Finding Home Sweet Home ~ When You Never Knew Where It Was

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 13 (HOME SWEET HOME)

I was an adult before I found out my grandfather was born on the homestead in Saskatchewan.

Once I heard I became obsessed with finding out what I could about where my family settled when they immigrated from Ukraine in 1909.

My family's homestead:
SW, Section: 1, Township: 48, Range: 17, Meridian: W2.

This homestead is located in Saskatchewan.

This is what remains of the original cabin where my grandfather was born.

This is where my family's Canadian roots began.

After leaving Ukraine in 1909 my great grandparents chose Saskatchewan, Canada as their new home.

My grandfather was the first child born on that homestead.

On Google Maps I found these visuals for Home Sweet Home!

Google Clip

1

2

I definitely want to visit in real life, but for now am grateful for the virtual visits available with current technology.

Photos, letting you see the old family homestead!!! 

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 Section 1, Township 48, Range 17, West of the 2nd Meridian. Retrieved March 25th 2025 from
http://www.legallandconverter.com/cgi-bin/shopats201703.cgi?cmd=forward&quarter=&section=1&township=48&range=17&meridian=W2&prg=Calc

2 Google Streetview Clip. Retrieved March 25th 2025 from
https://www.google.com/maps/@53.1036565,-104.3433058,3a,90y,37.23h,80.91t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1saABij26X4Tf0a-uje6ppGg!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D9.090000000000003%26panoid%3DaABij26X4Tf0a-uje6ppGg%26yaw%3D37.23!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDMyNC4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

Sources:

Section 1, Township 48, Range 17, West of the 2nd Meridian. Retrieved March 25th 2025 from
http://www.legallandconverter.com/cgi-bin/shopats201703.cgi?cmd=forward&quarter=&section=1&township=48&range=17&meridian=W2&prg=Calc

Homestead. Alexr Pelyck. Library & Archives Canada. Retrieved March 25th 2025 from
https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/land/land-grants-western-canada-1870-1930/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=87918&

Photos:

Google screen clips, Retrieved March 25th 2025

Personal

Links:

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

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!

______________________________________________________________

This Family's Historic Event ~ Arrival In Canada

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 12 (HISTORIC EVENT)

1850, at age 30, Martha (nee Wolfenden) Aspden got on a ship with 4 children (Joseph age 6, Rachael age 4, Jonothan age 2, John infant), traveling from Liverpool England going to Canada.

They had a stop at Ellis Island September 18th 1850. 

It was this record I  found confirming their trip from England to Canada.

We know they traveled via ship to Canada because infant John died at sea somewhere between New York & Montreal. 

I haven't found that ship's manifest yet.

I have not found the record for husband John's arrival.

I have found  them together in Canada for the 1951 census in Norfolk County, Canada West (Ontario), Canada. 

Left buried in England were three babies: Alice, George, and Ann

Martha was pregnant while she traveled by ship from England with her small children.

What a trip that must have been for her.

Traveling alone with small children & pregnant while going to a new country.  

The 1951 census also revealed John was an Engineer, and the family  belonged to the Methodist Church.

Chris' 3rd great grandparents: John & Martha (nee Wolfenden) Aspden.

John Aspden
Birth 20 AUG 1819 • Brooks Bottoms, Bury, Lancashire, England
Death 7 MAR 1906 • Houghton Township, Norfolk County, Canada
and
Martha Wolfenden
Birth 10 OCT 1819 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death 21 OCT 1888 • Houghton Township, Norfolk County, Canada

and their children:
Alice Aspden
Birth 1 DEC 1840 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death 8 JAN 1845 • England
George Aspden (twin to Joseph)
Birth 22 AUG 1842 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death 22 AUG 1842 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Joseph Aspden (twin to George)
Birth 22 AUG 1842 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death OCT 1906 • Brantford, Ontario, Canada
Ann Aspden
Birth 10 FEB 1844 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death 8 JUL 1846 • Brooksbottom, Walmersley, Lancashire, England
Rachael Aspden
Birth 3 JAN 1846 • Rochdale, Lancashire, England
Death 29 JUN 1891 • Waterford, Ontario, Canada
Jonathan Aspden
Birth 20 NOV 1847 • Brooksbottom, Walmersley, Bury, Lancashire, England
Death 26 SEP 1904 • Tay Township, Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada
John Aspden
Birth 13 DEC 1849 • England
Death SEP-OCT 1850 • At Sea (between New York City and Montreal)
Thomas Aspden
Birth 27 JAN 1851 • Norfolk County, Townsend Township, Ontario, Canada
Death 7 OCT 1918 • Burford Tp., Brant Co., Ontario, Canada
Michael Aspden (X2 Great Grandfather)
Birth 8 DEC 1853 • Norfolk Co., Canada West
Death 25 JAN 1905 • Houghton, Norfolk, Ontario, Canada
Sarah Jane (Jennie) Aspden
Birth 10 NOV 1854 • Houghton, Norfolk, Canada West, Canada
Death 3 OCT 1931 • Oakland, Brant, Ontario, Canada
Elsirana (Elsie Rena) Aspden
Birth 15 AUG 1857 • Vienna, Ontario, Canada
Death 12 SEP 1920 • Saginaw, Michigan, U.S.A.
Samuel Carlus Aspden
Birth 21 AUG 1859 • Townsend Township, Canada West
Death 4 APR 1922 • Tillsonburg, Oxford, Ontario, Canada
George M Aspden
Birth 6 AUG 1861 • Canada West, Canada
Death 26 DEC 1932 • Houghton, Norfolk, Canada
Martha Ann Aspden
Birth 16 MAY 1863 • Canada West, Canada
Death 16 JUL 1866 • Canada West, Canada

I don't know what caused this family to leave England for Canada. 
I don't know when X3 great grandfather John arrived.
What we do know is without that journey Chris and I would never have met, and our children never born. 

A historic event for this family was the arrival in Canada of Chris' 3rd great grandparents!!! 

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***

Photos:

Personal

Links:

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

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!

______________________________________________________________

Pellack Family In Ukraine ~ My Brick Wall Still Stands

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 11 (BRICK WALL)

I first started researching to figure out where I fit into my own genealogical story when I discovered my Scottish grandfather didn't exist, and was instead Ukrainian. 

After almost 30 years of searching this mystery line remains a mystery.

DNA confirmed Clyde Robertson & Max Pellack were the same person, but this brick wall still stands firmly in place.

My father's paternal line is the one line I have made little progress on over the many years of searching.

Great Grandpa was born April 17th 1873 in Ukraine, but those facts are only found on Canadian documents created by the family. 

In the book, Our Courageous Pioneers, the journey was described by a family member when the book was published in 1991.

" ... The family departed by train from Skoroki to the port of Bremen, There, a wait of several days ensued while sufficient cargo of livestock and people were assembled to make the voyage profitable. Livestock were placed in the bottom and people were placed in the middle deck. Sometime in May, 1909, the leaky ship set out to sea With numerous stops for additional cargo and delays caused by traffic and icebergs, the voyage took some sixteen days.

Quebec felt cold. From the large gathering hall which was the dispersal point for all immigrants, the family was shuffled onto a train bound for Winnipeg and eventually to Star City.  Alexander's brother, Makita who immigrated to Canada two years earlier, met them at the train with a cart and oxen which he had hired from a neighbour. It was a long trip from Star City to the homestead east of Gronlid. Imagine bumping down cut lines, over stumps through sloughs. It was an unforgettable experience, a dark rainy night, with their first encounter with mosquitoes! ..." 1

I have been unable to find any documents from Ukraine.

I know they got on a ship in Bremen because I found the ship's manifest held by Library & Archives Canada.

My great grandparents
Alexander & Mary (nee Maximiw) Pellack 
and their 3 oldest children 2

According to the ship's manifest:
Ship: WILLEHAD 
Shipping Line: Canada Steamship Lines 
Port of Departure: Bremen, Germany Hamburg, Germany Bremerhaven, Germany Rotterdam, Netherlands 
Date of Departure: 1909-06-02
Date of Arrival: 1909-06-19

Alexander (Alex) Pellack
Birth 17 APR 1873 • Skoryky, Скорики, Ternopil's'ka Oblast, Ukraine
Death 22 OCT 1955 • Gronlid, Saskatchewan, Canada
traveled with wife (great grandma)
Marya (Maria) (Mary) (Marinka) Maximiw
Birth 24 DEC 1875 • Ukraine/Galicia/Austria - Unknown
Death 12 AUG 1946 • Gronlid, Saskatchewan, Canada
and their children
Eugenia (Johanna) Pellack
Birth 28 AUGUST 1898 • Skoriki, Ternopil, Ternopilska, Ukraine
Death 10 SEP 1990 • Melfort, Saskatchewan, Canada
Hryc (Harry) Pellack
Birth 16 JUL 1903 • Skoryky, Скорики, Ternopil's'ka, oblast, Ukraine
Death 12 MAR 1980 • Warren, Macomb, Michigan, USA
Steneine (Stephania) (Stefania) (Stella) (Esther) Pellack
Birth 9 FEB 1906 • Skoryky, Скорики, Ternopil's'ka, oblast, Ukraine
Death 9 JAN 1972 • Gronlid, Saskatchewan, Canada
my grandpa was the first born in Canada on the homestead

Prior to getting on the ship in Bremen heading to Canada I have found no records.

My grandfather - 1st child born in Canada
Max Pellack aka Clyde Robertson (assumed no record of name change)
Birth 10 MAY 1910 • homestead, SW, Section: 1, Township: 48, Range: 17, Meridian: W2, (Gronlid, Saskatchewan, Canada)
Clyde claimed San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA (Vancouver on his WW2 attestation papers).
Death 11 JUL 1986 • Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

We are awaiting my father's yDNA results with the hopes this brick wall will finally be broken down

Still searching!

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:

1 Pellack Family Origin Story. Our Courageous Pioneers : History of Gronlid and Surrounding Districts of Argus, Athol, Edenbridge, Freedom, Maryville, Murphy Creek, Sandhill Creek, Taelman, Taras, Teddington,." (Melfort Saskatchewan: Phillips Publishers , 1991), 188

2 Ship's Manifest. Library & Archives Canada, Immigration, Passenger Lists, Page 16, Retrieved March 6th 2020 from
http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists/passenger-lists-1865-1922/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=5121&fbclid=IwAR0bFKIO58BlaeooRHtWlgBb6yrB7Ii6RlXBMf3dzADF_YdBLfITZJzNJtw

Links:

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

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!

______________________________________________________________

2 Brothers Came To Canada ~ Siblings Left Behind In Ukraine

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 10 (SIBLINGS)

In 1909 my great grandparents, Alexander & Mary (nee Maximiw) Pellack, immigrated to Canada from Ukraine.

They joined Alexander's brother Mikita who had immigrated 2 years earlier with their mother.

Left behind in Ukraine was the rest of the family.

I am unsure if I have the correct names/details for the siblings left behind.

This is what I have for the family

Parents:

Their children:

Mikita (Makita) (Myketa) Pellack
Birth FEB 1869 • Skoryky, Скорики, Ternopil's'ka Oblast, Ukraine
Death 1957 • Brooksby, Melfort Census Division, Saskatchewan, Canada

Alexander (Alex) Pellack (my great grandfather)
Birth 17 APR 1873 • Skoryky, Скорики, Ternopil's'ka Oblast, Ukraine
Death 22 OCT 1955 • Gronlid, Saskatchewan, Canada

Wolka Pellack

Birth Ukraine

Death Ukraine

Theodora Pellack

Birth Ukraine

Death Ukraine

Prokit Pellack

Birth Ukraine

Death Ukraine

AND half sibling (born to Mikihor after Mary went to Canada):
Netalie Pellack
Birth Ukraine
Death Ukraine
mother unknown

What I have recorded above comes from a cousin who visited Ukraine. 

I have not found any records for anyone except Alexander (my great grandfather) & his brother Mikita. 

All of the records I have found are Canadian.

I have found no actual proof from Ukraine

To assist in finding out more we are awaiting my dad's yDNA results.

When you aren't convinced you have found the facts!!! 

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***

Photos:

Personal

Links:

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

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!

______________________________________________________________