The Pontiac Archives, Shawville, Qc, will close for the holiday season Thursday, December 12, 2013 at 4 pm and open Tuesday, January 7, 2014 at 9 am.
2014 regular open hours will be Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 9 am – 4 pm.
The Pontiac Archives received the 2013 updated version of Pontiac family genealogies with over 240,000 names from the Walter Brown Collection. Some records from other counties are listed.
This is digitalized on a computer at the Pontiac Archives at 358 Main Street, Shawville, QC, for use by researchers visiting the Archives. It is an exclusive collection.
This is well worth the time to check out and staff at the Pontiac Archives are always available to help volunteers with the computer if necessary.
The Pontiac Archives is operated by volunteers and is open on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Check this website for any updates to opening hours.
The Pontiac Archives usually closes for a couple weeks over the Christmas holiday season.
August, 2013
Pontiac Archives, 358 Main Street, Shawville, Quebec
Hours Open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
9:00 am to 4:00 pm daily
The largest flotilla of boats, kayaks and canoes ever assembled on the Upper Ottawa River between L’Isle-Aux-allumettes and Pembroke will take place on Sunday, June 16, 2013.
This is to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s 1613 landing at Morrison Island on the Ottawa River just west of Chapeau, Quebec.
Launching for free is available from Fort William and Desjardinsville on the Quebec side and Pembroke Marina and Petawawa Point on the Ontario side.
Boats must pre-register.
A family picnic will be at Desjardinsville marina from 11 am to 7 pm.
Pontiac Archives — 2013 Open House. Everyone welcome.
Drop by and meet with our helpful Archives Volunteers.
When: July 2, 3 & 4, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm at 358 Main St, Shawville, Qc
An Amazing Collection of Local Information, Current and Historical including records on:
- Early Families and Family Trees, births, marriages and deaths;
- Towns, Businesses, Churches and Social Events;
- Various Sports Leagues through the Years,
- Local Participation in key Military Engagements, and much more.
Don’t have a family tree? Let our volunteers help you start one.
The Marius Barbeau collection of French Traditional Songs, 3 volumes, donated by Armand Ducharme are available for the public to read and enjoy in the Library at the Pontiac Archives, Shawville, Qc.
Great Britain’s Woodyards and Architectural Heritage of the Pontiac donated by Patrick McGahern are available for the public to read and enjoy in the Library at the Pontiac Archives, Shawville, Qc.
The Pontiac Archives, Shawville, Qc, will close for the holiday season from
Thursday, December 13, 2012 and open Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Happy Holidays
Hours in January 2013 – Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 9 am – 4 pm.
The Pontiac Archives has received digital copies of births, marriages and deaths begining with the first year The Equity newspaper was published June 7, 1883.
This material is Copyright 2005 by Mrs Joan McKay & Mrs Dolly Allen. It has been loaned to The Pontiac Archives by The Equity in Shawville, Qc, to be used for researching by visitors to The Pontiac Archives.
Earlier birth, marriage and death notices may have been missed, with the poor printing and filming .
This first volume covers the years 1883, 1884, and 1892 to 1900.
In this second volume of the Shawville Equity, the years missing from the first volume have been recorded – 1885 to 1891, 1899, and 1901 to December 1905. Many copies were very difficult to read, in some cases impossible as the whole page appeared to be blank. Therefore, many items were not included although they were published. In the case of marriage announcements, possibly the only words to be seen described the wedding festivities or the gifts, with no names of the principals decipherable, and therefore omitted the whole item.
Death notices outnumbered both the birth and marriage announcements as in the first volume. Although not as flowery as in earlier years, the age and place of burial continue to be omitted. Consulted collection of Pontiaccemeteries in the hope of finding the missing data – sometimes successfully in which case it has been added.
It is hoped that this collection proves of interest to those seeking information on their relations and the earlier pioneers of the area.
Volume 3 1906 – 1911 Birth, Marriage and Death Extracts
Volume 4 1912 – 1916 Birth, Marriage and Death Extracts
The Equity MARRIAGE ANNOUNCEMENTS In this second volume, changes have been noticed in the marriage ceremonies now that the new century has begun. No longer are the church decorations noted as being done by the bride’s relations and friends, occasionally the church will be “suitably decorated” but possibly a florist has begun business in the area or a Ladies’ Aid has taken over the arrangements. The marriage notices have become noticeably less florid and ethereal. The bride now has sufficient strength to enter the church under her own power without “leaning on the arm of her father” and undergoes her “arduous ordeal” quite capably. The same for the groom who can now perform his vows at the altar with or without the support of a best man. Ushers and bridesmaids have not made their appearances as yet, just two witnesses for the signing of the register. Bridal ensembles are slowly becoming more festive with cream and beige for both the bride and her attendant, and veils have made their appearance. No mention as yet of “going away” costumes but then the happy couple are usually noted as entering their bridal carriage to be whisked away to the bride’s home for the festivities. Thence to the groom’s residence or farm in the early hours. Bridal bouquets rate an occasional non-descriptive notice. The ritual of opening the gifts at the reception does not receive as much attention after 1900 although the odd notable wedding will list the larger items such as furniture. Brides and grooms have begun exchanging gifts, mainly furs or jewelry and gifts to their attendants are noted. Receptions are not always held at the “residence of the bride’s father” as before, but sometimes at the homes of relatives or friends of the couple probably because the parents of one or the other lives at a distance, or there are no parents – however, receptions have yet to be held on church property, hotels, dance halls or other public accommodation. That will come in the future.
DEATH NOTICES AND MEMORIAMS Death notices at the start of this newspaper, were difficult to detect on the disorganized pages, owing to the flowery and descriptive prose of the day. No one “died” they “pierced the ethereal veil/ascended to a new life in the hereafter/broke the wall of familial affection/submitted to death’s relentless, icy grasp/winged it’s flight homeward” or “passed away from earthly scenes” and rarely by natural causes. Deaths, particularly accidental, were described in all their gory detail, and we were particularly struck by the number of suicides, drownings, and deaths from consumption (tuberculosis) diptheria, scarlatina (scarlet fever) measles, meningitis, cancer, typhoid fever and falling trees. Operations and amputations were done without anaesthesia generally as ether, etc. were unknown for that purpose so that most of the patients died of shock. However, some of those afflicted survived in spite of their ordeals. Funerals were almost always held in the deceased’s home, occasionally in the church, but rarely was the name of the cemetery given, only the religious affiliation. The Minister or Priest of the area performed the rites. Cremations were almost unknown unless the person died a great distance from home and was being returned for burial. The departed one was prepared for burial by either the women of the family or the local Midwife, the coffin built by the area carpenter, and friends and neighbors contributed to the “funeral meal” after the return from the cemetery. Obituaries were brief unless the person was well-known or in politics. It seemed to be much more important to list the deceased’s achievements, position and relationships to those of higher status rather than his age, place of birth and surviving relatives. Women were always “the wife of” “the Widow” or the “daughter of” and most times had no given name. We facetiously refer to these ladies as “No Names”. Men were “Esquires” (a rural landowner, tradesman or businessman) rarely a “Mr.” Position in the hierarchy seemed very important in that day.
The above material is available for you to use for researching. Please come in on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, 9 – 4 pm.
If you can not visit the Archives, email to archives@pontiacarchives.org, and a volunteer will research for you at $20.00 per hour. The findings will be emailed or mailed to you. Please be sure to send your name and mailing address.
Sometimes people bring Bibles to the Pontiac Archives. They are very interesting for genealogical information for our records.
We receive too many Bibles and they take up too much storage space. We do not take any more Bibles but we recommend that they be sent to the Christian Salvage Mission which is located in Hamilton. They deliver Bibles to Christian Missions around the world.
If you have a Bible that you want to give away, let us see the Bible at the Pontiac Archives so that we can scan the vital information. Then deliver it to Mr Schlievert who will send them to Hamilton:
Christian Salvage Mission, c/o M. Roy Schlievert, 3 Edward St., Arnprior, Ontario. Phone 613-623-2476