Category Archives: The History of Me

A look through the quirky history of Corina’s Family Tree

1931 Census and a Scandal

Canadian family history enthusiasts were a buzz on June 1, 2023 when the 1931 Census became public. Let’s face it, so was I. In the days leading up to it being indexed I could feel a little bubbling under the surface.

Census records are a huge deal. They are a snapshot in time that shows where someone lived, who they lived with, what their ages are, education level, marital status. It will often indicate where someone was born, along with both of their parents. It will tell you what year someone emigrated to the country, what languages they speak and their occupation. I find them fascinating.

There has been a huge jump in technology since the 1921 census was released. 10 years ago the 1921 census took months of people painstakingly going through every record trying to decipher what was written. This year, Ancestry believes they’ll have it indexed within a couple weeks.

But was I going to wait a few weeks? No. No I wasn’t.

Searching the 1931 census

I’ve been logging in every night to check Waterloo Region first. I was hoping to find my father’s mother – Margaret Porter along with her parents. I knew from other records I have that they had lived in the city of Galt and just outside the village of Hespeler during different periods. I started my focus there.

Galt had 14 different sub districts, each with approximately 22 pages of names. Each page has around 50 names. I decided to start there. I looked for common names in my family that lived in the area: Porter, Dryden, Hyde. I didn’t find any Porter family but I did find some of my extended cousins on the Dryden side, and a great-uncle on the Hyde side that was living as a boarder.

I didn’t let that hold me back and quickly found myself going through Hespeler. It was much smaller with only 3 sub districts. Saw some last names I recognized, but none of my direct relatives.

Next I went through page by page for North Dumfries – as I know that I have Dryden’s that lived in North Dumfries over generations. Found one or two, but they weren’t my direct relatives and there weren’t any Porter’s.

A Hill is coming

On a whim, I logged into the South Dumfries 1931 census. I went through the first sub-district and didn’t find anyone. Then opened the second one. I scanned line by line and then saw a familiar name on line 49 of page four.

Hill, Albert, hired help, Male, Single, Aged 29, he and both of his parents listed as born in England. He emigrated to Canada in what could be 1906 or 1908. His citizenship is listed as Canada, nationality English, religion Anglican. He states he can read and write English. His occupation is farm laborer on a general farm. His class of worker is “W” and he made $350 in the past 12 months. They even verified that he was at work on June 1, 1931.

Hmmm…. Albert Hill is the name of my grandfather. The information matches. I wonder if he came to South Dumfries to find work on Archie Ferguson’s farm? The farmhouse is a single detached home made of brick veneer. It has 9 rooms and they even have a radio according to the census.

1931 census record - part one for: 1931 Census record for Archie Deans Ferguson, Lily Ann Rebecca Ferguson, Helen Ann Ferguson, Roert Duncan Ferguson, Albert Hill and Ruth Elizabeth Hodgson
1931 census record - part two for: 1931 Census record for Archie Deans Ferguson, Lily Ann Rebecca Ferguson, Helen Ann Ferguson, Roert Duncan Ferguson, Albert Hill and Ruth Elizabeth Hodgson
1931 Census record for Archie Deans Ferguson, Lily Ann Rebecca Ferguson, Helen Ann Ferguson, Roert Duncan Ferguson, Albert Hill and Ruth Elizabeth Hodgson

I flagged it as a document under Albert Hill and decided to look further onto the next page.

Picking out the Porters

Imagine my surprise when I found my grandmother, her twin brother and their parents only 9 houses away from Albert!

My grandmother Margaret and her brother Walter Porter were both 13 at the time of the census. They are students, who upload the Presbyterian faith. Their home is a single detached home with 9 rooms made of wood. The home does not have a radio but it has been valued at 2000.

My 56-year-old great-grandfather William (which I wrote about here and here) has a father born in England and a mother born in Ontario. He can read and write English, not French and works as a Farmer on a general farm that he owns.

My 46-year-old great grandmother Margaret (Maggie) is a homemaker at this time. Both her parents were born in Ontario, as was she. Her racial origin is listed as “Scotch” but she is a Canadian citizen.

1931 Census for William Porter, Margaret Porter, Walter Porter and Margaret Porter
1931 Census for William Porter, Margaret Porter, Walter Porter and Margaret Porter
1931 Census for William Porter, Margaret Porter, Walter Porter and Margaret Porter

A love story or a scandal?

So what makes this scandalous? My grandmother Margaret was only 13 when she met my 29 year old grandfather. That’s one heck of an age gap!

Oh sure, she could’ve just been a school girl living in the same area he was working, but they were married within the next 3 years. My grandmother was 16 and lied to say she was older so they could get married.

marriage record for Albert Hill and Margaret Porter
Marriage certificate for Albert William Hill and Margaret Porter on June 23, 1934.

And as a further scandal – my oldest uncle was born 5 months later!

Having known my grandmother and her fun personality, I can picture her falling in love with Albert and not taking no for an answer. I picture her wearing him down until he finally agreed to marry her. He was a handsome man after all – who can blame her?

Albert Hill and wife Margaret Porter along with their three oldest children - Arnold, George and Jessie on the hood of their car in the early 1940s.
Albert Hill and wife Margaret Porter along with their three oldest children – Arnold, George and Jessie on the hood of their car in the early 1940s.

I don’t hold their ages against them. From everything I’ve been told, my grandmother was smitten with her husband Albert. They had 9 living children and stayed married until his early death in 1960, long before I was even born.

They had a family and a farm with lots of animals – every kind if you talk to my father. There was love there. I’m sure of it.

Today, I salute the scandal that helped shape my family and the love that brought these two together. Much love to Albert and Margaret whose spirits are together again.

Black and white photo of a couple holding a cake - Margaret Porter and her husband Albert Hill
Margaret and Albert Hill on their 25th wedding anniversary – June 1959.

Meet Lilly: The Woman Who Started it All

I’d like to introduce you to my great-grandmother. Meet Lilly May Lovejoy (nee Young). She is pictured here with my grandmother Betty May Lovejoy.

Black and White photo of a baby wearing a bonnet sitting on the lap of a woman with dark hair cut in a short bob. Both are smiling.

I’ve written about her before in my 12 Months, 12 Ancestors series, and I have never forgotten her. Now that nearly all of those in my grandmother’s generation have passed on, the last thing I expected was to see what Lilly looked like. But here we are.

This wonderful photo was shared with me by my 1st cousin, 1x removed named Ken. Ken is my mother’s first cousin – the first born of that generation and his father was the first born child of Lilly and her husband Victor Lovejoy. I love my cousins on my mothers side. They are so funny and kind. We all cheer each other on and support each other through life’s ups and downs. On a whim I asked Ken if by any chance had any photos of Lilly, I was shocked that within a few days he found this gem!

Lilly May Young was a bit controversial in her lifetime.

  • She lied on her marriage certificate to Victor Lovejoy in order to appear younger than she was. (In actuality she was 21 and her husband was only 16!)
  • She was pregnant at the wedding – her oldest son was born 5 months after the wedding.
  • She had 3 children in short succession (less than 4 years.)
  • Lilly died unexpectedly of a brain hemorrhage when my grandmother was a baby – she was only 26 years old.

Thanks to AncestryDNA, I know for a fact that I am a descendent of Lilly’s. There’s no question with the number of “Young” cousins I have. Even cousin Ken has tested and he’s been my closest relative next to my dad and brother for years.

I couldn’t resist making a comparison between Lilly and my mom. They look so much alike to me it’s uncanny.

A side by side comparison of a woman in 1970s clothing and a black and white photo of a woman from 1926.

Marlene (Hyde) Hill and her grandmother Lilly May (Young) Lovejoy.

I feel such a strong connection to Lilly and it’s even stronger now that I’ve seen her smile. I can only imagine that she would’ve been a lot of fun to be around. I’m drawn by the warmth of her eyes.

I am so proud to put another face to a name on my family tree. Thank you Ken!

A series of 5 black and white photos for 5 generations of women.