Rooted to the Land ~ Germany to Canada

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2020 Week 17 (LAND)



My husband's family is solidly rooted to the land in Southern Ontario. Much of the land was originally granted for loyalty to Britain. His family is spread all across Ontario with some still living on their original land grant. 

There is much history attached to the Buchner name. 

My husband shares a name with a X5 great uncle whose home is a historical site in the Niagara Falls area.

"The property was part of a larger holding purchased by Christopher Buchner
from his father-in-law, James Forsyth, in 1799. The lands were central to the
fighting of the Battle of Lundy's Lane on July 25, 1814. A house belonging to
Christopher and Sarah Buchner on the southwest slope of Drummond Hill was
noted in military papers which recorded the battle proceedings. Christopher
Buchner was a lieutenant in the 2nd Lincoln Militia and was standing, with his son John, only a few hundred yards from his house when the first skirmishes began. The extent of the damage, if any, which the house sustained during the battle is unknown." 1

Source:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Battle_of_Lundy%27s_Lane.jpg

When I first got married I don't remember who told me: 'if you aren't born to or married to a Buchner - not to worry you will be related to Buchners before you die', but they were right. As I navigate across the Buchner side of the Bramble Bush I have discovered that the statement was funny because it was true. I spend a lot of time untangling the wraparound vines. The intertwining requires careful consideration before adding a new person to this side of the bramble bush.  


In Ontario many Buchners are still farmers or lease their land to other farmers. Many run businesses from the land descendants still own. When searching for Buchners alternative spellings Boughner & Buckner will result  in long lists of folks and businesses throughout North America.


Long before the battle of 1812 my husband's ancestors called Unnau, Germany home. 

Red is the village Unnau
Source: Google Maps

"All genealogies begin with the German ancestor Merten Buchner (died 1694) who lived in Unnau, a village in the province of Nassau-Dillenburg. This is located in the northernmost part of the Westerwald Region of the present state of Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany and northeast of the city of Koblenz. The genealogy follows his family in the records of nearby Bad Marienberg Evangelical Church. Merten’s son Johan Bäst Buchner (baptized 1663) lived in Unnau, as did Merton’s grandson Johann Martin Buchner (baptized 1705), the immigrant ancestor to America.

Martin Buchner with his wife Elisabetha Maria Zehrüng and family emigrated to America on the snow Rowand landing in the Port of Philadelphia in 1753 then settled in Amwell Township, Morris (afterwards Sussex) County, New Jersey where Martin was a schoolmaster." 2


Johannes Martin (Martin) Buchner
BIRTH 29 JAN 1704 • Unnau, Nassau (now), Westerwald, Germany

DEATH 1780 • Sussex County, New Jersey, United States of America
and
Elsa Maria (Elizabeth) Zehrung
BIRTH 14 OCT 1704 • Fehl-Ritzhausen, (now Marienberg), Nassau, (now) Westerwald, Germany

DEATH 1780 • Amwell, Sussex, New Jersey, USA


Martin and Elizabeth (nee Zehrung) Buchner are my husband's 6th great grandparents through their son:
Johannes Theis (John) Buchner (my husband's 5th great grandfather)
BIRTH 18 SEP 1729 • Unnau, Westerwald, Hessen, Germany
DEATH 11 SEP 1791 • Hardwick Twp, Sussex, New Jersey, USA
and his wife Catherine (I have't been able to confirm details). 


My husband's part of the bramble bush arrived in Ontario, Canada via his 4th great grandparents
**** and 5th great grandparents explained in another blog linked below ****

United Empire Loyalist (UEL)
Sergeant Jacob Buchner
BIRTH 31 MAY 1763 • Hardwick Twp., Sussex, New Jersey, USA
DEATH 11 AUG 1841 • Woodhouse, Norfolk County, Ontario
and 
Catherine Shelar
BIRTH 20 SEP 1767 • Sussex County, New Jersey
DEATH 8 FEB 1855 • Woodhouse, Norfolk County, Ontario

I do not yet have a record of their arrival in Canada, but the first recorded child born in Canada was 1789.

My husband's 3rd great grandfather is their 7th child born in 1908.
Jacob Clasnor Buchner
BIRTH 20 APR 1803 • Woodhouse Twp, Norfolk County , Ontario, Canada
DEATH 29 JUN 1886 • Houghton Twp, Norfolk County , Ontario, Canada
married to
Amy Catherine Matthews
BIRTH ABT 1801 • Woodhouse, Ontario
DEATH 10 MAR 1880 • Cultus, Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada
who was a widow of George Warwick when she married Jacob.


Their descendant works in healthcare, and finds peace rooted to the land. 

Working hard to pollinate2020 Mason Bees 

5 generations later still loving the land!







This is why I search - 



Cause ... 





You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!
















***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***







Related Previous Blogs:

Somehow Related Blog Spot,
When Two Lines Become One ~ Clarissa (nee Buchner) Rittenour
http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/2020/03/when-two-lines-become-one-clarissa-nee.html



Footnotes:

1 Buchner House, 6172 Buchner Place, Council of the Corporation of the City of Niagara Falls , Bylaw Amendment, Ontario Heritage Act e-Register. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from
https://www.heritagetrust.on.ca/fr/oha/details/file?id=4733


2 The Ontario Pioneers and Available Genealogies, The Long Point Settlers. Mutrie, R. Robert. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from
https://sites.google.com/site/longpointsettlers/ontario-pioneers-genealogies/settlers-b/ontario-pioneers-brady-to-budd?authuser=0




Sources:

Buchner House, Canada's Historic Places. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from
https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=9749

Lundy's Lane Battlefield, Niagara Falls Museums. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from 
https://niagarafallsmuseums.ca/visit/lundyslanebattlefield

Nassau, Historical Region, Germany, Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from https://www.britannica.com/place/Nassau-historical-region-Germany

Niagara Falls, Fort Erie Local History. Retrieved April 25th 2020 from
https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=9749





Links:


Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

___________________________________________________________

Cousin Fred ~ Too Tall to be a Pilot

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2020 Week 16 (AIR)


In preparing to write this week's blog I looked over my mother's maternal side of the tree. Normally as I ponder - someone leaps out. It's almost like they have raised their hand to have their story told. This week that didn't happen.

When I set up my 2020 plan to take fair turns for all sides of this Bramble Bush I hadn't realized that sometimes I would struggle with who to write about. No one jumped out at my as the logical choice for this week's prompt AIR.

I then had a novel idea. Why not go to the source. I phoned my grandma, and asked her if she had anyone in her side of the family who would fit for the hint AIR. I suggested a pilot, hot air balloon enthusiast, or anyone that had something to do with air or high places.

After a very short moment she replied "Well. My cousin Fred Baker was too tall to fly fighter jets in World War 2". In that moment I realized I had heard about Cousin Fred before. He was always referred to as 'Cousin Fred' because my grandma's brother is named Fred as well. I had heard that exact sentence, but had never asked exactly how tall Fred was, nor did I ask why the sentence was worded exactly that way.

I set off looking for Frederick Herbert Baker's attestation papers, but was unsuccessful. I knew they would have had his exact height in those papers.

What I did find was a photo showing Cousin Fred wearing his Pilot Wings:

Photo that was with
Great Britain, Royal Aero Club Aviators’ Certificate
source: Ancestry.ca (retrieved April 19th 2020)

with a record of Fred's WINGS:

Great Britain, Royal Aero Club Aviators’ Certificatesource: Ancestry.ca (retrieved April 19th 2020)

It now made sense why the sentence was worded the way it was. Cousin Fred had passed his WINGS, but couldn't fly the fighter jets because he was too tall so he served as ground crew during World War 2.

What didn't make sense to me was why a Canadian would earn British flight credentials. So I went in search of exactly what Cousin Fred's training had been. 

During World War 2 Britain sought assistance from their dominions (Canada, Australia, New Zealand) in training more pilots, and the program was called British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP). After learning about the program it made sense why Britain had issued Cousin Fred's WINGS. 

****** If you are interested in learning more about
the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP)
check the sources below ******

I was still a bit perplexed about exactly how tall Cousin Fred was so I went back to my original source, and called Grandma. Grandma said that she can't be sure, but Cousin Fred was probably about 6'5".  She guessed this because he was about the same height as my uncle (her youngest son) who is 6'5". 

Grandma also told me that she always thought her youngest son was 6'6", but he recently told her that he couldn't let her continue to lie so wanted her to know he's only 6'5". 

What we do know was that Cousin Fred was a very tall guy. 

I pondered why they would have let him start the training if he was too tall.

I set off to find out exactly how tall is too tall to fly fighter jets.

I was not able to find a record of height restrictions for Britain's World War 2 fighter pilots, but I did find an article that stated U.S. fighter pilots must be no taller than 6'5" standing & 3'4" sitting.

With Grandma's guess that Cousin Fred was about 6'5" it seems he would have just fit, but depending on the proportions of his build he may have been too tall when sitting. Or maybe he was taller than 6'5".  Maybe grandma's original 6'6" guess was more accurate. Or maybe today's fighter jet height restrictions are different than they were for World War 2.

He must have fit the initial height requirements because he was granted his Pilot Wings after completing 63 flight hours. At some point after that, the family story goes, he didn't fit into the fighter jets. Cousin Fred spent the time he was deployed during World War 2 as grounds crew even though he had qualified as a pilot.

I asked Grandma what Cousin Fred did after World War 2 & if he married. She said that she should know what he did for a living, but couldn't remember. She also said he married, but a bit later than was expected. She couldn't remember his wife's name or if he had children. Grandma has an amazing memory, but at 93 years old there are things she just can't remember. 

This is all I know about my 1st cousin X2 removed
Frederick Herbert Baker
BIRTH 26 MAY 1919 • Rural Municipality of Daly, Manitoba, Canada
DEATH Unknown

son of
Amy Florence Dendy
BIRTH 27 MAY 1894 • Camberwell, Surrey, England
DEATH 14 JUL 1982 • Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
and 
William John (Jack) Baker
BIRTH ABT 1877 • Plymouth, Devon, England
DEATH Unknown


I know that if Grandma remembers the answer to the questions I've asked she will phone. Over the past few years I have started to write down everything she tells me so I can remember once she is no longer here for me to ask.

****updated information and photos can be found here:
Week 41 (NEWEST) Fishing For Cousins ~ When The Bait Works

Ask the questions while the story-tellers still remember!







This is why I search - 



Cause ... 





You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!
















***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***







Sources:


Air Force Fighter Pilot Qualifications, by Jennifer Alyson; Houston Chronicle News, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://work.chron.com/air-force-fighter-pilot-qualifications-8456.html

The Canadian Encyclopedia, British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, Retrieved april 19th 2020 from
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/british-commonwealth-air-training-plan

Great Britain, Royal Aero Club Aviators’ Certificate. Royal Aero Club, index cards and photographs are in the care of the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, London, England. Retrieved from Ancestry.ca April 19th 2020

Juno Beach Centre, Canada in the Second World War, British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://www.junobeach.org/canada-in-wwii/articles/british-commonwealth-air-training-plan/

Juno Beach Centre, Canada in the Second World War, The BCATP Training Programme, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://www.junobeach.org/canada-in-wwii/articles/british-commonwealth-air-training-plan/the-bcatp-training-programme/

Royal Airforce Museum, Taking Flight, Pathway to Pilot, pilot Wings, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/taking-flight/historical-periods/pilots-wings.aspx

Royal Airforce Museum, Taking Flight, Pathway to Pilot, Royal Aero Club Aviator's Certificate, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/taking-flight/pathway-to-pilot/royal-aero-club-aviators-certificate.aspx

Royal Airforce Museum, Taking Flight, Pathway to Pilot, World War 2, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/taking-flight/pathway-to-pilot/second-world-war.aspx

Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, BCATP Was a Breathtaking Canadian Undertaking That Helped the Allies Win WWII, November 14, 2016, By Ed Unrau, Retrieved April 19th 2020 from
http://royalaviationmuseum.com/bcatp-was-a-breathtaking-canadian-undertaking-that-helped-the-allies-win-wwii/




Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

___________________________________________________________

Father & Son ~ Explosion At Work

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: 2020 Week 15 (FIRE)


It was a Thursday.
January 19th 1905 when Michael Aspden went to work at the sawmill in Cultus, Ontario, Canada. He, like many of the local farmers, made extra money during the winter at sawmills. 

Whitehead's Sawmill, 1905

That day, like any other winter day, he probably said goodbye to his wife & children. Maybe he kissed his wife Maggie goodbye?  

Michael & Maggie (nee Murphy) Aspden
My husband's X2 great grandparents

Maybe his kids chased after him?  Maybe he left with a full heart?  Maybe he left worried about things?  What exactly he was thinking about we don't know.  

What we do know is that Michael went to work at the sawmill. He was working that day with his oldest child John, and third oldest child Tom.  He likely met them at work. 


By 1905 Tom likely was not living at home. In the 1901 census he was listed as  living nearby with the Fleming family. By 1905 he may have moved back home since he was not married. 

Oldest son John had gotten married just a few weeks before on December 28th to Jessie Burger. He and Jessie likely lived nearby as was typical of that era. Maybe John met up with Michael & Tom to go to work, or maybe he met them there.


The day likely began & progressed just like any other work day. Just before quitting time John bent over to pick something up off the floor. That moment would save his life. 


At about 5:00 p.m. the boiler at the sawmill exploded. Tom and coworkers Charles Hainer, and George McCallum were killed instantly.  Michael & Freeman Moffatt critically injured. 

Simcoe Reformer, January 27th 1905 

An Aspden family member wrote the following after hearing the stories at a family reunion. 
"We can imagine the horror of John when he straightened up and gaped at the wreckage around him. His younger brother, Thomas, was dead. So too was the hired help, Charles Hainer. At first glance, Michael was in shock, badly burnt, but looked like he was going to make it."1


It was 6 days later that Michael succumbed to the injuries he sustained that day. 

Thomas Aspden & Charles Hainer died instantly
Michael Aspden died from inernal injuries 6 days later

When I decided to write about Michael & Tom Aspden for this week's blog, using the prompt, FIRE I thought I knew the story well having heard it from my husband's aunt who had heard it from her father who was 21 at the time of the explosion that killed his father and brother. 


I found researching fairly difficult because of the errors and misspellings in the past. There were a lot of media articles that listed Tom as George Aspden. The name Aspden was spelled as Ashben, Aspben, and Ashpen, and other ways. Once I finally figured out the sawmill wasn't owned by Michael as the family believed, but was owned by a gentleman named George Whitehead, researching became a little easier. 


It was known as Whitehead's Sawmill. The family story only included two killed, and one injured. There was much of the tale that we didn't know.


The insurance company released the information below. It doesn't list Charles Hainer who was included in the death registration above. Nor does it list Michael as dying from the injuries.I wasn't able to find Charles Penard so it's possible that the Charles listed below is the same Charles listed above. Which name is the correct one can't be determined, but likely the burial information is correct. The death registration isn't fully correct since Charles' age was not 18. Charles. This burial record appears to be accurate:

Source: Ancestry.ca

"(36.) — A boiler exploded, on January 19, in Whitehead's sawmill, at Cultus,
a small town near Langdon, Ont. Charles Penard, George Aspden, George McCallum, and Freeman Moffat were killed, and George Whitehead, Michael Aspden, and Charles Whitehead were injured. The property loss is estimated

at $15,000." 2

Below is part of an entry I found in a local history book: 
"Another incident occurred at the Whitehead sawmill east of Fairground on December 19, 1904, when a steam boiler ran dry and someone tried to replace the water with the result that four men were killed and a fifth died on January 25, 1905. Four other men were injured. Charles. Hanner and Thomas Aspden were killed instantly, the latter by a brick driven through his skull. Freeman Moffatt of Cultus lived ten hours and George McCollom lived just a few minutes after being carried to the nearby boarding house. Michael Aspden died later in Langton on January 25, 1905. The injured were John L. Gee, Wally Whitehead and Allan Moffatt. Aspden was blown out of the fire hole about thirty feet beyond the west end of the mill. Wally Whitehead, nephew of John Whitehead, the owner of the mill, had just arrived on the scene when the explosion occurred and was hit by a flying object in the shoulder and arm, disabling his arm. John Aspden and Walter Stansell were the first to gather up the dead. The latter was mistaken for a doctor as he came upon the scene carrying a satchel." 3

After the explosion
Lower right of the photo is a hat - believed to be Michael Aspden's

In the photo above you will see a hat in the lower right. The family had been told it is Michael's hat. The family was told that Tom was decapitated. In the excerpt above it was described that a brick was driven through Tom's skull. It must have appeared to the family member who identified him that he had been decapitated. 


John was first to gather up the dead which included his father, brother, and colleagues. If he wouldn't have bent over right at that moment in time he too would have been injured or killed. His wife left a widow after only 22 days of marriage. His first child born 11 months later would never have been.  Like Tom's family line John's would have ended that day at work. 



In the book excerpt above the date of the explosion is wrong. After reading it I realized I needed to research this story more. I was able to confirm the date with the registration of Freeman Moffatt's death. I was not able to find George McCallum's death registration, but did find his death information on Find-A-Grave (sourced in the section below). Death records for both confirm the date of the explosion as January 19th 1905. 

Once the details were correct it was possible to find articles about the explosion. 

The Daily News, January 21st 1905

The Ottawa Journal, January 21st 1905

Manitoba Morning Free Press, January 21st 1905 

Toronto Daily Star, January 20th 1905

The Buffalo Times,  Jan 23rd 1905

The Windsor Star, January 20th 1905

When considering all the details presented the story passed down to the family regarding this tragic accident are mostly correct. The family's belief that the sawmill was owned by Michael Aspden isn't correct. I can find no connection between the owner George (or John or Charles) Whitehead and the Aspden family. 


There were 10 men working at the sawmill on the day the explosion happened. 5 were killed, 3 recovered from their injuries, and 2 were uninjured. 


The lack of safe work practices in the past is why we now have rules & legislation around safety at work. Everyone should come home at the end of their work day. 





Taking a moment to remember those who didn't come home from work in our Bramble Bush Family Tree. 






This is why I search - 



Cause ... 





You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!
















***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***





Footnotes:

1 Our Aspden Roots In Lancashire, England: A Tradition of Stationary Engineers and Sawmills, Aspden, Murray Bruce.  Self published eBook, 2016, pg 4

2 The Locomotive, Vol. 25, The Hartford Steam Boiler Insepction and Insurance Company, The Case, Lockivood & Brainard Company Printers, Hartford, Connecticut, October 1905, pg 213   Retrieved April 14th 2020 from
https://archive.org/details/locomotive25hart/mode/2up

3 Sims' History of Elgin County Volume III.  Sims, Hugh Joffre. Elgin County Library St. Thomas, Ontario,  The Aylmer Express Ltd., Aylmer, Ontario, Canada, 1988, pg 160.  Retrieved April 12th 2020 from

https://inmagic.elgin.ca/ElginImages/archives/ImagesArchive/pdfs/REF15_Sims%20History%20of%20Elgin%20County%20Book%203.pdf?fbclid=IwAR0Ujt5P2b81GpcST5fBqzx6FLc39j24nNTvgJALmnYw8l3xLJiBw3J8qDo


Sources:

McCallum, George Thomas. Find-A-Grave, Retrieved April 12th 2020 from
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/109151264

News Articles unsourced belong to the newspaper who published them.

Our Aspden Roots In Lancashire, England: A Tradition of Stationary Engineers and Sawmills, Aspden, Murray Bruce.  eBook, 2016

Vital statistics records, Ontario, Canada, Ancestry.ca


Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

___________________________________________________________