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Research in Other Countries => Canada => Canada Lookup Request => Topic started by: oldcrone on Thursday 20 April 06 08:06 BST (UK)
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I don't know if anyone can help with the following?
I'm looking for the death of a HENRY ARTHUR SHAW (my g-grandfather) sometime between 1881 and 1906 in the Ottawa area, Ontario. He is believed to have been from Ireland and was a farmer, but I have no further details on him.
My grandfather, JOHN ARTHUR SHAW, gave these details when he married his first wife in 1906 in London. Unfortunately, my grandfather changed his name at least twice, and was rather a shady character, so the authenticity of this info is questionable.... :-[
I don't know how difficult it might be to check on Henry Shaw's death, so apologies in advance if I there isn't enough detail, or trawling for his death is going to be really difficult. ???
Many thanks for any help or advice.
Clara
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Hi Clara,
Don't you just love those grandfather's who make genealogy so interesting! :)
Was John Arthur Shaw born in Ontario?
Any idea when Henry Arthur Shaw might have been born?
Karen
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Hi, Karen! I think I may be opening a can of worms here....
My grandfather, JOHN ARTHUR SHAW, was (he says!) born in Ottawa on 1 Jan 1881, but some time ago on another message board, some kind person had a look for him and there was no record of his birth in Ottawa.
More confusion to add to the pot here..... my grandfather also gave his name, as a young man, as JAMES ALOYSIUS SMITH. It's OK, Karen, you can retire from this thread now!! I won't hold it against you!! ;) (By the way, the person on the other message board looked for the birth of a James Aloysius Smith as well on 1 Jan 1881 in Ottawa and found nothing).
So I'm approaching it from another angle now...using the info my grandfather gave about his own father on his marriage certificate (HENRY ARTHUR SHAW, farmer, deceased at the time of John's 1st marriage, ie 1906). My grandfather apparently always hinted that his family had originated from Ireland.
So this is my conundrum - seeing whether any of this info checks out, or if it's all lies. If it is, then I've no hope of finding out any more about my grandfather's past.....if his name isn't Shaw or Smith, then it could be anything! :-\
I'm just hoping for a break!? ???
Clara
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Well lets see what we can find out....
There is a birth for a John Shaw on July 10, 1877 with parents Henry Shaw and Sarah Ann Young, father is listed as a farmer in County of Renfrew, Division of Horton. County of Renfrew is beside the County of Carlton.
Still looking......
Karen
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Just going with that Henry I found, in the 1871 Head of Household Index, he says he was born in Ontario, and ethnic orgin is Irish. He is also listed as an Innkeeper.
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Thanks for the info, Karen. Looks interesting.......!
The only other info I have on my grandfather's early life is that he reckons he was brought up in a Christian Brother's orphanage in ?Ottawa (?presumably his parents died when he was young); and on his army enlistment papers when he was aged 19, in London in 1900, he gives his next of kin as 'elder brothers, David and John Smith, address unknown'. He joined the army (and later, the navy) as JAMES ALOYSIUS SMITH, but married (and was known for the rest of his life) as JOHN ARTHUR SHAW.
Sorry, this is a really difficult one ??? To be honest, I'd recently resigned myself to giving up on him, but some times it all just bugs me again, and I have another go - or try to get someone else to help!!
Clara
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I know how you feel, must be something in the water in Ottawa as my grandfather, who was a little shady himself was there at one point, and he keeps lying on all his forms as well! I'm hoping today I will get his marriage certificate in the mail and see what story he has come up with this time.
It seems the Christian Brother's did have an orphange in Ottawa. There was also St. George's home which was RC, that's were the British Home Children were sent.
Any idea why your grandfather went to England?
I'll see what I can find on John and David Smith....
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Well, there was a James Aloysius Smith who got married in Guelph, Ontario October 25, 1881.....
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Wow, I was just going to post you (see below) - rather strange to find another James Aloysius Smith - will have to think about that one!?)
No, not sure why he ended up in England. He is supposed to have "run away from his orphanage and gone to sea", or so the story goes!!
In October 1900, he enlisted in the Prince of Wales' Leinster Regiment in London - his previous occupation given as 'farm labourer'. He deserted his regiment in Dec 1905 and a month later, joined the navy (again, using the name JAMES ALOYSIUS SMITH, but this time his date of birth was given as 1 Jan 1884). Whilst in the navy, he married his 1st wife, but used the name JOHN ARTHUR SHAW!? ???
After a year in the navy, he deserted, settled down to marriage and children in London (as John Arthur Shaw), but 3 years later was either caught for desertion, or handed himself in, and was sent with his Leinster battalion to serve in India (as James Aloysius Smith) with poor old Mrs Shaw and baby Shaws in tow! :o
He was obviously a bit of a shady character to say the least (although I remember him as a jolly old grandad), but it's just trying to unravel this mystery of him prior to 1900 - his Canadian origins!!
Thanks for helping :)
Clara
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Maybe his mother was married before to a Smith and then married Henry?
On that James A. Smith marriage it dosn't list a wife's name, so next time I am at the library I'll look up the original registration just to see what it says.
Karen
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Thanks, Karen, that's brilliant of you. ;) I certainly would be keen to find out more about this 'James Aloysius Smith' - just seems rather coincidental that combination of names.....speculating like mad, might he be my grandfather's father?! ???
Thanks again for your help
Clara
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It's bad enough to have a "Smith", but with the name Aloysius, why would you want to make that one up? :) It must be a clue to something, what, not sure yet.
You mention his 1st wife, did he marry again and if so do you have that marriage certificate?
Karen
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Yes, he did marry again in 1926 to my grandmother, after his first wife died the year before. And no, I don't have that marriage cert yet - it's on my list!
I certainly will get on the case, as it would be interesting to see what he puts down for his father......probably, Shaw again, as I would imagine he would have wanted to keep his history of name-changing and desertion from my grandmother as long as possible!! She'd already inherited his 5 kids!!
Clara
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Hi, Clara...(& Karen!
Guess you have seen on the 1881...Anderdon, Essex, Ontario
Henry SHAW Irish 1841 b. ont. Farmer
Anna SHAW Irish 1852 b. ont.
John SHAW 1878 b. ont.
If he turns out to be a shaw...maybe he used a name he heard from Ontario
that stuck in his head...
Hmmm...but how would he have guessed the spelling...?
A few James son of James Smith on the 1881...
Intriguing can of worms, my dear! J.J.
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Aloysius is a Saint's name, his day is the 21st June - does fit with an Irish/Catholic background.
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( Born 1878 and not Irish) Peterborough West, Ontario
Found a scottish descent James A Smith with a James A. Smith on the 1881...mother Jane, born Eng..other children's names don't match said brothers, though...
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Thanks Jorose and JJ for your input! Sorry that this is such a stinker.... :-\
So much of what I have on my grandfather is family hearsay (he would never talk about his past), so I'm just trying to prove/disprove various info about him at the moment. I've always thought he was playing a bit of a game with the names - ie the same JAS initials!? A few points:
He was always known as 'Jim' rather than 'John' (even when he was officially John Arthur Shaw).
He never followed the Catholic faith (although his second wife, my grandmother, converted to Catholicism).
Was James Aloysius Smith an assumed name (he was running away from something in Canada) and he reverted to John Arthur Shaw (his real name?) when he married?
Was 'John Arthur Shaw' just used to try and cover his tracks when he deserted?
I would have thought that you change your name if you want to evade someone/something; if you get some sort of kick out of changing identities; or if you don't actually know your real name....
Sorry, don't know if any of this helps or confuses :-\ I certainly think the Guelph James Aloysius Smith is an interesting one, though....
Clara
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I know from my own experience that my great-grandfather (the picture under my name) changed our last name when he came to Canada, but he kept his first name and birth date the same. I think it was fairly easy to do the same back then. However, when he dissappeared after WWI, it turns out he went back to England and resumed his original name, marrying another woman without divorcing my gr-grandmother. We still are "Stanley's" here in Canada, but the second family in England is "Gandley".
I wonder if because he was known as Jim his name is James since that's a shortform, where Jack is a shortform for John?
Karen
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Here's the marriage information for that James Smith
Groom: James Aloysius Smith
Age: 29 years
Residence when Married: Elora, Ontario
Place of Birth: Peel Township
Bachelor or Widower: B
Rank or Profession: Merchant
Names of Parents: William Smith & Matilda Sullivan
Bride: Elizabeth Mary Mays
Age: 27 years
Residence when married: Guelph
Place of Birth: Guelph
Spinster or Widow: S
Names of Parents: James Mays & Catherine Toner
Names & Residneces of Witness: George Gordon, Elora & Mary Carey, Kincardine, Ontario
Date & Place: October 25, 1881, Church of Our Lady
Religious Denom. of Both: Roman Catholic
By License or Banns: Banns
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Here's a reference to it but it says
James A. SMITH and Elizabeth Josephine MAYS married 1881
http://ogs.on.ca/ogspi/188/m188s003.htm J.J.
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That's interesting JJ, on the link you provided it mentions that there is a newspaper article, I wonder if that's where the Josephine comes in? I just checked my Guelph Book and it seems, Mr. Mays was quite a prominant person in early Guelph history, he had his own Fanning-mill Manufacturing Company. Another thing is that these people were married at Church of Our Lady (which is my church :)) and they are the hardest people in the world to get any informtaion out of. They are under the Hamilton Diocese who refused to give any information to the LDS. Pitty really.
Karen
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She is down as Eliza MAYS on the 1881...and as born 1854.
she's with her family in Guelph, 5 other siblings...Nothing mentioned about
" baby in utero" ;D How can we find the tie in to this mystery...?
No births in the online listings for James or said brothers...any luck, Karen?
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she may have been enumerated twice or I made a booboo with the first look as is this the right couple, then...in Peel...?
James A. SMITH 29...b. 1852.... Merchant
Eliza Jane SMITH 26 ...b. 1855
John HARRIS 13
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Well, James & Eliza had a girl October 24, 1884, not named. She was born in Guelph and the informant is James Mays, the father Jas. A. Smith is listed as a merchant.
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Well just to add to the pot ..... ::) ::) ::) but I don't think he's related ...... :P
Names:
SMITH , JAMES A
Regimental number:
2627312
Rank:
SPR
Reference:
RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 9064 - 75
http://www.rootschat.com/links/0dk/
There is another one but he's a Major !!
Annie :)
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Plus keep your eye on this too !!
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,150539.0.html
Annie :)
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Thanks for that Annie! This fellow sure is interesting.
I'm confused over him signing up in London, but being in the Royal Canadians? Can you explain that to me?
Karen
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Ok, here's Eliza's death
Elizabeth Smith
Date of Death: May 10, 1928
Address: 1 Sutton St., Toronto
At Place of Death: 10 years
Born: Guelph, Ontario
Widow
Father: James Mays, Ireland
Mother: Catherine Toner, Ireland
Informant: F. O'Callaghan, Nephew
Address of Informant: 1 Sutton St., Toronto
Place of Burial: Guelph, Ontario
Cause of Death: Brights Disease
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Hi Karen !
I think that the regiment was named the Royal Canadians because it was formed to go to Canada in the 1700's! but I'm still looking into that !!
I also think that he was able to get a Kings Pardon because of Edward VII 's coronation .... but I'm still looking into that too !!
Annie :)
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Here's another death for:
Mary O'Callaghan
Birth: Canada
Address: 1 Sutton St., Toronto
Date of Death: November 26, 1913
Widow
Looks like Mary was married to Frank O'Callaghan and her maiden name was Mays.
Does the name O'Callaghan mean anything??
Karen
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Her sister Mary married Frank the same year http://www.ogs.on.ca/ogspi/188/m188o000.htm
O'CALLIGAN F.P. and MAYS Mary married 1881, Mary already a widow by 1901
AAAACH! Where is our little James a. Jr??????
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Here's Catherine & Eliza also widows...on the 1901...The men did not live long in these families! Also with Eliza's sister Annie & a nephew...
http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/DisplayPagePanb.jsp?id=108985&highlight=2
1884- James A. death....If this is the father he hardly had time to father a little girl and three boys....
http://ogs.on.ca/ogspi/188/o188s000.htm
Now the story is that both the father and mother had died prior to 1901? but our Eliza lives another 27 years...J.J.
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Oh dear, only been away from my computer for a day..... :o
Thank you so much everyone for your help and info which I've been trawling through. And yes, sorry if it's confusing about my other thread on the 'military' board - will reply to that one, Annie, in a few minutes, on the other board! (I really was just trying to tie up another loose end in that my grandfather was either caught for desertion, or gave himself up, in 1910 in England, and I was trying to ascertain what a certain phrase meant on his army records which might tell me......)
Unfortunately, nothing which you very kind people have dug up seems to ring any bells with me about my grandfather, other than the coincidence of finding someone called James Aloysius Smith. ??? And no, sorry, O'Callaghan doesn't figure..... ???
Somehow James/John ends up in London in 1900 aged either 16 or 19, giving sketchy details on any family. None of my family recalls him having any contact with, or talking about, any family he had left in Canada (he died in 1975, officially aged 94). One aunt reckons that he didn't know his parents - ie was put in an orphanage at a young age (although he did refer to these 2 brothers and to a father called Henry Shaw on various documents).
I suppose I'm still rather stuck on him being brought up in a ?Christian Brothers' orphanage, which is how the story goes. If there is no record of him being born on 1 Jan 1881 in Ottawa using either of his names, and we can't find a father called Henry Arthur Shaw (or not conclusively), is there any possibility that there might be orphanage records?? Christian Brothers? Ottawa area? Needle in a haystack!! :-\
Clara
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Here's the earliest photo I have of my grandfather aged about 45, when he married my grandmother in Birmingham in 1926.
Looks rather a shady character!! :o (though I remember him as a jolly little bloke, always joking). He's remembered as a "lovable rogue"!!
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That's a great picture Clara! He looks like he would have had a few stories to tell :)
Here's a death registration for:
Henry A. Shaw
Date of Death: Feb. 5, 1881
Place of Birth: Ireland
Occupation: Bookkeeper
Age: about 55 years
Cause of Death: Verdict, died in the Agnes St., Police Station of Apoplexy
Toronto, Ontario
Karen
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.
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Karen - now that really looks promising, and might be worth getting hold of to see what the middle name was....I actually haven't yet checked out ordering certificates from Canada.... ???
One thing which I meant to ask before, is the Canadian 1881 census fairly 'available' (ie like the UK one is here)? Because if it is, and my grandfather's name WAS either James Smith or John Shaw, then he would have shown up as a small baby on the census, and is more likely to still have been with his parents.
Just a thought....
Clara
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Hi Clara,
Yes, the 1881 in on-line with the familysearch.org site.
The death for that Henry, I looked at the original, and it dosn't list what the middle name is. For Ontario, births, marriages and deaths are free to look at through the Archives up to 1908 for Birth, 1921 for marriages and 1932 for death with a new year added. Anything over those years you have to order directly from the Province.
I thought that it was interesting, especially being in the police station.
Karen
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Thanks Karen - just to check, is the 1881 census for Canada comprehensive? Also, if my memory serves me right, do you have to search by location? I just remember trying to search for my grandfather before, and it was difficult with the limited info I had.
Also, when you say the Ontario BMDs are free to look at through the Archives, do you mean from www.collectionscanada.ca?
Many thanks
Clara
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There are some on-line through the Ontario Vital Statistics Project, and of course www.ancestry.ca has them as well. But for a complete listing you have to do it the old fashion way on microfilm at the library's, but they are quite simple as they are in alphabetical order.
The 1881 is easy to search for Canada, the 1901 and 1911 census are on-line as well.
Karen
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Another photo of this strange, elusive little man, taken on hols in Jersey with my grandma, I think, in the 50s - this is how I remember him.
(He really was little, only about 5' 4", I think, whereas my grandma was about 5' 10" (my height, I take after her, and look like her!). I always couldn't believe I had these strange grandparents, where my grandma was much taller than my granddad :o)
Clara
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Another great picture Clara, I think he might be laughing at us, saying, "go ahead, try and figure it out, I dare ya!" :)
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Cheers, Karen! I've felt exactly that - almost like he's had a premonition about the interest in family history before it happened, and made sure that he was going to make it difficult!!
Still pondering on all the info everyone's posted..... ??? But thanks, everyone, for trying to help - I do appreciate it!
Clara
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It's only all been posted to help should it be found later that he is one or the
other...No need to think we've wasted any of our time on this. It's intriguing,
so we are enjoying it...we are throwing about thoughts until one bounces
a few times...
Oh, Karen's new find looks interesting, as it could make the most sense, as
here we have a fellow already passed on one month after the birth of our man...
Could the mother have been pregnant by one man and married another, thus
the several names...or have we a jokester for an ancestor who never knew a father & made one up?....Great photos of our rogue, by the way...he has a very nice smile...( the rotter ;D )
Smiths born in 1881
http://www.ogs.on.ca/ogspi/188/b188s000.htm#smith
Have checked many things re: 1881 for John Shaw....& James Smith...elusive
little tyke...Now, had he been in a home or in transit to a facility, perhaps he might have been missed...
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/frameset_search.asp
Just go to the census datatbase and select Canadian Census...then Ontario for Province...Of course once you have more information you can be more specific to the area.
re: the police thing, would there be any records in existence from that far back?
Thinking out loud...J.J.
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I wonder where Agnes St. police station would be now, or at least what area of Toronto.
I'm sure there would be newspapers around that time, perhaps the Globe and if someone died in the police station it would make news?
Karen
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Thank you JJ and KarenM for your replies - sorry, have been away for a few days looking after my grandchildren.
Three grandchildren over a 6-month period - surely enough to make the most mild-mannered person go bonkers!!
This weekend, I'm going to do a systematic trawl of ancestry.ca - the only thing I don't understand is, if my grandfather was born in Ottawa, which is the district that's worth me trawling? Basically, looking at all the districts, I don't understand which I should concentrate on in Ontario........
Help!!
Clara
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Hi Clara
Ottawa is in the County of Carleton, so I would start with that.
Perhaps you might be able to google a map on Ontario with the breakdown of areas.
Karen
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Thanks Karen, will try searching as you suggest...!!
Honestly, sounds like I'm really dim, have tried googling and multimapping, but I'm still not sure of the areas....will get back to you if I continue to be this stiff old Anglophile!! :o
Clara
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Here's a link to a site MJP posted, it's a map of Ontario in 1880 with the names of Counties, may help you a little bit, and it's coloured coded ;)
http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/Countyatlas/SearchMapframes.php
Karen
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Update on Henry Arthur Shaw! ???
On the marriage certificate of my grandfather (John Arthur Shaw, alias James Aloysius Smith, birthyear either 1881 or 1884 in ?Ottawa) to my poor unsuspecting grandmother in 1926 - just received today - Henry Arthur Shaw (his father) has now turned into another John Arthur Shaw (deceased, no occupation given)!!
Also my wily grandfather now has a new birthyear - he is now born in 1888, obviously chopping off a good half a dozen years in order to ensnare his much younger bride into taking him and his 5 children on!! :o
This has all now got so complicated with lies and subterfuge that I'm admitting defeat! :'( I honestly do think that my grandfather didn't really know who his father was, so he made him up, and he just liked changing his own (and his father's) name and age to suit the circumstances he found himself in. So it's all really turned into a TOTAL needle in a haystack....
Thanks for all the help, nonetheless!! ;)
Clara
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Oh, Clara...a fine mess your ancestor has left for you...but don't give up,
just give it a rest...maybe something will come to light...( optimist)
But then I found I haven't the best intuition, either, as I told my neighbour
the weather would stay beautiful for her charity garage sale and five minutes
later all hell broke loose into a huge wind storm....
Ha ha...oh, well.... J.J.
p.s....my grandmother lied about her age...8 years...as she was 11 years senior
to her new hubby. In those days lying on legal documents didn't seem to phase
people, I guess....
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What an intriguing puzzle! This may be of no value at all but I did a little sleuthing and found the following:
I found a Henry Shaw, farmer, and wife Eveline Holmes, of Carleton County (Fitzroy township ) registering 3 children's births:
Sarah Elizabeth 7 Aug 1871
Harry James, 17 May 1876
Heber, 18 Oct 1883
I checked an online 1876 map of Fitzroy Tp (http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/Countyatlas/images/maps/townshipmaps/car-m-fitzroy.jpg) to see if I could spot Henry's Lot & Conc. but I'm on dialup and it was taking a long time to load. You may want to have a peek.
I was thinking that Henry and Eveline likely had more children, the 3 above are 5 years apart. Not all births were registered even tho' they were supposed to be..
Anyway I also had a look for your John Arthur aka James Aloysius. I was wondering if it is possible he was born John Arthur Shaw but adopted by a Smith family and renamed James Aloysius. Perhaps he felt comfortable then with both names so used them interchangeably. David and John Smith, who he names as his elder brothers, could be from his adopted family
In any case I found a John Arthur Shaw with wife Janet Thomson having children in Carleton Co in 1900 and 1902 at least - is this your grandfather?
There is a Henry Shaw who died Sept 1897 in Carleton at age 35 but obviously not the same Henry who md Eveline :-)
I checked 1881 census online at http://www.familysearch.org and Henry and Eveline are there, he is 35 born Ontario, of Irish origin, Baptist, she is 31 b Ontario, Ch. of England. Their children are
-Sarah E.A. SHAW 9
- John Alex SHAW 8
-Harry James SHAW 4
Also with them is Alexander HOLMES, probably Eveline's father. He is 72 born Ireland. Also a Katherine HOLMES 28 born Ontario (possibly a sister to Eveline?)
Eveline died in Carleton Co. 25 Dec 1901at age 54, listed as a farmer's wife living on the 3rd line, Fitzroy
I can't find a death for Henry Shaw.
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Wow, Eillo, I'm gobsmacked at your amazing sleuthing...!! :o
Thank you so much for having a look for this disreputable old grandfather of mine! I've gone through all your findings but I still can't connect with anything here, I'm afraid. The John Arthur Shaw you found in Carleton County in 1900 and 1902 can't be my old grandpa because he joined up with an Irish regiment in London in 1900 and served with them until 1905 - I have his army records to prove this.
To be honest, it is his army records (and later his navy records) which are the main connection I have with him originating from Canada - he says on both army and navy records (1900 and 1905) that he was born in Ottawa. He joined an Irish regiment with connections with Canada (the Leinsters) in 1900. In later years, he sent his eldest son (aged 17) to make his way in Canada. Apparently, according to one of my aunts, he had some official documents relating to Canada.
I honestly think that he was an orphan in Ottawa and didn't know his parents (probably illegitimate). He probably was brought up in an orphanage (he did say, apparently, that he was brought up in a Christian Brothers home??). He said (again, apparently) that he was treated badly, ran away and went to sea. Perhaps this is how he ended up in London in 1900.... The trouble is, is that he lied continuously about his name and his age; he deserted both the army and the navy early in the 1900s.
The trouble with my grandfather is that he has used different names, given different birthdates and generally been such a wily character that you don't have any baseline information about him that you can trust. Was he really born in Ottawa? Was his name really Smith? or Shaw? or something else (in which case, then there isn't even a needle in that haystack....). A cousin of mine from Oz reckoned that he also used the name O'Connell... ??? I haven't got any records of that name, so I'm ignoring it for now.... ???
Thanks for trying, Eillo! :) The thing that bugs me is that I know that my grandfather was some mother's child..... :-\
best wishes
Clara
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Still worthwhile looking into the home he was put into as a boy....was there
any information that might suggest which one? Had he indeed been illigitimate,
you probably still might only discover the great-grandmother's name, though,
as the father would probably not be listed...if anyone is listed at all.
There is a John A.Smith, single, in Ottawa, Carleton on the 1881...just 18 yrs.
old....but a teacher...abut it is said father was as a farmer....
There's a John Shaw in Torbolton, Carleton who is 21...
Grasping at straws, I found a "James" A. Shaw in St George Ward, Ottawa...
married to an Ann Shaw(Irish)...no children...and I can't locate the identical couple on the 1901...but just coincidence, I suppose...and a groom, so again
not a farmer...
There's also a James Smith_ 7th child born 1881 to a Henry Smith
Huntley, Carleton,...farmer...
Out of straws....I'm afraid....Hopefully something will come up on this home he was in ?
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Thanks JJ! Your 'straws' are appreciated! :) I think I found the James Smith born Carleton in 1881, and added him to my 'maybe?' list, but there's still no way of definitely making a connection.
The orphanage story is pretty plausible - one of my aunts said that my grandfather "didn't know his parents and was brought up in a White Fathers' [?] or Christian Brothers' home". They treated him badly, apparently, and he ran away to sea...... so the story goes.
What I need to happen now is to find that there was a Christian Brothers' orphanage in ?Ottawa, for which exemplary records have been kept, ideally with photos and info on the orphans! (Some pigs just flew past.... ;))
Thanks, though, for your help! :)
Clara
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http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~orphanshome/
http://resources.rootsweb.com/~guestbook/cgi-bin/public_guestbook.cgi?gb=1241&action=view
Perhaps information can be found here on what orphanages were around before the turn of the century...some people seem to have had some luck with their inquiries...
J.J.
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Hi Clara,
I don't have much more concrete to add to your search, but just a few random research tidbits.
The schools commonly known as "Christian Brothers Schools" seem to be run by the De la Salle Brothers of the Christian School (founded 1700s). Here is their main website:
http://www.lasalle2.org/English/english.php
And a tidbit from the history section of the site:"Southern Belgium, Canada and Spain profited most strongly initially from the expatriate Brothers".
But I can't seem to find out if they ever had a school in Ottawa. We do now have a De la Salle Catholic High School here in Ottawa, but that may just be coincidence as de la Salle is the patron saint of catholic teachers.
We also have a street named Avenue des Peres-Blancs (White Fathers Ave.) The Peres Blancs are an order of missionaries based in France. I don't know what their history in Ottawa is, but this site gives a contact for the Ottawa office of the Peres Blancs:
Animation missionnaire
Ottawa
Adr. : 252, avenue Argyle, Ottawa ON K2P 1B9
Tel : (1)(613) 233-8259
FAX : (1)(613) 236-6806
E-Mail : mafrott@aei.ca
Source: http://www.africamission-mafr.org/adresses.htm
Random other bits:
Photo of workers on the Peres Blancs farm in Vanier (now Ottawa) http://www.uottawa.ca/academic/crccf/passeport/I/ID3/ID3a01.html
Bio of a priest who studied at the Peres Blancs seminary in Ottawa:
http://www.diocese-st-hyacinthe.qc.ca/contenu_langevin.htm
So they did have quite a presence here. (Peres Blancs Avenue is now the address of one branch of the Ottawa Public Librarry, so when you do a Google search you get a lot of hits for events going on there...)
Still can't find out if they ran a children's home here though... Argh!
Hope that helps anyway...
MJP
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Wow, thanks so much, JJ and MJP!! :)
All those leads have renewed my failing hopes a bit and will keep me occupied for a while.....
Many thanks, will let you know if I come up with anything....!!
best wishes
Clara