Church in Moreston Heritage Village taken peeking over the fence
Grey Roots Museum and Archives
Preparation is key when searching local archives. You need to know what you are looking for and the information available at the repository to get the most out of your research time. My previous visit to Grey Roots Museum and Archives had come as a surprise so I was not prepared and I also had limited time there. An initial look showed there was still a lot I hadn't seen on my first visit. The archives are searchable online at https://greyroots.com/collections-and-research/archives-research/search-archives.
My three page list of potential sources made things easier when I visited the archives. I handed the list to the archivist who brought out the items a few at a time. Some items didn't yield anything pertinent but the ones that did were wonderful - many of them family photos I had never seen, like the one of my grandmother as a young girl posing with her older brother and younger sister.
That find more than made up for not being able to tour Moreston Heritage Village, the historic village attached to the museum. Sadly, it doesn't open until July 1st but I took some photos looking over the fence.
Greenwood Cemetery
Since I was close to Owen Sound I went searching for the final resting place of the Thomsons and Mathisons who link to my family tree. Having already checked the gravestones at Leith Church on a previous visit, I went looking closer to the city at Greenwood Cemetery. Here too preparation was key. The cemetery covers a large area with many stones to check but fortunately there are websites to help you find particular gravestones before you go. The most helpful site is hosted by the Bruce & Grey branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society and can be found at https://brucegrey.ogs.on.ca/?page_id=943. With the help of that website I was able to find this gravestone. Both Margaret and Henrietta Mathison were sisters to my 2 x great-grandmother, Kate Mathison.
McMichael Canadian Art Collection
My Ontario trip included a stay in Toronto. I ruled out a trip to the Ontario Archives as it didn't seem that I would find out much more with a visit. I know I will probably find a burning need to do some research there sometime in the future because I am no longer in Ontario, but that is the nature of genealogical research. I put my research behind me and prepared to enjoy the sights and bookstores of Ontario's capital city. My host knew of my interest in the art of Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven so she took me to see the McMichael Canadian Art Collection at the venue on the right. There on the grounds is the shack that served as Tom Thomson's studio and living space in the last years of his life. I guess there was a little bit of family history to be found near Toronto after all.
Tom Thomson's shack
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