Historic Sources

Ontario Ancestors Present – Virtual Meeting February 12, 2024 at 7pm!

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Photo courtesy of the Toronto Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society

Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from the Oxford Branch of Ontario Ancestors:

Please join us at our next virtual meeting on Monday, February 12 at 7:00 pm, Hilary J. Dawson presenting:

Hunting for Hidden History: How Slavery Came to the Town of York

“How do you find out about people who had no rights, rarely appear in the public record and for the most part were illiterate? Where do you look for information about the disadvantaged who did not receive direct payment for their work, and who had little control over their own lives? How can we uncover the stories of indentured servants and enslaved Africans?

Hilary Dawson will explain where she found personal papers and other manuscripts, and show how she used them to piece together the stories of the Pompadour family, Henry Prince and others who were regarded as “property” by York slaveholders like Peter Russell and William Jarvis.”

Hilary Dawson is a professional genealogist, historical researcher and educator who has worked in museums in the UK and Canada.

Please visit our website at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca and click on the link “Register Here” for the zoom meeting.  The meeting is free and we welcome everyone.

Liz Buchanan
Oxford Branch Publicity Coordinator
Ontario Ancestors

If you have an event, pictures and articles concerning the history of Oxford County that you would like published on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Ontario Ancestors Present – Stone Houses of Zorra – Monday, January 8th at 7pm!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from the Oxford Branch of Ontario Ancestors:

Please join us at our next virtual meeting on Monday, January 8th at 7:00 pm where Vicki Brenner of the Oxford County Library will present “Stone Houses of Zorra”. There will be a short business meeting and Annual General Meeting prior to Vicki’s presentation. 

Please visit our website at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca and click on the link “Register Here” for the zoom meeting.  The meeting is free and we welcome everyone.

Liz Buchanan
Oxford Branch Publicity Coordinator
Ontario Ancestors

From the Oxford County Library: “The Stone Houses of Zorra Project is an effort to document pioneer field stone farm houses in Zorra Township, Oxford County.  Gathering information from published local history books, newspapers, land records and present day owner interviews, this work hopes to consolidate the chronicles of stone houses in one place.  With new photography, combined with historical imagery, a visual path to the past is established.  These stone structures are a part of our cultural heritage and the rural Oxford County landscape.”

If you have an event, pictures and articles concerning the history of Oxford County that you would like published on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Irene Crawford’s Newest Publication – By The Seat of His Pants!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post:

Irene Crawford, the author of Ever Vigilant: The History of the Woodstock Police Department and of Captain Andrew Drew, has a new publication!

By The Seat of His Pants – The Captain Tom (Tommy) William Story!

This book tells the story of Tommy Williams, Sweaburg Ontario’s decorated pilot. He was inducted into the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame, holds a Guinness World Record as the Oldest Licensed Pilot and was a WWI Pilot!

This book can be purchased for $25.00 by contacting South Gate Centre at 519-539-9817, or email gcrawfrd@execulink.com or venajoy@hotmail.com.

If you have an event, pictures and articles concerning the history of Oxford County that you would like published on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Discover Our Local History!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from the Thamesford Lion’s Club:

Join us for special event as we welcome Dr. Peter Timmons from the University of Western Ontario, for his talk: “The Wheaton Site: Learning from a Mid-19th Century Travern on the Governor’s Road”

The presentation will take place at the Thamesford Library on Wednesday, November 22, 2023 at 7pm in the Beaty room. All are welcome to attend this free talk. For more information contact the Thamesford Lions Club

If you have an event, pictures and articles concerning the history of Oxford County that you would like published on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

The Black Londoners Project – Saturday, November 11, 2023!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from: Words The Literary and Creative Arts Festival:

Alyssa MacLean & Miranda Green-Barteet: “Researching London’s Black History: The Black Londoners Project”

November 11, 2023 at 1:00pm

In partnership with the Faculty of Arts & Humanities at Western University, Words is pleased to host a presentation by Western Professors Alyssa MacLean & Miranda Green-Barteet who are mapping the stories of formerly enslaved Black Londoners.

Alyssa MacLean & Miranda Green-Barteet: “Researching London’s Black History: The Black Londoners Project”
Saturday, 11 November, 1PM
Museum London, Centre at the Forks

In 1856, Benjamin Drew, a U.S. abolitionist, travelled to Canada to transcribe the oral stories of formerly enslaved Black individuals. Among them, 16 individuals who originally settled in London, Ont. Their narratives, recorded in Drew’s book, A North-Side View of Slavery, describe their former enslavers, their escapes and how they made it to Canada.

But what of their lives afterwards?

With Drew’s accounts as their starting point, Western researchers Miranda Green-Barteet and Alyssa MacLean are working to trace the paths these self-liberated individuals took after arriving in London and to better understand their experiences in London. By documenting their journeys through an interactive website hosted by Western Libraries, Green-Barteet and MacLean aim to address a longstanding gap in the history of Black Londoners.

In this presentation, Professors Green-Barteet and MacLean will explore how they are using resources in Western Libraries Archives and Special Collections to support their work creating a Black Londoners Digital Archive. 

As part of the Words Festival, we will also have a display of Western Archives materials at Museum London! To register for the event follow the links for their website: Words – Researching London’s Black History: The Black Londoners Project!

If you have an event, pictures and articles concerning the history of Oxford County that you would like published on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca