Canada Day 2010 in London, Ontario

Canada Day 2010 and the parties are on!

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The Main Street Party on Dundas Street in the downtown.

World War One re-enactors based in the R.C.R. Military Museum run through their paces in front of Eldon House the oldest home in London.

The Canadian military are prominent this year with displays of equipment, personnel, and history in Harris Park.

Battle of the Longwoods re-enactment society brought a British flavour to Canada Day.

Abner B. Hillman

There has always been a strong link between Southwestern Ontario and the State of Michigan. During the American Civil War many from Southwestern Ontario fought largely in the Union Army. There was reported to exist a Confederate recruiting office in London, Ontario(then Canada West), and a number of deserters from both armies lived in the London area. The J.J. Tallman Collection at the University of Western Ontario has a list of known members of the London branch of the Grand Army of the Republic from October 1891 to December 1911.

What caught my interest is the name Abner B. Hillman. Is he in anyway connected to my ancestors?  Abner Hillman appears in the 1850 and 1860 U.S. Census’s.  He puts his birth as 1836 in Canada. Since both census’s find him in Napoleon, Michigan I will make a wild stab and say that he was born somewhere in Southwestern Ontario. Unfortunately Ancestry does not give me any birth information prior to the 1850’s, and that is sporadic. No proof of any relationship there. Also, with my family I have found certain favourite Christian names , ie. John, George, William. The name Abner does not appear in my family tree. Not conclusive proof but a hint perhaps.

Abner Hillman is found at age 14 on a farm with the Hanley family in Napoleon, Michigan probably as a farm labourer. In the 1860 Census he is still in Napoleon with the Smith family as a farm labourer. I will need to look into both those families to see if there is a connection.

Abner B. Hillman enlisted as a Private on 17 August 1861 with the 7th Michigan Infantry, and drowned while on march on 19th  August, 1862. He is buried in the Cyprus Hills National Cemetery, New York State.

Newspapers In The London Area

For genealogists one of the primary sources for research is the local newspaper. Increasingly many of the major dailies are finding themselves online. Lots of luck for the newspapers of Middlesex and Elgin Counties. How are you with 20th century technology?
For Elgin County the Elgin County Library has microfilms of the St. Thomas times Journal, the Dutton Advance, and the West Lorne Mercury Sun.
For Middlesex County the London Public Library has microfilms of the London Free Press, the London Advertiser, and other smaller papers that were published in Middlesex County. The best and most complete microfilm collection is to be found at the University of Western Ontario. They just about have everything; however, be prepared to write notes as they will not copy any pages for you. For some reason the West Lorne and Rodney papers were put in the regional room separate from the other microfilms, and has gone missing. Darn they will steal anything nowadays!!