Uncle Peg’s Chronicles
September 3, 2026
“No
Value . . . Immense Value”
“These
were their settlements. And they kept good family records.”[1]
Don’t
forget to look for the title which is embedded in the chronicle.
FAMILY ALBUM
Conrad and Phyllis
(Bearse) Digennaro and their grandchildren, Bella and Joey, vacationing in New
Hampshire with their son and grandchildren. They are in the Charles R Holmes
line, and some of you met them at the 2016 reunion.
And I Quote:
Excerpts from my letters to the editor. Thank
you.
Thanks Peg . . . and have a great
vacation! - Kevin Hoeg
I hope you have a great vacation!
– Paul Worster
Have a great vacation! –
Marvin Davis
1926
to 1928
1924 to 1928 are the years that our
Holmes ancestors spent renewing relationships that had somehow fallen by the
wayside but with organization, letter writing, and challenging travel – by hook
or by crook – they managed to come together again. They reacquainted and
rediscovered their family ties. And then, one by one, they died, and many of
those ties died with them.
2026
to 2028
Between
the wedding that I helped plan (no relation) and the arrival of my daughter and
granddaughter, I spent some research time looking for records for another
Holmes IRCC application. (Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada –
Citizenship by descent). That makes three lines that I have worked on – Peter,
Charles, and now William.
Each
line had a different issue – and William’s is by far the toughest case. Peter’s
son had a name change, Charles’ daughter has an unknown to us sperm provider,
and William’s is a lack of documented proof. In Peter and Charles’ case, not
all of their descendants will have this issue, only the descendants of Cecil
and Ella. In William’s case, you will all have an issue, and should you desire
to apply for citizenship by descent, you will have to be creative and write a
really succinct cover letter. No application is guaranteed; all must follow
instructions to the letter and then, cross your fingers.
I
do realize that some, probably many of you who have the opportunity to apply,
are not interested. I do have to say – it is a great opportunity to learn more
about your ancestors, to learn how to properly research and cite sources, and
to follow the Genealogical Proof Standard. It is probably not unlike applying
for DAR, SAR, or UE status.
We
looked at what records we could find for William’s parents, Daniel Holmes and
Charlotte Hoyt. We determined that, although records are elusive for both of
them, the Hoyt family would probably be the better choice. Neither Daniel nor
Charlotte have birth or baptism records. What we based our decision on was the
land record of Charlotte’s father, James Hoyt III, son of a Loyalist, born c.
1784 either in New York or New Brunswick. He will not be the G0 (Generation 0),
but James III and Frances (Ketchum) Hoyt’s information can be part of the cover
letter – the proof that they lived in Canada and that Charlotte was a citizen
by birth and their daughter. James’ probate, which is, as of August, at the
NBGS website, states that James left £5 to his beloved daughter, Charlotte. We
have death notices for James and Frances, and a newspaper marriage record for
Daniel and Charlotte.
William
is another story altogether – all we have for him is two census records, one
which is barely legible. Of the twelve children of Daniel and Charlotte, all
have baptismal records except for Margaret, who left no descendants, and
William. Why they were not baptized or recorded, I do not know.
This
leads me to believe, once again, that what we do in our lifetimes (good, bad,
or otherwise; recorded or hidden) can profoundly affect not only our children,
but descendants down the line who we will never know.
News from Holmes
Congratulations to Rylee Patterson, of the Charles R Holmes
line, who married Tatam Beshears in August, in Arizona. Rylee is the daughter
of Clay and Marika (McGinnis) Patterson.
Photos of Phoebe
I
posted Phoebe’s birth announcement in the last chronicle, but I didn’t have a
photo. Here’s a couple from Paul’s Facebook. The first is Paul and Leah with
Phoebe, and the second is Phoebe with her two sisters, Ayla and Emmy.
Violetta
Prossinger and her children, visiting Conrad and Phyllis.
FAMILY HISTORY LESSON
The Ballantyne History
is courtesy of Jeanni Worster.
This is the only
“record” that I have stating Charlotte (Hoyt) Holmes’ date of birth. It is not
an official record and will be of no value to the IRCC. It has immense value to
our family. The compiler of this little record book is not stated, but I attribute
it to Kingsley A Ballantyne, the Holmes historian of the 1920s, who refers to
Grandfather Ballantyne on one page, and Grandfather Holmes on another. Kingsley
had one child, a daughter, Ruth, who did not marry or leave descendants. It
continues on with Grandfather Hall and grandfather Merrill’s information – his
wife’s parents.
Not all
information is correct, and when I borrowed the booklet, I researched
Kingsley’s facts. I do not have any issue with Kingsley’s information – every
generation finds new records and information and needs to update it. Fenwick W
Holmes updated it, I do it, and some of you do it. I appreciate those of you
who share information with me.
One error with
Daniel Holmes – he was not born in Parrsboro, Cumberland County, Nova Scotia.
There was another Daniel Holmes born in Parrsboro, with a wife Charlotte.
Totally different family, and as far as I can determine, no relation to us. Our
Daniel was born in the Amherst area, Cumberland County, Nova Scotia. There are
other small discrepancies, but one big error. Both Margaret and William Snider
(Uncle Billy and Aunt Maggie) died in January, 1916.
One other thing
- it states that Charles married Phoebe Corey. Charles actually married
Phoebe McMonagle, daughter of Edwin and Elizabeth (UNK – unknown maiden name)
McMonagle. Sandra Thorne speculated, after much research with few results, that
Phoebe was a Blakeney. Perhaps she was. I don’t have Blakeney DNA connections.
My Corey connections (and some of yours) are plentiful. Edwin McMonagle was
said to be born in Intervale, NB (no record), which is not far from Havelock,
NB, an area where many Coreys lived. I never paid any attention to this until
today, August 18, 2026.
I must look into
this again. Hypothesis: Elizabeth (MNU) McMonagle could have been a Corey. It
could be that a Corey married a Blakeney. That would be a challenge to
prove, but I had a quick peek and although I know I have Corey genes, I don’t
know how I (and we) got them.
This ends
week thirty-six of our centennial virtual celebration of 1926 – 2026.
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