Mother’s Day began back in 1908, when a daughter wanted to celebrate and recognize her late mother. What a concept!
Today’s message is simple – I would like to celebrate all the mothers that came before me – one of the main reasons why I’m here today.
Jeannette Gobin
Irene Matthew
Mary Irving
Effie Press
Marguerite Ricard
Stella Hartford
Cynthia Lasher
Elizabeth Barnard
Marie Kervinio
Emma Matthew
Elizabeth J. Dixon
Elizabeth Beevor
Marie Carrière
Martha Tuck
Sarah Mann
Eliza Lord/Loyd
Marie Dacquay
Anne Thomas
Hannah Sharp
Elizabeth Howard
Judith Gauthier
Jane Treloar
Mary Rae
Elizabeth Barker
Adeline Jacques
Sarah Thompson
Susan Copple
Mary Ann Elvin
Marie-Ann Le Roux
Drucilla Bradley
Catherine Messick
Sophia Banham
Marie Philippe
Margaret Hill
Beta Van Alen
Elizabeth Bradfield
Marie-Madel Morin
Sarah Eddy
Elizabeth Constable
Anne Riches
Angélique Girard
Charity Williams
Anna Deterick
Jemima Mear
Marie Emery
Jennifer Martin
Alida Van Alen
Susanna Youngman
Ursule Letourneau
Dorothy Burk
Annatje VanDeusen
Esther Cross
Mathurin Kerhalgand
Sara Byrne
Rebeckah Hotchkiss
Sarah Bullen
Anne Le Dilhuit
Martha Bolter
Elizabeth Dixon
Sarah Archer
Marguerite Hemon
Deborah Tripp
Charity Mallory
Lydia Porter
Yvonne Peuron
Anna Wilheim
Mary Rayson
Elizabeth Pfautz
Mary Waymire
All these women are mothers, and span over five generations in my family tree that have brought me to where I am today. Many of these women lived under very rough conditions, lost children and husbands, and left us way too young. However, without these women before me, I would not be here today.
There are many mothers in my life through extended family and great friends. They are a true support to all mothers around them and especially to me. There are countless women in my family and friends that do not have children. They are equally a very strong support in my life and many others. Whether they are related or not, mothers help mothers – it’s the way of women!
Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers in my life today and in the past that have brought me to where I am today. Thank you to all these strong women for continuing to support myself and other women around them.
The textbook definition of ‘migrate’ is the movement of people away from their usual place of residence to a new place of residence or the movement of a person or people from one country, locality, place of residence, etc., to settle in another.
I believe I would be safe to say that pretty much everyone has ancestors that have migrated from one country to another – they emigrated from one country and immigrated to another.
There are several in our family line that I can choose from as I can honestly say everyone in my paternal line has emigrated from Great Britain. It was difficult to choose just one, so I chose one that is the furthest back whose information I was able to obtain.
Thomas Henry Matthew (3x great-grandfather) – emigrated from Great Britain via Liverpool, England on June 3, 1874, arriving in Canada via Quebec, Quebec on June 18, 1874.
Thomas was born March 13, 1838, in Porthleven, Sithney, Cornwall, England to Thomas and Ann Matthew (née Thomas).
Before leaving their home country, Thomas and Emma had three children – Alfred (my 2x great-grandfather), Sydney and Laura.
In 1871, England census places the family in St Mawes, St Just, Truro, Cornwall. So, we’re going to assume that’s where they travelled from to get to Liverpool (approximately 350 miles) and catch a boat to Canada! We’re getting ahead of ourselves here. Let’s back up a bit.
As mentioned, the 1871 England Census places them in St. Mawes which isn’t too far from where they were married in Breage, and where Thomas was born in Porthleven.
In 1874, they made the decision to migrate across the ocean, far from their families, to start a new life in Canada. We can only speculate what their life was like in their home country, but it could not have been an easy decision and would have probably taken a long time to make it. Plus, the cost may have been a huge factor in the amount of time it took to prepare, and then the trip to get to the port where they would ship out. In today’s world, travelling from St. Mawes to Liverpool would take just a little over 6 hours. Factor in three young children (6, 4 & 2), I’m sure you can see how hard it must have been.
Let’s take a moment and take a closer look at the SS Ontario. The ship was built by A. McMillan & Son in Dumbarton, Australia. It was completed in 1874; dimensions were 335.7 x 38.4 ft and weighed (the tonnage) 3,175 gross. The ship was owned and operated by Mississippi and Dominion Steamship Co., and the passage booking was advertised under ‘Dominion Line’. Interesting enough, Thomas and his family may have been on the inaugural Atlantic crossing with passengers of the SS Ontario! The passenger list notes A. French as the master.
The voyage took 15 days with Thomas, Emma and the three children arriving in Quebec, Quebec, Canada, on June 18, 1974.
Passenger List of Ontario arriving in Quebec, Que 1874-06-185
Here’s another interesting fact: Emma was pregnant with their fourth child when they left home – their daughter, Charity Jane (“Jennie”) was born December 30, 1874, in Brighton, Northumberland County, Ontario. What that tells us, the family travelled even more after their sea voyage from Quebec City to Brighton which is approximately 660 miles.
From reviewing the Canada Census records for 1881 and 1891, they stayed in the same area. The 1901 census shows Thomas, Emma, and two of their children (adults) in Victoria, BC. Somewhere between 1891 and 1901, they moved from Ontario to Victoria.
After doing some more research, I was able to find some wonderful information! Tom and Emma did move to Victoria in 1891. I found this information on the Victoria Heritage Foundation website:
1460 Gladstone, Victoria, BC: 1891-1928: Carpenter, joiner and builder Thomas Henry Matthew (1840-1928) and Emma Jane (née Matthew, 1843-1923) were born in Cornwall, England. They married there in 1862 and came to Ontario in the mid-1870s where Tom operated a lumber mill. They moved to Victoria in 1891, bought this property and built the house. Their sons Alfred Henry Poltaire and Sydney Edwin were also carpenters and helped build the house. Alfred became a miller for The Brackman-Ker Milling Co (1004 Catherine St, Vic West). The Matthew daughters all married in this house: Laura Annie worked as a milliner at Spencer’s Arcade until 1897, when she married builder Aaron Parfitt (1421 Grant St, Fernwood). Charity Jane “Jennie” married bricklayer Herbert Knott (1466 Gladstone Av) in 1898. Rosina Georgina “Rose” married music salesman Alfred Huxtable in 1901 (1422 Fernwood Rd, Fernwood). Tom and Emma marked their 60th anniversary in 1922 at their summer home, 296 Beach Dr. Emma was a strong churchwoman, first with Metropolitan Methodist Church and then Belmont Methodist. She was a life member of Sherwood Auxiliary, Women’s Missionary Society. Tom taught the Adult Bible Class for decades.6
As far as I can tell, the house is still standing today – might be a great road trip! Tom and Emma lived in their home until their passings, Emma in 1923 and Tom in 1928.
This is just one story of an ancestor who came from their home in St. Mawes in England to a new home in Victoria, BC, with a couple of stops along the way.
I can’t imagine what it would have been like to move from one country to another in 1874 with communication being so difficult having just written letters back and forth, and taking just as long, if not longer, to cross the ocean by ship. In today’s world, moving would be a little easier to manage as communication with family and friends is much more accessible.
Thank you to Thomas Henry Matthew for having the courage to move his family to a foreign country and make their new home.
Charity, Alfred (2x great-grandfather), Emma, Rosena, Lietney, Thomas (2x great-grandfather) & Laura (source unknown)
Source: General Register Office of the United Kingdom↩︎
Source: “England, Devon and Cornwall Marriages, 1660-1912,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGY9-HJSD : 24 April 2019), Thomas Henry Matthew, Bachelor, 22 May 1862; citing Marriage, St Breage, Cornwall, England, the Devon Record Office, Exeter. ↩︎
This past week was full of surprises – the first being, I need to remind myself to slow down and not rush through the courses. Aced all the assignments, rushed to get the exam completed and did not do as well as I thought I would – surprise!! Don’t rush and take your time to absorb the information. Time to move on and do better with the rest of the courses.
The best surprise of all was seeing my dad, Grant Briggs, for his 85th birthday. He was so happy to see his grandsons (my two boys) and it proved to be the perfect time to take some family photos as my mom had been asking for some updated ones.
I’m proud of my sons for taking the time to travel and see their grandfather for his birthday – they made him very happy (and their grandma, too!!).
Plans for another visit coming soon but, in the meantime, happy 85th birthday to my Dad, and many more – we already have plans to be there for the next one!
As I look back on the We are Family Briggs blog stories over the past year, I have to wonder how my relations celebrated the holiday season those many years ago.
Every family has traditions with some being carried forward from generation to generation. One tradition I remember from my childhood is always having to eat a full breakfast before we opened presents so our tummies wouldn’t get sick from all the junk food we would be having throughout the day. We were allowed to open our stockings before breakfast, but the rest had to wait. And trust me, it was a full breakfast and cleanup afterwards! I did that with my two sons while they grew up and they still remember it to this day.
Having young children around during Christmas seems to make it that more magical. The magic tends to fade as we get older. The one thing I try to remember is whether you’re with family or surrounded by wonderful friends, it is being together that is the most important part of the season.
I will be spending Christmas with my two sons. The one tradition that we look forward to is on Christmas Eve. We have a lot of snacks, watch a movie and play a game. This year, we’ve invited some special friends to join us.
For Christmas day dinner, we are going away from the traditional turkey and having salmon (which is always a treat for us), and visiting family on Boxing Day for the turkey dinner which we are very much looking forward to. **UPDATE – Boxing Day dinner is now New Year’s Day dinner – can’t wait!
So, from my family to yours, please have a safe and wonderful holiday season, carry on your family traditions and always remember the magic of the season.
We Are Family Briggs 
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