Extend Your Search When You Find Discrepancies in Ancestor Records

Linda M. asked in an email titled "Naturilisation [sic] records for Canada for Leo Mason"

My siblings and I have been trying for years to research our paternal grandfathers birthplace. He was supposed to have been born in Germany but became a Canadian citizen and fought in the First World War with the CEF. We have applied to the Canadian government but because we do not live in Canada and my surname is not the same I have been unsuccessful. I would be grateful if you could advise me as to my options. I have been on their website but the database does not open.

Olive Tree Genealogy responds: Linda, I'm sure it was just a typo but the word should be "naturalization". The first thing you should do is check the online CEF (Canadian Expeditionary Force) database for World War 1 Soldiers.  Library and Archives Canada is busy digitizing all the personnel records but even if Leo's has not been completed you will still be able to view his Attestation form.

Because there were several Leo Mason names (and variants) on the CEF database I asked Linda for more details. She replied

His name was Leo William Mason birthday 5/8/1880. He married our grandmother Elizabeth Marion Newington on 4/4/1911 in Stonewall. He died in Vancouver on 26/5/1955. He remarried in 1932 without divorcing our grandmother who had returned to England with our father in 1922.

Linda added that she thought he put Ohio on his Attestation papers because he was afraid to put Germany. I am not sure I believe that but she needs to find other records for Leo (census, vital registrations, etc) to verify his country of birth.

Also an index to Naturalization Records from 1915 to 1951 are online and the full record (if a name is found in the index that is of interest) can be ordered. These records can be searched by name up to 1939.  See http://www.naturalizationrecords.com/canada/ for the link

Ancestor Enlists with Two Names in CEF

Debbie asked a question about an ancestor in the CEF (Canadian Expeditionary Force) in WW1

i found a record for a olvar william david bates..except he is listed as muxlow instead of bates.. muxlow is his mothers maiden name and the year of birth is off by two years which makes him 16 when enlisted. My question is how was it possible for him to enlist in 1915 under his mothers maiden name was he was registered in the birth records and on the 1901 census as bates plus he would have been 16. I am baffled

Debbie - I'm pretty sure you meant Orval, not Olvar as your ancestor's first name.

Your first step would be to compare the two sets of attestion papers which you can do on Ancestry.com. or on the LAC website.

MUXLOW Orval William. Regimental Number 136227 (on Ancestry.com.)
front
Name: Orval William Muxlow
Birth: Petrolia Ontario
Father: Lazarus Muxlow
Next of Kin Residence: Calgary Alberta
Date of birth: Dec. 12, 1896
Occupation: Teamster
Marital Status: Single
Date: Sept. 8, 1915
Place where Signed Up: Toronto Ontario

Muxlow - back
Age 18 years 9 months
Height: 5' 7 1/4 inches
Scar under left eye, tip of 3rd finger left hand missing
Blue eyes, brown hair
Church of England

In the MUXLOW attestation papers there is a note at the top "Struck off - illegally absent" "Struck off" usually means the soldier has gone AWOL and so has been removed from (struck off) the regiment rolls. You would probably learn more if you order the full file for him. He may have run off when he realized he was going to be sent to the Young Soldier's Battalion for underage boys who lied on their enlistment papers.

BATES, Orval William David. Regimental Number 802072 (not found on Ancestry.com. but indexed on LAC website) 

You will have to send for BOTH files as the Attestation Papers are one page only. The full file if it has survived will have more information and will allow you to compare the two men.


I suggest that your Orval enlisted under his real name of MUXLOW and lied about his age. He was found out and may have run off (AWOL). If he waited 2 more years until he was of age, he may have been afraid to give his real name as he'd gone AWOL under it. So he used his mom's maiden name of BATES.

Please keep us informed as I'm very curious now!

Clues Galore in Ships Passenger Lists

Judith's Question:

I am trying to locate any information on my grandmother. Her name was Lucy Williams nee Dance. She married my grandfather who was a Canadian soldier WW1 in 1917. Grandfather name Alfred Williams Military ID 23327 date of birth May 23,1891. My father was born in England Sept 27,1917 record of birth at Somerset House London # P.S.R 7973/46. My grandmother did come to Canada sometime after my father was born. She died in or around Montreal Quebec in November 1919. This is all the information I have on her. My father was only 2 when she passed and had no other information. Everyone who might have had information have also passed

OLIVE TREE ANSWER: Hello Judith, Not having your father's name made this a bit difficult but I managed to find him.

The CEF database online shows your grandfather as

Name: Alfred Allen Williams
Residence: Cookshire, Quebec, Canada
Birth Date: 23 May 1891
Birth Location: Rowley, Massachusetts, United States of America
Relative: Mrs W A Williams
Relationship: Mother. same addy
Regiment Number: 23327

He is a steel worker, single man, and transferred to the PPCLI (Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, which co-incidentally is the unit my son was first assigned to as an Infantry soldier)

On 25 march 1916 Alfred enlisted Sherbrook Quebec. If you have not sent for his full file you should do so. The online records are only the front and back of the one page Attestation Papers.

Next step was a quick look in Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935 found on Ancestry.com. There I found your father Dudley travelling with his mother, Lucy A. age 20, who was going to Cookshead Quebec with her husband, a returning soldier

Name: Dudley Williams
Age: 1
Date of Arrival: 28 Jan 1919
Vessel: Megantic
Port of Arrival: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
Roll: T-14794

So by checking ships passenger lists we have an exact date of arrival for your grandmother - 28 January 1919.

In order to find more information (hopefully a death or burial record) for your grandmother after her arrival in Quebec in January 1919, I suggest you visit Quebec & Eastern Townships Genealogy Research page and search for her. I received 8 "hits" for Lucy and Lucy Ann Williams for census, church and cemetery records.

Finding Private Grimes

Denise's question:

I am looking for a Private H Grimes who was a part of the 79th Cameron Highlandes of Canada in WW1. He wrote to his cousin (my g aunt) in 1915 stating that he was about to be shipped to the front. I would like to find his war records. Can you suggest where I might look.

Olive Tree Answer: Denise you are in luck. The CEF (Canadian Expeditionary Force) database is searchable online. There you can search for your Private Grimes, and view his Attestation Papers.

These are only the tip of the iceberg however! To see his full file, you must send for the records from LAC (Library & Archives Canada) for a very reasonable fee. You do this right on the website where you search. Just choose SEARCH HELP and then How to order a copy of a complete service file

To search other WW1 databases, see The Canadian Military Heritage Project and click on World War One.

Searching in Canada for Englishman

Bill & Helen wrote:

QUESTION: Looking for information on a place called Fort Good Hope in the NW Terrortories. I had a great uncle John Ernest Brown who said he lived there on his marriage cert to my Grans sister when they wed in England in about 1946. He had been in the Canadian Exp Force and also in the Veterans Guard.

MY ANSWER: Helen - You didn't give us an idea of John's date of birth so it's difficult to check for you but there is a John Ernest Brown on the online Canadian Expeditionary Force database. See the front of his Attestation Papers. He was born 16 Jan 1881 in Twickenham London Eng. to Thomas Rhoads Brown

He says he was a naval seaman (other info there too) and is not married. The date of his enlistment is 1 May 1915. The back of his Attestation papers can also be seen.

Also see the Canadian Military Heritage Project for help with Canadian Military records and to order his full records if this is your ancestor.