From Farmer to Family to Fallout. What Happened to Job Dowding?

July 2, 2018August 6, 2018 Vicki4 Comments

I could tell you the story of a young man who spent his adolescence on a “factory farm” in Fifehead Magdalen alongside his older brother and sister in the Southern part of England. He lived with his older cousins on this farm that housed his elderly relatives, and learned the trade of dairy farming. Between the years 1841 and 1851, he travelled with his older brother to Canada in search of a new and prosperous life. Meeting and marrying his love in York (now Toronto), he travelled South-West with his young bride and her family to settle near Woodstock, Ontario. He went back and forth between a farm there and his brother’s in Logan Township in Perth County over the course of the next several years. Upon the death of his wife after birthing their ninth child, this man adopted out his children amongst various members of his and his wife’s family, presumably because he couldn’t afford to raise them. He died in Woodstock jail in 1886 of general paralysis at the age of 58. Place of burial is unknown and is presumed in the jail’s potters’ field.

That is the story I could tell. It is an interesting one. To me, however, the real story was in how I pieced it together. It has taken me years, several connections and endless Ancestry.ca and Google searches, to bring this tale to life. It was shrouded in mystery and still has several loose ends. It is no way a finished story but here is what I have so far.

I introduce you to my great great great grandfather, Job. He brought my Dowding lineage to Canada from England almost 200 years ago. My earliest record of him is the 1841 English Census in Fifehead Magdalen. He is listed there at a “factory farm” at 13 with a Sarah Dowding, 20 and a John Dowding, 15. There were other Dowdings too; a Thomas and Elizabeth both 70, and a younger Thomas of 40. According to one of my valuable contacts, she explained that factory farms were used to house elderly parents and/or as training opportunities for younger relatives to learn about dairy farming. She felt it was possible that Job was a cousin and was apprenticing as a farmer to learn the trade at the Factory Farm in Fifehead run by Thomas Dowding. This connection also mentioned that she found other documents that suggested Job had other siblings. These names included Charles, Jemima, William, Edwin James and Albert Charles. Although I cannot prove undeniably that my Job fits 100% into this line, there are clues that suggest it’s a probability.

I’ve wrote in the past, about the Dowdings in my family tree. I wrote about my great great grandma Dowding in Alice Stone – A Mystery and her husband in my October 2015 post for Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds challenge. In both stories, I mentioned that for most of my youth, the extent of my extended family knowledge was limited. I was told that my grandmother was an orphan and there wasn’t much to be found about my Dowding line. With modern day technology of course, fact-finding about family history has become much easier, more convenient with more available at our finger tips. It also brought forth new connections.

Another contact reached out and said in her message: “Just when I thought there was nothing more to add to this family, I stumbled across your site on [ancestry.com]”. She has helped me with the Canadian end of Job’s journey. This connection is a Danbrook descendant, which is a whole other collection of amazing tales in its own rite. Elizabeth Danbrook, the wife of Job Dowding and my 3X great grandmother, was this person’s 3X great aunt (if I have my math correct). Although she claimed she didn’t have much information on the Dowding line, she had considerably more than me. She gave details of a letter that she had from a Danbrook descendent speaking of Job. It described Job as a beautiful singer that fostered a love of music amongst his children. It also mentioned that Job was a victim of St. Vitus Dance. Also called Syndenham’s Chorea, it is characterized by jerky, uncontrollable movements of the facial muscles and limbs stemming from rheumatic fever. The letter goes on to read: “Auntie [Elizabeth] died when Bertha was born, the home was broken up, he was not able to work any longer. He was a very hard worker and gave all his wages to Auntie, I don’t think he even knew the taste of liquor.”

This acquaintance also asked me if I knew how Job ended up in jail where he died. This was shocking. I had his death information but did not discover until that notification, that it was jail where his life ended. When I went back over the record, there it was in a tiny box at the bottom, place of death: gaol.

My contact went on in her email to say her thoughts were perhaps the St. Vitas Dance gave the impression of intoxication and he was jailed for that. She also had more information that when Job’s wife died, the 9 children were divided up amongst relatives and spread out across Southwestern Ontario. Some lived with relatives of Elizabeth and some went to a Dowding in Perth county. Without much information about Job, I didn’t know if he had family that came from England with him. It was from this clue that I researched further and discovered the likelihood that the John Dowding from Perth county was related, and was most likely a brother. Some of Job’s children show up in a census with John Dowding in 1881.

These 2 new connections made from information shared on Ancestry have opened up a door to new research and new possibilities. I have new questions to answer – are there more family connections that come from the Dowdings in Perth? Why was Job Dowding put in jail, how did he die and where is he buried? Where were all the children placed after Elizabeth’s death. So much more to piece together.

George Alexander Brown, Brown Family History, Woodstock Ontario

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: March – Piecing Together the History of George Alexander Brown

March 14, 2016July 2, 2018 Vicki1 Comment

Isn’t it fascinating how sometimes you know so little about someone who you have to piece together a story on the bare minimum of details that you do find? That is how it is for my great-grandfather George Alexander Brown on my Mom’s side. The only thing I knew about him, other than he was a slight man with a thick dark moustache, was that he was supposedly killed in front of the Snow Countess in Woodstock, Ontario while riding his bike when he was struck by a car. I wasn’t sure about that – the story seemed a bit sensational to me but that was all I had.

As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, obtaining the subscription to a genealogical site was such a fantastic investment for me. All the documents and connections helped to fill in so many blanks. When I plugged George Alexander Brown into the database, I was finally able to get some dates. He was born in 1874 and died in 1937. He was 62 when he died. That meant that my grandmother was 17 when he died, a young girl. This also meant that he died long before my mother was born. Because I was only 8 when my grandmother died, I was too young to form the questions that I now wish I could have asked her about her father.

I was able to see census records that showed my great-grandfather was born in England and spent part of his young life in Sevenoaks, Kent. He came to Canada approximately in 1877 with his father, Joseph Alexander Brown, mother, Jane Elizabeth Beaumont and his 7 brothers and sisters. They settled in Woodstock, Ontario. I know from the English censuses that Joseph was a shoemaker but there isn’t much else that I’ve found about George’s parents.

In an old Woodstock directory document from 1893, I managed to find George listed with his brother James living at 38 Hincks Street. According to the directory, they both worked at D.K. Karn pianos. They were also living with their mother, Jane but she was listed as a widow. Two of the sisters were listed as well, but as “domestics” with Woodstock College. The little I was piecing together of my family was also opening up a treasure trove full of local history. D. W. Karn Pianos were one of the largest and most prestigious piano companies in the world. Woodstock College also had a rich history that was the humble beginnings of the now McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

George’s marriage to my great-grandmother, Mary Louise Dowding, was evident on the marriage certificate where he was listed as a “machine-hand”. My guess was that this was his position with D. W. Karn Pianos. They were married in Woodstock. The latest document that I had to review was George’s death notice. He died on September 29, 1937. On the far right side of the document it stated the cause of death: “Cerebral haemorrhage due to injury of the brain due to thrown off bicycle by motor car”. It gave me a sense of satisfaction to read that. It was as though I needed to see it in writing in order to bring belief and closure to the story that my great-grandfather did die in a bicycle accident. The last thing to verify is if it truly did happen in front of the Snow Countess. Stay tuned for updates as I continue the quest to learn more about George Alexander Brown.

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: December 2015

December 22, 2015July 2, 2018 Vicki1 Comment

From Downton to Canada

My family is descended from Downton. Impressive isn’t it? When I hear “Downton”, of course, I immediately think Downton Abbey. Being a fan of the television series, I conjure up images of large estates, beautiful gowns, tea and servants. Exciting right? Digging deeper, it didn’t take long to learn that this illusion was far from the truth. In fact, it is more ironic than anything, for the family I am speaking of, were paupers.

Pressey, Ella May Pressey, Noels, Ella May Pressey — Ella May (Pressey) Noels

This family is the Pressey’s. My great-grandmother on my father’s side was Ella May Pressey. Her great-grandfather, George came from Downton, Wiltshire, England. Times were grim in Downton during his life. There was an agricultural depression during the 1830’s and many were out of work. According to a fascinating find I discovered on the internet: The Downton Story, it explained that the answer to this overwhelming poverty in the Wiltshire parish of Downton, was to send its poor to Canada. John Pracey (Pressey – George’s brother) and his wife and family, were amongst the first group of Downton folk to head over the Atlantic ocean, on the ship the Louisa, to Quebec, Canada. From there, they made their way down the St. Lawrence to the Great Lakes and eventually landed at Port Talbot, south of London, Ontario; a community that was once at the centre of a booming new world settlement. Words of favour were passed back to Downton and more enthusiastic villagers set sail for the new, and better, world.

Port Burwell, Talbot Settlement, Pressey, — Port Burwell, Ontario Today

The next group to arrive included George,my 4th great-grandfather, his wife, Mary and 5 children: Henry, Phineas, Frederick, Ann and George. They started their life in Canada at Port Burwell, Ontario as one of the first settlers to the area on what was part of the Talbot Settlement. To this day, many descendants of John and George Pressey still live in the area of Port Burwell having established a new history for the family name and a new history for this land we call Canada.

Notes:

“The Downton Story,” accessed Dec. 22, 2015, http://www.thedowntonstory.com/index.html.
“PRESSEY FAMILY_DESCENDANTS OF PINEAS PRESSEY (1246) & RUTH BAILEY (1247),” accessed December 22, 2015,http://presseyfamily.tripod.com.
“Port Talbot, Ontario,” accessed December 22, 2015,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Talbot,_Ontario.

Should you Subscribe to a Genealogy Resource?

November 8, 2015July 2, 2018 VickiLeave a comment

Have you been considering a subscription on an online genealogy resource but aren’t sure if it’s going to be worth it? Check out my first vlog post to get some insight into why it might be a great idea:

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: October

October 23, 2015 Vicki8 Comments

When I was 8, my parent’s and Grandma (my mom’s mom) took me on a trip to Ohio to meet relatives of my grandmother’s, her 1st cousin, Dick, and his wife, Millie. I fell in love with them both instantly. They were friendly and hospitable and I felt they treated me like a grown up so they were definitely all right in my book. Their last name was Dowding. That was when I remember Dowding solidifying in my mind as a branch to my family tree.

Upon asking for more information on that family as I grew older, there wasn’t much to gain. My grandmother’s “Grandma Dowding” was an orphan and there was never any talk of her husband or a “Grandpa Dowding”. Many years of my life were spent with the understanding that my family tree would always be limited because no one had information beyond the orphaned “Grandma Dowding” and that seem to include her husband as well (I wrote about her last September in a post entitled “Alice Stone – Mystery“). My involvement and passion in family research came to the attention of a distant cousin of mine. She contacted me and offered to share information on the Dowding family. What she gave me was “fascinating” as all new genealogical information is to me. There was a new picture of Grandma Dowding with her husband, John James Dowding, and their two children, Richard and Mary Dowding. Along with the picture was a notation that read: “Little is known of John Dowding, he was a member of Christian Science Church. He was in poor health and developed an ailment that was treatable but because of his religion would not see a doctor, and consequently John succumbed to his ailment at the age of 40, leaving Elizabeth to raise their children.”

Dowdings — John and Elizabeth Dowding (nee Stone) with Richard and Mary

After plugging this information into my online genealogy database, it wasn’t long before a death certificate was produced. This document revealed that John James Dowding died of pneumonia. Sadly, he was only 40 years of age. Learning that he was a part of the Christian Science Church was absolute new information to me and most members of my family. Exploring further, it is a faith that embraces healing through spirituality and prayer over medicine. It was a new concept in the time of John Dowding and I’m trying to find out how he may have learned about it and where he may have attended gatherings. That may provide new insight to how my Dowding ancestors may have lived. There is no wonder anymore why there was so little known about Great Grandpa Dowding. He wasn’t around long for his children or his grandchildren to get to know him. But at least I now have a picture and a story that may help to open a door to find out more about my Dowding line.

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: September

September 17, 2015 Vicki3 Comments

Sometimes, You Don’t Have to be Searching to Make a Fascinating Family Find

I work at an educational institution and my department hires student tour guides. Because many students take 2 year programs, we will usually have guides for about a year and then they move on.

One guide in particular, Andrew Leaman, took several programs in a row so he was with us for a few years. In the beginning, assuming he would be with us a short time, I only made small talk with him and smiled when I saw him since I didn’t expect to know him long. As he became more of a familiar face sticking around over the course of his various programs, conversations lasted longer and my team got to know him a bit more. Come to find out, he was a graduate of the same high school as me and came from my home town. That, of course, led to chat about what we had in common from old haunts to people we knew. He brought in treats once in a while and we all developed a respect for him as he grew as a tour guide. Later, he became a student ambassador speaking on panels to prospective students of his pathway to success.

As I was thinking about a gravestone discovery for my husband’s great aunt one day in my office, Andrew stopped by to say “hello”. The great aunt’s name of my stone discovery was Cora Leaman and it occurred to me that Andrew’s last name was Leaman also. I knew since I first met him that his name was Leaman but at that moment it was like I heard it in my head for the first time.

“Andrew!” I said. “You’re a Leaman!” He responded with “Last time I checked”.

“My husband’s great aunt was a Leaman. Any chance there might be a connection since you are from my area?”

He said it was possible since he knew of there being Cornishes in his family line. I pulled up my online family tree and instantly he pointed out “Hey, that’s my grandfather!” and from there we had quite the conversation filling in the gaps of our shared family tree. His great grandmother, Cora (Cornish) Leaman, was the same Cora whose grave stone I was looking for the week prior; my husband’s great aunt. She was a sister to my husband’s great grandfather Ken Cornish (the same Kenneth Verne Cornish I mentioned in last month’s Crestleaf’s entry). That makes Andrew a 3rd cousin through marriage. Incredible!

I’m always amazed at how small the world is sometimes but it seemed to be even smaller that day. The fact that the woman, whose stone I was in search of, was the great grandmother of this student, who I worked alongside for almost 2 years without making the connection, astounded me. And the timing of the two discoveries was equally astounding. Synchronicity at its best. Sometimes, you don’t have to be actively searching for something to make a fascinating find. Sometimes, you discover something fascinating right there in front of you and you didn’t even realize it was there the whole time.

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: August

August 19, 2015 Vicki6 Comments

Kenneth Verne Cornish – Not Just a Set of Dates

Genealogy essentially comes down to dates. The date a person is born and the date a person dies. Baptism dates, immigration dates, marriage dates, divorce dates. Dates, dates and more dates.

Kenneth Verne Cornish, my husband’s great grandfather, was only a set of dates; April 11, 1903 to June 16, 1950. That made him 47 years old. It seemed young for a man to die at this age in the 20th century but one can never tell when there are just dates. Perhaps he was a smoker in a time when little was known about the detriments of smoking. Perhaps he passed away peacefully in his sleep from a brain aneurysm that no one could explain. Or perhaps he died of heart failure that was characteristic of his family line, something that perhaps, my husband should consider since he is a descendant. Dates, a grave stone and a few pictures. That was all Kenneth Verne Cornish was to us. Until…

Kenneth Verne Cornish, Gas Poisoning Inquest — Kenneth Verne Cornish’s Obituary and Inquest Coloumn

About two months ago my husband came home with a photocopy of an obituary and a newspaper story. Two newspaper columns photocopied on a white piece of paper. There wasn’t any date or any mention of the newspaper it was clipped from but the words painted a picture that suddenly added humanness to an otherwise anonymous ghost. “My Aunt wanted you to have this since you are the family ‘genealogist,'” he said. The story read:

An inquest will be held in the council chamber of the town hall at eight o’clock this evening in the death of Kenneth V. Cornish of Ostrander, who died late Friday night in the Tillsonburg Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital, believed to be a victim of methyl chloride poisoning.

A preliminary inquest was held at the G.A. Barrie Funeral Home on Saturday afternoon, when Coronoer Dr. R. E. Weston and the inquest jury viewed the body. The jury empaneled by Chief Constable T. I. Corbett includes W. A. Anderson, foreman, H.C. Armstrong, Clarence Ronson, Fred Yager and I. H. Crosby.

Later Saturday afternoon, a post-mortem was performed by Dr. F. W. Luney of London, provincial pathologist.

Mr. Cornish, who was in his 48th year, suffered the gas poisoning while making repairs to the refrigeration unit at the Massecar Locker Service plant at Glen Meyer, early last Wednesday evening. He returned to his home late in the evening, feeling rather ill. He suffered a convulsion shortly after one o’ clock the following morning, and was rushed to the hospital. He suffered a series of convulsions after admittance to the hospital, and never regained consciousness.

Dr. C. A.Richards, who attended Mr. Cornish, hospital authorities, and local pharmacists contacted several laboratories in an effort to find something to counteract the deadly poison. Finally Professor M. E. Watson of the University of Western Ontario suggested that molar sodium lactate might be of some assistance and a supply was rushed from Victoria Hospital, London by the Tillsonburg Police Department. A quantity of blood was also brought from London and transfusions were given.

Doctors say that there is no known antidote for the deadly methyl chloride poisoning.

Kenneth’s obituary further provided details to his life. It mentioned he was a well-known refrigeration expert and electrician, he was married to Marion Watcher, had a son Allan and a daughter, Mary who were both married and had children of their own. He was also a member of the Otter Lodge and the Canadian Legion. He didn’t die of lung cancer, aneurysm or heart attack. He died a terrible, premature death and left a wife, 2 children and 3 grandchildren behind. He was a husband, a father, a grandfather. My father-in-law was only 2 when he passed and has no recollection of his grandfather and namesake. With these 2 columns clipped from an old newspaper, we got a glimpse of who this man was.

Kenneth Verne Cornish – no longer just a set of dates.

Kenneth Verne Cornish, Kenneth William Cornish — Kenneth Verne with Kenneth William, his grandson

Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds: June

June 13, 2015July 2, 2018 Vicki2 Comments

I’m very intrigued and excited about Crestleaf.com’s 12 Months of Fascinating Family Finds Challenge. During my family research journey, I’ve discovered lots of great stories and uncovered interesting personas that I want to share with other genealogy enthusiasts. The problem is that I don’t always get my stories together in a timely fashion due to a full-time workload, mommy to 2 busy boys and being an active community member. This just might be the right challenge to motivate me to get these tales posted.

Norfolk County “Cowan’s”

For my first month challenge, I dug into my paternal grandmother’s lineage to discover The Cowans were amongst the first settlers to Norfolk County in Ontario. I hadn’t spent much time on my father’s side of the genealogy tree because he had cousins who had done quite a bit of research. Why reinvent the wheel and redo something that had already been done? When I finally joined Ancestry.ca and had my eyes opened to the wealth of information available, I soon realized that my dad’s cousins had only revealed the tip of the ancestral ice berg. In fact, I only had detailed information about my dad’s father’s line and nothing about my dad’s mother. She was Marjory Cowan. I grew up with several Cowan’s around where I am from. Some of them related, some of them not, but not really knowing the Cowan connection.

Through my membership, I was able to go back through my father’s mother, Marjory (Cowan) Noels (1926 – 1993) her father, William Burton Cowan (1900 – 1962), to his father, William Henry Cowan (1873 – 1948) to his father, David Cowan (1843 – 1923) to his father John Cowan (1813 – 1894) and it ended there. I was content with that for a time and jumped over to other branches for a while. I came back to John Cowan and explored deeper. Where was he from besides Norfolk County, Ontario? The census records indicated he was “born in Scotland”. I wanted to know where in Scotland. I spent months searching Cowan records trying to find the right connection but nothing added up. I was able to find a cemetery through the Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid that had a David Cowan buried in it. There were John Cowan’s listed also, but they didn’t meet the criteria I needed for “my John”. So, I loaded the van up one Sunday afternoon with my parents and my sons (who were 5 and 9 – not too enthused to be “cemetery-hopping” – ice cream helped) and sought to find the cemetery of this “David Cowan” that was buried there. I was hopeful of finding clues to other Cowan’s that might make the connection over the sea. I did, in fact, find David’s grave and it was indeed my 3X great-grandfather. Buried beside him was his wife Anna Eliza Garnet. The stone was barely legible but he was buried in the North Middleton Baptist / Acacia Cemetery. Their daughter, Mary Catherine Cowan, was buried with them also. She died at 42 years of age of Typhoid fever according to her death certificate (Ancestry.ca). Although the trip made for an adventurous afternoon, I did not learn anything new about David Cowan or his lineage.

Colquhoun, Cowan — Colquhoun Tartan – Cowan is a sept of

Back to the research I went. I searched the internet again and again. I found reference to a John C. Cowan on “The Long Point Settlers” site. His life dates, however, 1747 – 1826, didn’t match the dates of my John Cowan. The short description, however, on this site did indicate that he had 4 sons, James, John,William and Alexander. This could possibly mean that the John listed here was who I was searching to connect but I couldn’t prove it without further cross referencing. I did finally find a missing piece to this whole puzzle. John, the son of John was not the John I was looking for. There was a piece in between. A 1841 document found on Ancestry.ca indicated a James Cowan from Scotland (John C. Cowan’s son) settled in Charlotteville Township in Norfolk County. This James came from Scotland with a family. His wife, Elizabeth and 3 children, Elizabeth, James and John. Other children followed upon arrival to Canada, but this information was enough for me to see my John’s place in this family line. James Cowan came to Canada in 1817 with his father, John C. Cowan (of the “The Long Point Settlers“),and family from Scotland, England. His son, John, my John, was 4 years old, born in 1813. This was the piece I needed. Further exploration allowed me to cross-reference this information with that of John’s wives, Catherine Pettit and Charlotte Gibbons. My mystery was solved. My John Cowan, according to research, came from Glasgow, Scotland.

Another Scottish branch on my family tree. Cowan’s belonged to the Colquhoun clan. And a new search begins…

What’s in a Family Name?

March 15, 2015July 2, 2018 VickiLeave a comment

(Revised March 16, 2015 – see notes after post)

N-O-E-L-S. I automatically start spelling my last name before anyone starts to spell it because 99.5 % of the time, people will spell it incorrectly. Most people want to spell it like Beyoncé, K-N-O-W-L-E-S. The story passed down to me as to why our spelling was different from the one most commonly used, was that our original name was Noel and my great-grandmother felt it was easier to say “Noels” with an “s” than the original Noel without the “s”. When you are young you don’t question things much so that was the story that I went with.

Upon exploring my family ancestry, I soon found that the chance of that story being true was highly unlikely. My late cousin, Hazel Noels, a genealogy enthusiast like myself, put together a Family Tree compilation titled “Noels Pressey Connections” and noted three different spellings of our family name: “Noel”, “Noels” and “Noles”. According to Hazel, my great grandparents, Beecher and Ella May Noels, each had their own preference for registering their offspring. Beecher’s parents, Stephen and Amanda, were registered as “Noel” upon their marriage in 1871. Therefore, Ella May registered new arrivals as “Noel”. Beecher, on the other hand, always registered his new children as “Noels”. Hence, with 11 births in all, some of the family are registered one way and some another. Later, when various members needed to apply for birth certificates, some were returned with the spelling of “Noles”.

Exploring further into Beecher’s father, Stephen’s records, “Noel” was not the only spelling that he is registered with. On the first census that he shows up in, 1851 at 2 years of age, he is Stephen “Knowls”. In the 1871 census he is Stephen “Knowles”, 1881: “Noles”, 1891, “Noel” and finally “Noels” on his death certificate in 1921. Stephen’s father, James, has much the same history with his last name only he has an added “Noal” which shows up on the 1881 census. This dilemma has made it difficult to go back further into the history of my name. Based on several census records, I know that James Noels originated from England as it is indicated as his place of birth. What I can’t find, is when he married Mary Ann Tomlin, when he arrived in Canada and did he arrive already married with children? Because there are so many different spellings, who did he come over as? James Noels, James Noel, James Noal, James Noles, James Knowls or perhaps he came over as James Knowles? In which case, perhaps my name’s origins are, in fact, that K-N-O-W-L-E-S that I have spent my life correcting people from spelling.

The exploration continues…

March 16, 2015

A Facebook conversation started with a couple members of my “Noels”-bearing family. It went as follows:

Heather Noel: … I have no idea how Dennis and I became Noel and the 3 in the middle Noels when dad (Wilf) didn’t know he was a Noel until he got his birth certificate in the 70’s.

Vicki Noels Cornish: Hi Heather, I have Hazel’s research and I also have William listed as James’ father but I can”t find any documents to verify it. That’s why I’m trying to find out when James arrived and whether he was married or not. Then, hopefully, I can start linking everything. And as of right now, I am not a 100% certain we are truly “Noels” as opposed to “Knowles”. It’s looking like perhaps James wasn’t able to spell and therefore left the spelling up to whoever was in charge of the paperwork at any given point. Six different spellings for one person in federal records over a lifetime makes it difficult to verify which is the true one.

Christine Noels: For what it’s worth, I don’t think there’s any one true spelling. It’s only recently that people care if surnames are consistent. Back in Tudor times for example, even literate people would spell their own names in a variety of ways – and the further back you go the more you can see that names continue to evolve. I don’t think there’s a right way to spell it – although I’d pull a lot less hair out if there was!

Vicki Noels Cornish: Hear! Hear! Chris. It would just help me in figuring out which damn James is ours. I’ve gone back into the 1500’s with several family lines but I can only go back as far as 1816 with Noels. I want to know exactly what part of England we come from. I enjoy the pursuit though. I will get it eventually.

Christine Noels: Me too and no matter which way I spell it I find too many men with the same name and a wife with the same name. I found one or two that could have come from England via the States too.

Cornish Comes to Canada

December 28, 2014July 2, 2018 Vicki5 Comments

Having some time off over the holidays has allowed me to some family history research. I’ve been delving into my husband’s family because there are long and heritage-rich ties to Cornwall, England. With a name like “Cornish”, there was no doubt that there would be lots of history to explore.

The “Cornish” history as far as my husband’s family is concerned, began in Ontario sometime around 1843. It was then that 18-year-old Thomas James Cornish, a native of Poundstock, Cornwall, England, came to Canada. He was born September 8, 1925 in Pounstock, the only son of Saul Cornish and Eleanor Suiter. According to Cornish Genealogy, written by Cora (Cornish) Leaman in 1967, he had learned the tailor’s trade at which he spent seven years apprenticing for as a boy. He had one sister, Mary Ann, who also came to Canada and settled in North Dorchester with her husband, Andrew Venning. Thomas and Mary Ann’s parents are buried in Trewan, Cornwall, England. According to online records, Saul was a resident of Piper’s Pool, a small hamlet in North Cornwall.

In 1847, it was recorded that Thomas married Mary Ann Varnum, in Whitby, Ontario. By 1848, he had moved his bride and their first son, Albert to a farm located on the 4th concession of North Dorchester, one mile west of Crampton, Ontario. Ultimately, Thomas and Mary Ann raised a family of 7 sons and 5 daughters in North Dorchester. Ten of their children remained in the area of the now called, Middlesex County in Ontario but 2 children moved to the United States. Saul, to Iowa and then to South Dakota in 1879 and Ellen to Iowa and later to Kansas City. Many of Saul’s and Ellen’s descendants have remained in Iowa, South Dakota and Kansas City.

Standing: Eunice, Ellen Seated Middle: Mrs. Cornish, Mary Ann, Nancy Seated Front: Janie — Standing: Eunice, Ellen
Seated Middle: Mrs. Cornish, Mary Ann, Nancy
Seated Front: Janie

Back: Wesley, Martin, Tom, Arthur Front: Albert, Thomas James Sr., Saul, Porter — Back: Wesley, Martin, Tom, Arthur
Front: Albert, Thomas James Sr., Saul, Porter

Thomas and Mary Ann remained in North Dorchester. It was here that Thomas died at 81 and Mary Ann at 91. They are buried in the Dorchester Union Cemetery, a cemetery where many of their descendants are still buried to this day.