The following article is from Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter and is copyright by Richard W. Eastman. It is re-published here with the permission of the author. Information about the newsletter is available at http://www.eogn.com.
When researching ancestors in Canada, you may find records that state they lived in Upper Canada or in Lower Canada. Where are those places? The Atlas of Canada can tell you.
Natural Resources Canada has a Web site with many maps, including today's political divisions, ecology, rivers, population, agriculture, mining, climate change, relief maps and much, much more. However, genealogists will be attracted to the Map Archives and historical maps.
I spent some time looking at pre-Confederation maps, namely 1740 and 1823. Both were fascinating as they showed the border changes before and after the British kicked the French out of North America (with the exception of St. Pierre and Miquelon). British North America circa 1823 was comprised of Lower Canada, Upper Canada, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland (including the Labrador Coast). The Northwest Territories were considered British possessions, while the Hudson’s Bay Company controlled Rupert’s Land. The United States and Britain jointly administered the Oregon Territory. I also noted the area called "Russian America." We normally do not think today of Russian territory within North America. Instead, we call it Alaska.
When you first see a map, it typically shows all of present-day Canada. However, using the mouse, you can click on points in the map to zoom in and out. You can also pan to the east, west, north, or south. I was able to zoom in until small areas of just a few miles across were displayed on the screen. The 1823 map also shows the locations of all Hudson's Bay Company Posts and King's Post Company locations, as well as other traders' locations and all significant European settlements. Best of all, it is easy to print any of the maps on your local printer.
I experimented with the site's search capabilities. I entered the name of "Miramichi," a town in which a few of my ancestors lived. The site reported that it was located at a latitude of 47 degrees 0 minutes 0 seconds north, longitude 65 degrees 28 minutes 0 seconds west.
I then clicked on a link, and a map appeared on the screen with an arrow pointing directly to the town. I then right-clicked on the map, selected "Save Picture As…" and saved the map image onto my hard drive. I later inserted that image into my ancestors' records in my favorite genealogy program's multimedia section. The mouseclicks required were simple; it is easier to do it than to describe it here. When I now create Web sites or books of my genealogy data, a map appears in my records, showing the location where these individuals lived.
Natural Resources Canada has provided a valuable service to genealogists and others. If you have Canadian ancestry, you will be interested in this site. You may also enjoy exploring Canada's history by use of these maps.
Here is the trivia question of the day: Where is Saint-Pierre et Miquelon? Hint: this territory does not belong to Canada but does appear on these maps.
The Atlas of Canada is available at http://atlas.gc.ca.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
OntarioGenWeb Updates
Glengarry County
Updates & New Additions:Calendar Guestbook Updated Links Transcript of 1789 Lot Allottments Transcript of 1786 Settlers Placements
Kenora District
Minor changes made, links fixed. Lanark County
Lanark County is rolling along with approx 1246 hits for the month of Apr.
Up-dates More headstone pictures for St. Augustine cemetery Prospect, Ontario from Penny Aris.
Russell County
Since the last report, the web site had 227 visitors [33828]. During the calendar month of April, this GenWeb site was viewed 249 times. Nine new queries were posted [1028].
Updates & New Additions:
Minor changes made, links fixed. Lanark County
Lanark County is rolling along with approx 1246 hits for the month of Apr.
Up-dates
Since the last report, the web site had 227 visitors [33828]. During the calendar month of April, this GenWeb site was viewed 249 times. Nine new queries were posted [1028].
Saturday, May 01, 2010
Canadian Genealogy Events in May 2010
Visit the CanadaGenWeb Calendar for more information about these events!
Event to add? Add it to our CanadaGenWeb Calendar
ALBERTAMay 1, 2010: Medicine Hat, Medicine Hat AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 3, 2010: Calgary, Alberta Family Histories Society, Meeting, 7-9pm May 5, 2010: Edmonton, Edmonton AGS SIG: Ukrainian, Meeting May 6, 2010: Edmonton, Edmonton AGS SIG: England/Wales, Meeting May 11, 2010: Edmonton, Edmonton AGS SIG: Ireland, Meeting May 12, 2010: Fort McMurray, Fort McMurray AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 13, 2010: Brooks, Brooks & District AGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 13, 2010: Camrose, Camrose AGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 18, 2010: Grande Prairie, Grande Prairie & District AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 18, 2010: Wetaskiwin, Wetaskiwin AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 19, 2010: Edmonton, Edmonton AGS SIG: Canadian, Meeting, 7:30pm May 19, 2010: Drayton Valley, Drayton Valley AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 20, 2010: Lethbridge, Lethbridge & District AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 20, 2010: Peace River, Peace River AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 26, 2010: Red Deer, Red Deer AGS, Meeting, 7pm May 27, 2010: Edmonton, Edmonton Branch AGS, Meeting, 7:30-10pm
BRITISH COLUMBIA May 5, 2010: Campbell River, Campbell River Genealogy Society, Meeting, 7pm May 6, 2010: Penticton, South Okanagan Genealogical Society, Meeting, 7:30pm May 12, 2010: Burnaby, BC Genealogical Society, Meeting, 7:30pm May 23, 2010: Chilliwack, Chilliwack UELAC, Meeting
MANITOBA May 10, 2010: Winnipeg, Manitoba Genealogical Society, Meeting, 7:30pm May 11, 2010: Winnipeg, Southeast & Winnipeg Branch MGS, 7:30pm
NOVA SCOTIA May 25, 2010: Halifax, Genealogical Association of Nova Scotia (GANS), Meeting, 7:30pm
ONTARIO May 1, 2010: Goderich, Huron OGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 3, 2010: Toronto, Governor Simcoe UELAC, Meeting, 7:30pm May 4, 2010: London, London & Middlesex Branch OGS, Meeting, 7pm May 5, 2010: Toronto, Toronto OGS Workshop, 12:30-3:30pm May 6, 2010: Oshawa, Durham Region OGS Workshop, 1-3:30pm May 8, 2010: Ottawa, (BIFHSGO) British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa, 10am May 8, 2010: Belleville, Bay of Quinte UELAC, Meeting, 1:30pm May 11, 2010: London, London & Western Ontario Branch UELAC, Meeting, 7pm May 11, 2010: Sarnia, Lambton OGS, Meeting May 11, 2010: Woodstock, Oxford OGS, Meeting, 7pm May 11, 2010: Windsor, Essex OGS, Meeting, 7pm May 14-16, 2010: Toronto, OGS Conference 2010 May 16, 2010: Ottawa, Ottawa TMG Users Group, Meeting, 2-4pm May 16, 2010: Hamilton, Hamilton OGS, Meeting, 2-4pm May 17, 2010: St Thomas, Elgin Branch OGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 17, 2010: Sudbury, Sudbury OGS, Meeting, 7pm May 18, 2010: Ottawa, Ottawa OGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 18, 2010: Delhi, Norfolk OGS, Meeting, 7:30pm May 19, 2010: Hamilton, Hamilton OGS WISE, Meeting, 6:30-9pm May 25, 2010: Guelph, Wellington County Branch OGS, Meeting, 7pm May 25, 2010: Owen Sound, Bruce-Grey OGS, Meeting, 7:30pm
May 26, 2010: Toronto, Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada, Meeting, 8pm May 29, 2010: Kingston, Kingston OGS, Meeting, 10am May 30, 2010: Brampton, Halton-Peel OGS, Meeting, 2pm
SASKATCHEWAN May 25, 2010: Moose Jaw, Moose Jaw SGS, Meeting, 7pm
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