York Road Baptist Church

York Road Baptist Church 1962

Ever since I first moved to Guelph I have wondered about a strange looking building near the intersection of York and Victoria Roads. Although the building has an obvious addition to the east side facing Victoria, the outline of the rest of the structure is reminiscent of a church. Recently I followed up on researching this building’s story at some point, and although this building now sometimes operates as a fireworks depot, it was indeed constructed as a Baptist church.

York Road Baptist Church 1977

The building’s appearance has been modified over the years. Its exterior walls are now covered by brown vinyl siding. A photo from the March 17, 1962 Guelph Guardian reveals the church originally was constructed of mortared rock.

York Road Baptist Church 1977 Stone Construction

The Vernon’s City Directories in 1925 lists a York Road Gospel Mission as being located near the intersection of York and Victoria Roads.  A Guelph Mercury article on local Baptist church history names the First Baptist Church as having established an East End Mission on York Road in the 1920s. However, another Mercury article from December 5, 1987 lists the Suffolk Street Baptist Church as holding services and teaching Sunday school at the Gospel Mission between 1928-1932. Perhaps both of these local Baptist churches participated in running the Mission.

York Road Baptist Church 1960 tent meeting

When the Suffolk Street Baptist Church needed a larger building in which to hold services, they established a new church at the Gospel Mission site. On April 19, 1932 the York Road Baptist Church was formed with Reverend Henry H. Chipchase as the pastor. In 1966 the church again needed to expand operations and moved to 400 Victoria Road North and renamed itself Crestwicke Baptist Church.

Former York Road Baptist Church 2014

After the York Road building ceased operations as a church, a photo processing facility, Triangle Labs, operated at this location for many years. At this point the easterly addition was most likely added, and the building’s address changed from 501 to 505 York Road. The brown siding had not been added to the structure, but the turrets at the top of the stucco entrance tower had been removed.

York Road Baptist Church Stucco Entrance Tower 2014

I wonder if the tower was added when the Gospel Mission became a full Baptist Church in 1932. I can picture the original stone structure without the tower as a rural gospel mission situated on the outskirts of Guelph. The addition of the tower gave the building more of the formal look of a church.

Genealogy and Photographs

This photograph shows an apple barrel with my uncle sitting on top of it. In the background is my great aunt.

I have written in previous blog posts about the library’s vast collection of photographs, but not so much about how photographs can help you in the context of your genealogical research.

Photographs are quite useful for research purposes and are often sought by libraries and archives for that very reason. They can complement details from textual sources and can act as a kind of spring board to learning more. An example from my own family’s history can illustrate this point.

When I first started researching my family’s history I learned that my great- grandfather and grandfather were coopers. This I discovered by asking my grandmother questions about this photograph. As it turned out my grandfather and grandmother met each other while he was searching for hoops to make his barrels. The hoops are the parts that go around the barrel and help hold it together which can be seen in the above photograph. The barrels were used to store and ship apples, and at the time, helped supplement their income. Making an apple barrel can still be seen today at Ross Farm Museum in Nova Scotia.

These are just some of the things I discovered just by asking a few questions about one photograph. What have you discovered in your own research? Perhaps you would share it with us.

Genealogy: City Directories and Wills at Your Library

This document is a page from the Guelph city directory of 1917.

If you are interested in researching your family’s history consider using directories and or wills. I will discuss each below while mentioning resources more specific to the library.

City Directories

Directories are useful for chronicling where people lived and how long they lived in a particular area. They can provide you with a person’s occupation or even the location of a business someone your researching operated. Directories have been around for over two hundred years. At first directories typically listed prominent individuals, but today’s directories are more inclusive which is helpful to family historians.

The Guelph Public Library holds a collection of Guelph city directories. Directories dating between 1867 to 1980 are available on microfilm, although there are a few gaps in coverage. Hard cover formats are available from 1980 to the present and are much more complete. For early years Guelph was included in county directories so be careful not to overlook them. They are generally composed of two parts. An alphabetical listing of people’s last names and an alphabetical listing by street.

Keep in mind directories are not perfect and they can contain errors. In addition, street names, and residential numbers do and have changed. You might want to consult some area maps and Ross Irwin’s work Guelph, Origin of City Street Names to help sort out any changes.

Wills

John Evans last will and testament.

Wills may also assist you in your genealogy. Unlike city directories wills can provide glimpses into the past and reveal how individuals felt about others. They may provide information about burial wishes, names of children or grandchildren, and references to other relatives you may not have known existed. Wills can provide clues about a person’s lifestyle, occupation, and economic status.

You may be interested to know that the library holds a collection of wills for the county of Wellington between 1841-1858 and 1901 and 1931 which are available on microfilm. An index to these wills is available. Created by the local branch of the Ontario Genealogy Society the index contains brief instructions in its use.

If you have any questions about our resources here at the library please contact me.

Genealogy: Newspapers at Your Library

This image shows birth, marriage, and death notices printed in the Guelph Daily Mercury and Advertiser in 1892.

If you are interested in genealogy you have likely used newspapers. Newspapers are often sought after for obituaries, birth and marriage announcements, and other relevant information that they might contain like gossip columns.

At the Guelph Public Library obituaries are probably the most common request we receive. They can provide a wealth of information such as occupation, last place of residence, military service, social, and or church affiliations. Knowing some of these details may prompt you to seek out particular records for additional information. Searching newspapers can be a rewarding experience, but it is often a time consuming one. Be prepared to spend some time with this type of resource.

The Library carries archival copies of two local newspapers most often requested, the Guelph Tribune and Guelph Mercury. The Mercury and its predecessors are much older with microfilm editions dating to the 1840s. However, with a few available indexes (see the brief list below) you will likely need to manually scan through several months to locate a relevant obituary or birth announcement.

1. Births, Deaths and Marriages extracted from Guelph Advertiser Jan 1 1847- December 20, 1849.
2. Guelph Herald and Wellington District advertiser and Guelph Weekly Herald, Guelph, Canada : index of births, marriages and deaths, 1842-1906

More recent editions of the Mercury and Tribune have been indexed through one of our subscription databases ProQuest. As a result, an obituary from 1999 to the present can be searched remotely with a valid library card.

To learn more just ask and I would be happy to help.

Genealogy Getting Started

Genealogy can be a rewarding activity and some might even say a little addictive. One of the most common questions I encounter is where do I start? That’s a good question.

My advice is to start with your family. It may be an older relative like a grandparent or an uncle. Approaching family members can be a little difficult at times. Not everyone you approach will be forthcoming with information and that’s fine. Always be respectful and patient. Once you start researching your family others may get interested. Those who can help may tell you stories, share photographs or even letters relevant to your research.

In getting started there are a few basic things to keep in mind. First, start with what you know and work back one generation at a time and keep your focus on direct lines. If you try to research everyone right away like a second cousin you might start feeling overwhelmed. Secondly, consider the context in which the people you are researching lived. As you progress in your research some basic questions are going to arise. A relevant historical work might help answer some of these questions. Lastly, concentrate on basic facts per individual such as date of birth and place of birth. As you continue with your research you can add other relevant facts or details like occupation later.

One last thing that I think is helpful to know starting out. Make sure you note your sources and try to use original records where possible. By citing your sources you are letting others know where you came across this information. It also lets you return to a record if you need to follow up on something you may have missed earlier. Using original records is valuable in your research as there can be transcription errors. An error may lead you down the wrong path.

If you are interested in learning more about getting started register for our Introduction to Genealogy on June 3 at the main branch library.

The Carnegie Library as backdrop

This picture shows a group of Christadelphians outside of the Carneige Library in Guelph, Ontario.

In the last several posts I have been highlighting photographs from our 2013 photograph contest. One of those photographs included the Carnegie Library. To be honest I am attached to this photograph. We have several Carnegie library photographs in our collection. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, that library was built in 1905, but was later demolished in the mid-1960s.

Before it was demolished thousands of Guelph residents likely passed through its doors. Some of these residents checked out books and returned them only to repeat the process. Of course it was not just books and other materials that people came for. As seen in the photograph above, the library also served as a kind of backdrop for a photograph. I wonder how many weddings and or other special events did the Carnegie library play a part?

Who were the Christadelphians? According to the Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, the Christadelphians were a group founded in 1848 in the United States who believed that the old and new testaments are divinely inspired.

Perhaps you have some photographs of the Carnegie library that served as a backdrop in a photograph or two. I would be interested in learning more. Maybe you would like to share such an image with us.

Doors Open Guelph – May 3, 2014

Once again the Guelph Arts Council will be hosting Doors Open Guelph, an opening weekend event for Doors Open Ontario. This year’s event will be held on Saturday, May 3rd, 2014 and promises to provide entrance to some very intriguing buildings and locations in Guelph. Guided tours will be offered throughout the day.

Stone Road Bow Truss Bridge – 1916

In the tradition of recent years, two of the locations involve walking tours, including a trail hike on the Guelph Hiking Club’s new Ontario Reformatory Sidetrail. This trail will be featured as part of Trails Open Ontario and traverses the former Reformatory property. Guided interpretive hikes will be held at 11 a.m., 1 and 3 p.m. beginning near the entrance to the Barber Scout Camp off of Stone Road East in the vicinity of the Stone Road Bridge.

The Stone Road bowstring arch truss bridge was constructed in 1916 by Charles Mattaini and crosses the Eramosa River. This bridge was placed on the Ontario Register of Historic Places for its cultural heritage value and interest. The bridge is now for pedestrian use only as a newer adjacent bridge was built in 2005 for vehicular traffic. A recent visit to the bridge revealed graffiti on the concrete slabs which obstruct cars from travelling over the bridge. A historical marker of some type and a more aesthetically designed approach to the bridge would be a welcome addition to this site.

Capitol Theatre (Royal Opera House) – 1945

If you are a cinema buff and would like to imagine the energy of downtown Guelph in bygones years, another item of interest on this year’s Doors Open program is a walking tour of past and present cinemas and screening rooms, the Historical Cinemas of Guelph tour.

 

 

 

Odeon Theatre interior 1965 – Wyndham Street

I know of at least four cinemas that at one point operated concurrently in downtown Guelph: the Vernon’s City Directory for 1951 lists the Palace Theatre  at 106 Macdonnell, the Royal Theatre at 87 Macdonnell Street, the Odeon at 166 Wyndham Street and the Capitol Theatre at 150 Woolwich Street. The Capitol Theatre was located in the former Royal Opera House building just around the corner from the Odeon on Wyndham. Some sources indicate that the Odeon was built to replace the Royal, but the two theatres appear to have co-existed, and photographic evidence supports this fact. (This is a question that could be answered through participating in the Historical Cinema Walking Tour.) The Royal Opera House was built in 1894 and became the Capitol Theatre in 1923, and continued to show movies as well as host touring companies offering live performances. Unfortunately, the building was torn down in 1953 after being purchased by contractor Joe Wolfond.

Palace and Capitol Theatre showbills – May 1952

Movie going was a very popular past time for an evening’s entertainment in the 1920’s, 1930’s and 1940’s. Movie bills changed frequently as double features were the norm. I believe movie attendance peaked in the late 1940’s post-World War II era, before the advent of television. I am sure there is much more to discover about the historical cinemas of Guelph. This is bound to be a fascinating walking tour.

Archeion at Guelph Public Library

What is Archeion you wonder? Archeion is a research tool that provides access to descriptions of archival records from all over Ontario held by various institutions. Not only are there descriptions of records, but you may also find photographs, audio recordings, and much more. These organizations that provide content to Archeion are members of the Archives Association of Ontario (AAO). The Library has been a member of the AAO for some time allowing us to take advantage of this tool developed by Artefactual Systems.

For many years the library used its own in house database which we called the Database of Archival Description or DAD for short. We even developed our own photo database which could be searched separately but was linked to DAD. This linkage allowed customers to view higher levels of description to which a photograph belonged providing greater context as to a photograph’s creation and use. At the time DAD was developed, there were not many off the shelf options that the library could purchase to allow our customers to search records in our holdings. DAD was created using Cold Fusion and relied on the expertise of IT staff to maintain.

I encourage you to take a look. You may use Archeion by following the link to our landing page. If you have any questions let me know and I shall be happy to answer them.
http://www.archeion.ca/guelph-public-library-archives

Guelph City Hall

This photograph from our 2013 photograph contest shows the former city hall building.

Constructed between 1856-57, the former City Hall building was built using locally quarried materials. It was designed by Canadian architect William Thomas and built by local contractors. In 1875 an addition was added on the south-west side for increased market space and even a concert hall. The building also included a clock tower which was removed in 1961.

The building underwent a number of changes during its life based on photographs in the library’s holdings. Most of these changes that might be described as cosmetic such as a renovated council chamber or of a worker painting a committee room. Clearly we have taken pride and care of a building that continues to be of use. The building was designated in 1978 under the Ontario Heritage Act.

To learn more about this building check out the publication Designated Buildings and Structures of Architectural and Historic Interest in the City of Guelph 1977-1994. Another useful work entitled Downtown Walkabout: A Walking Tour of the Central Business District of Guelph can also be consulted at the library.

Ontario Heritage Trust Historical Plaques

Old Guelph City Hall

The Ontario Heritage Trust provincial historical plaques are a familiar site throughout Ontario with their familiar gold lettering on a blue background. These plaques commemorate a historical event, person or heritage theme. The Ontario Heritage Trust website has a searchable plaque guide where you can discover plaques by location or theme.

Guelph alone is listed as having 13 plaques, however one of them, commemorating the La Guayra Settlers, was moved to Marden in 2010. There is a plaque on Paisley Road at Norfolk Street honouring the Guelph  Public Library. Another one in downtown Guelph is mounted on the wall of the old City Hall on Carden Street.

The Ontario Heritage Trust website formerly featured a Plaque of the Month, where history buffs could read the background story of a particular plaque. Unfortunately, this feature hasn’t had a new entry since 2012. However, reading through Plaque of the Month Archives on the Ontario Heritage Trust will make you want to visit these plaques on location to see them in the context of their surroundings.