Canadian needle in a haystack

[Blue-Sten]

I have just been told that two of my relatives emigrated to Canada pre 1914, and wish to know a bit more about what became of them.

All I know is this (so it may be a bit of a wild goose-chase)

Mary Jane Berwick (b1879) and Eveline Berwick (b1891) both left for Canada pre 1914.  I do not know where but hope that somebody may be able to help me.

Supposedly, and a BIG supposedly, One of them - Mary Jane I'm told, died after being killed by a wolf or a big dog.  The story which goes with this is not too nice so I will spare you of the details.

Any help at all is greatly appreciated. 

[loo]

Nowadays, news about people being mauled by bears etc in Canada is always reported in the national newspapers.  I don't think we had national newspapers back then, but I would check the newspapers of the nearest bigger city, if you know what that was.  If not, I would check the newspapers in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.  For a fee, newspaper librarians will search their archives for you, I think.  Nowadays, the major papers would be the Globe and Mail (formerly The Globe), Toronto Star, Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette;  there would also have been Toronto Telegram at that time, but now defunct.  I would think that these papers would almost certainly have carried a story about this.
Worth emailing some city librarians for a start.

[behindthefrogs]

Do you know how old they were when they emigrated?

This could affect where you look.

[Blue-Sten]

I believe it was between 1901 and 1914 but as I've said all I've heard are these stories so have no definate details or dates.

I may never find these people and what happened to then but need to at least try.

What about Immigration records?

[AnneMc]

You could check the 1901 census and the 1911 census which are on line.  Do a google search as I think parts have been indexed.


Anne

[stonechat]

Also what area were they in?

[jorose]

Immigration records for that period are not indexed, apart from the volunteer project here: http://members.shaw.ca/nanaimo.fhs/ (but they are not on that index, it only covers Quebec arrivals for parts of 1908-1910).

I thought that Eveline might possibly have been a Home Child, but couldn't see her on that index either.  Were these two sisters?

[Blue-Sten]

Yes, they were sisters. The rest of the family stayed in England.

I do not know which area they went to, just Canada ( I know it is a big place, hence the needle in a haystack)

They have one living relative that I know of. This is their great nephew, Frank Berwick who lives in Manchester.  He is 90 soon and am not sure if he will remember the smaller details.  He once mentioned that one of them was nick-named Queenie though I doubt this will help!

[Elizabeth Revel]

Hi,

I checked the Vital Records for British Columbia and note that there were Berwicks here being born, marrying and dying but none with the names you had stipulated.

Beth