the suffering poor of Ireland.” This list had been supplied to the newspaper by “the Rev. Mr. O’Connell, Catholic…
Continue reading →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 notice1 that you discovered for your ancestor didn’t just write itself. Somebody had to write…
Continue reading →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…
Continue reading →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…
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