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 week’s post suggestion is ‘Overlooked’. I had a very tough time trying to find a relative in our family tree that I had overlooked, taken my time researching or just haven’t found.
Something came up on my Facebook newsfeed that caught my eye. It was posted by my cousin, Lynn. Lynn is my 1st cousin 1x removed on my father’s side through his mother. Lynn and I met through my ancestry research. We got together a couple of years ago and just haven’t been able to reconnect since then (not for lack of Lynn’s trying!). She was in my area earlier this month, but again, we were not able to get together. She did reach out to me last May hoping I could meet her father and possibly do an interview for the blog. And, once again, life got in the way.
For this blog post, overlooked to me means not making those connections when you’re given the chance. Unfortunately, Lynn’s father, Richard Dennis Matthew, passed away earlier this month. I regret not taking the time to meet with him. However, I do know that Lynn will keep his memory going with her family ancestry work.
I have been given permission from Lynn to post her father’s obituary:
Richard Dennis Matthew
Born: 26 May 1935 in New Westminster, BC
Died: 05 Jan. 2025 in Surrey, BC
He is survived from his first marriage with Ruth Bedard by daughters Valerie Lynn Carr (John Braak), Deidre J. Matthew and son Darryl W. Matthew. 5 grandsons Adam, Darcee, Travis, Rhyse, Gage.
Margueritte O’Niell, his second wife passed in 1985.
Adella Davis, his third wife passed in 2018. He is survived by stepdaughters Anita Davis and Brenda Holt (John Holt) and grandchildren Laurissa, James, and Evan.
His brother John Matthew and sister Valerie Parks have both passed on. Survived by his brother and sister Jeff and Nola Bedard.
Richard graduated from Duke of Connaught high school in New Westminster in 1954.
He joined the RCAF in 1955 and was stationed in Germany during the cold war, working as a radar technician. It was there he was in a serious car accident that gave in a titanium hip and a painful limp for the rest of his life.
He was stationed in Cold Lake, Trenton and Summerside before retiring as a master corporal.
Richard had a passion for stamp collecting and was a 58 year member of the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada. He and his friend Clair could spend hours combing through his collection. He was also an avid watcher of movies and TV series and kept a written record of thousands of shows he watched. We were regularly over for Pizza and Picard on the Sci Fi Channel.
He gave his energy to several charities, most notably the Implant Awareness Society where he and Adella spent countless hour supporting the cause.
Richard passed quietly after a brief residency at the Fleetwood Place care home in Surrey BC.
These are Lynn’s words from her post: “I would also like to add at 89 yrs old, a pacemaker and a titanium hip he did really well.”
Lynn & family, I’m so sorry I didn’t get the chance to meet Richard – my sincerest condolences on losing your father, brother and grandfather. Please remember to keep the stories alive.
For everyone else, remember to take the time to make those connections, gather the stories and make some memories – you never know what could happen.
As I had mentioned in my blog post of December 30th, I’m following the program of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks wherein they provide weekly prompts to give ideas for genealogy writing. This week’s prompt is ‘Nickname’. This was a tough one for me as we do have several nicknames in our family tree but some are difficult to determine why they have those nicknames.
The first one that comes to mind is my great-grandfather, Thomas Albert Briggs. Newspaper articles I have found, use the nicknames ‘Dick’ and ‘Dixie’. Having asked a couple of family members if they knew why, they were just as stymied as myself.
All articles are from Newspapers.com: image numbers 63307641, 775512106, 775779796 (missing one)
Other family members I have found to have nicknames are the following:
Henry Clarendon Briggs: Harry
Beatrice Aileen Matthew: Lena
Stella Hartford: Tilla
Hazel Evelyn Veronica Tillman (wife of Alfred Penner (Pen) Briggs): Minna
Eliza Gregory (wife of John Thomas Herbert Matthew): Lila
Helen Frances Jackson (wife of William Irving Briggs): Nell
Margaret Henry (wife of Albert James Briggs): Mattie
There are several that have a shortened version of their Christian names:
Ernest → Ernie Stanley → Stan Ronald → Ron
We also have some that use their middle names instead of their given first names:
My Aunt Ev whose given first name is Irene after her mother
My Uncle Rich whose given first name is Stanley after his father
And finally, there is me! My given Christian name is Veronica and I go by Vicky – to this day, I’m still not sure how I received that nickname.
Nicknames are a part of every family – some you know why and some you just have to scratch your head.
If you know of others in our family, please let us know – bonus if you know why!
September is a very quiet month for birthdays in our family – there’s not one birthday! Well, I guess that means I must find someone in our family tree that would cover that for us. Let’s see who we can come up with……..
Beatrice Aileen Matthew, also known as, Aunt Lena! Great-aunt Lena is the sister of my grandmother, Irene. There are a couple of reasons I wanted to bring Aunt Lena’s memory back into our lives.
Beatrice Aileen Matthew was born on September 19, 1897, and passed away on September 19, 1983 – on her birthday.
Aunt Lena was the only sibling of my grandmother’s that I remember knowing. This is because at one time, she had lived with Grandma, and we spent many family dinners visiting with her.
Beatrice Eileen Matthew was born to Alfred Henry Poltair Matthew and Stella (“Tilla”) Evalina Hartford on September 19, 1897, in Cloverdale, British Columbia, as indicated on the BC Archives Birth Index below. She is the 5th of 10 children (Grandma was the last child). In all other documents I have found, her middle name is indicated as “Aileen”, as well as her signature found on two documents. I do not have a copy of the actual Registration of Birth, not sure if a copy can be ordered – something to look at in the future. But for now, I will continue with “Eileen” until proven otherwise.
In the 1901 Canada Census, it shows the family living in Langley Village (unincorporated) – the electoral maps for 1901 are not available. We can only assume it is the Cloverdale area.
Interesting enough, the family is listed in the 1905 Kansas Census as living in Quindaro, Wyandotte, Kansas. Her father’s occupation is listed as “Carpenter”. Other residences around their home, list occupations like that of Alfred. Talking about the history of the area could take up a couple of posts so I’ll let you do the research – I suggest you do as it has some very interesting history!
I’m not sure how long they stayed in Kansas. The 1911 Canada Census shows the now growing family of nine back in British Columbia specifically in the Maple Ridge/Port Haney district.
At the age of 24, Beatrice married Gordon Miller Cowell at St. Paul’s Church, Vancouver. Here’s a copy of the Certificate of Registration of Marriage. I really like her occupation – chocolate dipper! At this time, the residence is shown as 715 – 5th Avenue, New Westminster.
A lot of speculation can happen at this point. There is no indication Beatrice and Gordon ever had children. Also, I’ve been unable to locate either of them in the 1921 Canada Census. However, I did find a Border Crossing record for Gordon dated April 1934 which shows their residence to be in East Vancouver.
Unfortunately, Gordon was unwell having had an operation in 1929 to remove a brain tumour, admitted to the Provincial Mental Hospital (Essondale) in 1935, and passed in 1949 from bronchopneumonia due to cerebral defect due to operative removal of brain tumor due to psychosis with somatic disease. To say the least, he was an unwell man. I’m sure it’s safe to say life may have been difficult for Aunt Lena.
As I had mentioned earlier, Aunt Lena lived with Grandma for a little while – not sure on the time frame. However, there came a time when Grandma was unable to care for her sister and had to put her in a home.
This picture was taken by my mother shortly before Aunt Lena’s death in 1983, on her birthday from a cardiac arrest.
As indicated on the Registration of Death, Beatrice was cremated and she is at Victory Memorial Park, Surrey.
I remember little of Aunt Lena other than at the family dinners. But I do remember she had a great smile as evident by her picture.
Happy Birthday, Aunt Lena, and I’m happy we get to know you a little more 39 years after your passing.
It’s been a little while since I’ve posted but I’m hoping to get back to trying to post at least twice a month.
This month, instead of the normal “Who Shares Your Birthday” post (and, yes, I know I missed last month!), I thought we’d try a little something different as there is an important anniversary to celebrate during the month of March – one that is important to our family.
Let’s start with acknowledging the birthdays we missed from February – happy birthdays to my Dad (Grant) who celebrated his 82nd, and to Bradley. In March, we have several birthdays. Firstly, my son, Dale, then we have Blake, Amber, Lynda and last, but certainly not least, my Aunt Ev!
Now onto the celebration of the month – the anniversary of my grandparents’ wedding – Stanley and Irene Briggs, married March 19, 1938. Today would have been their 84th wedding anniversary. I’d thought we could look at that little journey – it leads us to the base of our large family tree.
No one can know when or how they met those many years’ ago – one can only speculate. However, if someone in our family has a story to tell, we would certainly love to hear it!
The one thing that I have learned from the couple of courses I have taken in genealogy is that knowing a date or having a story does not clearly mark that day in history – having the documentation to prove it, can make a clearer picture, especially if you have pictures!
This leads me to my first piece of evidence – the engagement announcement. This announcement was in The Province newspaper dated 15 Mar 1938 (found on Newspapers.com):
Wow! I was so excited when I found this little gem as it had so much information in it – Stan & Irene’s story was starting to form. Even though we know their life together started well before that announcement, we at least have this to know their life story was beginning.
Well, little did I know that this story was going to become even better with the next item I found – the wedding announcement which was in The Vancouver Sun dated 31 Mar 1938 (found in Newspapers.com):
There is so much detail in this article that I was giddy and nearly fell off my chair! As I’m typing this, I’m a little teary thinking of how they must have felt on their wedding day. The reporter was very explicit in the details especially so with Irene’s wedding dress. Just trying to picture it was wonderful – what is even more wonderful is seeing the actual picture – sigh…..
The details are wonderful and I’m so happy to have found this! Let’s go over some of the information:
A.H.P. Matthew’s home is at 1313 Seventh Avenue, New Westminster.
Married in the evening
It shows Grandma’s full name of Irene Stella Hartford.
Grandpa’s father was T.A. Briggs (Thomas Albert)
Rev. Sharkey performed the ceremony
Miss Lillian Lueken – daughter of Charlotte (“Lottie”) Matthew (Grandma’s sister) and Henry Lueken, therefore Grandma’s niece.
W. H. Matthew is William Henry (“Harry”) Matthew – Grandma’s brother could sing!
A gorgeous description of Grandma’s wedding dress!
Best Man and Maid of Honour are husband and wife, Mr. and Mrs. R.L. Fletcher. Their full names we will learn of later.
Mrs. L.D. Craig is Francis (“Frankie”) Matthew (married to Lockart Dolson Craig), Grandma’s sister.
Miss Aileen Matthew is Beatrice or “Aunt Lena”, another sister of Grandma.
A description of the dress Mrs. Briggs wore – wife of T.A. Briggs – Effie.
Hostess aides were:
Mrs. W.H. Matthew – Daisy (Grandma’s sister-in-law)
Mrs. H.G. Champion – Laura (Grandma’s sister)
Miss Beatrice Beagle – Grandma’s niece, daughter of Fred & Alberta (“May”) (Grandmas’ sister).
Bernice Matthew – Grandma’s niece, daughter of William & Daisy Matthew.
Description of the wedding cake.
Description of what Grandma changed into when leaving for the honeymoon.
Their residence/home upon returning from the honeymoon – 1716 London Street, New Westminster.
Well, with this article, I feel like I was at the wedding! You can certainly see it was a family affair. Knowing Grandpa was an only child, I’m sure there was family there other than his parents – some aunts and uncles. It would sure be nice to know the guest list!
Well, the next best thing is a picture of the wedding couple! I thought I might try a little something that I have found through an ancestry program, My Heritage. They have tools where you can clean up the picture and even add some colour to see what it may have looked like on that day. They also have an animation feature which I found a little freaky. Anyways, here are the results side by side for you:
Whew, I tell you, what a beautiful couple. Grandpa looks so proud and Grandma – well, what can I say, she’s just so beautiful! The article certainly described her wedding dress to perfection. I am so grateful to have found it.
We’re not finished, I have one more piece to this story – the Certificate of Registration of Marriage:
There is so much information in this one document to the genealogist’s eye that I was…..well there are no words. Let’s go over some further items we have gleaned from this document:
Grandpa’s occupation – Tin Smith
Shows Grandma as divorced – something that I knew of but have now confirmed.
Both of their home addresses at the time of the marriage.
Full names and birth places of both of their parents.
Grandma and Grandpa’s signatures.
The full names of the best man and maid of honour – Robert Leonard and Florence Allen Fletcher of 4224 Bond St., Burnaby. Not sure who these people are but seem to be good friends of Grandma and Grandpa as I haven’t found evidence that they were family.
Name and address of the Reverend.
I think that about sums up the story of my grandparents wedding day. I certainly felt like I could have been there having the wonderful article of their wedding day.
To finish off our story, I have one final picture of the wedding party: Stanley & Irene Briggs, Robert & Florence Fletcher.
I hope I have given you a glimpse into the day my grandparents were married. If you have any other stories from this day, I would love for you to share them.
We Are Family Briggs 
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