Time To Get Back To My Studies; Setting Some Goals

It seems like summer just arrived and September is here already! Traditionally, September is a busy month for most people, a change of seasons, harvest-time, and the beginning of the school year. It will be a busy month for me as well, it’s time to get back to some serious researching.
I am setting a goal for the month of September of researching my family history for 2 hours a day, and see if I can’t break through some of my brick walls.

I have a lot more records to find and information to verify on my Fairbairn line, which should keep me busy. My database has increased from a little over 200 to over 1900, so I think I’ll set a goal for 1 year to finish this. I have noticed a Fairbairn-Freisman mariage which I would like to check out. The surname is rare and my 2nd greatgrandmother, Sarah E. Haines’ maiden name was Freisman.

I want to do some more research on my loyalist ancestors and those of my husband too. I have to find and gather together sources for my Haines line from the Mohawk River valley and Doan from New Jersey and PA lines. I may be able to find more information and break through some brick walls, like what my 3rd greatgrandmother, Lydia Haines’ maiden name was, or what my 4th greatgrandmother, Mrs. Joseph Haines, Sr.’s name was. My husband’s loyalist ancestors include the Bradt, Van Alstine, Burtch and Hoover lines, but he’s not interested in certification at this time. I will have more information about what is entailed in seeking certification after we attend the UELAC branch luncheon, on the 19th. of September.

I have also recently found more information about some of my grandmother, Josephine Desbien Hines’ siblings from an obituary in the newspaper archives. I have a lot of researching and filling in blanks for her family as well. I hope that I can find some information about the family who moved to Michigan.

I think that this research and blogging should keep me busy for a while. Hopefully, I will be able to get more accomplished this month.

Filed under: Genealogy, Genealogy

COG #79 – Family Reunions – Our Next Family Reunion

My submission for the 79th Carnival of Genealogy hosted by Jane at CanadaGenealogy or “Jane’s Your Aunt” blog has a link to a previous blog post of our family reunion as I blogged about our first reunion before the carnival topic was announced.

As anyone who follows my blog already knows, we had our first Fairbairn family reunion recently and we are planning our next one in 3 years. The family isn’t located close enough to have an annual reunion, and we need a lot more than a year to prepare for one.

Our next family reunion will hopefully have better weather, so more family can attend, but you can never plan the weather, so at least we have some foul-weather experience under our belt already.

We learned quite a bit from our first reunion and the second one will be even better. We have three years of fund-raising ahead of us so we will be able to reserve the whole group site and have lots of space for activities and parking and it will afford more privacy as well. A few of the family had to park at the front entrance and walk to the group site.

We are also going to have a committee made up of a volunteer from each branch of the family, to organize the next reunion. With a representative from each branch of the family, more members will be notified of the reunion and there will be a better turnout. This year, my cousin and I organized everything, and, since I was recovering from major surgery, she did most of the work at the reunion. It was a lot of work for her and she did a great job. If there were more family there, she wouldn’t have had as much time to enjoy the reunion.

Next reunion, I think we’ll take pictures of every family separately as they arrive, so that we have pictures of all of the families attending. This year, there were group photos taken on Sunday afternoon, beause it rained on Saturday, but the family that had been there the day before and earlier in the day weren’t included.

I had a lot of fun planning my first family reunion and meeting new family. Now, maybe, I’ll get in touch with some of my dad’s side of the family and start planning a reunion with them as well!

Filed under: Carnival of Genealogy, Carnivals, Fairbairn, Family Files, Genealogy, ancestors, COG #79 - Family Reunions, Our Next Family Reunion

Wordless Wednesday – Seeing Red at the Leamington Tomato Festival

The Leamington Tomato Festival was on this past weekend and the theme this year was “Everything Red”.
It is also H.J. Heinz’ 100th Anniversary.

Filed under: Daily Genealogy Blogging Themes, Wordless Wednesday, HJ Heinz 100th Ann, Leamington Tomato Festival, Wordless Wednesday

Somber Anniversaries

Marian Neil Hines Nov. 30, 1936-Aug. 15, 2008

I have been in a somber mood the last couple of days, yesterday being my dad’s birthday, and today being one year since my mom passed away. It doesn’t seem like it’s been a whole year. I still call the spare bedroom “Mom’s room”.

There were times in the past year when I was having health problems that I needed my mother, but, she wasn’t here so I had to go through it alone. I needed to hear her say “everything’s going to be okay” and her favourite sayings “God doesn’t give you burdens that you can’t bear” and “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. I know that hearing those words from her woudn’t have made any difference in the outcome of my condition, but I would have loved to hear them just the same.

It doesn’t matter how old or “grown-up” you think you are, when a crisis hits, the words and advise of your mother are always a comfort and that’s what I miss most. I miss her sense of humour and her optomistic outlook. She was always looking at the good that would come out of some difficulty, and I miss her embraces that were often too tight.

My mom was my best friend and I could tell her anything, I miss being able to share my successes and failures with her, or just watching TV. She couldn’t miss a single episode of Y & R, she even had to watch her show before she went to the hospital the day she died. Right after her show was over, she and my sister where leaving to get a different prescription from the ER and didn’t make it out of the driveway when she passed away. I remember walking her down the steps with my sister, and mom was joking about if she fell, she’d probably take me with her.

Mom was a strong-willed woman, who, even though she knew she was going to die soon, was always in good spirits and was grateful for every day that she had. Her only fear was that she’d die in a nursing home if I couldn’t take care of her. It was getting to the point that I wasn’t able to care for her anymore and she knew it, but, she said she didn’t want to be a burden on me either. I think that she died when she wanted to, and where she wanted to and I am glad that she went suddenly, without pain, and I was able to be with her when she did, and I’ll always remember the peaceful look on her face when she uttered her last words, “Here it comes”.

Filed under: Family Files, Genealogy, Haines/Hines, O'Neil/Neil, Special Events, ancestors, Earl Hines, Marian Neil

Our First Fairbairn Family Reunion

Well, the rain kept a lot away from the reunion on Saturday, but, after the rain quit about suppertime, a few more families came out for the evening. The kids enjoyed themselves getting their faces painted and trick-or-treating around the campground for a couple of hours.

There was a dance later in the evening for the older kids. The adults had a chance to do some catching up while they were busy. I met a few cousins who braved the weather and came out, and we discussed a lot of family history.

On Sunday the rain had quit, but the temps. were in the 90’s, and humid. There were the mandatory water balloon fights, with our table being designated the “Safe” table.
One cousin, Lynn Davison, came out for a couple of hours and shared lots of information with us. His aunt was the author of The Fairbairn Family – 200 Years in America, and he’s been working on the continuation of his aunt’s work for years. I’m glad he was able to attend, and I hope he had a happy birthday yesterday.

Me, Lynn Davison & Darla Geauvereau (organizer of the reunion)

Another cousin, David Fairbairn, is going to be a volunteer for the Fairbairn DNA project. He was interested in joining but didn’t know how to go about it. He and his sister, Judy, are my mother’s first cousins, although she had never met them. They came down from Sudbury and Toronto and camped out.

David and Judy

Allen Fairbairn, was able to come out for a few hours on Saturday and Sunday. He just lives a few miles from the campground. Allen was the oldest cousin attending, he’s 77. He had hoped to see more older relatives, but he had a few stories to tell.

Breelyn, my brother’s youngest granddaughter, was the youngest family member in attendance.

The kids had fun staying cool on Sunday, going swimming, riding bikes and playing games. There were a lot of raffles for the kids too, they all went home with a few prizes.

We had a great weekend and the kids had a memorable time no matter what the weather. There were no major catastrophies, no injuries, we have a DNA project volunteer and everyone that attended were glad they came and are looking forward to the next one, so, I would say that our first reunion was a success!

Filed under: Genealogy, Fairbairn family reunion

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun – All My GrGrGrandparents

Randy’s Genea-musings:
Here is your SNGF assignment for the evening (if you choose to accept it – this is not stump the genealogist or even Miss
ion Impossible):

1) List your 16 great-great-grandparents in pedigree chart order. List their birth and death years and places.

2) Figure out the dominant ethnicity or nationality of each of them.

3) Calculate your ancestral ethnicity or nationality by adding them up for the 16 – 6.25% for each (obviously, this is approximate).

My paternal 2nd greatgrandparents:

1. Benjamin Haines, born about 1802 in Niagara, ON, married Sarah Elizabeth Friesman about 1835 in Niagara, ON, died about 1886 in Elgin County, ON. German
2. Sarah Elizabeth Friesman, born in Niagara, ON abouth 1816, died 1892 in Rodney, Elgin County, ON. French/English
3.Linus Clark Doan, born about 1830 in Humberstone Twp., Welland Cty, ON, married Hannah Maude Doan,, about 1850 in Welland Cty., ON. English
4. Hannah Maude Doan, born about 1830 in Crowland Twp., died about 1860 in Welland Cty., ON. English
5. Celestin Desbiens, born in 1831 in La Malbaie, P.Q., married Adele Morin in 1851 in Chicoutimi, P.Q. French
6. Adele Morin, born in Saguenay Quebec. French
7. Philias Tremblay, born in 1837 in Charlevoix, P.Q., married Marie-Louise Dallaire in 1857 in Lac-St-Jean, P.Q., died in Rochester, Essex County, ON in 1891. French
8. Marie-Louise Dallaire was born in 1825 in La Malbaie, and died in 1924 in Maidstone Twp., Essex County, ON. French

My maternal grgrgrandparents:
1. William James O’Neil, born in 1851 in Sandwich, ON, married Rosetta Holden in 1881 in Sandwich, died in 1923 in Sandwich, ON. Irish
2. Rosetta (Ettie) Holden was born in 1862 in Sandwich, ON, died in Essex County, ON. German/English
3. Robert Queen, born in Port Patrick, Wigtown, Scotland in 1845, married Mary Stevenson in 1868, died in Essex County, ON. Scottish
4. Mary Stevenson, born in 1851 in Ontario, died in Essex County, ON. Scottish
5. George Milne Fairbairn, born in 1838 in Detroit, MI, married Jane McDowell in Rochester, ON. in 1869, died in 1913 in Essex, Essex Cty., ON. Scottish
6. Jane McDowell, born about 1849 in Sandwich S., Essex Cty., died in Essex, ON. in 1923. Scottish
7. Allen Clark Doan, born in 1850 in Welland, ON, married Mary Elizabbeth Robbins in 1875 in Welland, ON., died in Essex, ON in 1921. English
8. Mary Elizabeth Robbins was born in Pelham Twp., Welland Cty., ON in 1860. English

German – 10%
English – 28%
Irish – 6.25%
Scottish – 28%
French – 28%

Filed under: Daily Genealogy Blogging Themes, Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, All My Grgrgrandparents, Saturday Night Genealogy fun

I Hope There’s A “Plan B” – Fairbairn Family Reunion

To quote a famous Scot, Robert Burns , “the best-laid plans of mice and men oft go awry”. So it goes for the weather and planning an outdoor family reunion. Our 1st Fairbairn family reunion has been in the works for 1 1/2 years and is finally here. The two day event this weekend is being held at a campground, and, of course, there are severe thunderstorms predicted for the area tomorrow, not all day at least, and temps in the 90’s on Sunday. I think this might bring the attendance down, but I hope it doesn’t dampen the mood for the family that braves the storms. Those who don’t come tomorrow will probably come out and join us Sunday. I’m glad it’s a two day event!

We are brainstorming, trying to make a Plan B, for inclement weather. We are going to be doing more indoor activities. I think we’ll have to set up a big tent, an expense we hadn’t planned on, and a safe place to go nearby if the winds pick up.

We are going to have to have a euchre or cribbage tournament instead of a baseball tournament. We will probably have a couple of tables for playing Texas Hold’em and Blackjack. The little ones are going to be doing crafts and playing games. I’ll bake some cupcakes for them to decorate. I don’t know what the park is going to do about the hayride and trick-or-treat if it’s raining. The group photos are going to have to be taken on Sunday, there’s going to be a lot of sun, the best chance of rain will be in the evening. The kids will be able to go swimming, it will be hot, the hottest day of the summer for our area.

Even with the rain, I think we’ll have a great week-end, I’m planning on having a good time anyway.

Filed under: Fairbairn, Family Files, Genealogy, Fairbairn family reunion

Wordless Wednesday -Jane Fairbairn Kendrick

Filed under: Daily Genealogy Blogging Themes, Fairbairn, Family Files, Genealogy, Photos, Wordless Wednesday, ancestors, Jane Fairbairn Kendrick, Wordless Wednesday