Obituaries from the Kings Country Record

Mum was always busy with cooking and cleaning, but the day the Kings County Record arrived, all chores were put on hold while she read every word of that paper.

Many other housewives in Kings County also hurried to the mailbox that day. They too probably sat down in the old rocking chair and read, while the floor went unswept and the dishes soaked in the dishpan.

This paper was also delivered to many homes that were beyond the boundaries of New Brunswick. Former Kings County residents who had moved to foreign parts awaited the weekly arrival of their Record as it provided them with a welcome link to home.

Just about every little village had a correspondent who reported weekly on the comings, goings and who visited who. For many years, Mary kept track of the guests at the homes in Titusville as well as the outside excursions of the residents. Company in those days was kinfolk who motored from Saint John or family members who returned home for a Sunday dinner. Way back then, visiting played a major role in our daily lives.

An abundance of genealogical information is available in the obituaries. They give the researcher a detailed summary of the deceased person and the loved ones left behind. Usually included were the names of those who sent flowers as an expression of sympathy. Quite often the visitors who attended the funeral from out of town or the village were listed.

Once a year from 1936 to 1946, the Kings County Record published a summary of the obituaries. Age and place of residence were usually noted. Some of those mentioned in the 403 obituaries of 1944 are:
Annie Parkins Law aged 21, Toronto
Jabesh Walton (80), Little Beach
Mrs. Phoebe A. Farnsworth, Waltham, Mass.
Mrs. Hannah M. Burns (93), Hatfield¹s Point
William Bettle (30), Passekeag
Mrs. Mary M. Alston (71) London, England
Mrs. Ruth Kinnear (83), Fillmore, Sask.
Dr. Allan McLean Barnes (84), Alameda, California
Willard Carson (72), Smithtown
Delbert Beatty (6), Upham
Gerald Brown, Hampton
Howard Thorne (76), Aberdeen, South Dakota
Mrs. Frank J. Allaby, Saint John and
Mrs. Charles E. Smith, Leesburg, Florida.

The obituaries served to inform the residents of Kings County and those farther afield that a loved one had departed this earth for their heavenly home.

The Kings County Record is on microfilm at the Saint John Free Public Library, Market Square.

For those who are interested, a publication of an index to these 3,000 obituaries has been compiled and is available from Ruby at rmcusack@nbnet.nb.ca

Query 98-410
Harper - Hunter - McNally: I am looking for information on my paternal grandfather, Robert David Harper, who was born in Scotland in 1880 or 1881 and moved to New Brunswick possibly with brothers and a sister. His parents were David and Isabella (Hunter) Harper. He was sent to New Brunswick to live with relatives in Chelmsford, N.B., after the death of both parents. These relatives had a lumber business in Chelmsford. He moved to Massachusetts around 1900 and married my grandmother, Rose McNally, in 1903. I would greatly appreciate hearing from someone with any information regarding my grandfather or other relatives still living in New Brunswick.
- Marilyn (Harper) Stevens, 636 Groton St., Dunstable, MA, 01827. Telephone (978) 649-6047. E-mail to domastevens@compuserve.com.
 

Query 98-411
McLean - McGraw - Barry: I am looking for descendants of Hector McLean born in Prince Edward Island, and Mary McGraw, born in Chatham, N.B. The family lived in Dalhousie Parish and Newcastle. Their son, Hector, was married to Ellen Barry and lived in the Miramichi area.
- Ann Moriarty, P.O. Box 67, New Lowell, Ontario, L0M 1N0. Or E-mail to annmoriarty@attcanada.net.
 

Query 98-412
Currey - Travis - Dykeman: I am a descendant of Joshua Currey, a Loyalist who settled at Gagetown, N.B., in 1783. He and his wife, Eunice Travis, had many children, one of them, Richard Currey, married Rebecca Dykeman. Among their children was a son also named Richard Currey, my great-great-grandfather. This Richard left New Brunswick sometime in the1830s or early 1840s and settled in the town of Union, Hudson Co., New Jersey. He married Eliza Gardner. Their children were Jennie, Richard, Mary, Lelia and Annie. My great-grandmother was Annie. Her sister Lelia used to come back to New Brunswick to visit relatives. This would have been sometime between the 1890s and 1914. She visited a Louisa Currey who lived in Saint John. I would like to know if there are any of my relatives left who are still living in the Queens County, Saint John or Fredericton? If so, could they contact me?
- Lisa Marin, RR#1 Box 763, Jonesport, ME, 04649. Or E-mail to marinlis@mail.jbhs.mcsd.k12.me.
 

Query 98-413
Verner - Henderson: John Verner and his wife Martha/Meriah (?) Henderson came from Ireland to New Brunswick in 1837. They showed up on the 1851 census in the Parish of Upham in Kings County, N.B., with an infant daughter named Ann(e) Jane who was 7 months old at that time. In 1852, a son, John Robert Verner, was born in Island Pond, Vermont. In the 1871 census in the Parish of Simonds, St. John County, John Verner re-appears and was remarried to a new wife by the name of Rebecca Hurst, who was only 22 when he was in his late 50s. They had five or six children. I have been told that John Verner is buried in a cemetery in Barnesville, Kings Co., N.B. Probably Meriah/Martha (Henderson) Verner remarried to a Henry Bowman. If anyone recognizes any of these names I would love to hear from them.
- N. Brown, 4163 Verte Place, Nanaimo, B.C., V9T 5P7. Or E-mail to pudlejumpr@bc.sympatico.ca.

Ruby Cusack is a genealogy buff living in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. Readers are invited to send their New Brunswick genealogical queries to Ruby at rmcusack@nbnet.nb.ca. When E-Mailing please put Yesteryear Families in the Subject line. Please include in the query, your name and postal address as someone reading the newspaper, may have information to share with you but not have access to E-mail. Queries should be no more than 45 words in length.

New and Used Genealogical and Historical books of New Brunswick for sale.

      Back
Return to Index
Next
 
 Return to   Home of RubyCusack dot com