X00300: Who is Ann Sipin - Solved!

So, a few years ago, I posted about X00300, the question of who is Ann Sipin who shows up in the 1861 census living with Thomas Williams and family. She appears to be a member of the family somehow, but the surname was not one that I have found anywhere else.

I was looking at the 1861 census record again and started wondering if the surname could perhaps have been Tipping, rather than Sipin. It would make sense as one of Thomas William's daughters married into the Tipping family.

I checked, and Elizabeth Ann Tipping, who would have been born in 1853 did not appear with the rest of the Tipping family in the 1861 census. So it would make sense that the "Ann Sipin' in the 1861 census with the WIlliams family is in fact Elizabeth Ann Tipping.

X00290 Continued

Some time ago I had posted about X000290 and the search for information about Charlotte Ann Perry's date of death.

I did manage to find her listed in cemetery records, which confirmed the date of death. But I have since found a death notice for her, reported in the Kingston Daily British Whig on 10 July 1862:

X00136 Solved!

I've been able to find an actual news article form the Guelph Advertiser listing the marriage of John Douglas and Louisa Williams, dated 12 July 1849

It would be good to see if I can find the actual church record, but this is a good start as far as proving the information.

X00305 Update

I have posted previously about X00305 and how I found listings for a Douglas and Williams brewery in Amherstberg, Essex, Ontario and was wondering if it was the same John Douglas and Thomas Williams who were operating a brewery in Guelph around the same time.

I have since contacted the Essex Branch of the Ontario Genealogy Society to see if they had any more history about a brewery operation in Amherstburg operating aroun 1851. They weren't able to find anything in their collections or in the Marsh Collection about a Douglas and Williams Brewery in Amherstburg.

Recently, however, I was looking at the death registration for Mary Sophia Douglas, John Douglas' first daughter [D01451]. It states that she was born in 1851 in Amherstburg:

If this is the case, it definitely puts John Douglas living in the area at the time. Unfortunately the 1851 census for Amherstburg didn't survive, so it can't be verified that way. And to make things difficult, different documents give different birth years and locations for Mary Sophia Douglas, including Detroit and Guelph. So more further analysis is needed before I can definitely conclude anything.

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Sources:
[D01451] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935, Reel 336: 815, 15873, 14; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca.

[D06545] Bowering, Ian, The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario. Burnstown, Ontario, 1988.

[D06546] Sweet, Richard L., Directory of Canadian Breweries (Past and Present); Second Edition. Saskatoon, 1996.

Profile: George Williams [1860-1886] and Elizabeth Ann Stephenson [1868-1946]

George Williams [1860-1886] and Elizabeth Ann Stephenson [1868-1946]

George Williams was another son of Isaac Amos Williams and Caroline Seymour Sanders. He was born about 1860 in Guelph, Canada West [D03763, D03788, D05090, D05091, D05095, D05121]. He followed his father’s footsteps and entered the accounting profession [D05095]. He was working as an accountant in Toronto when he married Elizabeth Ann Stephenson on 7 Jan 1885 [D05090].

Elizabeth Ann Stephenson was born 18 March 1868 in Cookstown, Simcoe County daughter of William Stephenson and Ann Willoughby [D05090, D05093, D05098, D05099, D05100, D05101, D05102, D05121].

George Williams only lived for about a year and half after his marriage to Elizabeth, passing away of tuberculosis on 13 June 1886 [D05095] at the age of approximately twenty-six. George and Elizabeth had one child together, George Bertrand Williams who was born on 13 November 1885 in Parkdale [D05094].

After the death of her husband, Elizabeth Ann Stephenson Williams married William Ritter on 26 September 1888 in Toronto [D05093]. She lived to the age of seventy-eight and died on 20 Jun 1946 [D05102, D05121]. She is buried along with her first husband, George Williams in St James Cemetery, Toronto [D05121].



Sources:
[D03763] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Wellington, Guelph, p. 31; RG 31; digital images,Ancestry.ca (accessed 20 May 2018).

[D03788] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 35, sub-district e, Mount Forest, p. 49, dwelling 173, family 173; RG 31; digital images (accessed 20 May 2018).

[D05090] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, Reel 52: 410, 13513, Williams-Stephenson; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 29 Nov 2018).

[D05091] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 134, sub-district F, Toronto, p. 164, dwelling 681, family 780; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 29 Nov 2018).

[D05093] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, Reel 63: 388, 14427, Ritter-Williams; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 29 Nov 2018).

[D05094] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS929 Reel 80: 154, 42481, 81; digital image, Ancestry.com, "Ontario, Canada Births," (29 Nov 2018).

[D05095] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935 Reel 46: 608, 22697, 1400; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (29 Nov 2018).

[D05098] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 119, Toronto, p. 70, family 312; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry (accessed 30 Nov 2018).

[D05099] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 118, sub-district D-3, Toronto, p. 4, dwelling 32, family 36; RG 31; digital images(accessed 30 Nov 2018).

[D05100] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 128, sub-district 98, Toronto, p. 4, dwelling 29, family 34; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 30 Nov 2018). Cit. ID: D05100

[D05101] 1921 census of Canada, district 113, sub-district 45, Parkdale, p. 12, dwelling 114, family 134; RG 31; digital images, ancestry.com (accessed 30 Nov 2018). Cit. ID: D05101

[D05102] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, 17073, RG 80-08-0-2482; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (30 Nov 2018).

[D05121] St James Cemetery & Crematorium (Toronto, York, Ontario).

X00305: Douglass & Williams Brewers in Amhertsberg?

I’ve been doing some more research on historical breweries in Ontario and I’ve found something interesting. Both “The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario” by Ian Bowering [D06545] and “The Directory of Canadian Breweries Past and Present” by Richard L. Sweet [D06546] mention a Douglas and Williams brewery operating in Amherstberg, Essex County out near Windsor, Ontario.

The first source (Bowering) lists:

Douglas and Williams, brewers 1851 [D06545]

and the second one (Sweet) lists:

Douglass & Williams; brewers 1851-1853 [D06546]

I came across the attached record for Amherstberg from an 1851 directory of Canada West. This is presumably where Bowering got his information from.



So, the big question is, are these two brewers in Amherstburg the John Douglas and Thomas Williams who were operating a brewery in Guelph around the same time?

On the one hand, the names could be a coincidence, as Douglas and Williams are both very common names. On the other hand, perhaps this ties in with the fact that John Douglas’ marriage notice says that he was from Detroit. Perhaps they operated out of multiple locations? Perhaps Douglas was working as an agent for the Guelph operations?

The 1851 census would likely give some indication, but unfortunately that portion of the census has not survived for Amherstburg. I've checked the 1861 census for Amherstburg and there doesn't appear to be anyone with the surname of Douglas living there at the time. Nor is there anyone with the surname Williams with an occupation of brewer.

Next step: Check other resources to see if I can find out the first names of the Douglas and Williams of Amherstberg.

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Sources:
[D06545] Bowering, Ian, The Art and Mystery of Brewing in Ontario. Burnstown, Ontario, 1988.

[D06546] Sweet, Richard L., Directory of Canadian Breweries (Past and Present); Second Edition. Saskatoon, 1996.

X00300: Who is Ann Sipin?

In the 1861 Census of Canada, the Williams family is found living in Guelph. Thomas Williams and his wife Sybil are listed and in the household are their two youngest daughters, Emily and Samina. But there are two others living in the household at the time: Ann Sipin, aged 8 and Maria Hill aged 18.

Maria Hill is clearly not a family member, as she is listed as being a servant and was born in Ireland. But what about Ann Sipin? Is is possible that she might just have been living with the family with no connection, but could she possibly be a clue to a connection?

At the age of 8 in 1861, she would have been born about 1853. She would likely be too young to be another child of Thomas and Sybil Williams. But could she perhaps be a granddaughter? One remote possibility is that she is the daughter of Hester Sophia Williams, who I have not been able to find any trace of after 1841 (see X00291). Perhaps Hester Sophia married a man with the surname of Sipin, and had a child but then the two of them died shortly thereafter, leaving their daughter to be raised by her grandparents.

It's a possibility, but I have not seen the name Ann Sipin show up anywhere else in the records to confirm one way or another.

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Sources:

D01597 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Guelph, Guelph, p. 14; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 5 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

Profile: Isaac Amos Williams and Caroline Seymour Sanders

Profile: Isaac Amos Williams [1820-1886] and Caroline Seymour Sanders [1826-1896]

Isaac Amos Williams was born 11 October 1820 in Gloucestershire, England [D01545] the first-born child of Thomas Williams and Sybil Foxwell. He was baptized 5 Nov 1820 in Bristol, Gloucestershire. He grew up in Gloucestershire, and moved with the rest of the family to Liverpool around 1841 and then to Canada, eventually settling in Guelph, Wellington County. In Guelph, Isaac worked as a brewer in his father’s firm of Williams & Taylor along with his younger brothers and brother-in-law [D04285].

Caroline Seymour Sanders was born 13 September 1825 and was baptized 15 March 1826 in Bathwick, Somerset, England [D03874]. She was the daughter of John Arnold Sanders and Fanny Hippisley [D03874]. It is not known when the Sanders family emigrated to Canada but they had definitely arrived in Canada by the 1850s as Isaac Amos Williams and Caroline Seymour Sanders were married on 21 October 1850 at St. George’s Anglican Church in Guelph [D04283].

Isaac and Caroline remained in Guelph and they had their first children while living there. Their first daughter, Jane Emily Williams was born 23 November 1851 [D04285] followed by their second, Fanny Sophia Williams on 27 March 1853 [D04846, D04848, D04849]. Three more daughters would follow: Kate Julianna Williams born 4 December 1854 [D05337], Amy Seymore Williams born in 1856 [D03763, D03788, D03789] and Edith Mary Williams born 4 July 1858 [D05008]. It wasn’t until their sixth child that that they had their first son, George Williams, in 1860 [D03763, D03788, D05091].

By 1861 the family was still living in Guelph, but Isaac had left the brewing business and had moved into farming [D03763]. By 1862, however, the family had moved to Mount Forest, also in the County of Wellington, where they would remain for the next ten year. In Mount Forest, Isaac and Caroline’s last three children would be born: Elizabeth Williams was born on 25 November 1862 [D03788, D03789], Frederick Amos Williams was born on 9 April 1865 [D03788, D03789, D06182] and Edwin Lawrence Williams was born in 1868 [D03788, D03789].

The family moved to Port Perry, Ontario County in the mid 1870s [D04846] before moving on to Lindsay, Victoria County [D03789] where Isaac would live for the rest of his life. In Lindsay, Isaac worked as a bookkeeper for a Mr. Blackwell [D05448, D05469] and was employed by the Ontario Government as a sessional writer in the winter [D05469]. He also worked as a librarian at the Mechanics’ institute in Lindsay [D05467, D05469].

On the evening of 28 December 1885 Isaac was working at the Mechanic’s Institute. He was making his rounds and about 8:30 in the evening a noise was heard from the hallway. The two men who were in the reading room at the time, Dr. DeGrassi and Mr. J. Kennedy heard the noice, but didn’t think anything of it, thinking that it was the caretaker bringing up wood. The two left the reading room about nine o’clock in the evening and found Isaac lying at the foot of the stairs. The two tried to pick him up but found that he was dead with a wound on his right temple, his left thumb was broken and he had bruises all over his limbs. He had likely died instantly having fallen head first down the stairway and dying from a concussion [D03762, D05467, D05469].

A well-attended funeral was held for him on Wednesday 30 December 1885. The directors of the Mechanics’ institute all attended [D05469]. He was buried at Riverside Cemetery in Lindsay [D05469, D06182].

After the death of her husband Caroline Williams moved in with her daughter and son-in-law, Fanny and Lewis Dyer in Uxbridge, Ontario county [D05263]. She herself would pass away at the age of 70 on 7 April 1896 [D05298, D05446, D05471, D05470] and is buried in Riverside Cemetery in Lindsay with her husband [D06182].

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Sources:
[D01545] St Thomas (Bristol, Gloucestershire, England), England, Bristol Parish Registers, 1538-1900, "Baptism Record - Isaac Amos Williams," 271; digital images, FamilySearch, FamilySearch.org (accessed 23 Dec 2018).

[D03762] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935, Reel 42: 560, 35, 16571; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (15 May 2018).

[D03763] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Wellington, Guelph, p. 31; RG 31; digital images,Ancestry.ca (accessed 20 May 2018).

[D03788] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 35, sub-district e, Mount Forest, p. 49, dwelling 173, family 173; RG 31; digital images(accessed 20 May 2018). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 20 May 2018.

[D03789] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 129, sub-district B-2, Lindsay, Victoria, p. 99, dwelling 458, family 469; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 20 May 2018).

[D03874] (Bath, Somerset, England), England & Wales Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers, "Baptism - Caroline Seymour Sanders," 55; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestra.ca (accessed 24 Jun 2018).

[D04283] ”Marriages," (Guelph) Guelph Weekly Herald, 22 Oct 1850, p. 3, col. 1.

[D04285] "Births," (Guelph) Guelph Weekly Herald, 2 Dec 1851, p. 3, col. 2.

[D04846] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, Reel 18: 339, 6765, Dyer-Williams; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 26 Dec 2018).

[D04848] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 120, sub-district C-8, Lindsay, p. 8, family 82; RG 31; digital images(accessed 27 Dec 2018).

[D04849] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS940 Reel 16: 2099; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (27 Dec 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 27 Dec 2018.

[D05008]

[D05091] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 134, sub-district F, Toronto, p. 164, dwelling 681, family 780; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 29 Nov 2018). Rec. Date: 17 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 29 Nov 2018.

[D05263] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 102, Uxbridge, p. 30, family 152; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry (accessed 27 Dec 2018).

[D05298] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935; Reel: 81: 355, 19363, 15; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (19 Jan 2019).

[D05337] ”The Late Mrs. Adam Smith," Markdale Standard, 28 Nov 1940, p. 3, col. 3; digital images(accessed 6 Feb 2019), Grey Highlands Historical Newspaper Collection. Rec. Date: 9 Nov 2018. Cit. Date: 6 Feb 2019.

[D05446] "Obituary," The Canadian Post, 20 Apr 1896, p. 5, col. 2; digital images, Kawartha Lakes Public Library Digital Collections (accessed 9 Feb 2019).

[D05448] Ontario Archives of Ontario, MS 929, reels 1-245, MS 929 Reel 1-245: 590, 35359, 31; digital image, Ancestry.com, "Ontario, Canada Births," (5 Feb 2019).

[D05467] “A Fatal Accident," The Canadian Post, 1 Jan 1886, p. 5, col. 1; digital images, Kawartha Lakes Public Library Digital Archive .

[D05469] "Sad and Fatal Accident," The Victoria Warden, 1 Jan 1886, p. 5, col. 4; digital images, Kawartha Lakes Public Library Digital Archive (accessed 9 Feb 2019).

[D05470] "Deaths," The Victoria Warden, 10 Apr 1896, p. 4, col. 7; digital images, Kawartha Lakes Public Library Digital Archives

[D05471] "Death," The Victoria Warden, 10 Apr 1896, p. 3, col. 2; digital images(accessed 9 Feb 2019), Kawartha Lakes Public Library Digital Archives.

[D05651] Riverside Cemetery (Lindsay, Victoria, Ontario), 3759 monumental inscription. Rec. Date: 10 Mar 2019. ID: D05651. Cit. Date: 10 Mar 2019.

[D06182] Rest-Haven Memorial Park (Eugene, Lane, Oregon). Rec. Date: 30 Mar 2019. ID: D06210. Cit. Date: 24 Mar 2019.

Profile: John Williams and Family

This is the profile so far of John Williams and his family. I'm still researching X00298 and his work in various breweries. That will be added in later. But here is the story so far.

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Profile: John Williams & Family

John Williams was born in 1829 in Gloucestershire, England and was baptized on 29 March 1829 [D03738]. He was the fourth and youngest son of Thomas Williams and Sybil Foxwell.

He grew up in Gloucestershire, but moved along with the rest of the family to Liverpool before coming to Canada in 1842 [D05543]. The William family first settled in Invermara, Simcoe County and started a farm there. But shortly they found that farming was not for them and so Thomas Williams relocated the family to Guelph, Wellington County and established the Williams Brewery in Guelph [D05543].

In the 1850s, John worked in Guelph as part of the Williams Brewery [D04689, D04691]. He married his first wife, Charlotte Ann Perry, 15 March 1858 in Orillia, Simcoe County. [D01325].

Charlotte Ann Perry was born around 1839 in what was then known as Upper Canada [D03739, D05338]. She was the daughter of Daniel and Charlotte Perry [D01325]. Prior to her marriage in 1858 she was living in Orillia, Simcoe County [D01325].

John and Charlotte had their first child, a daughter which they named Annie L. Williams, in March of 1860 [D03739, D05338]. She was followed under a year later by their second child, Eliza Sybil Williams born 31 January 1861 [D04645, D05281].

By 1861, the family was living in Brampton, Peel County and John had left the Williams brewery to strike out on his own as a brewer [D03739]. Later that year, the family would face their first tragedy when their first child, Annie L. died at the age of nineteen months [D05338].

John and Charlotte’s third daughter, whom they named Charlotte Ann Williams was born about 1862 [D01131, D03740].

The family would their second tragedy when Charlotte Ann Perry Williams died on 7 July 1862 at the age of 22 years [D05338]. She and their first daughter, Annie L. were buried at St. George’s Cemetery in Guelph, but later relocated to Woodlawn Cemetery [D05338].

By 1871 the family had moved to Owen Sound, Grey County where John was working with a carpenter [D01565]. His widowed mother and younger sister Minnie were living with the family [D01565].

John married Caroline Hatton on 15 August 1877 in Little Current, Algoma County, Ontario [D01544]. Caroline was born in Quebec on 7 July 1835, the daughter of Daniel and Catherine Hatton [D01544, D03756]. Caroline’s parents died young and in her younger years lived in an orphan asylum [D03759].

John’s youngest child Charlotte Ann died on 14 March 1882 at the age of nineteen years [D03740]. She died of dropsy which she had developed three years prior [D03740]. Prior to her death she had been living with her aunt and uncle, Charles and Emily Hewett in Mara, Simcoe County [D04037]. She is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Owen Sound [D01131].

John himself, died 6 Jan 1889 of heart disease [D03737, D05344]. At the time of his death he was a brewer in Owen Sound. He is buried in Greenwood Cemetery [D01131].

John’s second wife Caroline Hatton Williams died 20 June 1902 due to congestion of the lungs [D03754, D03757]. She was buried 23 June 1902 in Mount Herman Cemetery in Quebec [D03757].

The last member of the family, Eliza Sybil Williams was living with her aunt, Louisa Williams in Owen Sound in 1891 [D00783] but moved in with her aunt and uncle, William Charles Perry and Mary Wright Perry on Normanby Street in Mount Forest, Wellington County [D05281, D05283]. She lived in Mount Forest from 1898 until she died on 5 April 1928 in Mount Forest [D04936, D05296].


Sources
[D00763] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 68, sub-district Owen Sound Center Ward, Owen Sound, p. 35, family 175; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry (accessed 5 Oct 2017). Rec. Date: 30 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 5 Oct 2017.

[D01131] "Owen Sound Greenwood Cemetery Interments" (typescript, 2005), p. 332. Rec. Date: 6 May 2018. ID: D01131. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D01325] Ontario, Ontario County Marriage Registers, 1858-1869 37, Williams-Perry, 1858; digital images, FamilySearch.org, FamilySearch (accessed 5 May 2018). Rec. Date: 24 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 5 May 2018.

[D01544] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, MS932 Reel 23: 30, 1049, Williams-Hatton; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 12 May 2018). Rec. Date: 9 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 12 May 2018.

[D01565] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 37, sub-district 01-g, Owen Sound, p. 28, dwelling 105, family 109; RG 31; digital images (accessed 5 May 2018). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 5 May 2018.

[D03737] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935 Reel 54: 395, 5588, 1; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (6 May 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 6 May 2018.

[D03738] (Chipping Sodbury, Gloucestershire, England), Gloucestershire, England, Church of England Baptisms 1813-1913, "Baptism Record - John Williams," P300 IN 1/3; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D03739] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Peel, sub-district Brampton, Brampton, p. 15; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 5 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D03740] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935 Reel 33: 412, 21417, 286; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D03754] ancestry.ca, "Quebec, Canada, Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection)," database and images, ancestry.ca (accessed 31 Jan 2019); Burial: Anglican St. Matthew's Church. Rec. Date: 31 Jan 2019. Cit. Date: 31 Jan 2019.

[D03756] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 44, sub-district L3-1, Howland, p. 9, dwelling 74, family 75; RG 31; digital images (accessed 26 May 2018). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 26 May 2018.

[D03757] Gouvernement du Québec database, Détails Mount Hermon Cemetery ( accessed 31 Jan 2019), 8525. Rec. Date: 31 Jan 2019. Cit. Date: 31 Jan 2019.

[D03759] 1851 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec City, p. 123. Rec. Date: 9 Apr 2018. Cit. Date: 26 May 2018.

[D04036] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935; Reel: 365: 171, 36719; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (23 Jun 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 23 Jun 2018.

[D04037] 1881 census of Canada, Ontario, district 133, sub-district 2, Mara, p. 17, dwelling 72, family 72; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 23 Jun 2018). Rec. Date: 17 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 23 Jun 2018.

[D04645] Mount Forest Cemetery (Mount Forest, Grey, Ontario), Amber Section Row 10 Lot 82. Rec. Date: 29 Dec 2018. ID: D04645. Cit. Date: 29 Dec 2018.

[D04689] Wellington, Ontario, Canada, 1853 Tax Book, 1853. Rec. Date: 31 Jan 2019. Cit. Date: 31 Jan 2019.

[D04691] Wellington, Ontario, Canada, 1855 Tax Book, entry for 246, 1855. Rec. Date: 31 Jan 2019. Cit. Date: 31 Jan 2019.

[D05281] 1911 census of Canada, Ontario, district 133, sub-district 40, Mount Forest, p. 3, dwelling 31, family 31; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 6 Jan 2019). Rec. Date: 18 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 6 Jan 2019.

[D05283] 1901 census of Canada, Ontario, district 125, sub-district J-2, Mount Forest, p. 3, dwelling 29, family 29; RG 31; digital images (accessed 6 Jan 2019). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 6 Jan 2019.

[D05296] "Register," Mount Forest Confederate, 12 April 1928, p. 8, col. 2; digital images(accessed 6 Jan 2019). Rec. Date: 6 Jan 2019. Cit. Date: 6 Jan 2019.

[D05338] "Woodland Memorial Park Cemetery Transcriptions" (typescript. Rec. Date: 7 Feb 2019. Cit. Date: 7 Feb 2019.

[D05344] "Deaths," (Owen Sound) Owen Sound Times, 10 Jan 1889, p. 4, col. 4. Rec. Date: 14 Jun 2017. Cit. Date: 8 Feb 2019.

Update on X00287 Samina Foxwell Williams

I had posted previously about X00287: What happened to Samina Foxwell Williams. Evidently she married a Joseph McInnis at some time in the 1870s and died in Walnut, Pottawattamie County, Iowa in November of 1878. Since then, I've been trying to find either some indication of a marriage record, a death record or anything about Joseph McInnis.

According to one historical site that has biographies of Iowa pioneers, there was a Joseph McGinnis who lived in Pottawattamie County. But the bio says that he married a Roxanna Bridges in May of 1878 and it does not mention a prior marriage, so it is not likely the same person.

I did some searching on Newspaperarchive.com but didn't find any clues there.

I contacted the Pottawattamie Genealogical Society. They weren't able to find any marriage or death records, but did find a Joseph McInnis aged 40 born in Ireland and a widower in the 1880 census living in Brighton, Cass County, which is close to Pottawattamie County.



I then found a Joseph McGinnis living in Illinois in the 1870 census working as a farm labourer.



If it is the same person as in the 1880 census, it would mean that he got married and his wife died between 1870 and 1880, which would fit. It's a possibility, but definitely needs more investigation.

Next actions:
* Look more in depth into the census records
* Continue to check records from Iowa (and other locations)
* Check other newspaper sources

Analysis: Is the John Williams in the Guelph City Directory 1873 [D05546] the John Williams born 1829?

Question: Is the John Williams in the Guelph City Directory 1873 [D05546] the John Williams born 1829?



Details/Background: There is a John Williams on page 120 of a Guelph City Directory from 1873 [D05546]. He is listed as a carpenter and living on Northumberland near Glasgow. The question is, is he the same John Williams born in 1829, the son of Thomas Williams and Sybil Foxwell?

Analysis:
Argument(s) for:
• The Williams family in general, and John Williams in particular have a prior connection to the city of Guelph
• In the 1871 census, his occupation is listed as carpenter as well [D01565]

Argument(s) against:
• In the 1871 census he is living in Owen Sound [D01565], although he shows up later on living in Little Current, Algoma [D01544] so he did move around a lot at the time.
• In most other sources other than the 1871 census he is listed as being a brewer.

Conclusion: There is not enough evidence either way at this time to rule for or against the John Williams in the Guelph City Directory being the same one.

Sources:
[D01544] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Marriages, MS932 Reel 23: 30, 1049, Williams-Hatton; digital images, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Marriages,"(accessed 12 May 2018). Rec. Date: 9 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 12 May 2018.

[D01565] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 37, sub-district 01-g, Owen Sound, p. 28, dwelling 105, family 109; RG 31; digital images(accessed 5 May 2018). Rec. Date: 4 Mar 2017. Cit. Date: 5 May 2018.

[D05546] Guelph City Directory 1873, 1873: 120; digital images, Ancestry.ca accessed 24 Feb 2019. Rec. Date: 24 Feb 2019. Cit. Date: 24 Feb 2019.

X00298 Research John Williams history as a brewer

Much like the others in the Williams family, John Williams (born 1829) worked as a brewer. He first learned the craft while working as part of his father's brewery in Guelph. But he appears to have branched out on his own later on.

In the 1861 census, his occupation was listed as a brewer [D03739] living in Brampton, Peel.



In his death registration, his occupation was listed as a brewer in Owen Sound [D03737].



But more recently, I've discovered that a John Williams opened a brewery in Flesherton, Grey County in 1864 [D05727], although it's not certain whether or not this is the same John Williams. The 1865-66 directory of Grey County does not mention a brewery in Flesherton or a John Williams living there, so if there was a brewery established in 1864, it was short-lived.



So, there's definitely some more research that needs to be done here to fill in the details.

Next Steps:
* Check with the Brampton Public Library for research on Brampton breweries
* Check Brampton directories from the 1860s
* Check Owen Sound resources from the mid-to-late 1880s
* Check for Grey County/Flesherton directories for the early 1860s


Sources
[D03737] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935 Reel 54: 395, 5588, 1; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (6 May 2018). Rec. Date: 3 Sep 2017. Cit. Date: 6 May 2018.

[D03739] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Peel, sub-district Brampton, Brampton, p. 15; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018). Rec. Date: 5 Feb 2018. Cit. Date: 13 May 2018.

[D05727] Cotton, Larry D., Whiskey and Wickedness Volume V - Wellington and Grey Counties, Ontario. Self-published, 2017.

X00289 & X00290 Solved!!

I now have a follow up on both X00289 & X00290. Both have been solved!

I posted about X00289 some time ago - I was looking for birth and death information for Annie Louisa Williams.

Then I posted about X00290 where I was looking for the cemetery and death information for Charlotte Ann Perry Williams (mother of Annie Louisa Williams).

The good news is that I managed to get answer for both issues via the cemetery transcriptions for Woodlawn Memorial Gardens in Guelph:



It would appear that both Annie and Charlotte were initially buried in St. George's Cemetery in Guelph, but the cemetery was later closed and the burials were relocated to Woodlawn Cemetery. According to the transcription there are no markers for these graves and it is impossible to determine their locations. But at least there are some records that have survived to give the details

X00288: What happened to Caroline Seymore Sanders Williams? Solved!!

Caroline Seymore Sanders was the wife of Isaac Amos Williams. They married 22 Oct 1850 in Guelph, Canada West [D04283]. The family later moved to Lindsay, Victoria, Ontario. Isaac Amos died in 1885 [D03762].

But after 1885, I had no further records on Caroline and so had no idea what had happened to her after 1885. I checked the Ontario death records, but couldn't find her. I checked census records with no results. I even checked the Ontario marriage records to see if she had remarried after 1885, with no luck there either.

So, I put aside that X-file for some time and started researching other members of the family. When I was researching the family of her second daughter, Fanny Sophia Williams and Fanny's husband, Lewis Dyer, I found Caroline living with them in the 1891 census in Uxbridge, Ontario [D05263]. So, I had at least traced her to 1891.

I started looking for the cemetery records for Isaac Amos Williams, figuring that if I found his gravestone, it might give some clues. I knew that he had died in Lindsay, so I had figured that he had been buried there. But I checked all of the usual cemetery sites: Find-a-Grave, Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid, Canadian Headstones, Ontario Genweb Project, BillionGraves, Canadian Gravemarker Gallery and didn't find a thing.

But I had a bit of luck when I did a search on the Ontario Genealogical Society's TONI database. There, I found a cemetery reference for Isaac Amos Williams. It had him listed as being buried in Riverside Cemetery in Lindsay. The name and date matched. So, I contacted the Kawartha Branch of the OGS and they did a look-up for me. Not only was Isaac buried there, but Caroline as well. And the stone inscription indicated that she had died on 7 Apr 1896 at age 70.

With that new knowledge, I did another search of the Ontario death records with just the year and her first name and I managed to find the record. The record had been incorrectly indexed as "Caroline Seymore" [D05298]. I've since submitted a correction request to Ancestry.



Lewis Dyer is the informant on the death record, to further confirm that it is the correct person.

So the X-file now appears to be solved. After her husband died, Caroline moved in with her daughter and son-in-law and likely lived with them until she died in 1896. Now the next step is to see if I can get a photograph of the gravestone.


Sources:
[D03762] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935, Reel 42: 560, 35, 16571; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (15 May 2018).

[D04283] "Marriages," (Guelph) Guelph Weekly Herald, 22 Oct 1850, p. 3, col. 1.

[D05263] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, district 102, Uxbridge, p. 30, family 152; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry (accessed 27 Dec 2018).

[D05298] Ontario Archives of Ontario, Ontario, Canada Deaths, MS935; Reel: 81: 355, 19363, 15; digital image, Ancestry.ca, "Ontario, Canada Deaths," Ancestry.ca (19 Jan 2019).

X00290: Confirm death dates for Charlotte Ann Perry Williams

Charlotte Ann Perry (1836-1862) was the first wife of John Williams (1829-1889). For X00290 I'm trying to confirm her date of death. I know that the two of them married in 1858 from the county marriage records [D01325]. Their three children were born in 1860, 1861 and 1862 from the census records [D03739]. But after that, no more children. And in the 1871 census, John is listed as being a widower [D01565].

Then I found someone on Ancestry had posted a date of death for her of 07 July 1862 in Guelph, Wellington Co. but without any sources given. The location would make sense and the date of death would explain why the two would not have any more children after 1862. So, it's plausible, but I need to find sources to confirm.

Some places to check:

• Guelph newspapers
• Cemetery sources such as Find-a-grave and Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid
• TONI
• Guelph Public Library

Sources
[D01325] Ontario, Ontario County Marriage Registers, 1858-1869 37, Williams-Perry, 1858; digital images, FamilySearch.org, FamilySearch (accessed 5 May 2018)

[D01565] 1871 census of Canada, Ontario, district 37, sub-district 01-g, Owen Sound, p. 28, dwelling 105, family 109; RG 31; digital images(accessed 5 May 2018)

[D03739] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Peel, sub-district Brampton, Brampton, p. 15; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018).

X00291: What happened to Hester Sophia Williams after 1841?

Hester Sophia Williams is daughter of Thomas Williams and Sybil Foxwell for whom I have very little information (a similar case to Samina Foxwell Williams - see X00287)

There are two sources that I've found for her so far:
1) Her 1833 baptism record [D00028]



2) The 1841 census where she appears with the rest of the family [D01530]



So, here are the details that we have:

• She was baptized in 1833 and so was likely born about 1833 [D00028].
• The family moved to Canada around 1842 and eventually settled in Guelph, Ontario. The 1851 census for Guelph did not survive, so the earliest census in which the family appears is the 1861 census (where she would have been about 28 years old). She does not appear with the rest of the family in the 1861 census [D01597].

Here are the possibilities:

1. She died in the UK before the family came to Canada. In that case she would have died between 1841 and 1845.
2. She stayed in the UK and never came to Canada. That would have been very unlikely as she would have been under 10 years old when the family came to Canada.
3. She came to Canada, but died prior to 1861
4. She came to Canada, but married prior to 1861.

I'm going to dismiss option 2 as unlikely. So, the next actions are:

• Check UK deaths and burials for 1841-1842 [Option 1]
• Check Guelph and Orillia burials prior to 1861 [Option 3]
• Check Guelph and Orillia newspapers for deaths prior to 1861 [Option 3]
• Check marriages prior to 1861 [Option 4]
• Check later census records for a hester, ester or sophia born 1833 in England [Option 4]
• Check death records for a hester, ester or sophia born 1833 in England [Option 4]

Sources:
[D00028] Saint Peter (Liverpool, Lancashire, England), "Baptism Record - Hester Sophia Williams," Batch No P020273; Dates 1826 - 1833l Source Call No 0093877-0093879; FHL microfilm.

[D01530] 1841 census of England, Liverpool, Lancashire, folio 45, page 37; digital images(accessed 6 May 2018); citing PRO HO 107/559/15.

[D01597] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Guelph, Guelph, p. 14; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018).

Profile: Gabriel Williams (1825-1854)

Gabriel Williams [1825-1854]

Gabriel Williams was born in 1825 [D00029, D01459, D01530] in Gloucester, England, the son of Thomas Williams (ca. 1792 – 1868) and Sibyl Foxwell (1798-1874). He was the fourth child and second son of the couple.

Gabriel grew up in Minchinhampton, Gloucester. The Williams family moved to Liverpool in the 1830s and when Gabriel was old enough to begin working, he followed in his father’s footsteps into the clothing industry and worked as a hatter’s assistant in Liverpool [D01530].

The Williams family emigrated to Canada West in the early 1840s and first settled in Orillia, Simcoe County but eventually relocated to Guelph, Wellington County. Thomas Williams set up a business as a brewer in Guelph and like his brothers, Gabriel worked as a brewer as part of his father’s business [D04688].

Sadly, Gabriel died 22 May 1854 at the age of 29 years and was buried on 26 May 1854 [D01459].



Sources
[D00029] (Minchinhampton, Gloucester, England), "Baptism Record - Gabriel Williams," Batch No C049002; Dates 1813 - 1875; Source Call no; 0857041; FHL microfilm.

[D01459] "Deaths," Guelph Mercury, 25 may 1854; digital images, Ancestry.ca (ancestry.ca : accessed 9 Jun 2018)

[D01530] 1841 census of England, Liverpool, Lancashire, folio 45, page 37; digital images(accessed 6 May 2018); citing PRO HO 107/559/15.

[D04688] Canada. Ontario. Wellington. Assessment Roll for the Town of Guelph, 1853. Guelph Public Library, Guelph. Guelph Public Library, Guelph. Guelph Public Library, Guelph.

X00289 Birth and death dates for Annie Louisa Williams

I'm researching the family of John Williams and Charlotte Ann Perry and I've been trying to get the birth and death dates for one of their daughters, Annie Louisa Williams.

The only definite record that I have found for her so far is the 1861 census [D03739] which puts her birth date at 1859 or 1860.

A number of trees on Ancestry have her listed with the following dates:
Born: 14 Apr 1860
Died: 25 Oct 1861

However, none of these trees provide sources for these dates.

So, I’ll need to do some more research. Since she evidently was born and died before civil registration, so I’ll have to find other sources. I’ve checked the standard websites for cemeteries but have had no luck.

Next steps:
- Check Guelph newspapers for birth/death announcements
- Check Wellington County OGS grave transcriptions
- Check Guelph Public Library/Wellington county archives for church records
- Check possibility that birth/death dates are wrong
- Check possibility that Annie Louisa Williams is confused with another one of the sisters


Sources:
[D03739] 1861 census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, Peel, sub-district Brampton, Brampton, p. 15; RG 31; digital images, Ancestry.ca (accessed 13 May 2018).

X00155 Thomas Williams death information - Solved!

Until recently the only sources that I had for Thomas Williams' [abt. 1792-1868] date of death were the Greenwood Cemetery Interment listings [D01131] and his tombstone.



Both are consistent with a date of death of 26 August 1868. Unfortunately, the date is before the start of civil registration in Ontario, so a death registration record wouldn't exist. I checked the Owen Sound newspapers from the time period, but none of them had a surviving death notice.

But recently, I checked in the listings for the Guelph Weekly Herald, given that he spent a great a deal of his life living in Guelph, Ontario. Sure enough, I found this listing:



Now the date given there is 22 August 1868. So there is a date conflict that needs to be resolved, but now I have an additional source for his date of death.

X00287 Samina "Minnie" Foxwell Williams

One of the daughters of Thomas Williams and Sybil Foxwell was named Samina Foxwell Williams. She was born in 1841 in Liverpool, England and emigrated with the rest of the family in the 1840s. For the longest time, I wasn't able to determine what happened to her after 1871: I couldn't find her in any of the Ontario census, marriage or death records.

I did eventually find a name in the Greenwood Cemetery burial listings of a Minnie McInnis who died in 1878 and is buried in a location close to Thomas and Sybil Williams. I figured that Minnie could be a possible nickname for Samina. As far as I am aware, however, there is no surviving gravestone. I'll verify that the next time I'm in Owen Sound.

So, I had a look in the Owen Sound papers and came across this article from the November 29, 1878 Owen Sound Times:



The sister (Mrs John Douglas) would be Louisa Williams. So, it would appear that she married a Joseph McInnis sometime between 1871 and 1878 and died in Walnut, Iowa in November 1878 (one newspaper gives the date as November 25th and another one gives it as November 26th). Thus far, however, I have not been able to find a marriage or death record for her.

So, I'm still looking for marriage and death records. Here are the known facts about Samina "Minnie" Foxwell Williams McInnis:

• Born Jan 20, 1841 Liverpool, Lancashire, England
• Baptised May 20, 1841, Liverpool, Lancashire, England
• Emigrated to Canada West in the 1840s, first settled in Guelph. Later moved to Owen sound.
• Was in Owen Sound in 1871 and unmarried (from the 1871) census
• Marriage to Joseph McInnis sometime between 1871 and 1878
• Died November 26 1878 (or November 25th) in Walnut, Pottawattamie, Iowa, USA
• Buried Greenwood Cemetery November 30, 1878 Owen Sound, Grey, Ontario, Canada