 Author Author.. by Katie Tisdall-Dingman 
erhaps one of the most exciting aspects of my genealogy research has been the opportunity to write. As anyone who knows
me can attest, I have a strong propensity for story telling and have always enjoyed writing. To that extend, I thought I
would see if anyone (besides my family) would enjoy reading what I wrote and consequently submitted a manuscript to the
editor of Families (a genealogy journal). To my pleasant surprise, it was accepted for publication and I have included
it here for your enjoyment.
I first began stumbling my way through genealogy research about two years ago. As a raw recruit, I had incredible luck. I had no idea what I was doing, no direction and little focus. Within a month and a little help from some great librarians, I traced one branch of my family back seven generations to 1793! These quick finds gave me that incentive to continue, but the realization that I needed to be better prepared may have been my greatest find. I set some fundamental guidelines for myself that have proven very successful. An accordion file with index tabs helps me access documents, photocopies, charts and maps quickly and organizing data site makes it much easier for refilling when I get back home. Setting a mixed agenda (e.i., microfilm, journals, book searches) before each outing saves wasted time, keeps me focused, and acts as a running journal. I've developed specific forms for ease in gleaning information from microfilm. Reading research guides, and local histories have proven invaluable. Joining the OBS and local branch helps me link with other genealogists to discuss tips, tricks and traps. Finally and maybe most important, I never trust my memory and always cite my sources. It would be difficult to pinpoint which discovery was the most thrilling. Perhaps uncovering four generations living under one roof in the 1871 Census was the most exciting. Maybe I should choose my great-great-grand-uncle's half-page obituary giving me more information that I could ever hope to find in one place. And certainly, the many references to my ancestors (including a photo) in the publication, " The History of Exeter" deserve mentioning. What about finding the birth record of ancestors (twins) on a church record I'd copied months before about someone else? But if I had to name just one, it would have to be the discovery of our "black sheep." I'll admit that when this ancestor first surfaced into my research, I wasn't sure how to react. As a product of a conservative Anglican family, the news of a malefactor in our history was disconcerting. The librarian's perspective made me look at the situation differently. "You're very luck," she said. "Not everyone gets the pleasure of having a black sheep in the family." Once I started to investigate further, I found our black sheep fascinating. The personality of Annie the Irresponsible, as the press nicknamed her, was revealed in the many newspaper accounts of Police Court sessions. The writing style of the reporters was not only informative but amusing. My favorite quotation is, " . . .when she heard her sentence, a cry of bitterness escaped her lips, which was meant to be heartrending, but which didn't rend any body's heart in particular." Annie was quite a character. Charges brought against her included; drunk and disorderly, want of sureties to keep the peace toward her husband, assaulting her husband, keeping a disreputable house, and even being a common vagrant. Usually, she was let go after paying a fine and court costs, but on a few instances she was committed to jail. According to the Gaoler's Punishment Book dated 1881, Annie was put in a dark cell for thirty-three hours for "..using insulting language to both Matron & Gaoler also threatening to do bodily harm to Gaoler." Ten days later she received a second punishment of thirty hours in a dark cell for "..fighting & swearing and threatening." Recently I enjoyed a tour of the old Middlesex County House in London. I sat in the Courtroom where Annie was brought before Squire Anderson and tried to imagine her standing before him awaiting her pronouncement. The famed dark cell was especially grim. It was bare with no window and measured approximately four by ten feet. When the door was shut it was completely black. I could only imagine her discomfort and despair, but as I stood there within the confines of that small gloomy space, a chill ran up my spine. I found Annie by examining the library's card index of names found in the London Free Press. I'm fortunate enough that the family name I'm researching is uncommon, and therefore assumed that Annie was a relation. Of course being an ethical genealogist, I set out to prove that Annie was indeed the dark relation in the closet. Before a mystery can be solved, it's best to organize the clues. I developed a special "Problem Sheet" to accomplish this. The sheet is divided into three areas: The Facts, The Problem, and The Solution. At the top of each sheet is Page n of n, Family Surname, and Recorded By/Date. First, I listed all the facts. The newspaper named her husband as John Devoy, a painter from London East and on one instance her accuser was Mrs. Loveless. The articles spanned a period from March 1877 to April 1880. The 1871 Census listed only one family named Devoy living in Middlesex County. John was born circa 1847 in Canada, unmarried and Church of England. His mother, Mary was widow. The City Directory listed Mary as the widow of William and John Devoy lived in London East. My great-great-grandfather, his wife and their two children were living at the Devoy and the witnesses were John and Martha Devoy. Martha married Sydney Loveless. These facts together gave me the necessary background to search through church registers for a wedding record between 1871 (date of census report) and 1877 (date of first newspaper account). I found it, big as life; "married by license" dated 8 January 1872: Groom: John Devoy, bachelor; occupation, Painter; age 22 residence, London; place of birth, Canada; names of parents, William and Mary Devoy. Bride: Ann Shaw, spinster; age, 20 residence, London; place of birth, England; names of parents, Andrew and Catherine Shaw. The license was signed by John Devoy and Annie Shaw. Weighting the facts against the license indicated probable proof that Annie the Irrepressible was our black sheep. The exhilaration of uncovering a great family mystery is difficult to explain to anyone other than a genealogist. My enthusiasm has yet to dwindle and is often rekindled by baffling obstacles, twists and turns. There are many surprises along the way, some good, some bad. It may be wise to remember that genealogy is a study of real people and their lives. It's not a romantic novel or a Broadway play. We can't change the characters or the roads they take to make the story work the way we would like. I prefer to take the viewpoint of that librarian who told me I was lucky to have a black sheep. My family's story won't be flat and colourless. Annie the Irrepressible may not have been as villainous as Blackbeard or saintly as Mother Teresa, but she was a real person with a colourful story that will jump off the page. She was our black sheep. |