Q25-5893-FRENCH: I will be grateful for any assistance in tracing my 3rd great-grandfather's ancestry.  I have conducted countless searches on Ancestry, publicly available Canadian websites, and Find a Grave etc without any success.  Here is the information I have collected on Edward Charles (?) French and his family (first image).  

It appears his wife Mary, immigrated with the children to Massachusetts following Edward’s death in 1864 (second image).

 

I have high confidence John Henry French’s lineage to my family.  

 

Any information on Edward's parents, grandparents etc is greatly appreciated.  

 

 

 

Thank you,

(rec'd 16 May 2025)

Q25-5892-MARTIN: I have come to a brick wall with an Elizabeth Martin, who in the 1871 census for New Brunswick is recorded as aged 35, born in New Brunswick, religion Church of Scotland and origin English. She is living in Saint John, New Brunswick at the same residence as Alexander Martin, widowed, aged 68, religion Church of Scotland and origin Scotch.

 

Alexander Martin died in August 1874 in the Saint John area and left a will and codicil which was contested. The will and court proceedings does not mention Elizabeth, but does mention many of Alexander's nephews and nieces in Scotland and those who came to New Brunswick. Alexander ran a confectioner business from Prince William Street and was a resident of Saint John for about 40 years. He was born in the village of Dunning, Perthshire, Scotland and paid for a fountain to be built there.

 

What could have happened to Elizabeth between 1871 and 1874?

 

Kind regards,

(rec’d 14 May 2025)

Q25-5891-WHITE: My great grandfather, Albert White, was born in New Brunswick and moved to America as a young man. He married and had a family there. His son, Ernest Albert White, (my grandfather) was born in America but moved to Canada in the 1940s - 1950s. He worked and lived there for over ten years before returning to the U.S. I am trying to find records that prove he lived and worked in Canada but not having any luck. Would you suggest some organizations I might contact to find this information?

 

Thank you for your help,

(rec’d 2 May 2025)

I am looking for information about events related to the birth and including first ~20 years of my great-grandfather, William H. Blake, who was in Hampton, Kings, NB at some point in time between 1867 and 1890.  

 

I have been using FamilySearch.org for research.  Here is a picture to describe the relationships.

1. Where was William H. Blake born: UK, NB, NS, Maine, elsewhere?  Is there a birth record somewhere in Canada?  Or an immigration record?
2. If the 1910 US census is correct that he was born in Maine, do the 1892 immigration record and the 1902 birth certificate make any sense?  Or is the "born in Maine” census entry likely incorrect?
3. What does the middle initial “H” stand for?  My grandfather’s given name is named Harold, so maybe that.  But I came across many William Henry.

Reply to: Q25-5885-HOWE: I wanted to pass along thanks to those who responded to my inquiry regarding John Howe.  I also am looking for help with identifying the adult male on the far-right side of the picture.  The only detail I have regarding him is that his first name is Dale.  To put the Howe family picture in context I have the following details from left to right:

 

Lena Oakes 1881-1958

John Thomas Howe 1882-1959

U/K female

George Cyril Howe (rear) 1905-1959

Ruth Howe (Sell) 1910-1962

Jean Howe 1921-1943

U/K male first name Dale

Fred Thomas Howe 1931-1988 (my father)

Mary Howe (front) 1930-2020

 

This should date the picture in the neighbourhood of 1940. I do not know if Dale in the picture is a family member or friend. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

 

 

(rec’d 15 Apr 2025)

Q25-5889-McHUGH: I would greatly appreciate any information regarding my grandmother and her relatives.

 

Annie Madeline McHugh (aka Anne, Ann)

B. 16 June 1905 in St. John, N.B.

Graduated from Saint Peter Girls School in July 1920

Lived at 24 Sheriff St. St. John before emigrating to Massachusetts in 1922

 

James McHugh – B. 1864 in St. John

Mary Elizabeth (Wilson) McHugh (aka “Lizzie”) – B. 1874 in St. John
Myrtle (McHugh) Brown – B. 1909 in St. John

Robert Wilson - B. 1825 in Ireland

Bridget (McIntyre) Wilson – B. 1826 in Ireland

William Edward McHugh – B. 1833 in Ireland

Martha Ann (King) McHugh – B. 1842 in St. Martins

Patrick McHugh – B. 1804 in Ireland

Susanna (McKnight) McHugh – B. 1805 in Ireland

 

(rec’d 19 Feb 2025)

Q25-5888 Mac/McDERMAID: As a genealogist, we all have encountered research where we just can’t go further up a line or have a disconnect missing link in a line. A brick wall. A road block. An obstacle. Unfortunately, my brick wall happens to be in my Mac/McDermaid line which is my maiden name. Not the line that I wanted to have a barricade. However, that is where I stand. I will explain.

 

My grandfather, James Rexford McDermaid was born in 1908 in Chatham, N.B. (now known as Miramichi). His sister Irma Lenore was born in 1905, also in Chatham, N.B. In each of their late registration of birth and baptism, William MacDermaid and Mary Elizabeth Nina Dick are listed as their parents. So far, so good.

 

William MacDermaid who was married to Mary Elizabeth Nina Dick, died in 1902 in Chatham, N.B.       

 

Do you see where I have a slight problem?

 

So, my next task was to prove or disprove William’s death date. In 1911 Census, Nina is showing as a widow, however that census was taken after James Rexford and Irma were born, so that didn’t prove what I needed. The cemetery headstone located in Riverside Cemetery, Chatham, N.B., shows 1902, however data on headstones are not always correct. William’s obituary is published in 1902. The documents from W.S. Loggie and Co., Chatham, N.B., where William was working as a bookkeeper, show correspondence ending from/to William in 1902, with a new bookkeeper taking over the correspondence. Some family land transfer documents, dated long after 1908, list all of William’s children, except James Rexford and Irma Lenore. I am satisfied that although William is listed as their father, he is not.

 

Could Nina be the mother and had two children after William died? Could one of William’s children be the parent and Nina brought them up as her own children? Could they have been children of another MacDermaid relative and Nina brought them up as her own children? Could they have been adopted by Nina? I don’t know the answer to this brick wall…. yet.

 

I have been looking for the answers since 1995. I hope someday to find the missing link. If anyone has any input into this family name or if you have any ideas as to where I could search next or if you happen to find the missing link, please contact me!!!

 

Wishing all of you good luck in moving around or through your genealogy brick walls.

 

(received 15 Feb 2025)

Q25-5887-CHATHAM POST OFFICE: I hope someone is able to help me determine the location of the Chatham Post Office in 1854.

 

According to By Favourable Winds: A History of Chatham, New Brunswick by James A Frasier, publ. 1975: my 3rd GGF, Robert McNamara (1801-1870) moved his shoe store next to the post office in 1854, and was still in business in 1865.  Robert & Ann and their family lived at the corner of Queen and Wellington, per information at the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick.

    

Thank you for your assistance with this question.  

(rec’d 11 Feb 2025)

Q25-5886-LUNN: Who was Mrs. LUNN, nee MERCER, in the Cassidy Lake Cemetery, Kings County, NB?

In the plot plan for the cemetery on the Camp Cassidy site (formerly the Cassidy homestead), there is a person identified only as “Mrs. LUNN.” There is no headstone. She lies between Barbara MERCER and Eunice DeForest. A note on the Cassidy genealogy website states Mrs. LUNN was the daughter of Isaac MERCER (plot 28) and Barbara (ROBINSON) MERCER (plot 29). “Joseph ROBINSON (plot 43) was Emona* MERCER’s grandfather on her mother’s side.” There are no church records for this cemetery.

I have looked at the following records:

(rec’d 5 Feb 2025)

Q25-5885-HOWE: I am looking for information on John Howe born 1811 most likely in Maine US and who died in the Sunbury area of New Brunswick during the 1870s.  I found several references to his family in the Boone family history including a reference that his daughter Frances Howe passed away on the 30th of October 1889 and was buried in "John Howe cemetery, Lauvina".  I cannot find any further information on the location of this cemetery.  I am hoping to locate John Howe's burial location and was thinking this would be the logical place to look.  If you can be of any assistance that would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks, and looking forward to hearing from you.

Dale Howe
(rec’d 23 Nov 2024)