Oxford Branch Ontario Ancestors

October is Family History Month!

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Hello Everyone,
Please see this guest post from the Ontario Ancestors:

You, your friends and colleagues are cordially invited to attend the launch of Family History Month by the Oxford County Branch of Ontario Ancestors.  

This Open House event is being held on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at The Governor’s House (Oxford Genealogical Society) 82 Light Street, Woodstock ON from 10 am until noon.

Dedicated to supporting and promoting genealogical and family history research since 1979, we focus on collecting and preserving information that will be useful for anyone researching ancestors who lived in Oxford County and beyond its borders.  

The Mary Liley Reading Room Resource Library, located in the Governor’s House, is open to the public on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10 am to 4 pm.  

During Family History Month, new researchers will be given a starter kit with tips for finding their ancestors and essential forms to keep all the names and dates organized.  Opportunities for signing up for genealogy classes or exploring your DNA results will be available.

Staffed by experienced volunteers who can demonstrate finding obituaries, wills, land records, township history books, church histories, historical atlases, Tweedsmuir Local Histories, military,
cemetery transcriptions for the 102 cemeteries in Oxford County, over 500 family histories, specific to Oxford County families and much more. The volunteers are available to answer questions and help visitors locate information to fill in the branches of their family tree or use the computers and microfilm reader.  During Family History Month, we are offering free scanning of albums or scrapbooks (bring your own USB).

We would appreciate your help in promoting this event by posting the attached flyer: Family History Month on your community bulletin board and spreading the event by word-of-mouth.
If you have any questions, please contact us at oxford@ogs.on.ca or call 519-421-1700.

The OxHS is now on Facebook and Instagram, to like us search: OxfordHistoricalSociety1897
Or click on the FB or Instagram symbol on the right hand side of our website!

If you would like your event or article published (relating to Oxford County ON or South-Western ON), on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Oxford County Branch of Ontario Ancestors Virtual Meeting – April 14, 2025!

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Oxford County Branch – Ontario Ancestors – Zoom Meeting: April 14, 2025 at 7pm!

Preachers, Teachers, Entrepreneurs and Rebels by Deward Yates

Deward Yates will take us on a virtual field trip of historical plaques, following rural and urban pathways, celebrating Oxford County’s History from Embro to Wolverton and multiple places in between!

To register for this free presentation, please visit our website at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca

The OxHS is now on Facebook and Instagram, to like us search: OxfordHistoricalSociety1897
Or click on the FB or Instagram symbol on the right hand side of our website!

If you would like your event or article published (relating to Oxford County ON or South-Western ON), on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Oxford County Branch of Ontario Ancestors Virtual Meeting!

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Oxford County Branch – Ontario Ancestors – Zoom Meeting: March 10, 2025 at 7pm!

The Devon Elliotts: The Stories of Those Who Came, Those Who Stayed and
Those Who Left Presented by Glenn Elliott

Glenn was born and raised on a North Oxford farm two kilometres west of Beachville. He spent an idyllic childhood of chores, tractors, and farm activities. However he was one of those who left.  A 40 year career in Broadcast Television in Vancouver was a far cry from the solitude of the farm and dairy herd. With retirement and Covid limiting activities he was looking for a project and started researching his family.  His massive family history is still a document in progress.  It was an eye
opening road to discovery of the exciting, tragic, humbling, humorous stories of his extended family and those who preceded them.  Along his journey he met family members he didn’t know before and made many new friends.

To register for this free presentation, please visit our website at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca

The OxHS is now on Facebook and Instagram, to like us search: OxfordHistoricalSociety1897
Or click on the FB or Instagram symbol on the right hand side of our website!

If you would like your event or article published (relating to Oxford County ON or South-Western ON), on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Oxford County Branch Ontario Ancestors Upcoming Events!

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Oxford County Branch – Ontario Ancestors – February 10th Meeting on Zoom

The Potter’s Field Project at the Ingersoll Rural Cemetery:  Presented by Cody Groat, Assistant Professor in the Department of History and the Indigenous Studies program at Western University. 

This presentation will focus on the work of the Potter’s Field Project at the Ingersoll Rural Cemetery. The Potter’s Field is an unmarked section of the cemetery where nearly 400 people were buried. These community members were differentiated based of their socio-economic status. The stories of people who were buried in the Potter’s Field will be shared including stories of former enslaved African Americans, British Home Children, people impacted by the Chinese Head Tax, and the unhoused.

To register for this free presentation, please visit our website at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca

Family Day at the Oxford Branch of Ontario Ancestors – February 17, 2025

Make this a true Family Day activity and take this opportunity to start the next generation on a lifelong journey of discovery by introducing them to genealogy and family history.  Drop in at the Oxford County Branch of Ontario Ancestors Open House at the Governors’ House, in Court House Square, 82 Light Street, Woodstock on Family Day, from 10 am 4 pm. Oxford Branch holds a large and growing collection of resources and reference material on family and local history. Regular hours are Tuesday – Thursday 10 am to 4 pm. The Open House will be held on February 17th, 2025 from 1 pm to 4 pm. Everyone is welcome.  For more information check our web site at https://oxford.ogs.on.ca  email oxford@ogs.on.ca or call 519-421-1700.  

The OxHS is now on Facebook and Instagram, to like us search: OxfordHistoricalSociety1897
Or click on the FB or Instagram symbol on the right hand side of our website!

If you would like your event or article published (relating to Oxford County ON or South-Western ON), on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca

Ontario Ancestors Present – Zoom Meeting Monday October 21, 2024 at 7pm!

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Hello Everyone,

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

Please join us on Zoom on Monday, October 21st at 7:00 pm when speaker Peg Perry will tell the story of David Morton Gerrie, a member of a Zorra township farm family, was one of the many young men who perished in the Great War. In October, as we prepare for Remembrance Day, we will tell his story using his diary, accompanied by photographs captured with his camera. Along this journey, we will explore resources, beyond the typical birth, marriage, and death records, which help family storytellers to create vivid and comprehensive portraits of individuals.

Pictured above Morton and his beloved Indian Motorcycle in the front yard of the family farmhouse on Hwy 2 just outside of Ingersoll

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
Ph: 519-421-1700

The OxHS is now on Facebook and Instagram, to like us search: OxfordHistoricalSociety1897
Or click on the FB or Instagram symbol on the right hand side of our website!

If you would like your event or article published (relating to Oxford County ON or South-Western ON), on the Society’s blog please email us at info@oxhs.ca