My 11th Great Grandfather ~ Juror At The Peach Gang Trial

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 33 (LEGAL TROUBLES)

My 11th great grandfather, William Pontus, served as a juror for the first capital trial in Plymouth Colony. 

4 men known as the Peach Gang murdered a local indigenous man, and were charged with murder. 

"...in 1638, authorities in Plymouth Colony tried Arthur Peach, along with three codefendants, for the murder of a Nipmuc man called Penowanyanquis. The court found the men guilty and sentenced them to death. Three of the four men that were convicted, including Peach, died by hanging. The fourth escaped before trial to Maine, whose people openly refused Plymouth’s requests for his extradition. ..." 1

"...By early September the trial of Peach, jackson and Stinnings began. The court selected twelve men to sit on the jury and hear testimony. The records of the proceedings are sketchy and provide only a miniscule amount of detail. A5 soon as the trial began, all three defendants confessed to committing the murder of Penowanyanquis. yet these admissions did not completely satisfy the court. Consequently, the Plymouth jurists summoned various individuals to testily. Overriding every other concern, the court worried about its authority to hear the case at all. And the court 76 MURDER magistrates confronted a rather knotty question - no one had actually seen Penowanyanquis die. No one could be sure if these men should be tried for murder or a lesser charge of assault. The testimony soon ended any doubt..." 2

"From the Old Colony Memorial. TRIAL FOR MURDER. The following is the first capital trial on the Records of Plymouth Colony, which took place in 1638, eighteen years after the first settlement of the Colony. The execution of three white men for the murder and robbery of an Indian, shews a disposition, as well as determination on the part of the fathers to distribute equal justice to all, and goes to disprove the charge which some have brought against them, of endeavoring to extirpate the natives from the land. It was their constant with to live in peace and They barmony in fact with had the tribes around inducement to preserve the friendship of the Indiacs, and nothing but repeated violations of their treaties and attacks upon their property and lives, would have compelled them to take up arms a- gainst numerous tribes of savages.
At a General 1638. New Plymouth reign lord the Court of our soveKing, held at New Plymouth the fourth day | of September, in the 14th year of the reign of our said Sovereign Lord : Charles, by the grace of God, of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c. before Thomas Prince, Gent. Governor -William Bradford, Edward Winslow, Capt. Miles Standish, John Alden, John Jenny, Joba Atwood, and John Brown.
Gentlemen, and Assistante of the said Government. Arthur Peach, Richard Stinnings and Daniel Crosse, were indicted for murder and robbing by the highway. They killed and robbed one Penowanyanquis, an- lodian, at Misquamyanquie, and took from him five fathoms of wampeny, and three coats of woollen cloth. The jurys' names that went upon them were theseSworn. William Hatch, John Winslow, Willium Pontus, Edward Foster, Richard Derby, John Holmes, | John Peabode, Richard Sillis, Humfrey Turner, Samuel Hinckley, Giles Rickett, Gabriel Fallowell.
They found the said Arthur Peach, and Richard Stinnings guilty of the said felonious murdering and robbing of the said Poncwanyanquis, but say that they nor auy of them had any lands or tenements, goods or chattels at the time of the said felony committed that they know of and so they say all. Daniel Crosse made an escape, and so had not his trial, but Peach, and Stinnings had sentence of death propounced, viz--to be taken from where they were to the place from whence they came, and thence to the place of execution, and there to be hanged by the neck until their hodies be dead, which was executed upon them accordingly. This is a true copy from the Recorde of the Colony of Plymouth, 1st book of Court Orders. page 69. Attest.
ROSSETER COTTON. Register of Deeds for the County of Plymouth.." 3

..."Plymouth Colony jurors to court. Edward Foster, William Hatch, John Winslow, William Pontus, Richard Derbye, John Holmes, John Paybody, Humfrey Turner, Samuell Hinkley, Giles Rickett, and Gabriell Fallowell made up eleven of the twelve men needed to serve as jurors. Clues in the historical record suggest that Prence and Reverend Lothrop managed to agree that if the religious leader kept his congregation in the colony until the end of the trial, the governor would support their relocation.
The jurors were an austere group. No sketches, visual or verbal, survive to reveal how the jurors looked or acted as they convened, but their biographies help fill in the blanks. Though all married or widowed, none wore wedding rings, an affectation disdained by Puritans. Their work-worn hands would have rested unadorned on their roughly hewn garments. Juror Pontus may have showed his fifty-three years of age, the skin around his eyes creased. The hardworking farmer likely appreciated getting away from the fields and off his feet, as jurors were among the few in court to enjoy the luxury of sitting on benches. ..." 4

5 sourced below

In researching it was apparent we really are doomed to repeat our mistakes. 

The tale is 387 years old, and yet it reads like to could have happened this week. 

There are parts of the tale that society has left behind - such as indentured servants....well except for human trafficking is still a thing & not all employers of temporary foreign workers treat their workers like free citizens. So I'm not sure we have evolved that far in the past 387 years.

If you want to learn more about this court case check the sources below. 

In looking at research ideas for this week's blog I took this line back a further generation, and peaked my interest to learn more.

My 11th great grandfather:
William Pontus 
Birth 4 Dec 1585 • Holland, Reusel-de Mierden, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands
Death 9 Feb 1653 • Plymouth, Massachusetts, Colonial America

and 11th great grandmother
Wybra Hanson
Birth ABT. 1590 • Austerfield, South Yorkshire, England
Death 22 DEC 1633 • Plymouth, Massachusetts, Colonial America

For a moment I stopped and pondered 11th great grandparents - did you know we have 8,192 11th great grandparents - well I do, but Chris does not because he has pedigree collapse in at least one of his lines. His father's maternal 5th great grandparents are also his father's paternal 4th great grandparents so he will have less. Then again - with this puritan line I may have pedigree collapse in my line as well.

Finding one of my eight thousand one hundred and ninety-two 11th great grandparents in historical records!!! 

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  The Murder of Penowanyanquis and the Trial of Arthur Peach, Plymouth, 1638. Dorn, Nathan. Originally published September 13th 2018,  Retrieved August 13th 2025 from
https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2018/09/the-murder-of-penowanyanquis-and-the-trial-of-arthur-peach-plymouth-1638/

2 Rhode Island History Journal, Vol. 38, August 1979.  Retrieved August 13th 2025 from https://www.rihs.org/history_journal/rhode-island-history-journal-vol-38-august-1979/

3  From the Old Colony Memorial: TRIAL FOR MURDER (Peach Gang/Murder of Penowanyanquis, Massachusetts). Woodstock Observer, and Windsor and Orange County Gazette. Woodstock, Vermont. Tue, Jul 5, 1825. Page 4. Retrieved from Newspapers.com August 13th 2025

4 Judgement Day at America’s First Blockbuster Murder Trial. Tobey Pearl on the Trial of the Plymouth Colonists Who Murdered an Indigenous Man. Pearl, Tobey. Originally published  March 16th 2021. Retrieved August 13th 2025 from
https://lithub.com/judgement-day-at-americas-first-blockbuster-murder-trial/

Sources:

1638: Three (of four) English colonists for murdering a Native American.Executed Today.  Originally osted on September 4th 2008. By dogboyHistorical executions, day by day. Retrieved August 12th 2025 from
https://www.executedtoday.com/tag/arthur-peach/

Book Links. Plymouth Colony Records. Retrieved August 11th 2025 from
https://johndunhamsociety.com/library/plymouth-colony-records

From the Old Colony Memorial: TRIAL FOR MURDER (Peach Gang/Murder of Penowanyanquis, Massachusetts). Woodstock Observer, and Windsor and Orange County Gazette. Woodstock, Vermont. Tue, Jul 5, 1825. Page 4
Retrieved from Newspapers.com August 13th 2025

How Big is Your Family Tree?. Retrieved August 12th 2025 from
https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~pamonval/genealogy/howbig.html

Judgement Day at America’s First Blockbuster Murder Trial. Tobey Pearl on the Trial of the Plymouth Colonists Who Murdered an Indigenous Man. Pearl, Tobey. Originally published  March 16th 2021. Retrieved August 13th 2025 from
https://lithub.com/judgement-day-at-americas-first-blockbuster-murder-trial/

Line 2 William Pontus, the man who missed the Mayflower. A Long Line of Family Blog. Originally posted January 26th 2011. Retrieved August 10th 2025 from
https://alonglineoffamily.blogspot.com/2011/01/

The Murder of Penowanyanquis and the Trial of Arthur Peach, Plymouth, 1638. Dorn, Nathan. Originally published September 13th 2018,  Retrieved August 13th 2025 from

https://blogs.loc.gov/law/2018/09/the-murder-of-penowanyanquis-and-the-trial-of-arthur-peach-plymouth-1638/

The Plymouth Colony Archive Project. From Thanksgiving to War: Native Americans in Criminal Cases of Plymouth Colony, 1630-1675. Aultman, Jennifer L. Originally published 2001.  Retrieved August 13th 2025 from
http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/plymouth/wampanoag.html

Records of the colony of New Plymouth in New England : printed by order of the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. by New Plymouth Colony; Shurtleff, Nathaniel Bradstreet, 1810-1874; Pulsifer, David, 1802-1894. Page 96. Retrieved August 11th 2025 from
https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n117/mode/2up

Photos:

5 Records of the colony of New Plymouth in New England : printed by order of the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. by New Plymouth Colony; Shurtleff, Nathaniel Bradstreet, 1810-1874; Pulsifer, David, 1802-1894. Page 96. Retrieved August 11th 2025 from
https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n117/mode/2up

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!

______________________________________________________________

It's a Dog's Life ~ Going to the Farm

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2024: Week 33 (FAVOURITE DISCOVERY)

It's a dog's life .... that is what they tell me, but I don't understand what that means because this is the only life I know.

They tell me I was 6 months old when I arrived to this home with comfy couches and snuggles after being in a scary place. 

They say they are foster failures, but I don't think they failed at anything. 

Let me introduce myself. 

I am Tori Lynne Buchner.

The tattoo in my ear says I was found on the highway between Abbotsford & Mission, and I was all alone. 

No one came to find me.

I don't remember any of  that.

Who I was before doesn't matter. 

I am now the princess...

& have a pretty good life.

Last month I turned 13, and I heard my parents say that's old.

They also said that is why I am in so much pain, but lately it's not been so bad, 

I think it's because of the treats I get twice a day they call pill pockets.

Not too long ago my human parents started talking about taking me to the farm.

WHAT..... I heard about 'the farm' at that scary place before I was brought home.

Dogs talk you know.

Mom said we needed to have a trial run.

Dad hooked some weird contraction around my hips saying it would help us get me into the car. 

I think he did it wrong because that didn't help at all.

I wasn't sure where we were going on this 'trial run'.

Dad forgot my leash so he used the hip thing around my neck. 

I am pretty sure he doesn't know how to use it at all.

When we got out of the car there was lots of people and it smelled good.

Mom said it was waffle cones that smelled so good, and I was getting a treat. 

I do like treats.

I love ice cream, and there was a dog cookie in that cup too! 

After the ice cream we got back in the car to go home.

Dad wasn't much help with the hip thing, but it was nice he tried.

I like trial runs a lot.

I'm pretty sure they changed their mind about the 'the farm'.

Later (days, weeks, hours, ummmm I don't know time) the suitcases came upstairs, and my parents were packing. 

Normally when my family gets into the car with their suitcases Grandpa comes to stay with me and we have so much fun.

Grandpa & I sit on the couch, watch tv, have snacks, and he tells me what a good girl I am. 

He also tells me how pretty I am, and that I have a perfect button nose.

I was looking forward to seeing grandpa when I noticed they were putting my stuff in a bag.

Then dad was putting the hip thing on me, and we were both confused about how it was supposed to work. 

I was looking forward to more ice cream when I realized Dad was driving the wrong way.

Then he said we were going to the farm.

Wait ... I thought we changed our mind about 'the farm'.

I'm wasn't sure where we were going, but it took a long time.

I looked out the window watching all the trees on the side of the road. 

I watched very carefully for a long time, and then laid down when I got tired.

We stopped for dad to pee, but I was just too busy sniffing and sniffing that I forgot to pee.

Back in the car, and dad's skills with the hip thing were no better. 

The view out the window was just lots more trees so I went back to sleep.

But then we stopped for lunch.

I love hamburgers!

There was lots of really great pee spots in that area.

I may have even smelled a dog from my neighbourhood.

Finally the car slowed down, and drove through a gate.

They opened the car, and let me out. 

It was beautiful.

Mom and Dad said we were in Naramata, and it was so nice to be near the lake but not in the lake, water ick. 

I think the hot dry air made my sore hips feel better. 

There was a very big yard for me to explore.

Chickens to try to make friends with.

It made me sad that they wouldn't play with me.

They just kept running away when I tried to say hello.

The very big dogs they said were horses scared me so I stayed away from them. 

Next we went into the house, and I was allowed to be everywhere.

I found my spot....

Even the treats were just like home.

There was a family dinner, and dad brought the ham.

Everybody loves dad's ham.

We also had potato salad, corn on the cob, shrimp, pasta greek salad, and chicken. 

Everyone shared with me, and with 17 people I got to taste everything.  

Mom said I didn't need my kibble dinner because I had too many snacks, but I didn't think she was right. 

When it was time to go home Dad didn't even bother using the hip thing - this time he just gave me a butt boost and I was in the car faster than any of the other times. 

On the way home I slept the entire time. 

I was exhausted....

AND so glad to be home

I discovered that we didn't go to 'the farm'. 

We went to the family farm.

Family visits at the farm are the best!!! 

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!

______________________________________________________________

Ford Strong ~ Remembering Those Gone Too Soon

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2023: Week 33 (STRENGTH)

Long before the Ford Company began in 1903 my 2nd cousin X9 removed, FORD STRONG, was born.

He died at only 2 months old.

Many years later Ford would use the slogan

I had misremembered the slogan as BUILT FORD STRONG when I saw the name of my 2nd cousin X9 removed recently and decided to write about him this week. 

Ford was born on September 2nd 1668, and died on November 1st 1668. He was born & died in Northampton, Massachusetts, USA.

The death of an infant is sad.

I can't imagine it was any less sad in a time when infant mortality was so high. 

Infants who die leave no one behind to search for them, to remember them, or to honour them.  

It is this reason that I frequently write about my distant cousins who died as infants.

I am fairly confident it is why genealogy researchers often save an image for a baby born still or died as infants. 

We want to remember all of our relatives.

Ford's parents were
Captain, Jedediah Strong
BIRTH 7 MAY 1637 • Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA
DEATH 22 MAY 1733 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA
& his first wife
Freedom Woodward
BIRTH 1 JUL 1642 • Dorchester, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 17 MAY 1681 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Ford must have been named after his grandmother, Jedediah's mother,
Abigail Ford
BIRTH 8 OCT 1619 • Bridgeport, Dorset, England
DEATH 6 JUL 1688 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
married to
John Strong
BIRTH 1605 • Taunton, Deane Borough, Somerset, England
DEATH 14 APR 1699 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

My 9th great grandmother, Hepzibah Ford, was Abigail's sister.
Hepzibah Ford
BIRTH 15 MAY 1625 • Dorchester, Dorset, England
DEATH 11 APR 1683 • Northampton, Massachusetts, United States
& 1st husband
Richard Lyman
BIRTH 24 FEB 1618 • High Ongar, Co. Kent (Canterbury) England
DEATH 3 JUN 1662 • Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, United States

Where Ford and I have our family lines connect is also where Princess Diana and I connect.

Ford's parents are Princess Diana's 8th great grandparents.

Ford is Princess Diana's 7th Great-Grand Uncle

Princess Diana is my 11th cousin.
We share 10th great grandparents, Abigail & Hepzibah's parents
Thomas Ford
BIRTH 6 JAN 1589 • Powerstock, Dorset, England, United Kingdom
DEATH 28 NOV 1676 • Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA
and
Elizabeth Charde
BIRTH 1589 • Thorncombe, Bridgeport, Dorsetshire, England
DEATH 18 APR 1643 • Windsor, Hartford, Colony of Connecticut, British Colonial America

When listening to the audiobook "The Winthrop Woman" (my husband's 10th great grandmother) there were many mentions of the folks connected in this area of our Bramble Bush. I loved hearing mention of my family members alongside Chris'

The STRONG legacy of this family is evident in their descendants.

Remembering those who left us too young!!! 

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:

Built Ford Tough FREE SVG File, Tiffany,  original November 28, 2019      Retrieved August 13th 2023 from
https://freesvgs.com/index.php/2019/11/28/built-ford-tough/

The Winthrop Woman audiobook. Seton, Anya. Narrator: Corrie James. Tantor Audio. 2014. Originally published in print 1958.

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!

______________________________________________________________

Indentured Service ~ Canada's British Home Children (BHC)

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2022: Week 33 (SERVICE)

I have always had an interest in history. 

Ever since I was young I have read historical fiction. 

When I first heard about British Home Children coming to Canada for a better life I never thought about what that would have actually been like. 

I read the stories of children arriving to a new family. 

A home in prosperous Canada. 

My perception of the BHC experience was warm & fuzzy.

I never once considered what that must have been like for the young children leaving behind everything they knew. 

Leaving behind their families, heritage, and culture. 

Being separated from their siblings. 

I thought they were all orphans.

Many were not. 

They left their parents behind.

When I found my X2 great uncle in the registries of Bernardo's Children arriving in 1898 at the age of 12 -  I began to view things differently. 

I then found his sister, aged 14 arriving in 1902. 

In trying to understand their experience I began searching. 

I was shocked & saddened to find these quotes from Toronto Senator, Frederic Thomas Nicholls:

"We beg to assure him (Dr. Barnardo) that whatever else he may do in his philantropic efforts to purify the slums of London and hoever good and reformed morally, his waifs may be, they are not wanted in Canada. He had better dispose of them elsewhere." 1   August 7 1891

"We do object that Canada should be made a dumping ground for a class of humanity for whom we have no use and whose presence cannot but be a source of contamination to the rising generation of our country." 1    January 5 1894 

"These waifs and strays are tainted and corrupt with moral slime and filth inherited from parents and surroundings of the most foul and disgusting character, and all the washing and clean clothes that Dr. Barnardo may bestow cannot possibly remove...There is no power whatever that can cleanse the lepers so as to fit them to become desirable citizens of Canada." 1     April 1891

Looking at the British Home Children Registry I had a further shift in how I viewed the experience of the children who came to Canada.

"...Placed With / Indentured To.....
August 1903: Alfred Augustus BAKER -
Silver medal for good conduct and length of service."2 

Indentured Service!

How could I have ever thought they were coming to new homes in Canada. 

The children brought to Canada for a better life were little more than unpaid workers. I'm sure there were some who were treated like family, but for the majority they were not treated well. 

July 25th 1898 Alfred arrived in Canada as a British Home Child. 

He arrived on the ship Labrador through Quebec to the Toronto Bernardo's home for 'distribution'. What a strange way to word the program that was sending young children in need to a new country for a new life. It seems to me that the phrase really did portray the results of the program. 

The intent had been to send children from England to new families in Canada. Sadly that isn't what happened for many of the children sent by ship to Canada and elsewhere in the world. 

The record that I find notes that "In 1898, A. A. Baker, 9, arrived at Quebec, Canada, along with a group of 92 children enroute to Toronto, Ontario, Canada." 3  

The documents indicate that Alfred was 9. Alfred was 12. 

Researching indicates that sometimes the incorrect age listed was done in legitimate error. Sometimes it was done to allow for more years of service for smaller children. We will never know what the actual reason was for Alfred.  The follow up documents I found note that he was born in 1898, and was 12 when he arrived. 

The August 1903 edition of Dr. Barnardo Magazine Ups and Downs on page 55 Alfred is noted as having received a Silver Medal for good conduct & length of service. The April 1903 issue of the same magazine mentions a letter that says Alfred A Baker will be 17 in April. It also says that Alfred A Baker arrived in 1898, and was placed with Mr. Johnston. The British Home Child Registry notes that Alfred Augustus Baker was going to Avonhurst **, Northwest Territories, Canada with Mr. Johnston. The records indicated he remained there until 1903.  Where he went in 1903 I have not yet found. 

** Not to be confused with the current Northwest Territories. In 1905 the landscape of Canada changed with the creation of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Avonhurst is, and always was, part of Saskatchewan. 

Alfred's sister Edith Jemima Baker was a British Home Child arriving in Canada 25th of July 1902 when she arrived on the ship New England to the port in Boston. She then traveled to Canada, Edith Jemima Baker is listed as residing at Bernardo's Home in England in the 1901 census. Her age listed as 13 matches all of my research to date.  I find a record of Edith at the New Road School in London, admitted the 8th of  January in 1894. I know this is my Edith because the birth date matches, and her father is listed correctly. Noted right above her birth date on the admission record is 'weak intellect'. I wonder if this relative shared my 'late reader' label. There is no indication that she lacked intelligence later in life.  "In 1902, Edith Baker, 14, arrived at Boston, Massachusetts, USA, along with a large party of about 400 children en route to Toronto and Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Her brother, A(lfred) A(ugustus) Baker arrived previously in 1898 on the Labrador with Barnardos." 4  

There is no record that I can find who Edith lived with in Canada until she moved to Manitoba to live with her sister Amy Louisa (nee Baker) Dendy. In 1905 Edith married John Zarn, and they had 8 children.

Alfred & Edith's older sister, Amy Louisa Baker,  is my X2 great grandmother. She was born on the 18th of March in 1875 in England. She died 23rd of December 1949 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She married William Herbert Dendy on the 10th of December 1893 in England. William Herbert Dendy was born on the 27th of July 1867 in England, and died 25 December 1929 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They had 11 children. Six children were born in England, and 5 in Canada. My great grandmother was their first born in Canada. The family immigrated to Canada in 1903, and settled in Manitoba. They did try their hand at farming in Alberta for a time (see Bachelor Brothers - Uncle Alf & Uncle Charlie for more about that) and also lived in Saskatchewan where their 9th child was born.  

Amy Louisa (nee Baker) Dendy on right, William Herbert Dendy in back.
Likely their daughters Amy in back, Rose (my great grandmother) in front
not sure who the other two are, but based on ages there are a couple to choose from.
Guessing 1909 since Rose looks about three so Amy was probably expecting Den born in 1909 

I don't know if my X2 great grandparents came to Canada to be closer to Amy's siblings who had been sent to Canada. Amy was already married when her younger siblings left to Canada in 1898 and 1902. Amy and her family arrived in 1904, and originally settled in Manitoba where my great grandmother Rose was born.  Amy and family were then living in Saskatchewan in 1907 and 1909 where two sons, Albert & Den, were born. I don't know when brother Alfred married his wife Flora Isabel Cameron  (from Saskatchewan), but their first born child was named Amy in 1912. It's possible that Amy Louisa moved to Saskatchewan to be closer to Alfred. We also know that Amy Louisa was living near sister Edith in Manitoba.

 The records indicate that Amy Louisa and her family were moving between Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Alberta during the years of 1903 and 1929. 

I don't know why that was happening at a time in the past when most folks didn't move around a lot.   

I don't know what happened to their parents Alfred A Baker & Jemima Jane North. 

I do know that the family names continued in the family's of all three children. 

I do know that all three went on to have family's, and appear to have been successful in life.

I do know that Amy's daughter Rose (my great grandmother) was so attached to her family that she took her brother out of the institution as soon as she was able (see Blog linked above for more about that). 

I also know that Edith Jemima remained connected to Amy Louisa's family after her marriage because I found her playing matchmaker for niece Amy Florence Dendy in 1906. 

Amy Louisa was born Amy Baker, and married William Herbert Dendy to become Amy Dendy. Her daughter was born Amy Florence Dendy, and when she married Jack Baker she became Amy Baker. 

Amy Baker became Amy Dendy, and then Amy Dendy became Amy Baker. 

I was only able to tease this apart using the video of my grandma explaining a family photo along with this side story. 

More details were provided from the book From Generation to Generation. 5

Indentured Service - finding the children who deserved better!!!

If you know more please comment or message me with the details. 

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  Choice Quotes About the Home Children From This Magazine. The Canadian Manufacturer and World Frederick Nichols. British Home Children Canada. Retrieved August 18th 2022 from
https://canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com/frederick-nicholls.html

2 Alfred August Baker. British Home Children registry as retrieved August 18th 2022 from 
http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/bhcInfo/55283

3 RootsChat.Com, RootsChat Reference Library, Database for Special Interest Groups(DBSIG), British Home Children, Quick Search. Retrieved August 18th 2022 from 
http://surname.rootschat.com/lexicon/dbsig/dbsig-quick-search.php?dbsig_num=1&surname=BAKER&view=3969#top_data

4 RootsChat.Com, RootsChat Reference Library, Database for Special Interest Groups(DBSIG), British Home Children, Quick Search. Retrieved August 18th 2022 from 
http://surname.rootschat.com/lexicon/dbsig/dbsig-quick-search.php?dbsig_num=1&surname=BAKER&view=3968#top_data

5  From Generation to Generation, compiled in 1958 and 1987 by committee and members of the the Kirkham Bridge Women's Institute, printed by Sanderson Printing I Souris, Man.  Retrieved August 18th 2022 from http://travelsdocbox.com/Budget_Travel/73522110-F3-4-n-v-j-rn-contents.html

Sources:

Alfred August Baker. British Home Children registry as retrieved August 18th 2022 from http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/bhcInfo/55283

Alfred Augustus Baker, British Home Children, A Virtual Cemetery, Find A Grave, Retrieved August 18th 2022 from 
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/222328905/alfred-augustus-baker?fbclid=IwAR1SzKI3L1zLtPfJAdY4RYoaFsJeOLjPAkbl_MRwDob1d_sMPGvu3Vjbwxw

British Home Children. Veterans Affairs Canada. Government of Canada. Retrieved August 19th 2022 from 
https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/people-and-stories/british-home-children

Edith J Baker. British Home Children Registry. Retrieved August 18th 2022 from 
http://www.britishhomechildrenregistry.com/Person/bhcInfo/55313

Edith Baker Zarn, British Home Children, A Virtual Cemetery, Find A Grave, Retrieved August 18th 2022 from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/111283305/edith-zarn

Ups & Downs 1903 Editions. Retrieved August 18th 2022 from
https://canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com/ups-and-downs-1903.html

Links:

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

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