Originally Posted on Facebook: April 8, 2020

County Durham, England

A note about the places our ancestors lived. This is a snipping of google maps where I have plotted where the Anderson and Marley branches of the family lived over a period of about 100 years taken from English census and parish records. 

Grandfather Anderson was born in Wingate, his mother Annie Marley was born in Trimdon and William her husband was born in Coxhoe and they were married in Kelloe. All of these places are only a few kilometers from each other.

You can try entering St Helen's Church, Kelloe, Durham and it should take you to the church which you can see from Streetview.

As I am sure you are familiar with Google maps you can enter the place names and explore using satellite and Streetview. The English census does not give addresses, some of the later ones had street names but most of the 19th-century homes are no longer there.

Originally Posted to Facebook: April 7, 2020

Marion Doris Anderson b. Aug 31, 1935 - d. June 29, 1940, daughter of Lillian and William Anderson

I recently obtained the death registration for little Marion who sadly passed away in 1940.

Her cause of death is noted as a myocardial failure with contributing causes as underdevelopment and congenital deformity. She was 4 years, 9 months and 29 days.

She is buried in Woodland cemetery but we have not been able to find her grave although the cemetery staff has told us where to look.

May she rest in peace...

Originally Posted to Facebook:  April 5, 2020

Anderson Immigration to Canada - June 26, 1904

William Anderson and Annie Marley were married in Kelloe, Durham, England May 22, 1899. They had two children, William b. 1901 and Elizabeth Ellen b. 1903 in England before they immigrated to Canada. William and Annie arrive in Montreal, Canada on June 26, 1904, aboard the Vancouver, with their 2 children.

Prior to leaving for Canada, William collected employment references regarding his standing and reputation as a butcher in the Station Town Co-Operative Society.

In England, a Co-operative Society was a membership group or of local tradesmen and merchants or others with mutual interest who paid into society to maintain certain benefits. This kind of society has a long history in England and remains a popular option in the UK today.

Interesting to note that one of the references states that William has had a situation offered to him by his brother who is a builder and contractor. This brother is John Anderson b. 1874 who immigrated to Canada around the same time as John and is listed as a bricklayer or builder in various census. John and his family ultimately moved to the Detroit area by about 1917.

These are the documents that we saw at Aunt Dorothy's funeral earlier this year that she had kept in an album. I can remember when I first started asking relatives about genealogy 25 plus years ago, Dad told me to talk to Aunt Dorothy (of course!). I still have the notes I made, where I wrote down Annie's maiden name as Marley. I also wrote down that Aunt Dorothy remembered that she was a teacher. I have since found that in the 1891 census of England Annie has her occupation listed as "pupil-teacher" at the age of 14.

Employment Reference Dated March 16, 1903

Employment Reference Dated May 15, 1903

I have included this document (below) in the set as it was with the others, and was kept by Annie or her son William for many years folded up as a record of birth. The date on the return is June 19, 1918. This is an Ontario document where Annie attests to the birth of her son William Anderson on March 21, 1901 in England. 

In 1919 the Canadian Federal government passed a new immigration act outlining new rules around aliens or non-British subjects as there was a lot of discussion, rising concern and outright fear of communism and immigrants from countries that fought against Canada in the First World War. It is possible, that as William was coming of age during this time that this document was needed to clarify his British origins. 

Passenger List for the S.S. Vancouver showing William, Annie and two children.

The ship contained 316 souls and the Anderson's travelled in 2nd class. 

Clip of the family entry:

Wm. Anderson age 35, Butcher

A. Anderson age 27. Wife

Wm. Anderson age 3, Child

N. Anderson, Infant

S.S. Vancouver, arrived in Canada on June 26, 1904 after a 10 day voyage with 316 souls.

Originally Posted on Facebook: April 6, 2020

Isaac Sargent Biography - 1889 History of Middlesex County

Many years ago, Aunt Dorothy told me about a book that she found in the library which was written in 1889 called "History of the Country of Middlesex, From the Earliest Time to the Present" Google Books link below.

https://books.google.ca/books?id=HbI5KiGnRAAC.

Found on page 990 is a biography paragraph that describes Isaac Sargent (2nd Great Grandfather). They have the information about his wife Ann Lane wrong, as she was not a native of Canada. She was born in Cornwall, England not very far from Isaac. Otherwise, the information appears to be correct. This is an interesting historical resource of our ancestor, we can assume that because he was chosen to be included in the list of biographies he would have been considered a prominent and well-respected citizen.

Title page

Extract of entry

Page 990

 Originally Posted on Facebook: March 25, 2020

Anderson Family Photo circa 1934

Anderson Group: William Sr. (b. 1868), unknown Anderson daughter (possibly Lilly b. 1919-d. 1940), Annie Marley (b.1876), John (Jack b. 1917), Charlie (b. 1903). Front row, William (b. 1921) and likely Norm Anderson (b. 1931).

Note that this photo has been enhanced and colourized. 

Originally Posted on Facebook: April 4, 2020

A 17th Century Wedding - William Snowden & Elizabeth Swanson

Some of the oldest records I have in our family tree are associated with the Snowden line. On October 13, 1695, William Snowden aged, 25 married his bride Elizabeth Swanson aged 20 in St. Mary's Whitechapel Church, London, England.

William and Elizabeth are my generation's 7th great grandparents born in 1670 and 1674 respectively. Together they had 9 children over 19 years. I have not completed all research for each of the children and so I can't comment on how many survived childhood or even childbirth as the mortality rate at this time for children in their first year was 12%.

Additionally, the 17th Century was a perilous time for Londoners. 1665 marked the last widespread plague which killed an estimated 100,000 people in the city over a period of 18 months. The very next year - in 1666 The Great Fire of London swept through the city over a 4 day period. Although no accurate numbers were recorded many believe that over 70,000 homes were destroyed.

It is amazing to me that these records, over 300 years old have survived the centuries, plagues and fires. If you look at the publication of banns document, you can see William's signature on the right-hand side.

1695 Banns Document, showing William's signature

St. Mary Whitechapel Church circa 1755

Parish Register of Marriages, October 13, 1695.

You can see William and Elizabeth Swanson, 8 entries from the bottom.

Originally Posed on Facebook:  April 3, 2020

Sargent Family Photos

These photos are of the Sargent family, I think most of you have seen these and maybe even have copies. The family photo is older, it's likely after the conclusion of WWI since John Jr. has his uniform on and maybe a photo was a nice way to celebrate his safe return from the war. Lillian is about 18 years old here if my guestimate is correct. I have included a colorized version for interest's sake.

The single portraits of John and Rachel are really lovely and well done. Does anyone know the date of these? I am guessing it is sometime in the 1930s.

John was born in Devonshire, England in 1864 and immigrated with his parents Isaac and Anne to Canada in 1875. John was a carpenter as was his father Isaac who owned the planing mill on King Street.

Rachel was born in Hamilton, Ontario in 1870 and moved with her parents William and Celia and family to London by 1874. Rachel's family lived at 652 Dufferin Ave around 1887 which wasn't far from where John's family was living on King Street. Her father was also a carpenter.

John and Rachel were married in 1893 at a Methodist church at 835 Dundas Street East. Witnesses were James Snowden and Lizzie Sargent, brother and sister of the couple. This church no longer exists and unfortunately, I can't find any pictures of it.

The couple had 6 children in 11 years, John passed away in 1939 at the age of 74 while Rachel lived until she was 91, passing away in 1961. There is a large Sargent family headstone in Mount Pleasant Cemetery where John and his family, as well as his parents, are buried.

Family Photo Circa 1919

Left to right front row: Rachel (Snowden), Frederick, Lillian, Ernest, John Sr.

Left to right back row: James, Irene, John Jr. 

The below photos are undated but likely be have been taken sometime in the 1930s, maybe for a 40th or 45th wedding anniversary. John is in his early to mid 70's here and Rachel about 65. 

John Sargent b. 1864 d. 1939

Rachel Snowden b. 1870 d. 1961

Marriage Registration for Rachel and John, September 21, 1893

Family Burial Plot, Mount Pleasant Cemetery, London

Originally published on Facebook: April 2, 2020

Middlestorb - Sugar Bakers from Bremen, Germany

I referred to the surname Middlestorb in yesterday's post. Celia Snowden's maiden name is noted as Middlestaff on her marriage record with William. Taking her family a generation back I found that in fact, the surname was originally Middlestorb which is the German form of Middlestaff, likely anglicized for obvious reasons. Celia's father's name was Robert Middlestorb and, his father our 4th great Grandfather's name is shown Robert's birth record as Daniel. Daniel was born in 1778 in Kirchhuchting, Stadt Bremen, Germany. Daniel's occupation is noted as a Sugar Baker.

Sugar Baker refers to anyone who was involved in sugar refining or boiling to produce various sugar products. It does not refer to baking or a baker as we understand it to be. The work of a sugar baker was some of the most difficult, hot and unhealthy work so undesirable that England depended on German immigrants to perform the work. This is the best online resource I have found on Sugar Baker and Refiners if you are interested in reading more about it. http://www.mawer.clara.net/intro.html

The Middlestorb line goes back a number of generations in Bremen where sugar refining was considered a specialty in that area, many consider Germans to have introduced it to England starting in the 17th century. Our Middlestorb line immigrated to the London area in the late 18th century. During this time it was not uncommon for German or Hanovarians to immigrate to England as their King was also the King of England.

Daniel married Margaret Hunter (English born) in 1804 and I can find at least 5 children born over 10 years. He died in London in 1857 at the age of 79.

Note: Since my original Facebook post I have discovered that Daniel's marries a second time at the age of 59 to Jane Alexander in 1837 and, it is Daniel and Jane who are listed together in the 1841 English census. There are no children from this marriage. The 1841 census was the first official census in England and therefore, there are no earlier census from which to locate Daniel on. The couple are listed at the bottom of the page.

Above: 1841 England and Wales Census
Daniel Middlestorb, age 64 a Carman from foreign parts
Jane Middlestorb, age 54 not from this county (born outside of Middlesex co.)

Above: Close up clip of the 1841 Census entry

The clearest record I have showing Margaret as the mother of the children is this one below, for Robert Middlestorb, second son and second child born to Daniel and Margaret. Trade or profession is noted as Sugar Baker.

The above baptismal entry shows the "abode" listed as Little Distaff Lane, St. Nicholas Cole Abbey parish, city of London. In the 1766 ward map image below you can see the street noted. There was also a Distaff lane, but today, the two streets have become just Distaff Lane. The housing where the Middlestorbs were living in 1816 has long disappeared as you can see from the Google street view shot below. Distaff was a kind of bobbin originally used in the spinning process, and at a very early point in the area's history weaving and spinning was a common occupation. Cordwainer's (leatherwork) Hall is also pictured which lasted in some form in the same location until it was destroyed by Germany during it's blitz bombing campaign in WWII.

Map source: https://collage.cityoflondon.gov.uk/view-item?i=31407&WINID=1605191717009

This is Distaff Lane today from Google Street View.

Record sources: Ancestry

 Originally posted on Facebook: April 1, 2020

An Immigration Story...

The Snowden surname comes to us via Rachel Sargent who's maiden name was Snowden. I have been able to trace the Snowden line back several generations in London, England with records dating as far back as 1695. This, however, is not my focus for this entry. I want to share with you the immigration story for the Snowden family to Canada.

William Henry Snowden and Celia Frances Middlestaff (actually Middlestorb, but that's a story for another day) were married in 1869 at St. James the Great an east end London church. In the same year only a month later they baptized all 4 children at a different east London church, called Christ Church on May 12, 1869 - that same day they boarded a ship and set sail for Canada.

During this time in England, Church of England parishioners were required to pay wedding fees and it is likely the Snowdens could not afford to marry. There is evidence that starting in about 1864 the vicar of the church where they were married waived marriage fees in light of the known poverty in the parish.

We cannot know the full status of the couple during this time, but it was likely they were living a difficult life in east London which was known for its high mortality rates, disease, unsanitary living conditions and most overwhelmingly for its poverty. At this time the recorded mortality rate for Bethnal Green where they were married was more than double that of west London and 1 in 5 children did not reach their first birthday. 

The May 1869 voyage of the S.S. Cleopatra from England to Quebec was recorded in the Canadian Sessional Papers in 1870 as a ship containing immigrants sponsored by a benevolent society called The British and Colonial Emigration Fund, a London based society. The society chose candidates for emigration who had a good opportunity for success in Canada and William and Celia were likely considered good candidates because of William's trade as a carpenter.

Their journey lasted 19 days and although there was still risk associated with travel to Canada during this period I can only imagine it would have been a very happy time for the young family. They were new Canadians in the new Dominion of Canada with so much more opportunity to own property, vote and send their children to school.

William and Celia settled in Hamilton initially but within about 5 years moved to London, Ontario. They were married for 61 years and when William passed away they had spent over 50 years in Canada together. They had 11 children, losing only one to a childhood illness. At the time of William's death in 1922, there were 38 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren. Notably, 7 grandsons fought in WWI and all but 1 returned safely.

St. James The Great also known as the Red Church due to its construction in red brick,

 where William and Celia were married.

Image Source: http://www.mernick.org.uk/elhs/Markets/images/Bethnal2.jpg

Marriage Registration for William and Celia on April 19,1869

Source document: London, England Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1932

Christ Church, Watney, where the children were baptized on May 12, 1869

Image source: https://mprobb.wordpress.com/category/webb/page/2/

Baptismal registrations for all four children,

Celia Caroline, William, Robert & Mary Ann.

Note that at the top, right of the page the word "llegitimate" is written.
Source Document:

London Metropolitan Archives, Christ Church, Watney Street, Register of Baptism, p93/ctc2, Item 006

London, England, Births and Baptisms, 1813-1906

S.S. Cleopatra

The family left for Canada on this ship on May 12, 1869.

Passenger List

Source document:

Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935
Library and Archives Canada. Passenger Lists, 1865-1935. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada:

Library and Archives Canada, n.d. RG 76-C

Close up view of Snowden family on the passenger list.

Mary Ann is not listed for some reason, she was the youngest and only about 16 months old.

Originally posted on Facebook: March 31, 2020

Anderson Sisters - Nellie, Maisie, Doris & Lily

William and Annie Anderson had 10 children over the space of 18 years. All of them lived into adulthood, however, tragically over a 9 year period 4 daughters succumbed to Pulmonary Tuberculosis (TB).

TB was a prevalent reality in Canada until an antibiotic was found to treat the disease which was not widely used until the 1950s. TB was known to be very contagious and as a result, many families sent their sick relatives to a TB Sanitorium where they were kept in isolation.

Sadly, starting in 1931, William made his first trip to the registrar's office to report the death of Nellie, the eldest of the 4 sisters. It is likely that Nellie was the source of her 3 sisters' illnesses. They were unmarried living together with their parents at 241 Ottoway Ave. (now South St.) home and they would have shared a bedroom and maybe even a bed.

Of the 4 sisters only one, Doris went to the Sanitorium, which can be seen on her death registration, Nellie died at Victoria Hospital and Maisie and Lily died at home.

Interestingly, Lily's death registration shows that she worked for Holeproof Hosiery (Clarence/Bathurst St.) which was a large employer in London at the time. I believe other Anderson relatives also worked there.

The sisters are buried at Woodland Cemetery in the same plot with parents William and Annie.

Woodland Cemetery Headstone, Charles Anderson (brother to the sisters) and his daughter Audrey, circa 1947

Elizabeth Ellen (Nellie) Anderson

March 5, 1903 - July 6, 1931

Maisie Anderson

July 15, 1912 - September 12, 1933

Doris Anderson

November 1, 1914 - October 22, 1934

Lillian Anderson

Feb 1919 - May 1, 1940

Modern Day Headstone, 2020.

Originally posted on Facebook: March 29, 2020 

Sargent Planing Mill - Fire Insurance Plans

These images are urban city maps created for insurance companies to provide them with information about building composition and to assess fire risk and assist in assigning insurance rates. These plans provide details on building construction and usage and help give a static impression of streetscapes, neighborhoods and business/ commercial regions. These are snippings of a larger plan which can be found with other city plans at https://www.lib.uwo.ca/madgic/fips.html

Isaac Sargent (our 2nd Great Grandfather), a carpenter was John Sargent's father (Great Grandfather), who immigrated to Canada with his wife Anne Lane and the family around 1870. By about 1884 there is evidence that Isaac built a planing mill at the corner of King and Adelaide Streets in London.

These three images demonstrate that fact. The first while not under the Sargent name are clearly the same structure across all three plans. Notice the pink boxes on the right of the document, these are houses with their associated street addresses.  The Sargent family lived at 590 King Street for many years. John (b. 1864) had two brothers (James b. 1867 & William b. 1870) who worked and lived on King in some of the other homes shown here.

1888 Insurance Plan

London, Ontario

This is the earliest plan, no name is associated with the mill, but there is evidence that Isaac owned the property by this time. 

Plan Information  Title:  Insurance Plan of the City of London, Ontario, Canada  Date:  Surveyed October 1881 revised July 1888  Publisher:  Charles E. Goad Co.  Place of Publication:  Montreal

1892 Insurance Plan

London, Ontario

By 1892 Isaac Sargent's name is printed over the mill location.

Plan Information  Title:  Insurance Plan of the City of London, Ontario, Canada  Date:  February 1892 revised July 1907  Publisher:  Charles E. Goad Co.  Place of Publication:  Montreal

1912 Insurance Plan

London, Ontario

In 1912 the mill becomes Sargent & Sons as William, John and James have likely by this time taken over much of the production. Isaac dies in April of 1913. 

Plan Information  Title:  Insurance Plan of the City of London, Ontario, Canada  Date:  February 1912 revised March 1915  Publisher:  Charles E. Goad Co.  Place of Publication:  Montreal

Originally Posted to Facebook: March 30, 2020

The National Resources Mobilization Act,1940 - Registration Cards and Rationing

Here are William and Lillian's registration cards which they were legally obliged to produce to any enquiring authorities during the war period.

The registration process took place during the month of August 1940 for anyone over the age of 16 and not already serving in the military. Announcements were placed in Post Offices across the country outlining the locations of schools, libraries and other public buildings where all Canadians, aliens, and British subjects were compelled to appear and submit to an interview by the Deputy Registrars. These sites were open from 8am to 10pm each day in order to process millions of residents.

The data was used to establish the level of available human resources to be placed at the disposal of King George to support the war effort. Employable men and women were put to work in high priority industries like farming and in munition factories. Under this Act, unemployment longer than 7 days was illegal.

Most notably these registration cards were the basis for which rationing began in Canada by the end of 1941. Women, in particular, enthusiastically responded by creating and an endless number of wartime ration-stretching recipes. The culture of thrift and austerity can still be seen in our parent's generation. It should be said that our grandparents experienced a truly national experience during this period which was looked upon as a positive and engaging time when many more profound sacrifices were being made on the front lines.

These are scanned copies of the original documents which came from the Nelson St. home.

Originally posted to Facebook on: March 28, 2020

Snowden Sisters 

Posting this photo tonight, some of you may have seen this one before?

I understand these ladies to be all Snowden relations (Grandma Sargent's maiden name was Snowden). I believe that Grandma Sargent or Rachel Snowden is in the middle - the eldest looking lady, her sister (Fanny I think) is to the right of her.

The rest I do not have identities for except the lovely young lady at the end of the right side of the photo who is Miss Dorothy Anderson. I would date the photo sometime around 1945?

Any ideas on who the ladies are?

Originally Posted on Facebook: March 27, 2020

Another wedding party!

William Anderson married his bride Lillian Dorothy Sargent on April 9, 1921 at Hyatt Ave United/Methodist Church (282 Hamilton Rd.). They were both 20 years old.

The wedding party included the bride and groom's good friends - If I remember the story, the young woman's name was also Lillian. (Edit from original post: As pointed out, the taller lady is in fact Lillian's sister, Irene, also supported by the wedding registration).

I have also included the Marriage Registration and License.

Left to right: William Anderson, Lillian Sargent, Irene Sargent, friend of groom,...

William & Lillian

Post card of the church, Hyatt Ave Methodist Church, London, Ontario

Modern day interior of church, circa 2005.

Marriage Registration

Marriage License