Family and Forebears

Family Tree Updates

Monday, February 12, 2018

Original Post 10/28/2017 (Lisa's Family Pages)

It's been a long time since I have updated the family trees online but I have been working on them for the past few months.

I have found a lot of new bits of information and have updated ALL of the family trees. I have also changed how they are displayed. I have decided to embed the .PDF files right into the website so that you can open them up on the full screen and zoom in and out. This is partly because the trees are getting so big, and because it helps make them a bit easier to read. You can zoom in with the plus (+) and minus (-) signs or click on the arrow in the top corner to expand the page to full screen (it will take you to my file in Google Drive).

Illustration by Scott Garrett

Original Post 3/12/2017 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I haven’t posted in a few months but I have been doing a lot of research this winter. I revisited my Great Grandmother Henrietta Shepherd's English roots. Her father was Alexander Shepherd and his forefathers were mostly blacksmiths from Great Gaddesden, Hertfordshire, England. Her mother was Ellen Jones, the daughter of William Jones and Charlotte Oxenbridge of Etchingham, Sussex, England.

The Oxenbridge line is very interesting. A few of Charlotte’s ancestors were Knights, and one called Sir Goddard Oxenbridge comes with a legend. Sir Goddard is said to be 7 feet tall, a Giant, and enjoyed eating children for supper. I found mention of this in an old book a couple years ago. When I

Original Post 8/29/2016 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I'm looking for anyone that has done a Y-DNA test or an Autosomal DNA test with the surname BARNES and has roots from the east coast of Canada (Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick). I'm trying to find someone with a connection to my BARNES line from Newfoundland to help with my genealogical research.

If you think you might have a BARNES ancestor that was from Newfoundland I am interested in comparing our DNA results. I am especially interested in a BARNES male that has done a Y-DNA test. I have tested with Family Tree DNA (my personal favourite) and AncestryDNA. I have also uploaded my raw data to GEDmatch.

**Update**
I'm also looking for BARNES males that have done a Y-DNA test that may be from Dorset, England. I would like to see if you match my father.

Please contact me if you would like to compare results.

Joseph W Warren

Original Post 8/21/2015 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I have been working for a few months trying to find out more about my 3x Great Grandfather Joseph Wormwood (aka Joseph W. Warren). I have discovered so much more about him thanks to a few books and a few newspaper articles found in the Sewickley Herald Newspaper in Pennsylvania.

I was looking for as much information that I could gather so I contacted the Sewickley Valley Historical Society to see if they might have anything on Joseph Warren and his family. They were able to find a few things and mailed me photocopies of what they had. One of those photocopies was his Obituary published June 28, 1919, in “The Sewickley Herald”. This was so amazing to read. Below is a transcription I made of this very long “In Memoriam”.

JOSEPH WORMWOOD WARREN

Like the ripened sheaf ready for the reaper, Joseph W. Warren, a distinguished octogenarian of Sewickley, was gathered into the eternal harvest last Monday, closing a life full of activities and rugged experiences. He was the son of Richard W. and Elizabeth Wells Warren and was born in Kennebunk, Maine, May 30, 1831. When a young man the family moved to Lowell, Mass., where Joseph learned the machinist trade. He then entered the histrionic profession and travelled on the

Original Post 5/14/2015 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I have been working hard trying to separate the facts from stories over the past few weeks. In my last post, I shared some family stories that my long lost cousin from Connecticut, USA shared with me. Some of these bits of information were VERY HELPFUL in figuring out our Warren Family Ancestry. Others I can't find proof of (yet) and other things were mixed up with different family members. That being said if it wasn't for speaking with my cousin I never would have figured out the Warren family tree. I am so glad that I wrote her that letter.

The story about being connected to the Wormwood family was true, although I can't find any Native American connection (yet). My 4x Great Grandfather Joseph Warren was born Joseph Wormwood, in Kennebunk, Maine, USA. When he moved to Sewickley, Pennsylvania he started using the name Joseph Warren. He was known as Joseph W. Warren. The W was for Wormwood. He was the ancestor that changed the surname for our Warren bloodline. This explains why it was so difficult to

Tracing a living relative - Warren Wormwood Pennsylvania Maine

Original Post 4/24/2015 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I have been researching our Warren family history for 9 years now. This week a crack started on the brick wall surrounding my Great Grandfather Harry Warren. He is on my "Most Wanted" list.
Harry Warren has used two places of birth during his life. When he married my Great Grandmother Henrietta Shepherd in 1917 (Toronto, Ontario), he claims he was born in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, USA. But on his WWI Canadian Attestation Papers (and any other document after the wedding) he claims he was born in Dublin, Ireland. He named his brother Frank Warren from New York as his next of kin on those WWI papers. So I started to trace his brother.

I found Frank's marriage date and ordered a copy of the certificate from the New York State Vital Records department. This record gave me Frank's parents' names, which were the same as Harry's. So I knew that Harry and Frank were both the children of George Warren and Margaret Byron.

I followed Frank through the years via census records in Connecticut, and directories. I contacted the

Original Post 3/24/2015 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I spent a lot of time over the past two weeks exploring the Irish Family History Foundation website. They now offer a subscription option which makes it more affordable. I was able to manipulate the searches without worrying about wasting credits. I took advantage of a monthly subscription and found a lot of matches. I found my husband's ancestors that were born in Ireland but later went to Scotland.

A few that were exciting to find were the Cronan's. When I looked on the site a year or two ago I couldn't narrow down my matches without wasting credits. The name Mary Ann Cronan was more common than I expected for that time period. On Mary Ann's death record in Scotland, I found her parent's names. When I searched the Irish Family History Foundation website this time around I was able to find Mary Ann's baptismal record. This gave me a place in Ireland. I was able to search the

Original Post 10/08/2014 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I am looking for anyone that has a family tree with the Barnes surname from Dorset, England. Wimborne Minster is my area of interest, but anyone with Barnes roots anywhere around Wimborne may also be of help. I am looking for Barnes families within the time frame of 1750-1850. If you think I might be interested in your family tree please contact me.

I am looking for anyone that might have a John Barnes or William Barnes from Dorset as well. There are Y-DNA connections to Barnes families in Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, USA as well as Newfoundland, Canada.

All information is welcome!!

Wentworth Barnes - Digitized WWI Service File

Original Post - 10/24/2014 (Lisa's Family Page)

Library and Archives Canada has been working on digitizing the service files of the Soldiers of the First World War. (UPDATE! They are finished, Yippie!) Every so often I check to see if any of our ancestors that served as a Canadian soldier has been added to the FREE online database. Today I discovered that my Great Grandfather, Wentworth Barnes, records have been added.

It was amazing to be able to read the 60 page PDF file that included medical records, dates and places he served as well as some other interesting bits of information.

Wentworth enrolled on February 1st, 1916 in Toronto, Ontario and he joined the 134th Battalion (48th Highlanders). He left Halifax, Nova Scotia on August 8, 1916, on the S.S. Scotian and arrived in England on August 19, 1916. Once he arrived in England he was transferred to the 15th Battalion at Bramshott Camp in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. In October 1917 he went to France.

Aside from having a few cavities filled in 1917, he had one visit to the hospital after he was buried by a shell in Vimy, France on April 13, 1917. The result

Original Post 9/17/2014

The Warren results are in. I ordered a Family Finder test through Family Tree DNA for my Uncle. He volunteered to swab the inside of his cheek for the sake of family research. Thank you to that wonderful Uncle for feeding my obsession with genealogy and our genetic roots.

The Family Finder test was very helpful in giving our ancestral breakdown. It turns out that the Warren / Hoogland children have 50% Scandinavian and 50% British Isles roots. Looking at the size of my Uncles and all the fair hair and blue eyes in our family there is no doubt that we have a bit of

Original Post 8/14/2014 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I have made some headway on the Howell family tree. I have been able to go back another generation for Grandma Bessie's maternal line, but I've also found something interesting for the Andrews line.

Capt. John Andrews married Ruth Barnes at Pool's Island, Newfoundland on December 28, 1829. When John passed away he left some money to his sister Ann Dowland and her daughter from Bere Regis, Dorset, England. I was curious to see if I could find out more about John if I researched the beloved sister he mentions in his Will. All other searches for John Andrews came up with nothing I could trust.

I started looking and found Mary Ann Dowland in Bere Regis, Dorset. She was a widow and living with her only daughter Eliza Ann. She was the head of household and listed as a Grocer in the 1851 England Census for Wareham, Bere Regis. The 1861 census lists her as a Grocer and a Post Mistress. Not bad for a woman in the 1860s. In her Will, she left all of her money and possessions to her only

Original Post 7/1/2014 ( Lisa's Family Pages)

In September I was able to make the trip out to Peterborough to visit the Hazelbrae Barnardo Home Memorial. Our daughter came with us, and even though she didn't quite understand what it was about it was nice to get a few pictures of her with her Grandfather next to the Memorial. Her great-great-grandmothers name, Edith A Lloyd, is on this monument. Edith was a British Home Child from Wales that arrived in Canada in 1906.

The Hazelbrae Barnardo Home Memorial is located at the Queen Alexandra School at 180 Barnardo Ave., Peterborough, Ontario. This monument lists 9000 names of children that arrived from the British Isles between 1884-1923 as "Barnardo Girls". These children passed through the

Original Post 7/23/2014 ( Lisa's Family Pages)

Great News! My Uncle's Family Finder results have arrived. I have contacted a few matches to see if anyone has some information they can share. So far the cousins we match might be from other lines, but it's a start. So far I can tell you that my Mom and her siblings are 50% Scandinavian (Norway, Denmark, & Sweden). This is likely from our Dutch side of the family, as some of my mtDNA matches are from these areas. The other 50% is of the British Isles. I expected results like this, and I'm happy to see the results online. When I work out some matches and research a bit more I will share what I find.

Update: These results have changed slightly, a more recent post will share those results.

Our Genetic Heritage

Original Post 6/6/2014 ( Lisa's Family Pages)

Over the past year, I have had a few family members, including myself, take a Family Tree DNA test. I have had an mtDNA test done that shows my female ancestral line and a "Family Finder" test done that shows my ethnic heritage. My Dad has done the Y-DNA test that shows his male ancestral line and the "Family Finder" test as well. I have shared the results of these tests on the page called DNA.

An Uncle on the Warren side of the family has agreed to participate as well. I mailed his samples back yesterday. We should have his results as in a month or two. I will share those when they arrive.

These tests are so interesting. They give you a glimpse of your ancient ancestor's migration routes over the centuries. The Family Finder test helps me connect with cousins (up to 5th - Distant) that have provided a few missing pieces in our family tree. It's fascinating to see our ethnic break down by percentage. I'm by no means an expert, but if you have any questions about my experience please contact me. Enjoy!

Update to the Liscombe Family Tree

Friday, February 9, 2018

Original Post 4/22/2014 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I was able to go back one more generation on the Davidson/ Liscombe family tree. Specifically the Liscombe side. Not only did I find the names of my 5th Great Grandparents, but I also found the place they were from in Ireland. This is often hard to find.

William Taylor was born in County Sligo, Ireland around 1788. He married Susanna Conboy in Ireland. In 1837 they travelled to Canada with two of their children, one of whom is our direct ancestor Margaret Taylor. Their third child, John Taylor, was born on the Atlantic Ocean during their voyage to North America.

William and Susanna (aka Susan) settled in Brock, Ontario where they had more children and farmed their land.

Susanna Conboy Taylor died in 1860 around the age of 58. It is noted in the 1861 Canadian Census that she died of Breast Cancer. William Taylor died a Gentleman in 1881 at the age of 95 years and 10 months young. It is noted on his death record that he was the oldest man in the Township of Brock, Ontario.

Image courtesy of pixabay.com

John Barnes & Louisa Tucker - 1821

Original post 3/9/2014 (Lisa's Family Pages)

A few weeks ago I sent a request to the Anglican Church of Newfoundland. I asked for a copy of the marriage record for John Barnes and Louisa Tucker married June 2, 1821, in Carbonear. John Barnes is our first Barnes ancestor to Newfoundland. I wanted to see if the original would share the names of their parents.

This week I received a reply from the Honorary Archivist at The Archdeacon Buckle Memorial Archive - Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador. I was very excited to see a copy of this very old document. Unfortunately, it does not share the names of his parents, but it does provide the names of two witnesses - one being William Barnes. William is likely related to John and I am hoping that researching William will help me discover more about John's family in England.

I have included an image of the document below as well as a transcription because it's a bit hard to read.

Transcription:
Entry #10 Parish of Carbonear - Marriage Register 608, Box 2, File 4

Carbonear Church, Newfoundland, 2 June 1821. John Barnes, Bachelor of Wimbourne in the county of Dorset, England and Louisa Tucker, Spinster of Harbour Grace, in Conception Bay Newfoundland, were married in this church by consent of Parents as certified this second day of June one thousand eight hundred and twenty-one by me J. Burt Clerk (?)

This marriage was solemnized John X Barnes & Louisa Tucker between us.

In the presence of Edwd Peters, Wm Barnes (Edward Peters and William Barnes)

I hereby certify that the above is a just copy of nuptials

J. Burt - Clerk

As of today (February 9, 2017) I still haven't been able to get back past John and Louisa. If you have any additional information that might help I would love to hear from you.

Image courtesy of Istock|Getty images

Marriage of Denis Reardon & Mary Cook

Original post 2/2/2014 ( Lisa's Family Pages)

I have updated the Davidson/Liscombe family tree and I have added an image to the Historical Documents page.

Denis Reardon and Mary Cook (Kate Reardon’s parents) were married on January 4th, 1862 at the Chapel of Our Lady of Dolours church, in the District of Camberwell in the County of Surrey, England. Both were of "Full age". Denis was a milk carrier. They both lived at 4 Victoria Place, High Street in Peckham. I was able to get more needed information from this which will be helpful. The names of their fathers are John Reardon and John Cook. John Reardon was a General Labourer. John Cook was a "Fruit Hawker" which means he sold fruit on the street. Their witnesses were John Dinahan & Alice Ginan. I will look into these names more to see if the witnesses were relatives. This might get me a bit farther back now that I know the father's names. They left Ireland for England, and then from England travelled to Canada in 1867 - 5 years after they were married.

I used the FreeBMD site to obtain the registration information needed to request the document from the General Register Office of England (GRO). This site has been helpful for many of our ancestors.

Image courtesy of pixabay.com

The Family Mystery Ancestor

Original Post made 12/11/2013 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I was so excited yesterday to finally receive the certified copy of my Great Grandfather's Registration of Death. I ordered this through the Service Ontario online ordering feature and opened my mail to find my copy yesterday. It was well worth the minimal cost and the two-week wait. Harry WARREN is one of my "brick walls", and this document has shed some light on a few things that I was not sure of. First, his father was born in England and his MOTHER was born in Ireland. Her name was Marguerite Ryan, not Margaret Bynn as was transcribed on Harry's marriage record. So, this explains why my previous searches for his parents have not turned up much. I'm hoping that this new information will help me find the missing links for this branch of the family!!

UPDATE!! I've solved a few more mysteries since this original post in 2013. His parents were George WARREN and Margaret BYRON, both were born in Pennsylvania, USA.

mtDNA Results - Haplogroup U2

Post from 12/1/2013 (Lisa's Family Pages)

I recently received my mtDNA results from Family Tree DNA. I purchased an HVR1 kit, so the detailed information was limited but I was able to see information about my maternal ancient ancestor’s migration routes.

My mtDNA Haplogroup is “U2”. This is a very old line, and it is believed to be a branch off of “Super-Haplogroup U” going back about 50,000 years (or more). Most of my ancient ancestors settled around the “Near East” and Europe. It is very sparse and doesn't show up in large numbers around the world. Click here for an image of human migration routes.

My maternal grandmother is from the Netherlands. She came to Canada as a War Bride after WWII. She was born and raised in Amsterdam but her ancestors are from Friesland. Friesland is in North Holland. A few of my “U2” haplogroup matches were people that lived in and around that part of Europe in Denmark, Norway, and England. The largest percentage of people that matched my results have ancestors from Slovenia and the Czech Republic. Given that DNA for Genealogy is still rather new to the general public I only have about 100 matches so far. Over time people may start taking these DNA tests and the results will vary and provide more insight to my ancient ancestors.

After going through my results I decided to revisit my Dutch roots. With the help of Google translator, I was able to go through some Dutch genealogy sites and emails with ease.

I used the free trial at Wie Was Wie which allows you to create a tree online as well as research. It is a subscription site with the option to purchase images. Some of the information that showed up in results was also from Alle Friezen. There are other genealogy sites as well for the Netherlands, but those are the two that I have used so far.

With these sites, I was able to confirm previous data on my maternal line. I am able to trace back to my maternal ancestor Gretje Thomas born in 1775. I now know that “Thomas” is not her family name, but a “Patronym”. She did not have a family name recorded, as is the case with most Dutch ancestors before the 1800’s. She married “Tjalling Joukes Hoekstra” and died at Manaldumadeel (Leeuwarden), Friesland in 1847. Her death record calls her “Grietje Thomas Zondervan”, perhaps a family name was established during the years prior or she remarried, I am not sure.

I have an answer for my maternal line, perhaps in the future, I will find a “U2” match that shares an ancestor and can help me find out more about my Dutch roots. In the meantime, I’m happy with what I know and can share with my family.

Family and Forebears

Family Tree Updates

The Ogre of the Family

Barnes Surname DNA

Joseph W Warren

Family Lore vs. Family Fact

Tracing a Living Relative

Irish Roots - The Cronan's

Barnes Surname - Wimborne, Dorset, England

Wentworth Barnes - Digitized WWI Service File

Warren Family DNA Results

John Andrews or John Hayden?

Visit to the Hazelbrae Barnardo Home Memorial

Warren Family Finder Results

Our Genetic Heritage

Update to the Liscombe Family Tree

John Barnes & Louisa Tucker - 1821

Marriage of Denis Reardon & Mary Cook

The Family Mystery Ancestor

mtDNA Results - Haplogroup U2

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