Books for Genealogy and History

First of all, there are two books which I would recommend for those starting out. They aren't limited to Perth County, but they are both very useful for anyone doing Ontario genealogy.

In Search of Your Canadian Roots by Angus Baxter is one which I recommend to anyone interested in Canadian genealogy. He starts out with general information and then gives detailed information on the resources available for each province. The latest edition is the 2nd in 1994. Be aware that even in the latest edition the addresses he gives may no longer be correct.

Genealogy in Ontario: Searching the Records by Brenda Dougall Merriman is the other one I recommend.
$ It can be purchased from OGS. The latest edition is the 3rd in 1996; the older editions are now a bit out of date, but still useful. I wish there was a book like this for every province!

Now that that's over, I can move on to...

BOOKS SPECIFIC TO PERTH COUNTY

For more books on particular townships and towns, see the township links on the main page. The books here are the ones about the county as a whole.

History of the County of Perth from 1825-1902, by William Johnston, is a good history of the beginning of the county. However, it's hard to find. Originally printed in 1903, it was reprinted in 1976 by the Beacon Herald Fine Printing Division, Stratford.

History of Perth County to 1967 by W Stafford Johnston and Hugh Johnston. Beacon Herald Press, Stratford, 1967. This book is more or less a continuation of Johnson's book, and focuses on the time from 1900 on.
$ You can buy a copy from the Stratford-Perth Archives.

An important source is the Illustrated Historical Atlas of Perth County, from 1879, one of the series of Beldon County Historical Atlases. This is particularly valuable if your ancestors were landowners (farmers), since it includes a map of every township showing the location of each farm, with the names of the owner. Also, there are historical sketches of many people. It was reprinted in 1982 by Cummings Publishers, Stratford. Many libraries have this series of atlases; they are being reprinted again but they are expensive to buy (about $90 CAN most places I've seen them). People have reported to me that they cannot get this by Inter-Library loan, because it's a reference book & cannot go out. Here's a list of names for the biographical sketches; if you're interested in someone on this list, contact me & I'll photocopy the sketch for you.

There is another Illustrated Historical Atlas of Perth County, this one made in 1982. It follows the same pattern as the 1879 one, and it is a good source to compare the past with the present. I've used it to compare farm ownership; find the farm in the old atlas and then see who owned it in 1982! Is it still in the family?

A good series of books, though very hard to find these days, is Vera McNichol's Reveries of a Pioneer. Each book concentrates on a particular township or two townships. These are invaluable books for the family historian, because they contain so many reminiscences. I believe the author lived in the county all her life, and she knew many of the locals. She writes little snippets (some in poetry) about the people, places and events of the past. When I looked at the Elma township book, I couldn't believe how many names were mentioned that I recognized. She seems to have known everyone!
But beware: there are mistakes in these books!! She seems to have compiled them by talking to people, and while there's nothing wrong with that, sometimes the person she was talking to got things mixed up, and Vera didn't check her facts. Beware especially the family stories given in these books.

This series consists of:
Reveries of a Pioneer(1968) (covers all Perth County, contains bits from the other books)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Elma (1967)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Ellice and Logan (1967)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Hibbert and Fullarton (1967)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Mornington(1966)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Wallace(1966)
Reveries of a Pioneer: Blanshard and Downie(1967)

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Meg Fuller Perth County Coordinator

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