Lost relative in Vananda, Texada Island BC

[Flamingjune]

I'm trying to find any information about my great grandmother's brother William Lewis who emigrated to Canada about 1881.  He was Welsh, aged about 18 and came from the Cardiff area.  I know he settled in Langley Prairie just outside Vancouver and eventually went to live at Vananda on Texada Island, but I don't know if he stayed there.  I think he died sometime in the late 1940s.  Family knowledge has him working as a prospector (possibly for precious metals, minerals etc) for a company in New York (?) and going on expeditions to Morseby Island and Alaska.  It is also believed that he was married 3 times but didn't have any children. I don't know where to start with my research but would be grateful for any help.  I would also like to find any of his family who would be willing to contact me.     

[Jacquie in Canada]

What were his parents' names (in case he married somewhere other than BC)?

The BC Archives has a searchable index of deaths up to 1989 and marriages up to 1933:
http://search.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/sn-D88532/gbsearch/Births,Marriages,Deaths

If you find William in it then post the information in this thread and one of the very helpful BC RootsChatters should be able to obtain a copy of the registration to confirm whether it is your William.

You can search the 1881 and 1891 Canada census for free at Library and Archives Canada. You can view images of the census pages there. Here are the links:
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/census-1881/index-e.html
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/census-1891/index-e.html

You can search the 1901 and 1911 Canada census for free at this website which has links to the images at LAC:
http://automatedgenealogy.com/index.html

Jacquie

[Flamingjune]

Hi Jacquie, thanks for replying so quickly.  Was just going to log off and go to bed as it's 1.30am here in Wales (& we lost an hour last night due to British Summertime), but decided to look to see if I'd had a response to my post.  Thanks for all the places to search for information, I'll be trying them in the morning when I'm more awake.  You asked me for William's parents' names. They are William and Mary Lewis.  William and his parents were all born and lived in a little village called Leckwith just outside Cardiff, Glamorganshire, South Wales.

[Jacquie in Canada]

A possible death... there is a William Lewis who died 22 Apr 1952 at the age of 91 in Powell River, BC (that's the registration district that I believe Texada Island is part of).

Jacquie

[jfremont]

I picked up the death record Jacquie found in the BC Index. It would appear to be the William Lewis is question since his residence is Vananda, Texada Island and his occupation is retired gold miner, born Cardiff, Wales. Informant was his wife.

If you send me a PM with your email address I will send the record to you.

John

[Flamingjune]

Searching for information about my great grandmother's brother - William Lewis -who went to Canada about 1881 aged about 18.  He was Welsh, from a little village called Leckwith, just outside Cardiff, Wales, UK.  For some time he lived in the Langley Prairie area, working a farm with a river running through it.  He was married and it is believed that his brother-in-law may also have lived there as well.  Unfortunately, do not have names of his wives (apparently he was married 3 times!).   

[marcie dean]

Have you tried posting this on the Canadian Board requesting a look up with his name DOB migration date if you know it.

You could post again on here requesting a look up for his sailing date and the ship he travelled on.
If he was just 18 would I be right in saying that he was not already married when he left, so all 3 marriages would have taken place abroad.?

[Flamingjune]

Hi thanks for replying.

I have no information about how he got to Canada.  He was on the 1881 Wales census living at home and family legend has it that he left home fairly soon after that was taken and left from Cardiff train station.  Family legend also has it that he worked his passage on a ship but we have no knowledge of when and where he sailed from, or when he arrived in Canada. As far as we know he was single but of course he could have met and married someone between leaving home and arriving in Canada. At present it's very much like searching for a needle in a haystack.

[KarenM]

You can search the 1901 and 1911 Canadian Census for free at www.automatedgenealogy.com

Karen