RootsChat.Com
Research in Other Countries => Canada => Topic started by: honeybun on Wednesday 30 September 15 20:20 BST (UK)
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I have recently discovered one of my family married a Canadian soldier here and went to Canada in 1946. I have the address of her father in law in Canada at that time. Is there any way I can find out about what happened to them and whether there is still family there? I have found sites for Canadian War Brides which have a lot of interesting information, but it also seems that it is not easy to research relatives in Canada. Does anyone know what my next step should be?
Thanks.
Honeybun
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Depends on the province - can you tell us what place she went to?
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Thanks for your quick reply.
The address of her father in law was: Mr J.C. Bourque, 5577 Hutchinson Street, Montreal, P.Q.
Honeybun
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Sorry I cannot help with Quebec. Would be a good idea to ask a moderator to transfer this to the Canada board
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Thanks for your help. How do I ask for this to be moved?
Honeybun
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I have never done it but perhaps try clicking on 'report to moderator' at the right of the message
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What is the name of your relative who came to Canada? More details?
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Hello Eileen
Her maiden name was Felicity Mabel Alexander Owen and she married Major Maurice P Burke/Bourgue in London in 1946 just before she sailed to Canada.
If you can point me in the direction of finding out more, I'd be very grateful.
Thanks in advance.
Honeybun
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The first step would be to get a copy of the marriage record as it may provide additional information about his parents and his place of residence.
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I have checked the Montreal city directories for that timeframe and at the address, 5577 Hutchison (note spelling), there is an Alfred Karch, but no listing for Bourque, so he may have just been a tenant.
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Thank you for looking that up for me - I'm sorry it's drawn a blank. The address appeared on the passenger list, I haven't got any other information at the moment.
You are probably right and he was a tenant and moved whilst his son was in England and was not able to contact him with a new address. Is there anything else I can do to push this research further, either via RootsChat or on my own?
Honeybun
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I've posted a reply to your other response without reading this first. Yes, I could get the marriage certificate although that might also have the address I gave you as it was only a few weeks before she sailed that they were married. I have no information about which regiment he was in, but I do have his regimental number and some other information regarding his army position (but only numbers, no name of regiment etc.)
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The marriage record should give his age and the name of at least his father (in full vs. just initials). When you're working with so little, every little bit helps.
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Yes, you are right about every little piece of information being important, so it's the marriage certificate next. I did wonder if there was any way I could find out which regiment etc. he was in, there are quite a few records of Canadian soldiers in England, and there might be some personal details on that. (next of kin, home addresses etc.). But I shall start with the marriage certificate and see where that leads me.
Many thanks for your help.
Honeybun
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Have a look at this:
http://regimentalrogue.tripod.com/blog/index.blog?start=1411876859&topic_id=1129750
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That's amazing! Especially as we live about 10 miles from Guildford!
I know there were a lot of Canadian regiments based around this part of Surrey, and I now know which regiment he was in, which also helps when searching. He was obviously promoted after that photo was taken.
Thank you again. I never expected to get a photo!
Honeybun
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Can't guarantee that he is the right one, but thought it of interest. What regiment was he in?
There is also a database of Canadian soldiers who were members of the Royal Canadian Legion after the war, and whose deaths appeared in the Last Post Magazine. It includes service numbers, so perhaps you can make a match, altho' I couldn't come up with an exact match.
https://legionmagazine.com/en/last-post/
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He was in the British Columbia Dragoons (so the caption under the photo says). I'll have a look at the link you sent and see if I can come up with anything. I presume that he is listed under the spelling Bourgue, and not Burke, which is probably the English version! Although the General Register Office entry gives both names on the listings.
Honeybun
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If it was the same guy as the one in the picture. BTW, the correct French Canadian spelling is Bourque (not Bourgue). Can you tell me what ship Felicity came over on in 1946 as I can see the index entry from Findmypast, but I can't find the corresponding entry at Ancestry.
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Felicity's name has been crossed off the manifest on FindMyPast. Her husband's rank is given as Major. Initials M. P.
Maureen
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Felicity was travelling on the "Scythia", White Star Line from Liverpool to Halifax, as Felicity M A Burke. Date was 24th October 1946. I saw that her name had been crossed out, so I looked at the previous couple of pages and there were names crossed through there too (findmypast). I wondered if they had been crossed through when checked on board? Or for what other reason?
Honeybun
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The Ancestry version must be different as I have checked the whole manifest and I cannot find her, and the list I'm looking at asks about outgoing passengers' last address (generally in the UK), and not their destination. Generally, if the name is struck out, the passenger was booked to travel, but did not board the ship.
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That's disappointing, if she didn't travel after all, I wonder why she stayed in England? I didn't find her on any later passenger list so it's a mystery.
They were married in the June quarter of 1946 in Chelsea, so not long before the date she was booked to go.
Any ideas?
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Hi Honeybun,
Is there a chance that this couple are still living ? 1946 is not that long ago...
Regards
Sarah
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Hi Sarah
Felicity was 25 when she married, so it's unlikely that she or her husband are still alive. As the previous posters suggested, I will get the marriage certificate and see if I can get anything on his army career as well.
Thanks to everyone for their help.
Honeybun
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Hi,
There is a passenger list for a flight (BOAC) from London to New York for this gentleman
dated 13-1-1947, he spells his name Burke and he is in transit to Canada.
Age 25, married b. Springside, Canada, a businessman.
Last permanent residence: Dolphin Square, Westminster, England.
Nearest relative in country whence came: Mrs. F.M.A. Burke, Dolphin Square, Westminster. Destined to: 37 Bloor St. West, Toronto, Ontario.
Been in the USA before: Yes numerous times from Canada.
This places Mrs. B. still in England in 1947.
I am not seeing any border crossings for him from Canada to the USA
Springside, as far as I know there are two, one in Saskatchewan and one in Nova Scotia.
Cheers,
DB
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Ooh, good catch! Now we have a rough year of birth.
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London electoral rolls has Maurice living on Livonia Street in Westminster in 1946 and 1947. Felicity is not noted in the electoral roles, but perhaps only the male head of the household was named.
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Thanks Eileen ;D We are really bumping up against Canadian privacy laws and RC's "no
living person" policy. He would have been 17ish at the start of WW2. :o
Cheers,
DB
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Good find,DB! :)
Just putting in Springside when looking for B*ur*e led to this Dtroit Border Crossing:
Paul Mourice Bourque
[aka Maurice Prentice Burke]
Address:481? Broadway Leeside,Ontario
Age: 127 (only 100 years out! ::))
Nationality: French
Birth: 21 Nov 1821 Springside Sk, Canada
Arrival Date: 11 May 1949
Arrival Port: Detroit, Michigan, USA
Departure Contact: Wife Felicity
It looks like he's going to NY to reside permanently but I'm not sure.
Maureen
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Maureen...you are a star, excellent find. ;D Wish this chap would make up his mind about
his name. ???
Cheers,
DB
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:) :)
It gets better,though,as he seems to have become a very famous furniture designer. (just google for the alias).
So is he still alive??
Maureen
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Crikey..... :o
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US Social Security Death Index
Maurice P. Burke
b. 21 November 1921
d. 23 August 2013
SSN issued New York (before 1951)
Thought we's was in trouble about living persons. Now we are only in half the trouble
because we don't know yet about Mrs. B.
Cheers,
DB
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Unbelievable. Believe I have tracked him down to at least several years ago:
http://www.checkcompany.co.uk/director/7989638/MR-MAURICE-PRENTICE-BURKE
Living in Switzerland.
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Might have a son:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:NqpPzI8JwfUJ:patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/pdfs/USD234932.pdf+&cd=13&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ca
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I'm having trouble keeping up with all this information! You have all been amazingly helpful, much more than I could have done from here even with the internet.
I've just Googled and found the Switzerland company information too.
Where is Felicity? I assume that documents re: her journey to Canada have not survived.
Honeybun
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Whew! Well done again,DB! ;D
Why is there no obituary handily popping up for him??? Annoying...
Just as an aside-when he was going to NY in 1949 he listed his contact as Herman MILLER. Bets that it's THE HM of the "aeron chair" fame???
No luck finding Felicity. Sorry.
Maureen
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Herman Miller is a large high-end commercial furniture company. My dad was in the same business in the same timeframe, and it would not surprise me if he knew Maurice, or knew of him.
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Wow,Eileen!
Maureen
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Message to dbreeze
Sorry, can't seem to get my p.m. to get to you. I'm obviously pressing the wrong button at the wrong time ....
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Honeybun - that's maddening, did you try just clicking on my green scroll?
Maureen - agreed, annoying there is no handy obit. Where is that goat woman? ;D
Eileen - crikey, a small world.
Cheers,
DB
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Hi,
While searching I came across an entry about Felicity Mabel Owen, and her family in 1926, on a ship to Beunos Aires. No mention of her mother.
Passenger list of the ship UPWEY GRANGE arriving to Buenos Aires on Feb 01, 1926.
OWEN, FELICITY MABEL ALEX. Unknown 2 years old
OWEN, HELEN ALEXANDER LIL. LONDRES 7 years old
OWEN, THOMAS ALEXANDER Unknown 5 years old
OWEN, TOMAS ALEXANDER Unknown 43 years old
This might help with finding her family, who seem to have done a lot of travelling. The "Upwey Grange" was torpedoed in 1940.
Printer
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Hi,
Felicity Mabel Alexander Owen - mentioned in The London Gazette (10 Aug 1943)
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/36125/supplement/3585/data.pdf
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Hi Printer
Thanks for your info. Yes, I do have details of her family (she was a cousin of my father's). Her father Thomas Alexander Owen was a manager at the Fray Bentos corned beef plant in Buenos Aires. She was born there and travelled a number of times between England and Argentina with her brother.
However, I didn't know about the Gazette entry, which is interesting and gives me a little more personal information about her. I shall try to follow this up.
In passing, I noticed your list of family names. I am from Kent, and noticed two names there in your list. One is Fox, and the other Mummery. I have heard of Mummery and noticed it in some registers when I've been researching. The Fox family is very widespread and large in the county (I guess you know that) and goes back a long way. To cut a long story short we are today going to Sittingbourne to see an old friend who is a Fox. Spooky....
If I can help with any research, please let me know.
Regards
Honeybun
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Not sure if this was sugested but Pier 21 in Halifax was where all war brides disembarked. My mother came over on the Ile de France. Its a worthwhile site to visit
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Thanks, I'll try that.
Honeybun
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Hello Honeybun,
I came across a posting in Rootschat last year for Thomas Alexander Owen, father of Felicity M A Burke (Owen) (Death records in Argentina) that you may not have seen.
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=693110.0
I will send you a PM regarding my family connection in Kent. Thank you.
Printer
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Hi Printer
Thank you so much for your link to the topic of Owen. I dip in and out of Rootschat, depending on which line I am researching, and I have only just started on this Owen one, so I missed the post on the topic. It looks as though the person who started that topic is the family of Thomas Alexander Owen senior. I have replied to her thread and hope to hear something back.
We saw our old friend today. He is one of six Fox children (of two marriages) but he is not interested in his family history(!) - but one of his brothers has been doing it for some time so he has quite a lot of information. I asked about any New Zealand links, but he said no, although we do have some in the U.S.A.! I look forward to your p.m. and will help if I can.
Regards
Honeybun
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Hello Honeybun,
PM has been sent. There is also a biography of Walter Owen, the brother of Thomas Alexander Owen, you might like too. This gives a bit more background.
http://depoetaspoesia.blogspot.co.nz/2012/05/walter-owen.html
Regards.
Printer
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Hi Printer
Thanks for the p.m.
This looks interesting too. I don't know how you find all these things!
Honeybun
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Hi Honeybun (!)
I had trouble sending the PM but you must have received it ok. Happy to help. regards.
Printer
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This is all very interesting, I too am looking for information about Felicity and her family
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I have found Maurice becoming a US citizen in 1949 with the last residence as 481 Broadway, Leeside, Ontario Canada with Felicity, is it possible for someone to check this address please?
He seems to go to the US by himself again, as he did to Canada in 1947
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I have found Maurice becoming a US citizen in 1949 with the last residence as 481 Broadway, Leeside, Ontario Canada with Felicity, is it possible for someone to check this address please?
Leaside is an area of Toronto now. The address you are looking for is 481 Broadway Avenue, Toronto.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaside
If you look up this address online, you will see that it was recently sold, and there are some photos. However, this is a newer home. If you look on the mapping site (you know which one) and do street view... the red brick homes to the right of this home are what it would have looked like in the 1940s.
RK
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If you would like someone to check the City Directory to confirm that they were indeed there in the late 1940s, you can contact the Toronto Public Library for a look up.
https://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/contact/
You can also check the voters' lists on Ancestry (covers 1935-1980). I don't have access, but perhaps someone else here can have a look for you... or maybe your library has the free Ancestry Library Edition??
RK
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Hi,
Nope, not picking him up on Voters lists. Perhaps the window was too small 1947 -1949.
Nessie12 - On his naturalization in 1949, what name did he use, and what was the
date?
Cheers,
DB
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Hi
Just following this thread again (Honeybun here). I believe you found electoral roll entries for Maurice in London in 1947 and 1949? One in Livonia Str. Soho in 1947 and one in Dolphin Sq. in 1949, (see earlier on this thread).
Honeybun
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Hi Honeybun here ;D
Sorry I wasn't too clear, it was Canadian Voters Lists for his Toronto address.
Cheers,
DB
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Hi again
I just wondered if you had found anymore information about Maurice, Felicity or Duncan?
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I have just found a record of the family travelling from Montego Bay to New Orleans in 1962, with an address in Texas :D
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Have now also found Felicity's naturalisation entry for the USA with husband Maurice or Paul Prentice Burke or Bourque with her son Duncan in 1942 valid until 1954 I think, they seem to move around a lot, but I can't find her death or any more details about her son Duncan P Burke.
They were still in USA in 1962 with a Texas address