Update on X00121: Who is Ellen Reynolds?

Back again with another update on the X00121 quest to find out who Ellen Reynolds/Ellen McLeod is and if they are the same person. This time I've been searching to see if I could find some other records on Ellen McLeod.

Some time ago, I found evidence of an Alexander & Ellen McLeod living in Niagara. Since the John McLeod family has a connection to Niagara, could this be the same Ellen McLeod as the one that we're trying to resolve? It would have to mean that Alexander died before 1861. I managed to find their gravestone in Drummond Hill Cemetery in Niagara and Alexander died in 1871. As well, I found the two of them together in Welland County in the 1861 census:



Since we already have the other Ellen McLeod in the 1861 census in Cobourg we can rule this Ellen McLeod out as a match.

Next, when I was searching for possible marriages between an Ellen McLeod and a Joseph Reynolds in Cobourg, I found a marriage record between a John McLeod, aged 34, born in Scotland and an Ellen Thompson, aged 21, born Canada. The marriage date was 30 Dec 1858. Both bride and groom resided in Hamilton.



So, this marriage was intriguing for a number of reasons: the names Ellen & McLeod. The fact that it was in Cobourg and that both parties lived in Hamilton (John McLeod & family have connections with Hamilton). If this were the case, it would mean that Ellen's maiden name was Thompson and her husband John would have died before the 1861 census.

But there are some other issues with the record that suggest that it might not be the same Ellen. For one thing, the age in the marriage record suggests a birth year of 1837, whereas the other Ellen would have been born in the 1820s (the year varies by record). As well, she is listed as being born in Canada whereas the Ellen that we are looking for would have been born in Scotland. Plus, in the 1861 census, the Ellen McLeod we are checking is not listed as being a widow.

But the final blow came when I found John & Ellen McLeod in the 1861 census as well. So we can rule that possibility out as well.

Update on X00121: Who is Ellen Reynolds?

Continuing along the saga of X00121 and the quest to find out who is Ellen Reynolds/Ellen McLeod I took a trip out to Hamilton to do some research.

My first stop was Hamilton Cemetery to see if I could find the gravestone for Ellen Reynolds, and more specifically, if it was located close to the McLeod-Mundy gravestone.

Hamilton Cemetery is a very large cemetery, but fortunately the McLeod-Mundy gravestone is easy to find because it is located near the cemetery office. It did not take me long to find the stone:



And, yes, it is located very close to the McLeod-Mundy stone; it is in the same location, just one row behind as you can see from this picture:



Now, the location of the stone doesn't prove anything of course, but it does strengthen the argument that Ellen Reynolds is somehow related to John McLeod.

Next stop was Hamilton Public Library to do some newspapers searches. I was hoping to find death notices or obituaries for John McLeod or Ellen Reynolds that might offer some clues, such as listing surviving family members. I checked a number of Hamilton Newspapers from the time period but couldn't find anything for either of them. I did find death notices for John's wife Henriette, but they didn't offer any clues to this puzzle. So I can cross this avenue off the list and it's off to the next actions. As an outside chance, I could check Cobourg papers to see if they picked up the death notices.

Next Steps:
* Look for a marriage between 1861 and 1871 for Ellen McLeod & John Reynolds/Runnals
* Look for a death record or cemetery record for a John Reynolds/Runnals between 1861 and 1871
* Check Cobourg newspapers for death notices obituaries for John McLeod (21 Aug 1889) or Ellen Reynolds (21 May 1902)
* Check for Probate records for John McLeod (1889) to see if Ellen Reynolds is mentioned
* Check Scottish records to see if any connection can be found

Another update on X00121: Who is Ellen McLeod/Reynolds

I've posted recently on X00121 - Who is Ellen McLeod/Reynolds and have also posted one update. And here is another update.

I've since contacted Hamilton Cemetery to ask about the burial records. While they weren't able to give me the plot owners, they were able to confirm that the burial plots for John and Henriette McLeod are quite close to the plot for Ellen Reynolds. They are in the same section, different rows, but quite close to one another.

But more importantly, they provided an interesting piece of information. Both John McLeod and Ellen Reynolds listed John E. McLeod (son of John McLeod and Henriette Mundy) as a next of kin. This would likely indicate that Ellen Reynolds is part of the same family as John McLeod.

Neither of the above two pieces of information are definite proof that Ellen Reynolds and Ellen McLeod are the same person, but they are definitely pointing in that direction.

So, here are the next actions:
* Look for marriage between 1861 and 1871 for Ellen McLeod and John Reynolds
* Look for death record for John Reynolds between 1861 and 1871
* Look for Ellen and John in 1841 census Scotland
* Look for an obituary for Ellen Reynolds
* Look for an obituary for John McLeod
* Check for probate for John McLeod 1889 and see if Ellen Reynolds is mentioned
* Search under the name RENNALS/RUNNALS as well.

In the next few months I'll visit Hamilton Cemetery and Hamilton Public Library to check the proximity of the grave locations myself and search for obituaries for Ellen Reynolds and John McLeod.

Update on X00121: Who is Ellen McLeod?

A few weeks ago, I posted about X00121: Who is Ellen McLeod?. Since that time I have made a couple of new discoveries (with help from people on the Hamilton OGS Facebook group):

1) I have managed to find Ellen Reynolds in the 1901 census. The difficulty with finding her is that she was listed under the name "Hellen Rennals". Anyway, at the time of the 1901 census she is living at the same home for the aged in Hamilton that she was living in in 1891. New information found is that she emigrated to Canada in 1855.

2) I've also managed to find her in an 1888 directory for Hamilton where she is listed as a widow to a John Reynolds. So, we now know her husband's name.

Next actions:
* Look for marriage between 1861 and 1871 for Ellen McLeod and John Reynolds
* Look for death record for John Reynolds between 1861 and 1871
* Look for Ellen and John in 1841 census Scotland
* Look for an obituary for Ellen Reynolds
* Look for an obituary for John McLeod
* Check for probate for John McLeod 1889 and see if Ellen Reynolds is mentioned
* Check location of Ellen Reynolds gravestone in Hamilton Cemetery - see if close to the McLeod-Mundy Stone
* Search under the name RENNALS/RUNNALS as well.

X00121 Who is Ellen McLeod?

In the 1861 census, the McLeod family has an Ellen McLeod living with them and is listed as a family member [D01599]:



From the 1861 census, Ellen McLeod was born about 1825-1826 in Scotland.

Then, there is an Ellen Reynolds living with the McLeod family in 1871 and 1881 [D01233] & [D01329]:





She is listed as being widowed.

The ultimate question I'm trying to answer is who is Ellen McLeod. But for the time being, I'm trying to determine if Ellen McLeod and Ellen Reynolds are the same person. I've found Ellen Reynolds in the 1891 census, her death registration and her gravestone and it would appear that she was born around the same time as Ellen McLeod in Scotland.

Analysis
If they are the same person:
- Then Ellen McLeod married a Reynolds between 1861 and 1871
- Mr. Reynolds died between 1861 and 1871

If they are two different people:
- Ellen McLeod should appear in the 1871 or later censuses
- Ellen Reynolds should appear in the 1861 census


Next actions:
* Look for marriage between 1861 and 1871 for Ellen McLeod and Reynolds
* Look for 1901 census record for Ellen Reynolds
* Look for death record for Mr. Reynolds between 1861 and 1871
* Look for ellen and john in 1841 census Scotland
* Look for obituary for Ellen Reynolds
* Look for obituary for John McLeod

More on the McLeod-Mundy-Dorrity Saga

Continuing on from Part 1 and Part 2 of the story, I discovered some more records.

First, I found a marriage between a Thomas Dority and an Ann Mundy in 1831. Ann Mundy was listed as as a widow:



Next, I found a obituary for a Henry Mundy in 1827:



And finally I found a marriage between a Henry Mundy and an Ann Sidney Taylor:





So, here's the timeline of what I have pieced together so far:
* March 1827 - Henry Mundy marries Ann Sidney Taylor
* October 1827 - Henry Mundy dies in a boating accident
* About February 1828 - Ann Sidney Taylor Mundy gives birth to Henrietta Elizabeth Mundy
* May 1831 - Thomas Dority marries Ann Sidney Taylor Mundy
* March 1832 - Thomas and Ann Dority have a daughter Margaret
* August 1848 - Henrietta Elizabeth Mundy marries John McLeod
* December 1850 - John and Henrietta McLeod have a daughter Annie Agnes McLeod

So, it explains why the Dority name appears so much with the McLeod family and likely why Annie Agnes McLeod's mother was errantly listed as Anne Doherty

I still have some more investigating to do and some of the links to prove (most notably the births of Henrietta Elizabeth Mundy and Annie Agnes McLeod) but the pieces are coming together.

Investigating the McLeod-Dority Connection

Since I discovered the name Anne Doherty in Annie Agnes McLeod's Death Registration (see previous post) which has thrown up the question of whether Annie Agnes's mother is Anne Doherty or Henriette Mundy, I've been reviewing some of the family records. While I haven't found any definite proof either way, I've found the surname Doherty (or more accurately, Dority) staring me in the face in a number of records.

First, in the marriage record between John McLeod and Henriette Mundy, there is a Margaret Dority as a witness:



Next, in the 1861 census there appears to be an M.A. Dority either living with the family or next to the family



Same with in the 1871 census, when the family had moved to Hamilton:



I've also discovered that one of John & Henriette's daughters as named Amy Dorrity McLeod:



And finally, we find a marriage record for Margaret Dority, and both John McLeod and Annie Agnes McLeod are witnesses. Worth noting: the groom comes from Cobourg.



So what this all means, I'm not sure of yet. But there's definitely some connection between the McLeod family and the Dority surname.

New Record, New Information, New X-Files

Ancestry just released the 1945 death records for Ontario. There were a few that I was looking forward to seeing, one of which is the death registration for Annie Agnes Tew. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to find much that I didn't already know. But it turns out that there was a lot more on this record than I had expected. Some clues, and a whole lot more questions.



So, here are a few interesting observations:

1. The date of birth is listed as December 11, 1849. From census record to census record, her year of birth varies, although it's usually around 1855. 1849 is much earlier than I would have expected. Granted, death records are often erroneous, but this is definitely something to check out. [X00128]

2. The place of birth is listed as Niagara-on-the-Lake. I had figured that the McLeod family would have been living in Cobourg at the time of her birth, but that was when I had figured it was 1855. Again, this is a bit of a clue as to where I might find a birth record. [X00128]

3. The birthplace of her father, John McLeod is given as Edinburgh, Scotland. Until today, I only had a very common Scottish name, and an approximate year of birth to go on to trace him back to Scotland. At least this gives one more piece of information to narrow down possibilities. [X00182]

4. By far, the most interesting piece of information is that the name of the mother is given as Anne Doherty. All the evidence that I have points to her mother being Henriette Mundy. It's time to review the evidence and re-evaluate. Again, the information on the death registration is all coming second-hand, but it's worth investigating; even if it is incorrect, the name of Anne Doherty must have come from somewhere. [X00191]

5. And finally, the information that the mother was born in Cobourg, Ontario gives a clue on where we might find more information. [X00191]