Category: Thomas

Paying Respects at Ross Bay Cemetery - #1 (52 ancestors)

1/10/2018

BURIALS: BOORMAN, SCHOENECKER, GOSSE, WHITTAKER, IRVINE, ROBSON

Theme: Start

ROSS BAY CEMETERY, Victoria BC Canada
Looking west from in front of the grave of
Joyce (Thomas Boorman) SCHOENECKER.
Arnold SCHOENECKER's grave is at the base of this tree as shown, right side.

As part of the new 2018 “52 ancestors in 52 weeks” challenge, this first posting focuses on multiple relatives in my husband Terry Boorman’s tree who are all buried in Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria, BC, Canada. Instead of one ancestor this week, this is about one cemetery with multiple family burials. I’m feeling unconventional! But I have a good reason for this approach.

The optional theme this week is “start”, and to get inspiration I decided to look back to when I started my blog in 2012 . Back then I chose to start close to home here in Victoria, looking at burials for Terry’s paternal relatives in Ross Bay Cemetery, one of the oldest cemeteries in the area.

At that time I only wrote about 7 BOORMAN burials, with all but one of them resting in the Boorman family plot in Block O. They are marked with only a single gravestone, inscribed simply with their surname “BOORMAN”.

Boorman family plot gravestone in Ross Bay Cemetery, Block O, Victoria, BC, Canada

However, there are additional family burials in this historical cemetery, which is situated on Dallas and Fairfield Roads, right on Victoria’s scenic waterfront. One of these relatives died only last year. So this posting is about Ross Bay Cemetery and some of the other family burials that we have found so far. There are likely more to be found.

SCHOENECKER

My husband Terry’s mother, Lillian “Joyce” BOORMAN (nee THOMAS), was buried in Ross Bay Cemetery in 11 May 2006, as was her second husband Arnold John SCHOENECKER in 1988. Joyce died peacefully on 24 Feb 2006 in a nursing home in Victoria. Arnold was born 27 Sep 1910 in St Paul, Minnesota. He was previously married with 2 children and worked as a labor negotiator in the US. He married Joyce in Victoria on 17 May 1970 and for a short while they lived in Seattle before returning to Victoria.

Joyce’s ashes were buried by her two children under a large tree on the eastern edge of the cemetery, close to where Arnold was buried under a neighbouring tree. Joyce certainly has a marvellous view of the surrounding trees and monuments.

GOSSE & BOORMAN

GOSSE family plots, just south of the Wilson monument

According to the Ross Bay Cemetery Index, the GOSSE family secured 3 adjacent burial plots in Block Q on the west side of Road U (a paved path), just south of similar plots acquired by the prominent Wilson family (not related). While the Wilson family erected a massive monument across their plots, it is in stark contrast with the grassy GOSSE plots beside them, adorned only with 2 small and simple flush-mounted markers:

Plot 71: One name listed: Josiah Gosse
Plot 70: Six names listed a small metal plaque: GOSSE; Josiah 1938, Susannah 1946, Frank (S S Sophia) 1981, Josiah (Si) 1937, Llewellyn 1930, Katie (nee Boorman) 1991

NOTE: The cemetery index says that the 2nd Josiah (1853-1937) is buried in Block P Plot 124 on the east side of M Rd with Deriah Gosse and Anna Maria Gosse; the index does not list Katie at all, at least that I could find.

Katie Evelyn BOORMAN as a girl in Victoria
in a formal portrait with her dog

Katie Evelyn BOORMAN was Terry’s father’s first cousin. She was the only child of Walter William BOORMAN (buried in the Boorman plot mentioned above) and Marian Emilda GUTHRO. Katie was born on 18 Jul 1899 in Victoria BC at 57 Kings Road. Two months after she turned 8, her father succumbed to typhoid in 1907. In 1909 her mother remarried to Albert Edward WHITTAKER, but they had no further children. Katie’s mother Marion died 29 May 1942 in Victoria and is buried with her first husband Walter William in the BOORMAN plot in Block O. Ten years later in 1952, Albert was buried in Block A.

The only photo I have of Katie is a formal portrait of her as a child, dressed in elaborate finery and accompanied by a very large dog. Not your usual portrait but wonderful to have.

Katie met and married Llewellyn Sparkes GOSSE on 15 Apr 1924 in Victoria. I have rarely seen such a detailed wedding announcement (including gifts and out of town guests) as was published the next day in the Victoria Times:

Home Wedding was Pretty Ceremony.
Nuptials Last Night of Miss Katie Boorman and Mr. L Gosse.
A very pretty wedding took place last night at 9 o’clock at the home of the bride’s mother, Mrs. A. E. Whittaker, Balmoral Road, when the Rev. Dr. Campbell united in marriage Katie Evelyn Boorman, only daughter of the late Mr W W Boorman and of Mrs A E Whittaker, Balmoral Road, and Mr. Llewellyn Sparks Gosse, third son of Captain and Mrs. J Gosse, 235 Belleville St.
The ceremony was performed in the drawing room under an arch of greenery from which was suspended a large floral bell, while potted plants and cut flowers were artistically arranged throughout the rooms.
The bride, who was given in marriage by her stepfather, Mr A E Whittaker, looked charming in a gown of powder blue Canton crepe, simply fashioned and embroidered with steel beads and wore a wreath of orange blossoms in her coiffeure. Her only attendant was Miss Mildred Russell, who looked fascinating in a fawn Canton crepe costume. The groom was supported by Dr H L Alexander of Portland, Oregon. During the signing of the register Mrs. Morton sang “Beloved, It is Morn,” accompanied by Miss Dorothy Morton, who also played the Wedding March as the bridal party entered the drawing room.
A delicious buffet supper was served in the dining room which for the occasion was in a color scheme of blue and gold. Streamers in these shades formed a canopy over the table, which was centred with a three tier wedding cake, surrounded by bowls of daffodils and blue candles in bronze sconces.
The following friends of the bride assisted in serving: The missed J Homans, Edith Parsell, Marguerita Hicks, Alice Findler, Della Fair, Evelyn Macdonald, Dorothy and Gertrude Gosse, Quida Beacham and Florence Russell.
Among the many beautiful wedding gifts was a set of flat Community silver, presented by the members of the commercial staff of the BC Telephone Company of which the bride has been a member for a number of years, also a set of aluminum ware from the employees of the Union Oil Company, with which company the groom is associated.
On their return from the honeymoon, which is to be spent in Vancouver and the Sound cities, Mr and Mrs Gosse will reside in Coper Apartments, Menzies Street. Among the out of town guests at the wedding were Mr and Mrs Fred Beacham and daughter of Chemainus, Mr and Mrs I L Dougan of Cobble Hill, Captian and Mrs T S Gunns of Vancouver, Captain and Mrs J Goss of Vancouver, Dr and Mrs Homer Alexander of Portland, Mr and Mrs J F Strang of Vancouver, Captain and Mrs J F Gosse of Colwood, Mrs. A D Losee of Seattle, Mr R Sparks of Vancouver and Mr R Gosse and daughter of Rossland.”

After Llewellyn’s early death on 19 Apr 1930 following surgery and his subsequent burial in Ross Bay Cemetery, many years passed before Katie was remarried to a widower Douglas Edmonds PEARSALL. Douglas passed away in 1976 in Vancouver, and Katie died 15 Nov 1991 in Victoria, then cremated in Royal Oak. Athough her burial is not recorded in the Ross Bay index under Pearsall, Gosse or Boorman, the memorial plaque placed by family on the Gosse plot implies that Katie (nee Boorman) was buried there.

Alan Frank Guthro GOSSE, 1925 - 2017

Katie and Llewellyn had one son, Alan Frank Guthro GOSSE, born 11 Mar 1925 in Victoria. He was Terry’s second cousin. We had the pleasure of meeting him in 1999 at a Boorman family reunion, where he shared some of his family stories and photos. One of the group photos showed and impish Alan as a young boy with his grandmother Marian, together with Terry’s grandparents and 2 aunts (when they were girls)I was contacted by Alan’s daughter last year to let me know that Alan passed away on 16 May 2017 at the age of 92, and that his ashes were buried at Ross Bay. His name is not yet in the cemetery index, nor is there a marker for him yet. But on a recent visit to Ross Bay Cemetery to pay our respects, we noticed a patch of recently disturbed grass in Gosse plot 70 that is likely his resting place. Alan Gosse’s online obituary provides more information on his life and family.

The other GOSSE’s known to be buried in this plot included Llewellyn’s parents Capt. Josiah GOSSE (c1865 - 28 Apr 1938) and Susanna “Susie” SPARKES (c1868 - 7 Jun 1946). They both died in Vancouver. Frank was Llewellyn’s oldest brother who tragically drowned while working in Alaska when he was only about 26.

Daisy & Harry Boorman with 2 granddaughters Sheila and Audrey Boorman,
on the right: young Alan Gosse and his grandmother Marian (Guthro, Boorman) Whittaker (sister-in-law of Harry Boorman)

IRVINE & ROBSON

Evelyn Maud “Eva” ROBSON was born 3 Jun 1870 in the Medway District of Kent England. Her parents were my husband Terry’s great-great-uncle and aunt: William Matthew ROBSON (1842-1923) and Annie TICK / MUNRO (1847-1923). They started their family while still in Kent, where their son Jim and 2 daughters Eva and Emma were born. Sometime in the mid 1870s they decided to give New Zealand and try, and their daughter Annie was born there in 1877. But by 1880 then had moved again to the west coast of Canada, settling on Mayne Island where their 2 youngest children Eliza May and Stanley Howard ROBSON were born. William Matthew ROBSON’s sister was Francis Jane “Fanny” ROBSON (1844-1924) who married William Scoons BOORMAN (1842-1909) - Terry’s great-grandparents. There were some later interconnections between these families as described in my 2012 posting: “ROBSON / BOORMAN Wedding in 1897, Victoria BC”.

Back to Eva ROBSON, who was the member of this family to marry Andrew IRVINE on 17 Aug 1894 in Victoria BC. Andrew was born in the Shetland Islands in 1866, son of John IRVINE and Margaret JOHNSTON. I know nothing about his early life or when he emigrated. Andrew and Eva had 5 children together between 1895 and 1907, some at least on Mayne Island. Some of the others are listed as born in Victoria, but back then the Victoria District encompassed quite a large area including the Gulf Islands, so it’s hard to be certain. But by 1921, most of this IRVINE family was living in Victoria City, except for their oldest son Robert who was living in Vancouver (poised to marry a girl from Washington State the following year and eventually move to California). Andrew worked as a seaman until 1932.

Eva died first on 22 Apr 1924 from cancer at age 53, then Andrew followed her on 7 May 1943 following a sudden stroke at age 76. Just this past October I realized that both Andrew and Eva IRVINE were buried in Ross Bay Cemetery. It turns out their grassy double plot is very close to Fairfield Road across from the Fairfield Mall. Officially they are buried in Block 3, plots 90 and 91 on the west side of road 46. There is no grave monument, only their surname “IRVINE” engraved in the cement curb surrounding the raised grassy area.

A final side note to the IRVINE name: Terry's father was named William Irvine "Bill" BOORMAN, and we're still not certain where his middle name came from. Bill BOORMAN'a father (Harry Eustace Boorman) and Eva (Robson) IRVINE were first cousins on Harry's mother's side. But why would Harry name his first born son after the husband of a first cousin? There must be more to that story!

These families of Terry's certainly didn’t go in for a lot of memorial showmanship, but no doubt it was much more affordable that way. The cemetery records have been very helpful in tracing the lives as well as the deaths of these Victoria relatives.

REFERENCES
Ross Bay Cemetery Index - City of Victoria Archives
Plot Map of Ross Bay Cemetery - interactive with incomplete index

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Photo Book for Russell Terence "Terry" BOORMAN - #52 (52 Ancestors)

12/30/2015

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Theme: Resolution | Images: Click on many to enlarge

Photo book cover of "Terry Boorman's Family", created Aug 2015

After spending the past year writing about ancestors and other deceased relatives, I would like to focus this last story of the year on my husband Terry, thankfully very much alive and kicking. Christmas is a time to celebrate with our living family and create new memories to add to the old ones . So it is fitting that, with the end of the year fast approaching, I share a brand new story from this past Christmas.

Our family had decided to downsize the number of gifts this Christmas and focus instead on enjoying each other's company and celebrating the season together. Admittedly there was still a bit of overflow of “stocking stuffers” (not everything was able to fit in a stocking), but nothing went over budget. So this approach proved very successful and less stressful. The last present that Terry opened on Christmas morning was inside a flat rectangular orange box, too big for the stocking. “What’s this?” he asked, but I kept silent while he opened the box. “Oh, it’s a ME book!!!” he exclaimed with a huge smile. He had uncovered a customized, hard covered photo book about himself and his extended family that I had created. Looking carefully through the pages, he remarked “I haven’t seen some of these pictures in a long long time. This is wonderful!” The gift was obviously a bigger hit than I thought it would be.

Baby Terry BOORMAN with his mother
Joyce nee THOMAS, 1945

In the past I had created other photo memory books for my side of the family using the online tools at shutterfly.com, but none for the Boorman side. Last summer I decided it was time to rectify that situation. I pulled out old photo albums and boxes of loose pictures, then scanned, enhanced and organized those that had not yet been digitized. There were lots.

Gradually a theme presented itself, and I decided to make Terry the focal point of the new book and save it as a Christmas present. The title became “Terry Boorman’s Family”. Terry's childhood naturally included his parents and sister. As Terry’s life also includes his marriage and his children (no grandchildren yet), I also needed to add the younger generation to the book. And finally I decided to include his parents’ siblings and Terry’s grandparents. I was important for me to include all those relatives who had affected Terry's life, as well as information on his more recent heritage.

Terry as a young boy with his father Bill BOORMAN, enjoying the snow
in their yard on Oliver Street, Victoria BC.

With the book's scope set to include four generations, the next task was to pick the best of the photos and to group them by era and type of content. Then I let the number and proportions of each group of photos mandate the layout of each page. Because of this I always had to customize the pre-formatted pages included with the chosen book template. It was worth the extra time and effort because the results were more personal and effective, and made the way I wanted.

The front cover shows three different photos of Terry: as a toddler, a young man, and after retirement. The back cover shows a grid of nine photos of his extended family throughout the years, including his childhood home. And the 48 pages between the covers contain a large variety of colour and black and white photos with captions and short descriptive paragraphs. One of the first pages includes a “picture family tree” page, showing thumbnail-sized head shots in four rows, one for each generation: grandparents, parents, siblings and cousins.

JOHNSTON family, 1911 - 4 generations:
Daisy Louise (Johnston) Boorman,
Deborah S (Kerfoot) Johnston holding baby Bill Boorman,
Russell Johnston, Eliza Jane (Neeland) Kerfoot,
Della and Irene Johnston

The next group of photos involved Terry’s grandparents: Harry Eustace BOORMAN and Daisy Louise JOHNSTON and their five children: Bill, Ken, Jack, Sheila and Audrey. I even added in two formal group photos from 1911, showing four generations of the JOHNSTON family. The youngest in the group was Terry’s father William Irvine "Bill" BOORMAN (a baby in his christening gown), then his mother Daisy Louise BOORMAN (nee JOHNSTON), his grandmother Deborah Sophronia JOHNSTON (nee KERFOOT), and his great-grandmother Eliza Jane KERFOOT (nee NEELAND). The second picture also included three of Daisy's siblings: Russell JOHNSTON, Della JOHNSTON and Irene JOHNSTON. It's fun to see the family resemblances.

Three more pages in the book were dedicated to Terry’s father of Bill BOORMAN, including his service in WWII in the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserves. Four pages were devoted to Terry’s THOMAS grandparents and relatives: Ivor John THOMAS, Lily Mary YEOMANS and their five children. Terry’s mother Lillian Joyce THOMAS was their youngest.

Daisy Louise (Johnston) BOORMAN and most of her grandchildren.
Terry is on the left, back row.

Later sections included Terry and his sister’s childhood and family holidays, and group photos of them with their BOORMAN cousins. Then came Terry's marriage and children, with formal portraits and candid shots of our two boys and family activities. A shorter section on Terry’s sister and her family included her five granddaughters. The final pages focused on our retirement years, with photos taken at a some of our regular family gatherings and on holidays. Great memories!

I spent most of the month of August creating this book, then ordered it online, successfully hiding it until Christmas. So it was a total surprise. Terry wanted to show it to the family, so he brought the book along to a post-Christmas brunch at his sister’s place. Even the youngest child seemed interested in looking at the photos and learning more about their family history. They saw pictures of themselves and others at various ages, reinforcing memories of happy family gatherings. It's amazing how young we all looked!

I think such self-published books are an excellent way of preserving old family photos and information, as well as kindling interest in family heritage among family members. And I am glad that this particular family photo memory book was so well received this Christmas.

Happy New Year to one and all! Here's wishing you happy family times and successful genealogy research in 2016.

I have posted additional information on my BOORMAN, JOHNSTON, KERFOOT, and THOMAS
families elsewhere on this website.

"52 Ancestors" is a reference to the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge I am participating in.
Reference the No Story Too Small blog by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow for more details.
It is giving me the much needed incentive to write and publish my family stories.

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Heirloom of Ivor John THOMAS (1871-1946) - #24 (52 Ancestors)

6/14/2015

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Theme: Heirloom | Images: Click on many to enlarge

Ivor THOMAS's large Chinese mirror and stand - family heirloom

I have already written twice on the subject of heirlooms, once about a beaded stool top that belonged to my maternal grandfather, an ANDREW / COMPTON / COATES Family Heirloom. The other was titled Windows to the Past - Heirloom Samplers and Recipes, with the objects in question belonging to the CHAMBERS women on the THOMAS side of Terry's tree. And twice before I have written stories about Terry's maternal grandfather Ivor John THOMAS and associated relatives: In Search of Thomas and Yeomans Orphans and THOMAS - A few More Events Added. Ivor's life stage encompassed at least five different countries. He was born in Wales, orphaned in England, sent to work as a farm child in Canada, enjoyed his career, marriage and family in Shanghai and China, and retired to the west coast of Canada with a very brief stint in the USA.

I would now like to add some additional colour to the life story of Ivor John THOMAS: the golden colour of polished brass to be exact.

Sometime during his residence in China, Ivor spotted and coveted a pair of circular embossed and textured brass disks, each mounted on their own black wooden fret work stand. He found them in a shop belonging to a Chinese merchant who was very reluctant to sell them to Ivor in spite of repeated attempts. So being persistent as well as a strategist, Ivor carefully planned to arrive early on the first day of the Chinese New Year, having heard of their belief that it would bring the merchant a year of bad luck if he did not make a sale to the first customer of the year. And of course the discs were the only items in the store that Ivor wanted. I'm sure it took a great deal of haggling, but in the end money changed hands (we don't know how much) and Ivor walked away with his two discs and their stands. They certainly became treasured items in Ivor's home in China.

Upon his retirement, Ivor brought both disks to Canada. Then, after he and then his widow Lily Mary died, one of the mirrors was given to Terry's mother Joyce, and the other to her sister Agnes (she later sold hers). In turn, Joyce's disk was passed down to Terry. This beautiful family heirloom now graces the hearth in our living room.

We believe that our brass disk started its life as a highly polished brass mirror made during the Qing dynasty (according to an expert on the Antiques Roadshow during their visit to our city several years ago). It likely dates from the 19th century. These metal mirrors were made in a variety of sizes, often small enough to be held by hand. Some of the larger ones were used as gongs. With the increasing popularity of glass mirrors (invented in Germany in 1835), the use of bronze or brass mirrors died out and many were converted to decorative objects. The disk faces were elaborately engraved or embossed with meaningful designs.

Our disk is quite large and heavy, measuring almost 18 inches (just over 45 cm) in diameter and needing its wood stand for support. Its shiny golden front face is embossed with a very pleasing and intricate design depicting nine "foo dogs" in various sizes and poses. A larger centre pair of dogs is unevenly ringed by seven smaller ones, and it looks like some of them are romping or chasing one of four round balls. The Chinese believe that these animals, also known as mythical Chinese guardian lions or fu dogs, offer powerful protection for a home or business. For centuries, they have carved pairs of foo dog statues, one male and one female, to guard the entrances of palaces, temples and homes for protection as well as symbols of status and power. So with the images of nine of these creatures on our mirror, surely it must offer us an abundant amount of protection and good fortune.

The back of this disk, although much duller and darker, is also decorated with relief castings of small and stylized figures, flowers, temples, birds and other objects. Around the small center point are two small curved dragons, each chasing a pearl as well as the tail of the other dragon. Four different Chinese characters have been positioned at the four compass points amid a field of other figures, each on its own framed square. We have tried to find out what these characters mean, but have been told they are written in a very old style of character, and no one so far has had success in deciphering them. If anyone can translate these for us from the following images, we'd be very grateful.

This old Chinese mirror heirloom offers us a beautiful touchstone, tangibly connecting us to Terry's grandfather Ivor THOMAS and his exotic-sounding life in Shanghai.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

Examples of other Chinese Mirrors - "Invaluable" auction site
Another large Chinese Mirror used as a gong - Rendells Fine Art auction site (scroll down)
Chinese Guardian Lions (Foo Dogs) - wikipedia
Fu Dogs and Feng Shui
Old photos of Shanghai - Virtual Shanghai site

I have posted additional information on Terry's THOMAS families elsewhere on this website.

"52 Ancestors" is a reference to the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge I am participating in.
Reference the No Story Too Small blog by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow for more details.
It is giving me the much needed incentive to write and publish my family stories.

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Windows to the Past - Heirloom Samplers and Recipes

11/19/2014

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Nothing brings the past to life better than tangible family keepsakes from days gone by, ones that perhaps your ancestors have touched and valued, or even created. It is truly a thrill when new one come to light.

I have recently been contacted by a new third cousin on Terry's mother's THOMAS side, both of them connected to the CHAMBERS and OAKHILL families. It seems that this branch of the family had a tradition, at least upheld for 3 generations. Girls would be taught embroidery, starting with cross stitching, by making "samplers". Often these included the alphabet, enhanced by simple designs or borders. Luckily these particular samplers are dated and signed and have survived to be admired by later generations.

I now have photographs of 3 framed samplers. The oldest one was created by "Phebe Oakhil Aged 11 . 1823". I know because it says so right in the sampler. Phebe OAKHILL was Terry's great-great-grandmother who was born about 1812 and married William CHAMBERS in 1845 in Leicester England. When her daughter Sarah Chambers was old enough, she created a similar sampler in 1857 when she was age 9. Sarah and her husband James JOYCE had two daughters, and when the older daughter Alice was only 7 she created a sampler that had more content than the ones done by her mother and grandmother. Could there have been some competition involved here?

Three Generations of Embroidery Samplers - OAKHILL, CHAMBERS, JOYCE (click to enlarge)

Fortunately these samplers have been framed and protected, and I understand they are still proudly displayed on the walls of grateful descendants.

It seems that these ladies also shared and passed down family recipes. I have seen 3 of these, which not only provide examples of their cooking practices but also their handwriting. The one for plum pudding was likely written by the Alice JOYCE who made the sampler, but was titled "Great Grandmothers Receipe" so had obviously been in the family much longer. We're not sure which great-grandmother it was, but perhaps it was Phebe's mother Henrietta WARD who was born in 1788. In part the recipe calls for 4 pounds each of raisins, currants and sugar, with two and a quarter pounds of suet, 15 eggs, etc. This would provide quite a kick to the blood sugar, not to mention cholesterol levels! No cooking directions were included, so it was obviously something you were taught and then remembered how to make. This recipe produces a huge quantity, so was likely a favorite treat at Christmas time. Perhaps we can assume that they had large family meals during the holidays, although these puddings (like fruitcake) could be stored for long periods as well. Someone else had written a different version of the recipe underneath, divided by 8 to make a more manageable quantity.

The recipes for mincemeat and almond paste were in "my grandmother's writing ", who was likely the Sarah CHAMBERS above. More Christmas treats.

Hopefully even more family keepsakes will come to light. Do you have some family heirlooms that you treasure?

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THOMAS - A Few More Events Added

4/16/2014

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Updated 20 Apr 2014 (quote about Agnes and Gladys)

In the continuing saga of Terry's mother's parents, Ivor THOMAS and Lily Mary YEOMANS, 2 orphans who met and married in Shanghai and later moved to the west coast of Canada (see previous post), I have now managed to add a few more details to their family's timeline.

Family stories claimed that Ivor was employed as a manager with Standard Oil in Shanghai China and that he joined the company in 1909 (on the day his daughter Agnes was born) and retired after 25 years of service. As Ivor married Lily in 1898, he obviously must have had other jobs prior to 1909. But on re-reading his BC death registration from 1946, his son Arthur reported that Ivor was a Paymaster and that he retired in 1929 after 30 years in that occupation. He is also listed as a merchant on some travel documents. So details vary. Regardless, he seems to have had plenty of leave time prior to his retirement, allowing him and his family to travel relatively frequently back and forth to Canada to visit family. And his employer paid for the tickets - nice perk!

In 1921, we already knew from a Canadian passenger list that Ivor, Lily and their son Arthur traveled from Hong Kong to Vancouver and then on to Kelowna and Salmon Arm for a 6 month visit with his brother Bob and his son Bill. Their 3 daughters (Agnes age 12, Gladys age 10 and Joyce age 3) must have been left behind in Shanghai in the care of their Amah, which I find hard to comprehend considering the duration of their absence. But this seems to be true, as I have now located Ivor, Lily and Arthur, along with their oldest son William (Bill) age 19, in the 1921 census, living in a single wood 4-room house in Salmon Arm BC which Ivor apparently owned (really?). As Bill had already been living in BC for about 5 years under the care of his Uncle Bob, perhaps this was an attempt by his parents to get reacquainted and influence him as he entered adulthood. Ivor's brother Robert William (Bob), along with his wife Ethel and 6 children have also been found in the 1921 census, still living in Kelowna BC (south of Salmon Arm).

I have already reported that Lily left Shanghai and moved back to Canada in 1926, apparently for health reasons, along with children Gladys, Arthur and Joyce, while Ivor and Agnes stayed behind in Shanghai. According to Joyce's childhood memoirs, they first lived in Vancouver and then in Seattle before moving to Victoria prior to Ivor's retirement. I have now been able to place Ivor and Lily in Seattle at 2323 East Spring in 1927 thanks to the Seattle City Directory for that year. This corresponds with the family history notes I made when talking to Joyce back in 1987:

... Their next move was to Seattle. There were several moves while in Seattle. Ivor and Agnes came out from China while they lived on East Spring. Ivor and Mary [her name was Lily Mary, and she seems to have gone by both names at various times] went on a trip back east and Joyce caught a severe case of the measles. Mary insisted on coming home early - ESP? Ivor then moved the family to Victoria and bought a house on Dunsmuir Street in Esquimalt. The house never had a furnace. Ivor went back to China for another year before retirement. Mary moved the family to an apartment and rented out the house as she didn't know how to heat it. When Ivor returned on the "Empress of Russia" they moved back to Dunsmuir Street and lived there for many years.

I was also pleased to find another passenger list for Ivor in 1929, when he traveled aboard the Empress of Asia which departed Manila Philippines on 15 Mar 1929 and arrived in Vancouver 6 Apr 1929. While it states that Ivor landed in Victoria rather than Vancouver, it doesn't say how he first came to be in the Philippines! It was the 1921 trip that was aboard the Empress of Russia.

But what about Ivor and Lily's daughter Agnes who is not included on these passenger lists? According to my interview notes:

When Joyce was about 16 (1933?), Ivor sent Agnes and Gladys back to China. Agnes was unable to get a job. She married P. Laurie Morphew in Harry White's house. Gladys was able to find work ....

If true, then we don't yet know how and when Agnes first moved to Canada, nor the details of their trip back to China about 1933. We do know that Agnes married a Percy Lawrence "Laurie" Morphew and had 2 daughters in Shanghai 1935-1937. I have found their family aboard the Empress of Russia in May 1939, sailing from Hong Kong to Victoria. Unfortunately them must have returned to China again. The war started later that year and at some point Laurie enlisted as a private in the Hong Kong Volunteer Defense Corps, at Corps HQ. Tragically he was captured and imprisoned by the Japanese, no doubt during the Dec 1941 invasion, and never made it home, dying in Oct 1942. He is buried in the Stanley Military Cemetery in Hong Kong according to the UK Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Agnes and the children had already been evacuated, as I have found them aboard the "President Collidge", leaving Shanghai 26 Feb 1941 and arriving in San Francisco on 13 Mar 1941. I cannot possibly imagine what the family must have gone through during this time.

If her sister Gladys did return to China about 1933, when and how did she move back to Canada? I have now found Gladys on a passenger and crew list, already back in Canada in 1944, working as a news agent in the gift shop aboard the Princess Victoria which traveled between Victoria and Seattle. According to family stories, this is how she met her future husband Don MacKinnon who became a ferry boat captain. According to the crew list, Gladys had been working for 2 years at the job.

Hopefully I'll be able to find even more about this THOMAS family. An overview of Ivor Thomas' family is also posted on this site, including some old family photos.

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In Search of THOMAS and YEOMANS Orphans

3/16/2014

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St Joseph Roman Catholic Church, Shanghai

In recent months I have finally published information on Terry's mother's THOMAS heritage, and the related (and rather limited) THOMAS and CHAMBERS family tree. Terry's maternal grandparents were Ivor John THOMAS (whose mother was Charlotte CHAMBERS) and Lily Mary YEOMANS. Both were orphans, which in part explains why we have encountered some serious road blocks in our research. Their stories also span several continents and countries (England, Wales, Canada, USA and China), adding further challenges to our search.

The most imposing brick wall surrounds the YEOMANS / YEOMEN(S). Lily was reportedly born in England, orphaned probably before the age of three. She grew up not knowing her birth surname nor her exact date and place of birth. For unknown reasons she decided to celebrate her birth on February 20, and (sometimes!) calculated her age from 1880. When Lily was about 3, she was adopted by an American couple Mr and Mary Yeoman(s) and they moved to Shanghai. We don't yet know Mr Yeoman's first name or occupation, nor exactly what year they moved or if they went directly to Shanghai.

What we do know is that both the Yeomans died when Lily "was about 9" (so about 1889), leaving her orphaned for a second time. We are assuming that Lily was already in Shanghai when she was orphaned again. According to family stories, Lily came under the care of the French Franciscan nuns at St Josephs Catholic convent in Shanghai where she attended school and later married Ivor John THOMAS in 1898. I have found several photos and information on a St Joseph's RC Church on 36 Rue Montauban in the French Concession of Shanghai, with reference to a primary school at the same address and an orphanage next door. So although I can't find reference to the Franciscan nuns at this church, I think it is likely where Lily lived and was educated in the 1890s.

Shanghai streets and tramways, c1920.

We still have a long way to go to identify Lily's ancestors and adoptive parents. But thanks to a talented researcher at our local Victoria Genealogical Society who sent me a link to some Shanghai resources at the University of Bristol, I was able to access some old China directories. In both the 1882 and 1884 “Hong Lists” for Shanghai and Northern Ports of China ("Who's Who" and Ladies lists), we found both a Mrs Yeomans and an H Yeomans (Constable at the British Consulate) living in Tientsin, an international treaty port further north on the China coast. Could they be the right couple? Would they have traveled first to Tientsin before moving to Shanghai? Would Americans have been hired to do police work for the British consulate in China? Or could they have been British who had lived in America for a time before deciding to try Asia? More research is obviously needed.

In looking for the Yeomans in travel and immigration records, I've drawn a blank on finding passenger lists prior to 1890 in and out of China and England. But for later dates I have found 4 separate sightings on Canadian arrival passenger lists for Lily and/or Ivor THOMAS after their marriage.

1916. Ivor Thomas, age recorded as 55 (but should be 45), was traveling alone on the Empress of Russia from Hong Kong to Vancouver BC, arriving 3 Jun 1916 (during WWI). Ivor was likely visiting his oldest son Bill who was living with Ivor's brother Robert William Thomas and family in Kelowna BC. Bill had been sent to Canada when he was "the troublesome age of 14". We don't know exactly when Bill was born, but it was likely in 1901 as there was a 17 year age difference between Bill and Joyce (according to Joyce who was born in 1918). Therefore Bill may have come to Canada in about 1915 or 1916, quite close to this trip by his father Ivor.
1918. Two years later Lily Mary Thomas, age 40, was traveling alone (or perhaps with a companion from Shanghai?) aboard the Empress of Asia from Hong Kong to Vancouver, arriving there on 29 Apr 1918. It doesn't mention her pregnancy on the passenger list, but this coincides with family stories about Lily coming to BC to give birth to her youngest daughter Joyce (Terry's mother) and to visit her oldest son Bill in Kelowna BC while staying with Ivor's brother Robert. The passenger document gives some additional and very interesting information. Lily was entering Canada as a tourist this time, to stay with R W Thomas in Kelowna. She had $400, and would be returning in September. When asked if she had been to Canada before, she said yes, for 10 months in BC in 1898, so perhaps this was a long honeymoon? Or perhaps they were considering moving to Canada and were looking for suitable work, but decided in the end to move back to Shanghai? We do not know.
1921. On 16 May 1921, both Ivor (50) and Lily (still 40) and son Arthur Thomas (5) arrived in Vancouver BC aboard the Empress of Russia, traveling from Shanghai and departing from Hong Kong. The facts on this list are somewhat contradictory as they all claim to be staying permanently in Canada, while at the same time are in transit via CPR to Kelowna for a 6 month visit to Salmon Arm BC. Ivor is declared as a protestant and a merchant, born in Wales. Lily, born in England, hadn't aged at all, still being 40 (as she was for her 1916 trip). Their young son Arthur was listed as born in Manchuria, which agrees with family stories. The family lived for a time near the Russian border in the northern port of Dairen Manchuria (now called Dalian) where Ivor was a manager (perhaps Pay Master) for Standard Oil. Stories say that they moved there in 1918, yet Arthur was born in Dec 1915 in Manchuria, so the timeline is a bit off. There was a lot of political upheaval in the area caused by the Russian revolution of 1917, with the Czar and his family being assassinated in Jul 1918, so it was likely not the safest place for white foreigners to be. Perhaps the Thomas family evacuated for a time and returned to Manchuria after the revolution in 1918. Joyce said she remembered a lot of previously wealthy Russians trying to sell their jewels and possessions for food, but as she wasn't born until 1918 she would have been too young for these to have been personal memories. The family did return to Shanghai at some point because Joyce attended the same convent school as her mother Lily did.
1926. The fourth trip in 1926 was Lily's permanent move to Canada with 3 children: Gertrude Gladys (15) Arthur Emlyn? (10) and Lillian Joyce (8). They arrived in Victoria BC on 20 Sep 1926 aboard the Empress of Canada, once again destined for Kelowna BC. Ivor was not with them, although the passage was "paid for by Husband's employer". Son Bill was already in Canada, and their other daughter stayed behind in China with her father.

We know there were other trips as well. Where is the record of their trip to Canada in 1898? How and when did their son Bill move to Canada prior to 1918 "as a troubled teen"? Exactly when did Ivor join his family in Canada upon retirement? Ivor's death registration says he retired in 1929, according to his son Arthur. Where is the record of Ivor's trip to England in 1933 to place a tombstone on his mother's grave? And how did both Ivor and Lily get to Shanghai in the first place?

3 Thomas cousins: Violet, Joyce and Joyce, 1991, Victoria BC

Ivor John THOMAS was also an orphan, but at least we know a bit more about his Thomas family than we do about the Yeomans. Most of the information we have on the Thomases came from descendants of Ivor's brother Robert who live(d) in England. Terry's mother Joyce was able to connect with them in the late 1980s with the help of the Salvation Army. As a result, two of Joyce's first cousins (another Joyce and Violet) visited her in Victoria BC in 1991. It was a happy reunion.

According to the marriage record for Ivor's parents, Arthur Rhys Thomas married Charlotte Chambers in Aug 1868 in Leicester England. Their first child Rachel died before reaching the age of 2. On the 1871 census Arthur and Charlotte were living in St Mary Parish, Cardiff, Glamorgan, Wales with their son John who was only 8 weeks old, born in Cardiff. This would be our Ivor John (1871) who, along with his younger brother Robert William (born 1873 in Leicester), were still very young when both their parents died of the "galloping consumption" in about 1876. We believe that the boys were initially taken in by their maternal grandparents William and Phoebe Chambers. William and Pheobe are listed in the 1881 England census, living at 159 Great Holme Street, Leicester with 2 grandson: "Joe J Thomas, grandson, age 10, born Cardiff Wales" and "William Thomas, grandson, age 8, born Leicester England". I think these 2 grandsons were Ivor John (the handwriting looks like more like "Iva I" rather than Joe) an his brother Robert William. Also in the 1881 household were William Chambers (26) and Mary A Chambers (29), an uncle and aunt to young Ivor and Robert. Family stories say the boys were cared for by their Aunt Sarah, who would have been their mother's sister Sarah Chambers who had married a James Joyce before 1868, and who probably cared for them when the grandparents could no longer do so. Sources vary on what happened to the Chambers grandparents; some say they died in 1887 and 1886 in Leicester, yet I have found a death and probate record for a William Chambers in 1885 in Northamptonshire (where he was born). His executors included Phebe Chambers widow. This seems like a better match for William. I agree that Phoebe died in 1886 in Leicester, perhaps returning to her home county after her husband's death in Northamptonshire.

At some point the family was no longer able to care for the boys, and they were separated and sent as "home children" to Canada. We checked with Barnardo's and they had no record of Ivor or Robert in their files, so their emigration must have been handled by another organization. What we do know is that Ivor ended up living with a Canadian family on Maplewood Farm near a French village in Drummond County, Quebec. As was often the case, he was not adopted and was treated as a farm servant. When he was old enough to leave he headed west, earning money by harvesting. Ivor ended up in Victoria BC where he worked for a time as a gardener for Sir Frank Barnard, 10th Lieutenant-Governor of BC, who had a lovely home in Esquimalt. The ships from China in the harbour caught his eye, and he decided to save up money for passage and seek his fortune in China. He was probably in his early twenties by then, making the journey in the early 1890s. Certainly he was in Shanghai by 1898 when he married Lily Yeomans.

Postcard from Robert to cousin Alice

Ivor's brother Robert THOMAS (born 1873) was also sent to Canada as a child, but we don't know any details; the family says he didn't like to talk about it because he was mistreated. What we do know is that he later lived in Leicestershire England and Kelowna BC Canada. And like his brother, Robert went to China for a time before he moved to British Columbia Canada. Yet unlike Ivor he returned to England with his family in 1929.

Robert's timeline is a bit uncertain in places. Robert married Ethel Chambers in England in Nov 1906 (he was 33) and they had 6 children whose places of birth help us track some of this family's travel and location changes. Their 2 oldest children were reportedly born in Shanghai (1907 and 1910), their 3rd in England (1912), and the youngest 3 probably born in Kelowna BC (1913, 1915, 1916). Earlier in 1904 prior to his marriage , a R W Thomas is listed in a "Who's Who list for Shanghai, working for the Municipal Police (this occupation fits with family stories). And in the Spring of 1906, he was likely the "RT" who sent a Chinese art postcard from Shanghai to a cousin "Miss Alice Joyce" in Leicester (there was no personal message, just a Chinese poem). So perhaps there was some travel back and forth between England and Shanghai before they ended up in Canada in about 1913. Then in October 1929, Robert, Ethel and all 6 children are listed on a passenger list as they leave Canada, traveling from Tacoma (Washington State, south of BC Canada) to Stockholme, "landing" in Leicestershire England. Their full names and ages are listed, all declared as British Nationalists last living in Canada, intending to live in England. I think this was their final move back to England, where most remained for the rest of their lives.

Speaking of old postcards, there were 2 later Chinese postcards, this time sent by Ivor in Shanghai to relatives in Leichester. So we know that the brothers had at least intermittent contact with each other and with relatives in England.

So many questions remain about the lives and families of our two orphans, Ivor John THOMAS and Lily Mary YEOMANS.

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Paying Respects at Ross Bay Cemetery - #1 (52 ancestors)

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Paying Respects at Ross Bay Cemetery - #1 (52 ancestors)

BURIALS: BOORMAN, SCHOENECKER, GOSSE, WHITTAKER, IRVINE, ROBSON

SCHOENECKER

​GOSSE & BOORMAN

​IRVINE & ROBSON

Photo Book for Russell Terence "Terry" BOORMAN - #52 (52 Ancestors)

Heirloom of Ivor John THOMAS (1871-1946) - #24 (52 Ancestors)

Windows to the Past - Heirloom Samplers and Recipes

THOMAS - A Few More Events Added

In Search of THOMAS and YEOMANS Orphans

Authors

Categories

Blogroll

Archives

GOSSE & BOORMAN

IRVINE & ROBSON