This fonds consists of research material, manuscripts, published articles and correspondence of Blodwen Davies with the Saskatchewan Arts Board and the National Museum.

This fonds consists of photographs, two charcoal portraits, land documents, family bible and biographical sketches of Lakefield, Ontario. It also includes information on the Joseph Walton family of Smith Township. The bible contains genealogical information and is a "Cottage" Bible stamped with name of Joseph and S.J. Walton.

The fonds consists of photocopies of the following memoirs of settlement in the Bobcaygeon Area. a) Reminiscence of Mossom Boyd, written down by M.M. Boyd, 1875-1877, typescript copy, 5 pages. b) Manuscript copy of J.W. Bicks "Reminiscences and Memorandum on Coming to Canada in 1837 and Dunsford family in 1838;" gathered 1891 (January 9) 5 pages. c) George Dunsford Reminiscences, taken down by H.J. Wickham, 1894 in Miss Boyd's hand.

This collection consists of a number of articles written by Norman McBain about families in Cavan and about topics of interest in the Cavan area, i.e. inns, taxes, schools, etc. It also includes the following: an article by E.S. Clarry on an 1821 petition to the King regarding voting rights; a bylaw re taverns; the history of Fairmount Church and Methodist givings; an 1896 ballot for Cavan officers; a clipping re George Berry; a list of Overseers of Highways, fence viewers, etc.; an audited financial statement of Cavan for 1875; a newspaper report of Cavan Council business; an invoice re sidewalks; notes on Cavan town hall; and several pages of original hand-written notes re persons holding various offices in Cavan. Also included are copies of clippings re Cavan Blazers, school graduation results, etc.

The fonds consists of the typescript memoirs of Minnie E. McHolm of her life in Frome, Somerset, England, to March 1913, then the memoirs of life as a domestic on the Canadian prairies, outside of Regina, to December 1920. The fonds also includes two booklets of Mrs. McHolm's poetry, The Indiscretion of Mary Jane and Sunset at Golden Hill. Additional material received in 2003 includes another book of poetry, Singing With a Swing, and newspaper clippings regarding Minnie McHolm. Also included are 2 Christmas cards featuring McHolm poems signed by Minnie McHolm and a newspaper obituary.

Fonds consists of records relating to the Millbrook, Ontario and Cavan, Ontario area. Included are photographs, photocopies of newspaper clippings and articles, and scrapbooks. Several items pertain to St. Andrews United Church, Millbrook.

Fonds consists of one copybook of arithmetic exercises belonging to Isabella Miller, Otonabee Township.

Fonds consists of documents and photographs relating to Harley Cummings' education and military career; his research notes, correspondence, and manuscripts relating to family history and Ottawa schools history; and miscellaneous scrapbooks.

Fonds consists of maps and plans of the Ottawa and Haliburton areas, time-books of Bronsons and Weston logging firm, and photographs of the building of a railway, and of the Haliburton area. Included also are research material and manuscripts relating to books which Harley R. Cummings wrote about schools in the Ottawa area, and on the history of Haliburton. Included are notes on John Strachan and a transcript of his diary. The fonds also includes several genealogical charts of the MacCallum family.

This fonds consists of primary research material and the manuscript and photographs for Harley R. Cummings' book, "Early Days in Haliburton". The fonds also consists of correspondence, including letters from the Honorable Leslie Frost, photographs, maps, and an original 1863 surveyor's diary for Eyre Township. Also included are the C.R. Stewart diaries, dated 1902-1904. C.R. Stewart (1826-1905) was resident agent for the Canadian Land and Immigration Company and was the first settler in the Village of Haliburton. In his diaries he refers to Colonel Samuel Hughes and Mossom Boyd. Stewart's son, C.E. Stewart (1851-1921) was editor of the "Bobcaygeon Independent". The fonds also includes several historical papers and publications written by Cummings and others.

This item is a photocopy of a letter written by Isabella Carr to her sister, Mrs. Richard Bond of Lockport, New York. The letter was written in February, 1846. The letter gives news of family and neighbours and tells of an outbreak of measles.

Fonds consists of an undated photograph of Susan Burnham Greeley, and a newspaper article from the [Colborne Express, 22 September 1904] regarding the death of Greeley. Also included is an envelope addressed to E.C. Caddy of Cobourg, Ontario and mailed in 1895, with handwritten notation "from Cousin Susan".

This item is a report of the selection and despatch of the Irish immigrants that Peter Robinson settled in the Peterborough area in 1825, including names of the ships used, numbers carried, a list of townships in which the immigrants settled and the results of the harvests in 1826. A transcript of the report is included.

This fonds consists of three scrapbooks of assorted clippings covering such topics as: handicrafts, holidays, poetry and song. Also includes attendance records, trustee meetings, teachers contacts and other education related records for School Section No. 10, Brock Township, Ontario.

This item is a typescript of an autobiography written by Captain Charles Rubidge and published in 1870.

This fonds consists of two copy photographs of Captain Rubidge, one in old age and one in youth wearing Royal Navy uniform; two photographs of a portrait of Captain Rubidge; and four typescript sheets of biographical information.

Fonds consists of sheet music, some of which is hand-copied. The items originated with Captain Charles Rubidge and penciled annotations suggest that he collected or hand-copied a number of them in the early 1800s for his wife-to-be, Margaret Clarke, before coming to Canada. "Mrs. Rubidge" is written in hand on some pieces. Provenance is indicated on some documents in layered notes made by family descendants across generations. Also included is information compiled by Laurie Lambe Wallace about the sheet music and its history within the Rubidge family.

In 2017, 29 additional pieces of sheet music dating to the early 1800s were added. This music belonged to Mary Catharine Dunsford, wife of Reverend Hartley. Some of the music includes handwritten notations with family names and dates. While the publications of some pieces may date to the early 1800s, the handwritten penciled dates cover a period generally between the 1830s and 1860s. The notations point to connections between the Rubidge, Dunsford, McEwen, and Boyd families of the Peterborough area. Included in this addition is genealogical information compiled by the donor.

This item is a spiral bound book entitled A Logan Family - Eight Generations in Canada, plus several pages of loose insertions.

Fonds consists of four funeral notices. The first is of Eliza Ann Raper, wife of William Raper, who died in Millbrook, Ontario, 5 September 1890; the second, of Ann Jane Killenbeck, wife of Wm. H. Russell, who died in Millbrook, 4 August 1892; the third, of Mary Elizabeth Killingbeck, wife of Wm. Raper, who died in Township of Cavan, 18 August 1895; and the fourth, of Maria Richardson, wife of John Richardson, who died in Toronto, 28 November 1898, funeral at the residence of her brother, Wm. Raper, Millbrook.

This fonds consists of photocopied correspondence of the Stewart and Dunlop families. Most of the letters are to Ellen Dunlop (daughter of Frances Browne Stewart) from Frances Stewart, Catharine Parr Traill and Harriet Beaufort as well as James Wallis. Also included is a Stewart family tree.

Fonds consists of journals and photographs dated 1860-1908 pertaining to Hugh Caldwell Sr. of Chandos Township, Peterborough County, and his son Hugh Caldwell Jr. The journals were received in original format and as digital scans. Also included are a small number of family records dating to 1987.

This fonds consists of correspondence, an early version of the manuscript of Our Forest Home, and a copyright document for Our Forest Home. Also included are drawings, a painting, and house plans.

The grasses scrapbook was compiled by Catharine Parr Traill for her friend James Fletcher and given to him 12 January 1894. The inside cover has the following inscriptions: "Grasses from Stony Lake gathered and mounted by Cathe Parr Traill - Aged 92 years." These specimens are from the Island of Minne Wa-Wa and Otter Island. July-September 1893" and "With Mrs.Traill's kind wishes to her much valued and esteemed friend James Fletcher F.S.L.S. & etc. January 12th, 1894". The scrapbook consists of 20 pages, 18 of which have pressed grasses, from the Stoney Lake area of the Island of Minne Wa-Wa and Otter Island, glued onto them. Also included in the scrapbook is a specimen list of the grasses and a photocopy of an article, entitled "Grasses from Stony Lake Gathered and Mounted by Cathe Parr Traill - Aged 92 Years". The article was written by William G. Dore and published in The Ontario Naturalist in 1966.

The framed mosses were gathered by Catharine Parr Traill in the Stoney Lake area. Prior to the Archives receiving this addition, the pages were taken apart, mounted and framed in two frames each containing three pages of mosses; one medium frame containing "Sedges & grass, with mosses, from the bank below the garden at Westove. Gathered and arranged for Katie. With Grandmother's dear love. Oct. 24th, 1889"; and one small frame with Traill's autograph.

Fonds consists of research materials and notes, modern correspondence, photocopies of historical documentation, and genealogical resources for the Need family as well as other people living in both England and Newcastle District. The historical documentation includes wills, gravesite information, lot and concession records, military records, correspondence. As well as the Need family, there is also biographical information on other families, including the Dunsfords, Langtons, Campbells, and Sawers.

These research materials were accumulated by Dawn Bell Logan and used to write books, articles, and biographical entries about Thomas Need, including Thomas Need : settler in the backwoods of Upper Canada (self published, 2022), and the Dictionary of Canadian Biography entry for Thomas Need (V. 12). Photographs are of some sites in Lincolnshire, U.K, Peterborough, Canada, the Trent Severn Waterway, Thomas Need’s descendants, and gravestones of Need family members.

Fonds is organized into four series: Thomas Need journals and correspondence; Research materials and manuscripts; Dawn Logan correspondence; and Files on Dawn Logan’s publications.

Thomas Need Biography

Thomas Need (1808-1895) emigrated from Nottingham, England to Upper Canada in May 1832 and settled in Verulam Township in Victoria County in 1833 around Sturgeon Lake. He had graduated from University College, London, in 1830 and rejected the idea of becoming a member of the clergy. This contributed to his decision to leave England.

While in Upper Canada, Need was a member of the government commission that oversaw the construction of what became the first lock of the Trent-Severn Waterway, founded the Village of Bobcaygeon in 1834, and served as a magistrate for the Court of Requests from 1835 to 1837.

Need anonymously published his book Six years in the bush or extracts from the journal of a settler in Upper Canada (London, 1838) on his experiences in Upper Canada. The book was based on his journal entries he made in his personal journal which he called the “Woodhouse Journal.” Need returned to Nottingham, England permanently in 1847 and died in 1895. His authorship was confirmed with the publication of John Langton’s letters in 1926 and he was subsequently recognized as a contributor to early Canadian literature.

Source: Biography – NEED, THOMAS – Volume XII (1891-1900) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/need_thomas_12E.html. Accessed 11 Jan. 2024.

This item is an affectionate letter written by John Black from [Stockton] to his wife, Catherine Black, living in Carleton Place, Upper Canada. Black expresses his sorrow at not being able to send money to his wife for such a long time. He indicates the "very hard winter" and problems at his workplace, a "shop in town" which builds wagons, as reasons for not having any money to send.