Passenger lists for Thwaites

[georgie]

Yesterday I was thrilled to bits when I found my
Joseph Thwaites, his wife Charlotte with children
Joseph Taylor Thwaites and Herbert in the 1911
Canadian census.   

According to this census Joseph emigrated in 1904
and the rest of the family in 1905.   
I have since been searching lots of online passenger
lists to try to find them, but I am not having any luck,
is there an easy way or have I just got to plod on?

Would love to hear from anyone who is searching
the same family.

regards

georgie (impatient) 

[jorose]

Passenger lists to Canada are very difficult things - and most are not online and are not even indexed so unless they came through via the US you are unlikely to be in luck.  Which area of Canada did they live in? There might be alternative sources, like local history books, which could provide you with more information.

[MJP]

Check out the guide to Canada passenger lists on the main Canada board, graciously prepared by eillo.  It has all the details about what lists are available and where to find them.  (As jorose says, it is not an easy search!)

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,160429.0.html

MJP

[KarenM]

Hi Georgie,

The one good thing is that you have a year!  So, you can search through the microfilm and try and find him.  I find from my own experience in searching them, they names on the original lists seem to be in alphabetical order.  Some are great quality, other are really bad.

The Canadian Government has plans to put them on-line, not sure when, but sometime in the future.  And of course they won't be indexed, but it's a great start.

Karen

[J.J.]

There's a Joseph Thwaites age 29 / 1904  from Bolton on the Ellis Island entries...
Couldn't see the family on the 1911, but saw another posting with age, etc...
May or may not be the right one, but age fits...
http://www.ellisisland.org

[KarenM]

Very good JJ, looks like a good match.

I always forget about Ellis Island, even though alot of people came to Canada through Ellis Island since the trip up the Erie Canal was alot better than coming down the St. Lawrence River. 

Karen

[J.J.]

awe...I only thought of it myself thanks to Jorose's suggestion as to U.S.entry!
   It's fun when we bounce off each other...J.J.