When I posted about Thomas' plumber's registration card for 1906, I made a note to myself to find the address: 9 Renfield Grove, Leeds. As it was not listed in current maps of Leeds, I did some digging. The West Yorkshire Archive Service was kind enough to provide me with the following information: Renfield Grove was located in the Central Ward of Leeds and was part of the slum clearances of the 1960s and 1970s. It would have been very near the current Sheepscar Interchange, possibly located close to where you would find Nortech Close today.
Looking at a Google map, this is where Renfield Grove would have been located:
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This is a street view of the location:
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You may need to angle the camera down on the street view to see the road...it doesn't seem to want to cooperate for the link.
Many thanks go to the West Yorkshire Archive Service for all their help in locating this long lost street and last known residence for the Ball family in Leeds.
Cheers, K.
Friday 18 November 2011
Thursday 17 November 2011
Cunningham Hardware
The city directories show that Thomas Ball worked as a plumber for Cunningham Hardware in New Westminster, starting in 1909 until 1929-1930.
Cunningham Hardware was a fixture in downtown New Westminster on Columbia Street. It was owned by Jim Cunningham (1834-1925), a local hardware merchant and real estate investor, who was helped to rebuild New Westminster after the 1898 fire which ravaged the Royal City's downtown core. Cunningham first came to British Columbia to mine the goldfields in 1860, and settled in New Westminster. He used his assets to invest in real estate in the growing city; and, in 1904, he was recorded as the 'chief taxpayer of the city'. He was prominent in local affairs, elected Mayor of New Westminster in 1873, and Member of Parliament in 1874-78. (Source:Cunningham Block and New Westminster News Leader).
These photos from the New Westminster Public Library photo database will give you an in idea of what Cunningham Hardware was like:
Exterior, 1903
And a store interior, possibly of Cunningham Hardware, 1900-1910:
Cheers, K.
Cunningham Hardware was a fixture in downtown New Westminster on Columbia Street. It was owned by Jim Cunningham (1834-1925), a local hardware merchant and real estate investor, who was helped to rebuild New Westminster after the 1898 fire which ravaged the Royal City's downtown core. Cunningham first came to British Columbia to mine the goldfields in 1860, and settled in New Westminster. He used his assets to invest in real estate in the growing city; and, in 1904, he was recorded as the 'chief taxpayer of the city'. He was prominent in local affairs, elected Mayor of New Westminster in 1873, and Member of Parliament in 1874-78. (Source:Cunningham Block and New Westminster News Leader).
These photos from the New Westminster Public Library photo database will give you an in idea of what Cunningham Hardware was like:
Exterior, 1903
And a store interior, possibly of Cunningham Hardware, 1900-1910:
Cheers, K.
Early years in New Westminster, BC
According to Greater Vancouver directories, Annie and Thomas lived at 1223-5th Avenue, New Westminster, BC from 1909 to 1923. In this 1911 photo, you can see my Granddad, William, his mother Annie, and sister Gwendolyn, in Annie's arms, standing in front of their house:
You can also notice the fence on the left, which might have bordered 13th Street. This is a Google map for the current address, which is near the corner of 5th Avenue and 13th Streets:
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and a street view of the house on 5th Avenue, near the corner with 13th Street, which bears incredible resemblance to the house of Thomas and Annie (with alterations,of course):
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Cheers, K.
You can also notice the fence on the left, which might have bordered 13th Street. This is a Google map for the current address, which is near the corner of 5th Avenue and 13th Streets:
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and a street view of the house on 5th Avenue, near the corner with 13th Street, which bears incredible resemblance to the house of Thomas and Annie (with alterations,of course):
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Cheers, K.
Wednesday 16 November 2011
Thomas' arrival in Vancouver, BC
Thomas Ball likely arrived in Vancouver, by train, in June 1906. I have been able to find him in the 1907 Henderson's City of Vancouver Directory, published in June of that year. His listing reads: Ball, Thomas, plumber, rms, 1016 Westminster Ave. The abbreviation "rms" stands for 'rooms'.
Annie and Granddad would not have likely arrived in Vancouver until mid to late June of that year, due to Granddad's hospital stay in Montreal.
I did check for Thomas in the 1906 directory. However, the publication date for the 1906 edition was given as April and he arrived at Montreal in June, he would not have made it into the directory.
Cheers, K.
Annie and Granddad would not have likely arrived in Vancouver until mid to late June of that year, due to Granddad's hospital stay in Montreal.
I did check for Thomas in the 1906 directory. However, the publication date for the 1906 edition was given as April and he arrived at Montreal in June, he would not have made it into the directory.
Cheers, K.
Tuesday 15 November 2011
Thomas and Annie's place of residence at the time of their marriage in 1899
In looking back over Thomas and Annie's records, I noticed that I neglected to mention where they were living at time of their marriage on 13 Oct 1899. According to their marriage certificate, they were married in the Baptist Chapel, Carr Crofts, Armley. The residence at the time of their marriage was given for both as 152 Tong Road, Armley. This is a current Google map of that address:
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And this is a street view of the address:
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Whether or not the 152 Tong Road mapped by Google is the same address of 1899, I do not know, but it is likely in the same vicinity.
I was a bit surprised to see the same address listed for Annie and Thomas. However, after doing some research, I learned that cohabitation in the 19th century was common. It is also possible that they both lived in the same boarding house.
Cheers,
K.
View Larger Map
And this is a street view of the address:
View Larger Map
Whether or not the 152 Tong Road mapped by Google is the same address of 1899, I do not know, but it is likely in the same vicinity.
I was a bit surprised to see the same address listed for Annie and Thomas. However, after doing some research, I learned that cohabitation in the 19th century was common. It is also possible that they both lived in the same boarding house.
Cheers,
K.
Saturday 12 November 2011
Annie and William leave for Canada 1907
Annie Amelia Ball and Granddad (William Huxtable Ball, 1903-1971) left for Canada on 25 April 1907, aboard the Dominion, sailing from Liverpool. Travelling with them was Elizabeth Turner, Annie's older sister. Having been separated from Thomas for nearly a year, Annie sailed with her young son, aged 3, to Montreal and landed on 7 May 1907. They sailed on the ship Dominion, which sailed as part of the Dominion Line. This is a photo of a Dominion Line ship:
Granddad contracted pneumonia during the voyage. He was hospitalized in Montreal for a month. Whether Elizabeth stayed with them in Montreal or went ahead to Vancouver, I do not know. Once Granddad was well enough to travel, he and Annie began the long train ride across Canada to Vancouver. Annie's determination to see the journey through and to begin a new life with her husband in Canada, despite the long separation, an arduous journey, a very sick child, the financial strain of a month's layover in Montreal, and a language barrier at her port of arrival, makes her, in my eyes, a very strong and courageous person.
Cheers,
K.
Granddad contracted pneumonia during the voyage. He was hospitalized in Montreal for a month. Whether Elizabeth stayed with them in Montreal or went ahead to Vancouver, I do not know. Once Granddad was well enough to travel, he and Annie began the long train ride across Canada to Vancouver. Annie's determination to see the journey through and to begin a new life with her husband in Canada, despite the long separation, an arduous journey, a very sick child, the financial strain of a month's layover in Montreal, and a language barrier at her port of arrival, makes her, in my eyes, a very strong and courageous person.
Cheers,
K.
Thomas H. Ball sails to Canada 1906
Thomas left for Canada on 31 May 1906, aboard the S.S. Southwark, from Liverpool. He landed at the port of Montreal, Quebec on 9 June 1906. The passenger list for the ship's arrival in Canada lists him as a "plumber" with no stated destination. It also states that he was an Englishman from Yorkshire.
This is a photo of the S.S. Southwark, from Ancestry Library Edition, which sailed under the Dominion Line flag:
What pushed or pulled Thomas to go to Canada? I suspect that there may have been friends or colleagues or the promise of a job, which influenced his decision to leave for Canada. The choice of Vancouver, as a final destination, required Thomas to travel by train across Canada, a journey near as long as the sea voyage that brought him to Montreal. Who or what was there waiting for him?
Cheers,
K.
This is a photo of the S.S. Southwark, from Ancestry Library Edition, which sailed under the Dominion Line flag:
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What pushed or pulled Thomas to go to Canada? I suspect that there may have been friends or colleagues or the promise of a job, which influenced his decision to leave for Canada. The choice of Vancouver, as a final destination, required Thomas to travel by train across Canada, a journey near as long as the sea voyage that brought him to Montreal. Who or what was there waiting for him?
Cheers,
K.
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