Spotting the Inghams in 1931 census

The release of the 1931 Canadian census this month has given me a chance to take a closer look at how my grandparents Emily and Thomas Ingham were doing in the Dirty Thirties. Above: 23 Manning Street in St. Catharines in 2007 when I took my mom over to visit it. She was living in …

Happy 100th birthday … and thoughts on life expectancy

My aunt Edna is 100 years old today. Happy Birthday! As far as I know, she's the first of my family members to reach that milestone. Edna was born an Ingham (my mom's side of the family), and Inghams are on the whole "long-livers". But the Spencer side (my dad's) isn't too shabby either, as …

Death by teething and other tales: Susannah Chadwick

Above: the christening record of Henry Chadwick When my great-great-grandmother Susannah Chadwick was only 16 years old and single, she gave birth to her first child. Baby Henry was born on July 13, 1845 in Accrington, England. On his birth record, Susannah is listed as a spinster, which in the 19th century just meant unmarried …