A Deck of Ancestors

52 Weeks – Week Nine

Women

A new month brings a new theme for the 52 Ancestors Challenge, “Women”. The first week of the month shares that theme. It took a fraction of a second for me to think of who I wanted to write about this week.

I often see questions posed in genealogy forums about the preservation of records. Every time I see one, it reminds me of my Aunt Diana. The world knew her as Helen Burgess, a scientist and a leading expert on paper preservation, but with family she went by her middle name because she shared her first name with my grandmother. While Aunt Diana passed away more over 20 years ago – not yet even 50 years old – I can still find her work is cited in modern papers.

Helen Diana Burgess, B.Sc., M.Sc., M.A.C.
(1951 – 1999)

Me with my Aunt Diana. My grandparents’ house is in the background. I have no idea why we were in the neighbour’s yard.

I idolized my Aunt Diana when I was a kid. At the time, she was an undergraduate student at the University of Lethbridge. She was the only person I knew in university at the time. However, to me, her academic pursuits and later career were only part of her identity. I modeled a lot of my behaviour after her, from sharing her interests to developing a love of some of her favourite foods.

Aunt Diana excelled at nurturing children’s intellect without any us even realizing it. Many of my favourite gifts as a kid came from her, including many books. I still have a lot of them. While Aunt Diana read all kinds of books, her favourite genre was mystery novels. She had walls of bookshelves filled with them, and a few of the books she gave me were in that vein. These included the Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series, about three boy detectives, which were everything boring old Hardy Boys books were not. I’ve passed those on to my sons. She also gave me a copy of L.R. Wright’s award-winning novel, The Suspect. That book kind of blew my mind, because it was a murder mystery set in Sechelt, Canada not far from where I lived, and not Sometown USA.

Aunt Diana also instilled in me her love of art. She loved to draw and paint. When I turned ten, she gave me a set of oil paints, complete with canvases, brushes, turpentine, and linseed oil. I often received postcards from her from around the world, as her work took her to some of the greatest museums of the world. I still have every one of those postcards. I was lucky enough to visit a few museums with her. It was something to have her as my own personal tour guide and art expert.

Diana graduating from the University of Lethbridge, 1973

Aunt Diana obtained a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in chemistry in 1973. Diana followed this with a Masters of Science in bio-organic chemistry from U.B.C. in 1977 and a Master of Conservation from Queen’s in 1979. Her thesis at Queen’s was about the “degradation of cellulose during conservation bleaching treatments”. To mark its 40th anniversary, the Queen’s Art Conservation Program conducted an interview series regarding leaders in conservation with a link to the school. One of the sets of interviews was about my aunt, conducted with her friends and colleagues.

Some of my Aunt Diana’s books, including her two masters theses, which now sit on my mother’s bookshelf. After getting an “A” in Grade 12 chemistry, I could almost understand the title of her U.B.C. thesis.

In 1978, Aunt Diana started her career with the Canadian Conservation Institute in Ottawa. By the time she took early retirement in 1998 due to her health, Aunt Diana was a Senior Conservation Scientist. She specialized in the conservation of paper artifacts, but she also worked with other materials. Diana was an expert in conservation bleaching, the use of enzymes, deacidification, and cellulose degradation analysis.

It was a big deal to me and my family when Aunt Diana was one of the scientists featured on an episode of The Nature of Things. The episode, “Turning to Dust“, was about the deteriorating paper in old books and their preservation.

On a more practical level, Aunt Diana would often give my mother tips about what household products – particularly bleach-based products – were worth it and which were rubbish. She also taught me decades ago about the perils of adhesive photo albums and the wonders of acid-free and archival paper products.

Of course, because Aunt Diana was a scientist who was at the top of her field, it always seemed normal to me that women could be scientists. Every time I see a query about preservation of genealogical records, it makes me wish I could ask her and reminds me how much I miss her.

With Aunt Diana back when I only had two siblings. She was my brother’s godmother. Her we are after the baptism.

52 Weeks – Week Eight

Courting

Yeah! That’s why you’re the “judge” and I’m the “law-talking guy”.
Noted lawyer Lionel Hutz

View from the current Vancouver Law Courts, looking towards the former law courts, which is currently the home of the Vancouver Art Gallery.

This week’s 52 Ancestors Challenge is “Courting”. If I was going to write about dating and romance, it would have been last week during what retailers are now calling “Valentine’s Week”. Besides, how my parents met is a story for another time. Instead, I am taking “courting” to be a loose descriptor of what lawyers and judges do. I acknowledge that turning a noun into a verb can be egregious, but here we are.

It turns out that there are many lawyers and judges in my family history, as well as my wife’s. My brother-in-law is a lawyer. As well, many of my friends are lawyers and judges. Unlike most people who have lawyer friends, it’s because they’re lawyers themselves. However, most of my lawyer friends are people I’ve known since high school who all happened to go to law school later in life, including myself.

It wasn’t always this way. When I was a kid, the only lawyer in the family I knew of was my Uncle Leo Burgess. He graduated from the University of Alberta with a law degree (LL.B) in June 1972. I was surprised to learn that one of the partners of my old firm, for whom I did a lot of work, was in the same graduating class. We ensured that they were seated together for the wedding reception when I got married.

Leo articled with an Edmonton firm called Field & Field, now known as Field Law. For readers in places where articling is not part of the process of becoming a lawyer, its essentially a form of apprenticeship that takes about a year. Law school teaches the law, articling is an introduction to the actual practice of law. The articling process usually includes completion of the bar exam.

I attended Leo’s call ceremony in Edmonton. While I was only in kindergarten or grade one at the time, I remember it vividly. It was the first time I had ever been in a courtroom. I don’t even know if I had seen one on TV at the time. Everything about it was striking. It was very much a very traditional courtroom, with lots of wooden everything. The court attire, consisting of gowns and tabs, was also unforgettable.

Leo remained at Field & Field for only a short time. From 1976 to 2003, Leo practiced at the Edmonton law firm of Brownlee Fryett, now known as Brownlee LLP. His expertise was municipal law. Leo became a partner in 1977. In addition to his legal practice, Leo lectured at the University of Alberta law school. In 1994, Leo earned an appointment of “Queen’s Counsel”, which entitled him to use the initials “Q.C.” after his name. In 1990, Leo was admitted to the bar of the Northwest Territories.

The Hon. Leo Burgess, Prov. Ct. of Alberta

Nineteen years ago this month, shortly after Valentine’s Day, Leo was appointed to the Provincial Court of Alberta. His appointment came as a surprise to my mother, since she always thought Leo hated going to court. He did, but having spent some time as a litigator myself by that time, I told her it came as no surprise to me. Leo served on the bench until his death in 2014.

As far as I know, all the lawyers I am related to are on my mother’s side of my family tree. One was my mother’s uncle, Seth Henry Nelson, Q.C. Seth graduated from the University of Alberta in 1912. This was likely an undergraduate degree, as the University of Alberta did not establish a law school until that year. As well, becoming a lawyer at the time often did not require a law degree.

Seth practiced law in Cardston, Alberta for almost 60 years. After completing his time as a law clerk at a Cardston firm, Seth was called to the bar in April 1918. Seth was appointed a Queen’s Council (hence the “Q.C.”) in 1958. In addition to his legal practice, Seth was active in civic affairs. He was a school board trustee for 15 years, and was Secretary Treasurer of the local hospital board.

As well, Seth stood for election as an independent in the 1940 provincial general election in the riding of Cardston. He ran against the incumbent, Social Credit member Nathan Tanner, a former Speaker of the legislature who was appointed to Cabinet in 1937. Tanner defeated Seth in a two-way race, 2,160 votes to 1,808 (54.4% of the vote).

Seth remained active in his church, community, and legal work until he died in 1975, at age 83.

My 3^rd Great Grandfather, Preston Thomas, also had a legal career amongst the many hats he wore. He was born in Rockingham, North Carolina, in 1814. He spent time in Tennessee in the late 1830s and early 1840s. In 1844, he joined the Latter Day Saints (Mormons) and moved west. Over a period of many years, Preston was part of a number of missions for the church.

Preston was named a Probate Judge in Utah Territory in 1852, being appointed to the court upon its creation. Preston’s appointment was approved by an Act of the territorial legislature on February 7, 1852 (Laws of the Territory of Utah, Chapter XLV). He was assigned to the court in Utah County.

At the time, the Probate Court in Utah had a much broader jurisdiction than simply the estates of the deceased and those under guardianship (e.g. children, the mentally disabled), which was granted by federal US law. In addition to the usual jurisdiction of a probate court, the Utah territorial legislature granted the Probate Court jurisdiction over civil, criminal, chancery, and divorce matters. As well, the Probate Court heard appeals from the county Justice of the Peace courts. The Probate Court acted as a registry for incorporations and disincorporations and, in 1869, it was granted authority to determine land title claims.

In 1874, the federal government revoked the Probate Court’s jurisdiction over all matters except for divorce and probate matters. In 1877, the federal government revoked the Probate Court’s authority in divorce matters. Probate Judges were appointed by the legislature until 1874, when the judges were elected to a two-year term. In 1888, federal law changed the process, making the office subject to the appointment of the President of the United States. When Utah became a state in 1896, the Probate Court was abolished.

As far as I have been able to determine, Preston had no formal legal training. He did serve on a number of church and community committees, as well as a term as a member of the House of Representatives of the Territorial Legislature from 1857 to 1859, so he had some knowledge of rules and procedure.

Tullidge’s Quarterly Magazine, Vol. III No. IV, states that Isaac Higbee succeeded Preston as Probate Judge on December 27, 1852. However, Preston appointed to the Probate Court again, no later than 1864. He was still a judge of the Probate Court in 1866, as he was listed as such in The Law Register for the United States for the Year 1866 by John Livingston of the New York Bar.

Fun fact: at the convocation ceremony when I received my B.A. from U.B.C., Raymond Burr received an honourary degree. Of course, he was famous for the role of TV lawyer Perry Mason – and was quite the opposite of Lionel Hutz.

Look at me, becoming an official Law Talking Guy!

This brings the February theme of “Branching Out” to an end. The theme for March is “Women”, which is appropriate given that it’s Women’s History Month in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. In Canada, it’s not until October, so that it coincides with Persons Day. However, Canada does mark International Women’s Day on March 8. Seeing the weekly themes for March, I’m quite looking forward to them!

Lorine McGinnis Schulze of Olive Tree Genealogy Passed Away

Today I was very sad to learn that Lorine McGinnis Schulze of Olive Tree Genealogy passed away yesterday.

When I was 8 or 9, I got an amazing genealogy book for kids through Scholastic book orders, called Digging for My Roots. It is full of charts, tables, and other worksheets for you to fill in as you learn about your family history. It’s been out of print for decades, but I still have my copy.

My copy of *Digging for My Roots*, which I’ve had since I was a kid.

Our eldest son shares my interest in genealogy. I started looking for books about genealogy for kids to get for him. However, none of the currently published books I could find were anywhere near as good as Digging for My Roots.

I mentioned this book a few years ago in response to a Tweet by Lorine. I added, in passing, that I’d love to find something similar for my son.

A few months later, I received a direct message from Lorine. It turns out that after seeing my Tweet, on her own volition she searched out a copy of the book, and found one. She bought it and wanted to send it to me to give to my son.

The amazing thing was that the book was pristine. None of the worksheets had been filled in. Forty-plus years out of print, and not a single item filled in. I was gobsmacked.

Lorine absolutely refused to let me pay for the. She wouldn’t even let me pay for the shipping.

I felt gutted upon learning about Lorine’s death. Not only is it a huge loss for genealogy in Canada and in general, it is a huge loss of a wonderful and kind human being. My condolences to her family.

52 Weeks – Week Seven

Landed

I’m starting to realize that when I choose a topic for the theme of the week for the 52 Ancestors Challenge, I should look ahead to see what other topics are coming up. That way I can avoid getting to a topic like this week’s, “Landed”, and seeing that I’ve written on the topic before. Then again, a little repetition here and there won’t hurt.

If I had approached this topic a few hours ago, I would probably be sitting here casting about in my mind as to what “landed” means to me. Fortunately, our eldest son inadvertently gave me a focus to write about. During dinner, out of the blue, he asked “besides Opa, did any of our ancestors come to Canada on steamships?”

The *Sibajak*, which brought my father and his family to Canada.

Opa is my father, the Dutch side of my family. I’ve already written about his coming to Canada on the Sibajak. He and his family came in early May 1954, travelling from Rotterdam to Halifax. They landed at Pier 21, which could be described as the Canadian equivalent of Ellis Island. My father’s aunt and uncle came over four months earlier, in January 1954 on the Groote Beer, while another aunt and uncle followed in late May 1954, on board the Castel Felice.

While it was a Holland America ship during his crossing, built and originally operated by Rotterdam Lloyd, along with other ships that they mainly used to go to the East Indies. Built in 1927, the Sibajak served as a troop ship during World War II. After the war, the Sibajak was one of a number of ships operated by Holland America that were used almost entirely for Dutch emigrants, along with the Grote Beer, Waterman, and Zuiderkruis. It was sold and scrapped in Hong Kong in 1959. When I was in Hong Kong in 1996, while travelling around the harbour and between its islands, I wondered how close I might have come to what scraps of it might remain.

This is a fascinating short documentary about a voyage the Sibajak made to Australia carrying Dutch emigrants. The video is in Dutch, but the images convey a lot of meaning.

In the late 1990s, my parents went on an Alaskan cruise on a Holland America ship. During the trip, my father, who loves to talk to people, fell into a conversation with one of the older hands on deck. My father mentioned having come to Canada on the Sibajak. After a few questions from the crew member, my dad learned that the man had been on the Sibajak during my father’s trip, in his first year or two of service.

On my mother’s side, the most recent ancestor to arrive by steamship was my great grandmother, Emelia Anton. She came to Canada at the age of nine, with several of her siblings and her parents, Jacob Anton and Margaretha “Margaret” Heck. They were Germans from Russia. The family sailed out of Hamburg on June 18, 1912 aboard the S.S. Pennsylvania. They arrived at the Port of New York (Ellis Island) on July 1, 1912. Their declared destination was Maple Creek, Saskatchewan, to join Emelia’s older brother, Rochus. The passenger manifest stated that Jacob paid for the entire family’s transport, other than that of one of his daughters-in-law, whose passage had been paid by her father.

The Anton family, circa 1910. Likely taken in Selo Suchoi, Veronesch, Russia.

Emelia had not had much schooling before coming to North America, but was very religious. She said that she was frightened and nervous during the journey, as she did not know anything about where she was going and did not fully understand what was going on. However, on reaching New York, she said her fears subsided when she saw “the Madonna”. When she saw that, she knew she would be safe and all would be well. Of course, the “Madonna” was the Statue of Liberty. As she had never heard of it before, she thought it was a statue of the Virgin Mary.

Passenger list for the *S.S. Pennsylvania* showing the Antons.

Michael Lerner (1862-1947) and Barbara Schmidt (1865-1936)

Emelia’s husband, Heronimus “Jerome” Lerner, was born to parents who were also Germans from Russia, Michael Lerner and Barbara Schmidt. Michael and Barbara came to the United States in May 1893 aboard the S.S. Lahn, with the five children they had at the time. They landed at Ellis Island and made their way to Clay County, Texas. Jerome was the first child born to Michael and Barbara in the United States. They had seven other children in Texas after Jerome was born. Jerome moved to Saskatchwan in 1917, preceded by an older brother. Jerome’s parents followed a year later. Other siblings came north at other times.

Passenger list for the *Lahn* showing the Lerners

The ancestors furthest back in time that I can find who came to North America on a steamship were my great x3 grandparents, Robert Nelson and Elizabeth Joseph. They were both born in Muff, Donegal, Ireland in 1818 and married there in 1842.

Joseph Nelson (1818-1902) and Elizabeth Joseph (1818-1902)

Sometime in the early 1840s they had moved to Linwood, Renfrew, Scotland. They were there at least by January 1844, when their first son, Samuel, was born. By 1850, Robert was working at Brown’s Sugar House, on Roxburgh Street in Greenock, Scotland as a sugar baker. Sugar bakers usually refined muscovado sugar, an unrefined brown sugar imported from Barbados.

On September 3, 1850 Robert and Elizabeth, along with their three children, departed Liverpool on board the ship “North Atlantic” bound for New Orleans. For a long time I had been confused by references I had seen to them coming over on “the north Atlantic”, thinking it meant the route they travelled. It wasn’t until I came across the passenger list that I realized that “North Atlantic” was the name of the ship. Having a name like that makes it difficult refine a search to distinguish the ship from where it sailed. However, while I have not found very good sources, it appears that the North Atlantic was a steam powered ship.

Passenger list for the *North Atlantic* showing the Nelson family

The records show that there was at least one other family headed by a sugar baker from Brown’s on the same voyage. Robert and Elizabeth were part of a company of Latter Day Saints (Mormon) converts travelling from the United Kingdom to Utah. The family spent a short period of time in Missouri, where in 1852 Elizabeth had her first child born in America. By late 1854 they were in Farmington, Utah, where my great great grandfather John Alexander Nelson was born.

Looking at my pedigree for this post, I realized I might have one other ancestor who might have travelled from the United Kingdom to the United States by means of a steam powered ship. That would be my great x3 grandmother, Maria Hadlond, who was born in Cheltenham, Gloucester, England in 1838 and who emigrated sometime in the 1850s. I have not really researched this branch of my family beyond collecting names and basic vital stats. For whatever reason, it has never caught my interest.

I also have a great x3 grandmother, Susan Turple, whose family had been in Nova Scotia since the 18^th century, who would have travelled by means of a ship with sails. In 1849, Susan joined the Mormon church in 1849. In 1852, she went from Halifax to Boston to join a westward migration of Mormons. It is most likely that the initial part of Susan’s travels was by means of steam powered ship.

Before these people, any ancestors I have who crossed the Atlantic would have done aboard ships with sails.

Speaking of looking ahead, I see that next week’s theme is “Courting”. Since I am writing this on February 14, I wonder if that should have been this week’s theme!

Women

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Courting

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Landed

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