Censuses are a fundamental resource for genealogists. We can learn so much about ancestors based on questions that the enumerators asked at the door.
I decided to revisit the historic censuses of some of my Essex County ancestors and I started with the family of Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan who were my great great grandparents.
The Family Of
Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan
Essex Co., Ontario
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| Jeremiah (1837-1922) and Mary (Brennan) (1841-1926) Moynahan with Ellen ("Nellie") (1865-1940) and son John (seated) (1866-1933) |
What I Already Knew About Jeremiah
From The Historic Censuses
When I checked my sources on ancestry.ca, I was surprised to learn that for Jeremiah Moynahan I only located two census records (1871 and 1881)! Jeremiah, when he died in 1922, had "lived 84 years within five miles of the place where he is born (on the Middle Road)" (Source: Essex Free Press June 23, 1922, Page 1 of 8) so finding him in census records should be easy! Shouldn't it?
The 1871 Census
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| 1871 Manual Containing "The Census Act" and the Instructions to Officers Employed in the Taking of the First Census of Canada (1871). Department of Agriculture (Census Branch). Ottawa : B. Chamberlin, 1871. |
- The 1871 Census: Year: 1871; Census Place: Sandwich East, Essex, Ontario; Roll: C-9889; Page: 13; Family No: 42
- The 1871 Census marked the first regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began April 2, 1871. .(Source: LAC)
- Only Schedule 1, Nominal Return of the Living, is searchable in the database. .(Source: LAC)
- Schedule 2 , Nominal Return of the Deaths within the last twelve months, can be found by scrolling to the last page of each sub-District
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Timothy Moynahan, Howard, Finley, Sutherland, McCloskey, McCarthy, Hickey, Lennon, and Doumachelle.
- Jeremiah Moynahan's (33) kin were: Mary (his wife 28 years old), Ellen (his daughter 6 years old) and John (his son 5 years old).
- Both Jeremiah and his wife Mary were unable to read or write (Column 18 and 19)
- The enumerator was Thomas Barret on the 11th of April. A total of 206 commissioners were appointed to coordinate the 1871 census. Reporting to the commissioners, 2,789 enumerators were then assigned to a clearly defined area.(Source: LAC).
The 1881 Census
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| Manual Containing the "Census Act" and the Instructions to Officers Employed in the Taking of the Second Census in Canada, 1881, Ottawa: Department of Agriculture, Census Branch, 1881 (AMICUS 7204103). http://www.prdh.umontreal.ca/census/en/uguide/enum_1881.aspx |
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| Screenshot of digitized image for Jeremiah Moynahan 1881 Census: "The microfilming of these records was not of consistent quality and not all images are readable." (Source: LAC) |
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| Cropped image of same Census 1881 page as found at Library and Archives Canada http://data2.collectionscanada.gc.ca/e/e329/e008208530.jpg |
- The 1881 Census: Year: 1881; Census Place: Sandwich East, Essex, Ontario; Roll: C_13281; Page: 23; Family No: 95
- The 1881 Census marked the second regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began April 4, 1881. (Source: LAC)
- In 1955, the Dominion Bureau of Statistics was authorized by the Public Records Committee to microfilm and destroy the original paper records of the 1881 Census. (Source: LAC)
- Note the quality of the two sets of digitized records above. I feel lucky that Jeremiah's name even showed up in a searchable index!
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Hickey, McCarthy, Roberts, Sullivan, Linch, Brennan, (*), McCarthy, Sexton, O'Neill
- Jeremiah Moynahan's kin were: Jerry (44), Mary (40), Ellen (16), John (15), Margaret (9), Mary (8)
- All the children were attending school (Column 16)
- Note: John (61) and Catherine (63) Brennan (born in Ireland) listed - these were the parents of Mary (Brennan) Moynahan. In the same year as this census, on the 21st of April, 1881, Mary's father John Brennan died at the age of 62 years (of "brain fever) (Death certificate informant Jeremiah McCarthy; Ontario, Canada Deaths, 1869-1934; Roll: MS935_27) and he is buried in St. Mary's cemetery in Maidstone
- On the 1871 Census, John (51) and Catherine (60) Brennan lived in Sandwich East but not in same proximity as the 1881 census. (John Brennan could read and write but not Catherine) (Year: 1871; Census Place: Sandwich East, Essex, Ontario; Roll: C-9889; Page: 24; Family No: 79)
- The census commenced April 4, 1881 and John Brennan died April 21, 1881!
What I Did NOT Know
Given that I have been researching my great great grandparent's Moynahan family for over thirty years now, I was quite surprised to realize that I was missing so much census information from a family that lived essentially in the same place for 84 years!
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| Library and Archives: Map of Canada East and West 1855 (Copyright expired ) http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1842-canada-west/Pages/census-districts-sub-districts.aspx |
Missing from my files were records for the following census years:
- Missing 1842 census information
- Jeremiah was born in March 1837 in Maidstone, Ontario to Denis and Catherine (Roach) Moynahan who lived at 6 South Middle Road.
- Shortly after the Act of Union created the Province of Canada, consisting of Canada West (present-day Ontario) and Canada East (present-day Quebec), legislators agreed about the need for a census in September 1841. It was to be completed by February 1, 1842. (Source LAC)
- Unfortunately, not all returns have survived. The returns for eight districts and 51 sub-districts have been preserved and are accessible at Library and Archives Canada. (Source LAC)
- Missing 1852 (date actually taken) census information
- Jeremiah, his parents and six siblings all lived in Maidstone, Ontario
- Originally scheduled for 1851, this Census marked the second collection of statistics for the Province of Canada. In 1841, the Act of Union created the Province of Canada, consisting of Canada West (present-day Ontario) and Canada East (present-day Quebec). Information on population was also collected for New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. (Source: LAC)
- Important every-name censuses were taken in southern Ontario for 1851 (actually taken in 1852) and 1861. Some sections of these censuses are lost. (Source: Family Search)
- The 1851 census has been indexed at LAC partners’ websites: Ancestry (subscription required; free at many public libraries) and FamilySearch (free)
- Missing 1861 census information
- Jeremiah was twenty-four years old in 1861. Not yet married (he would marry in 1863). And when I located his parents (Denis and Catherine Moynahan) and his siblings on the 1861 census, Jeremiah is not with them. (Library and Archives Canada; Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Census Returns For 1861; Roll: C-1019-1020)
- In 1867, Jeremiah is located in the Essex County Directory and Gazetteer, 1866-1867 at 298 STR (South Talbot Rd)
- The 1861 Census marked the third collection of statistics for the Province of Canada. its the last census for the "Province of Canada." the next one will be for the Canadian Federation (Source: LAC).
- The census officially began on January 14, 1861 for Canada West; (Source: LAC)
- Important Note: The 1861 schedules were not always microfilmed in order and pagination is often inconsistent or non-existent. (Source: LAC)
- Missing 1891census information
- I know that Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan lived in the exact same location 298 STR (South Talbot Rd) that they had in 1871 and 1881 because hey did not sell the farm and move to 432 Hall Ave., Windsor, Ontario) until the fall of 1921 (Source: Essex Free Press; 23 June 1922; Page 1 of 8)
- The 1891 Census marked the third regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began April 6, 1891. (Source: LAC)
- This census is advertised in newspapers and from pulpits
- Missing 1901 census information
- I know that Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan lived in the exact same location 298 STR (South Talbot Rd) that they had in 1871 and 1881 because hey did not sell the farm and move to 432 Hall Ave., Windsor, Ontario) until the fall of 1921 (Source: Essex Free Press; 23 June 1922; Page 1 of 8)
- The 1901 Census marked the fourth regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began March 31, 1901.(Source: LAC)
- For the 1901 Census, names were recorded on schedule 1 and locations (addresses) of each household on schedule 2. http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1901/Documents/1901-Ontario-Schedule-2.pdf
- The 1901 Census has been indexed at Automated Genealogy http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/Province.jsp?province=ON
- This census adds questions on religion, birthplace, citizenship and period of immigration
- Missing 1911 census information
- I know that Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan lived in the exact same location that they had in 1871 and 1881 298 STR (South Talbot Rd) because hey did not sell the farm and move to 432 Hall Ave., Windsor, Ontario) until the fall of 1921 (Source: Essex Free Press; 23 June 1922; Page 1 of 8)
- The 1911 Census marked the fifth regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began on June 1, 1911. (Source: LAC)
- This was the last census to ask questions on "infirmities"
- Missing 1921 census information
- I know that Jeremiah and Mary (Brennan) Moynahan lived in the exact same location that they had in 1871 and 1881 because hey did not sell the farm and move to 432 Hall Ave., Windsor, Ontario) until the fall of 1921 (Source: Essex Free Press; 23 June 1922; Page 1 of 8)
- The 1921 Census marked the sixth regularly scheduled collection of national statistics. It officially began on June 1, 1921. (Source: LAC)
- This census adds questions on birthplaces of both parents
What I FOUND and Learned
I was delighted that this simple exercise in revisiting the subject of censuses helped me to learn so much more about my ancestors!
Pre-1852 Censuses
- I had absolutely NO luck finding Jeremiah in ANY of the pre-1852 censuses
- The 1852 Census has been indexed at Automated Genealogy http://automatedgenealogy.com/census52/index.jsp
- Upper Canada Sundries, 1766-1841 is another resource available that I will review at some point in the future. Library and Archives Canada holds the records of the Upper Canada Sundries (RG 5 A1), 1766-1841. This series is part of the Civil Secretary’s Correspondence for Upper Canada and Canada West. It consists of letters, petitions, reports, returns and schedules, certificates, accounts, warrants, legal opinions, instructions and regulations, proclamations and other documents received by the Civil Secretary of Upper Canada, 1791-1841, together with copies of some documents of 1766-1809, made for reference purposes. The Finding Aid (Reels C-9822 to C-9825) for these records has also been digitized and a basic level of searching can be carried out on them. http://heritage.canadiana.ca/sundries
FOUND Dines Minehan & Jeremiah Moynahan
in the 1861 Census
in the 1861 Census
On the 1861 census, young Jeremiah is not listed at 6 SMR (South Middle Road), Maidstone with his parents and siblings (recorded as Minehan by enumerator)
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| Library and Archives Canada; Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Census Returns For 1861; Roll: C-1019-1020 |
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| Source: Ancestry.ca; screen capture; LAC; 1861 Census; Film Number C-1021 Page number 62 |
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Thomas Moran and his wife (storekeeper); Jeremiah Collins (tavern keeper)
FOUND Jeremiah Moynahar in the 1891 Census
I searched Ancestry, Library and Archives Canada, and Family Search (The 1891 census is not available at Automated Genealogy). I did not arrive at any results and so I began a page by page visual search starting with Essex County, Sandwich East and finally found them on page 77 of 91 under the surname Moynahar!
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames: McCarthy, Thomson, Sullivan, Lennon, Halford
- Jeremiah Moynahan's (59) kin were: wife Mary (50), daughters Ellen the school teacher (26), Maggie (19), Minnie (18), Catherine (16), Annie (14), Clara (8) and Maud (6) and sons John the school teacher (25) and James (12)
- Mary Brennan CAN read and write on this census!
- Mary Brennan's mother died in 1891 (month unknown) and the Schedule 2, Deaths that had occurred in the last twelve months was NOT preserved
FOUND Jain Meynsko & Manet Moyshan
in the 1901 & 1911 Censuses
in the 1901 & 1911 Censuses
The reason that the 1901 and 1911 censuses were not part of my source material for Jeremiah is because they did not show up on any of my searches (LAC and Ancestry.ca)
I actually spent an entire evening last night paging through both of these census reports to locate Jeremiah who was found as:
- I found Jeremiah Moynahan as Jain Meynsko in the 1901 census http://data2.collectionscanada.ca/1901/z/z002/jpg/z000060357.jpg and
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| Screen Capture Ancestry: |
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| Actual document: 1901 Census of Canada District: ON ESSEX (North/Nord) (#59) Subdistrict: Sandwich (South/Sud) E-4 Page 8 |
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Hartley, Small, McCarthy, O'Connell, Taylor (African), Larkin, and John Moynahan (school teacher) (my great grandparents)
- Jeremiah Moynahan's (61) kin were: wife Mary (58), daughters Nellie (36), Clara (18) and Maud (16) and son Jim (22)
- The 1901 Census has been indexed at Automated Genealogy and the results for Moynahan (and soundex M550.) are here: http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/SurnameList.jsp?surname=Moynahan&province=ON&desc=Search+province+of+Ontario+in+the+1901+Census+of+Canada+records+for+surname&Go=Go
- Jerry Moynahan was easily found at http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/View.jsp?id=49737&highlight=28&desc=1901+Census+of+Canada+page+containing+Jerry+Moynahan
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| http://data2.collectionscanada.gc.ca/1911/jpg/e001984753.jpg |
- I found Jeremiah Moynahan as Manet Moyshan in the 1911 census
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Sullivan, Barron, Croft, Kane, and Sullivan
- Jeremiah Moynahan's (74) kin were: his wife Mary (70), and his daughters Nellie (46) and Maud (26)
- Interestingly, this census indicates that Mary (Brennan) Moynahan CAN read and write (and Jeremiah still can not)
- The census also indicates that Mary (Brennan) Moynahan emigrated in 1853
- Jeremiah's daughter Nellie is a school teacher (I wonder if she taught her mother?) It says she works 30 hours per week; 43 weeks of the year; and her earnings were $625
- Jeremiah Moynahan was not found at Automated Genealogy http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/Province.jsp?province=Ontario
Still Not FOUND in the 1921 Census
I have still not been able to locate Jeremiah, Mary and Nellie on the 1921 census. They do not come up with an easy search on LAC or Ancestry. The family moved to 432 Hall in Windsor/Walkerville and I do not even have any idea which Districts and Sub-Districts to begin to search.
UPDATE: SEPT. 26, 2017
I had added this blog post to the OGS Essex County Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/EssexCountyOGS/ and was so happy to read a reply from Marianne Mallory Hurley who had found Jeremiah, Mary and Nellie on the 1921 census!
Marianne wrote:
And when I went to LAC's 1921 search page and punched in the surname "Moytuihes" there they were! http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1921/Pages/results.aspx?k=cnsSurname%3a%22Moytuihes%22UPDATE: SEPT. 26, 2017
I had added this blog post to the OGS Essex County Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/EssexCountyOGS/ and was so happy to read a reply from Marianne Mallory Hurley who had found Jeremiah, Mary and Nellie on the 1921 census!
Marianne wrote:
There is an entry for Jeremiah, Mary & Nellie Moytuihes that seems to fit your relative. I think the indexer went off the rails on the transcription because the original looks to me to be Moynahan.
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| Screenshot: http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1921/Pages/results.aspx?k=cnsSurname%3a%22Moytuihes%22 |
Happy to do it, I love a challenge. I have found indexing errors so many times that when I can't find a family in a census I take the last name out and just use the first names of the family members and the location in the search. It doesn't always work but this time they popped up as the first entry.
This is a great tip for me (and you) to use if ever you have difficulty like I did!
The Moynahan family DID move to 432 Hall in Windsor/Walkerville but not for the 1921 census. Marianne found them where they had always been in Sandwich (South), Essex, Ontario. To summarize again:
- I found Jeremiah Moynahan as Manet Moytuihes in the 1921 census
- Jeremiah Moynahan's nearby surnames were: Collins, Grondin, McCloskey, Lee, Donovan, Greenway, McCarthy, Sullivan, Deslippe,
- Jeremiah Moynahan's (84) kin were: his wife Mary (80), and his daughter Nellie (52)
- The Immigration date for Mary Brennan says 1863 (not 1853 as previously reported)
- Nellie is still a school teacher
I am incredibly grateful to Marianne Mallory Hurley for her efforts to locate my family on the 1921 census and I hope that one day, I can "pay it forward" for someone else who is stuck on the census records.
Conclusions
- The searchable indexes at Ancestry.ca, LAC and Automated Genealogy caused all kinds of problems for me. For the 1901 and 1911 censuses, I literally went through them page by page to find Jeremiah only to learn that the transcriptions were wrong (I corrected as many as I found)
- Somewhere along the way, Mary (Brennan) Moynahan learned to read and write! She had two children who were school teachers so it is highly likely that one or both of them taught her.
- Jeremiah Moynahan "lived 84 years within five miles of the place where he is born (on the Middle Road)" (Source: Essex Free Press June 23, 1922, Page 1 of 8) and so you would think that locating him in the census would be EASY but it was not. Imagine the difficulty for the family historians who had ancestors that were always on the move!
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| Source: Essex Free Press June 23, 1922, Page 1 of 8 |
Some Useful Census Links:
- Canada Census records at the Library and Archives of Canada http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/Pages/census.aspx
- Canada Census records at Ancestry.ca: http://search.ancestry.ca/search/group/canadiancensus
- Canada Census records at Automated Genealogy: http://automatedgenealogy.com/
- 1842 Census for Canada West: Districts and Sub-districts. Map
http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1842-canada-west/Pages/census-districts-sub-districts.aspxincludes legend, Census information for 1842 by counties and a decorative border.
- 1851: The PDF provides direct access to digitized images of the Agricultural Returns for Canada West, sorted by district, sub district and then division. http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1851/Documents/1851-Canada-West-Agricultural-Census.pdf
- 1852: Gagan, David P. "Enumerators' Instruction for the Census of Canada 1852 and 1862." Histoire sociale/Social History. Vol. VII, no. 14 (Novembre-November 1974). Transcript available online. http://www.prdh.umontreal.ca/census/en/uguide/enum_1852.aspx
- 1861: Instructions for Enumerators http://www.prdh.umontreal.ca/census/en/uguide/enum_1861.aspx
- 1871 Census Schedules Finding Aid Ontario http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1871/Documents/1871-Ontario-Schedule.pdf
- 1871 Manual Containing "The Census Act" and the Instructions to Officers Employed in the Taking of the First Census of Canada (1871). Department of Agriculture (Census Branch). Ottawa : B. Chamberlin, 1871.
- 1881: Manual Containing the "Census Act" and the Instructions to Officers Employed in the Taking of the Second Census in Canada, 1881, Ottawa: Department of Agriculture, Census Branch, 1881 (AMICUS 7204103).
- 1881 Census Sub Districts for Ontario: http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1881/Pages/ontario.aspx
- 1891: Instructions to enumerators were given on how to collect the names and other information in 1891. Those instructions can be found in Manual Containing the "Census Act" and the Instructions to Officers Employed in the Taking of the Third Census in Canada, 1891. Ottawa: Department of Agriculture, Census Branch, 1891 (AMICUS 10084463)
- 1901: Instructions to enumerators were given on how to collect the names and other information in 1901. Those instructions can be found in Instructions to Chief Officers, Commissioners, and Enumerators, Ottawa, Census Office, 1901. (AMICUS 7196341).
- 1911: Instructions to enumerators were given on how to collect the names and other information in 1911. Those instructions can be found in Instructions to Enumerators, Canada Gazette, volume 44, 31 22 April 1911.
- Electoral Atlas of the Dominion of Canada (1895) http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/electoral-atlas/index-e.html
- Ontario Census links: Family Search Wiki: https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Ontario_Census
Early Irish Settlers - Essex, Ontario
