Analysis: Emerson Claude Smith Date of Birth

Analysis: Emerson Claude Smith's Date of Birth

Emerson Claude Smith's profile can be found here. The details below describe the analysis for how I determined his date of birth from conflicting information.

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Details/Background:
There are conflicting dates of birth given for Emerson Claude Smith’s date of birth.

Most sources concur with a date of 13th October 1881, although one source suggests 14th October 1881, one 23rd November 1881 and still another 1883.

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Analysis:

Reference	Description	Date of Birth Given	Notes
D04797	Birth Registration	14 October 1881
D04734	1891 Census	ca 1883	Age 8 in 1891
D04735	1901 Census	13 October 1881
D04736	1911 Census	October 1881
D04798	WW1 Attestation Papers	13 October 1881
D04799	WW1 Service Record	13 October 1881
D04804	Gravestone	ca 1881	Age 36 in 1917
D04351	Family gravestone	ca 1881	Age 36 in 1917
D04805	Newspaper Article, 1917	23 November 1881

The two big outliers are the 1891 census [D04734] which puts his birthdate at about 1883 and the 1917 Flesherton Advance article [D04805] which gives his birthdate as 23 November 1881. All other sources are consistent with a birthdate of October 1881.

The newspaper article was written in 1917 and newspapers are notorious for reporting incorrect details, so I’m going to rule that out as incorrect. Census records are also notorious for errors and so I’m going to rule that one out as incorrectly reported information.

So, the remaining sources all point to 1881 as the year of birth, and most of them October as the month. All the sources that give dates suggest 13 October 1881, except for the birth registration [D04797], which suggests 14 October 1881 as the date. The service record information [D04799] is derived from the same source as the attestation papers [D04798] and therefore would not be an independent source.

This would suggest that either the birth registration has the correct date of birth, but Emerson grew up thinking that his date of birth was the 13th or that the birth registration information was recorded incorrectly.

Normally, the birth registration information would be the one that I would rely on more because it was given the closest to the actual event, but in this case it seems like there is more information to support a date of birth of 13th October 1881.

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Conclusion:
The most likely date of birth for Emerson Claude Smith is 13th October 1881.

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Sources:
[D04351] Flesherton Cemetery (Flesherton, Grey, Ontario). Rec. Date: 9 Oct 2018. ID: D04351. Cit. Date: 9 Oct 2018.

[D04734] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 69, sub-district 3, Artemesia, p. 43, family 209; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry (accessed 15 Oct 2018). Rec. Date: 30 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 15 Oct 2018.

[D04735] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 66, sub-district A-5, Artemesia, p. 14, dwelling 126, family 126; RG 31; digital images(accessed 15 Oct 2018). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 15 Oct 2018.

[D04736] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 72, sub-district 4, Eugenia, p. 7, dwelling 70, family 70; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 20 Oct 2018). Rec. Date: 18 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 20 Oct 2018.

[D04797] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS929; Reel: 48: 8357, 26; digital image, Ancestry.com, "Ontario, Canada Births," (25 Oct 2018). Rec. Date: 21 Apr 2017. Cit. Date: 25 Oct 2018.

[D04798] Canada, "WWI CEF Attestation Papers, 1914-1918," Attestation Papers: Emerson Claude Smith; digital images, Ancestry.ca(accessed 11 Nov 2018). Rec. Date: 11 Nov 2018. Cit. Date: 11 Nov 2018.

[D04799] Canada, "Emerson Claude Smith WW1 Military Service Record"; digital images, Library and Archives Canada(accessed 27 Dec 2018). Rec. Date: 27 Dec 2018. ID: D04799. Cit. Date: 27 Dec 2018.

[D04804] Petit-Vimy British Cemetery ( Vimy, Departement du Pas-de-Calais, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France, Vimy, France), Plot c.9. Rec. Date: 25 Oct 2018. ID: D04804. Cit. Date: 25 Oct 2018.

[D04805] "Claude Emerson Smith," Flesherton Advance, 16 Aug 1917, p. 1, col. 2; digital images(accessed 2 Nov 2018), Grey Highlands Newspapers. Rec. Date: 2 Nov 2018. Cit. Date: 2 Nov 2018.

Profile: Private Emerson Claude Smith (1881-1917)

I've decided to start off 2019 by taking Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge. I don't know how far I'll get with it, but I figure it will help start the process of writing and documenting the research that I've found so far.

Each week there is a theme to get you going on choosing an ancestor to profile. For week one, the theme is "First". So, I've decided to profile a First World War soldier. I've been doing some work on the Smith family of Eugenia Falls and so for this week, I'm going to profile Private Emerson Claude Smith.

Private Emerson Claude Smith (1881-1917)
2nd cousin, 3 times removed



Emerson Claude Smith was born 13 October 1881 in Eugenia Falls, Grey County, Ontario Canada, the son of Adam Smith, a blacksmith, and Kate Julianna Williams [D04797, D04735, D04798]. He spent most of his early years in Eugenia Falls, Grey County, Ontario but did work for a number of years in Edmonton, Alberta [D04861]. He did not fallow his father into the blacksmith trade, but instead became a woodworker for a period of time. [D04736]

Emerson enlisted to fight in World War 1 in Owen Sound on 14 December 1915 [D04906, D04798, D04799], about fifteen months after his younger brother, Fred enlisted. His attestation papers give a physical description of him as being 5 ft, 8 inches in height, 165 pounds with blue eyes, fair hair and fair complexion. He had a scar on his right knee [D04798]. His attestation also gives his occupation prior to enlisting as a chauffeur [D04798].

Upon enlisting, Emerson was assigned service no 838414 and assigned to the 147th (Grey) Battalion which began recruiting in late 1915 [D04799].

After training for almost a year, the 147th sailed on the SS Olympic to England, departing on 13 November 1916 and arriving on November 21st [D04799]. Emerson was transferred to the 8th Reserve Battalion on 1 January 1917 and then on April 1st to the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles Battalion [D04799]. His unit landed in France April 22nd and he was reported as having arrived for duty on April 27th [D04799].

Sadly, Emerson was killed in action on 7 June 1915 at the age of 36. He died at Vimy Ridge, after being in France for only about two months. [D05025 p405, D04861, D04799]. He was buried at Petit Vimy on the slope of Vimy Ridge [D05025 p405, D04861].



Emerson’s mother, Kate Julianna Smith was given the memorial cross for losing her son [D04799]. She may have also received some consolation in a letter that Emerson wrote to her just before his death. The letter in included the following passage that seems to indicate that he was comfortable with whatever fate lay in store for him:

"I am not just as good as I might be, but I am going to try very hard to lead a better life. Do not worry too much about me, because God will bring me through safely if He sees fit." [D04805]

The Smith family printed this memorial in the Flesherton Advance 6 June 1918 in his memory:

In Memory Of Pte. Emerson Smith, son of Mr. and Mrs. Adam Smith, Eugenia, killed in battle June 7, 1917.
Somewhere in France, near the long battle line,
Stands a cross on the grave of that dear son of mine.
He suffered, he died, that his country might live.
Paid the full price, gave all that could give.
Through he lies far from home, over the sea,
I shall meet him again in the life that's to be.
- Father, Mother, Sisters, Brother.[D04863]

After the war, Emerson’s mother was a big part of ensuring that a war memorial was set up in Eugenia Park to commemorate the fallen soldiers from the area, including her two sons. The memorial was officially dedicated on 21 July 1921 and list both Emerson and his brother Fred. [D05025 p 401 & 402]




Sources:
[D04735] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 66, sub-district A-5, Artemesia, p. 14, dwelling 126, family 126; RG 31; digital images(accessed 15 Oct 2018).

[D04736] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 72, sub-district 4, Eugenia, p. 7, dwelling 70, family 70; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 20 Oct 2018).

[D04797] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS929; Reel: 48: 8357, 26; digital image, Ancestry.com, "Ontario, Canada Births," (25 Oct 2018).

[D04798] Canada, "WWI CEF Attestation Papers, 1914-1918," Attestation Papers: Emerson Claude Smith; digital images, Ancestry.ca(accessed 11 Nov 2018).

[D04799] Canada, "Emerson Claude Smith WW1 Military Service Record"; digital images, Library and Archives Canada(accessed 27 Dec 2018).

[D04805] "Claude Emerson Smith," Flesherton Advance, 16 Aug 1917, p. 1, col. 2; digital images(accessed 2 Nov 2018), Grey Highlands Newspapers.

[D04863] "In Memory," Flesherton Advance, 6 Jun 1918, p. 1, col. 2; digital images(accessed 2 Nov 2018), Grey Highlands Newspapers.

[D04906] "Eugenia Soldiers," Flesherton Advance, 30 Mar 1916, p. 3, col. 2; digital images(accessed 10 Nov 2018), Grey Highlands Newspaper Collection.

[D05025] Mildred Young Hubbert, editor, Split Rail Country: A History of Artemesia Township (Owen Sound, Ontario: Stan Brown Printers Limited, 1986),