I Would Be.....

If my great grandparents and my grandfather had not immigrated to Canada, I would be a teenager in a minuscule fishing town in the north of England. My grandpa, Dennis Hall, immigrated from Newbiggin by the sea, England; along with his parents John and Isabel Hall. My great grandfather, John G. Hall, moved from England in 1927, on the ocean liner Caronia (Library and Archives Canada), 1 year prior to his wife and son’s immigration, in order for him to find a steady job. My grandpa Dennis, who was 1 and a bit years old at the time, and a 28 year old Isabel immigrated in 1928, arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia; on the Athenia liner on April 9th (Library and Archives Canada). Later on, in World War II, the Athenia was converted into a troopship, and was the first ship sunk by the opposing German forces (Sinking of SS Athenia). Isabel and John both grew up and met in the small village located in the South East Northumberland (Hall) .Newbiggin by the sea is a fishing port in which traditional coble boats are used, but was once known for its coal mining and a port used for shipping grain (Wikipedia). After World War I, the British economy was still in a depression, with unemployment rising past 8% in 1926, all the way up to 15% in 1932 (Pettinger). These factors, along with the desire to leave a country heavily impacted by the first World War were the push factors for John and Isabel to relocate their new family.

Marriage certificate between my Grandmother and Dennis
(Fales)

Immigration record
(Library and Archives Canada)

Immigration record (Library and Archives Canada)

Immigration record 
(Library and Archives Canada)

Once John had a stable job in the thriving 1920’s Canadian economy, at a job in a coal mine in Minto, his wife and child joined him there (Hall). Their life in Minto was better than a life that England could have offered. Canada was a booming place of opportunity for my great grandparents, and they continued to live there until their deaths in 1974 (Provincial Archives of New Brunswick). If they had not moved to Minto, my grandfather would not have had such a good life, and would not have met the love of his life Edith Alice Fales (Fales). If I had grown up in Newbiggin by the Sea, my life would be quite different. The similarities such as shared English language, and both countries’ relatively low unemployment rates, Ontario’s 7.1% (Stats Canada) with England’s 5.1% (Office for National Statistics) would make my life easier if I had grown up there rather than in Canada, due to if my ancestors had not immigrated. Health care would also be quite similar, as England’s National Health Service (NHS) provides healthcare for the nation similar to Ontario’s OHIP (NHS England). Continuing with similarities, as both nations are closely linked historically, and are both developed countries, their rights and freedoms are very similar. Both Canada and England permitted women the right to vote in 1918 (Women’s Suffrage). The difference that would have changed my upbringing the most is the sheer size difference between the village of Newbiggin by the Sea and Orangeville. The population of Newbiggin is home to 6, 100 people (Newbiggin by the Sea), which in comparison to the vastly larger population of Orangeville which is the home of 27,975 people (City-Data). The change from a small town, to a tiny village would definitely have affected my upbringing, and it most likely would have created a stronger sense of community.

(Hall, Dennis)

In conclusion I am grateful my ancestors immigrated to Canada as I am proud of their success and with who I have become as a result of my life in a privileged country like Canada.

John G. Hall death certificate
(Provincial Archives of New Brunswick)

Isabel Hall death certificate
(Provincial Archives of New Brunswick)

Works Cited

“Fales, Edith Alice.” 18 June 1949. Vital Statistics from Government Records (RS141). Index to New Brunswick Marriages. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://archives.gnb.ca/Search/VISSE/141B7.aspx?culture=en-CA&guid=1DD56103-9CB9-4543-9C4E-54060FBFF394>.

Hall, Dennis. Dennis and His Friend. N.d. Photograph. Dennis Hall.

- - -. Personal interview. 15 May 2016.

“Hall, Isabel.” N.d. Provincial Archives of New Brunswick. New Brunswick Cemeteries. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://archives.gnb.ca/Search/Cemeteries/Details.aspx?culture=en-CA&Key=71918>.

“Hall, John. G.” N.d. Provincial Archives of New Brunswick. New Brunswick Cemeteries. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://archives.gnb.ca/Search/Cemeteries/Details.aspx?culture=en-CA&Key=71955>.

“Item: Dennis Hall.” N.d. Library and Archives Canada. Canadian Government. Passenger Lists and Border Entries, 1925-1935 - Nominal Indexes. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists-border-entry-1925-1935/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=321559&>.

“Item: Isabel Hall.” N.d. Library and Archives Canada. Canadian Government. Passenger Lists and Border Entries, 1925-1935 - Nominal Indexes. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists-border-entry-1925-1935/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=321753&>.

“Item: John G. Hall.” N.d. Library and Archives Canada. Canadian Government. Passenger Lists and Border Entries, 1925-1935 - Nominal Indexes. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists-border-entry-1925-1935/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=321882&Item: John G. Hall>.

“Newbiggin by the Sea.” Newbiggin by the Sea. Communtity of Newbiggin, n.d. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.newbigginbythesea.co.uk/>.

“Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.” Wikipedia. N.p., 21 May 2016. Web. 30 May 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newbiggin-by-the-Sea>.

“Orangeville - Town, Ontario, Canada.” City-Data. N.p.: n.p., n.d. City-Data. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.city-data.com/canada/Orangeville-Town.html>.

“Our vision and purpose.” NHS England. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2016. <https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/our-vision-and-purpose/>.

Pettinger, Tejvan. “UK Economy in the 1920s.” Economics Help. N.p., 16 Oct. 2012. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/5948/economics/uk-economy-in-the-1920s/>.

“Sinking of SS Athenia.” German U-boat. N.p.: n.p., n.d. German U-boat. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.uboataces.com/battle-athenia.shtml>.

“Unemployment rate.” Office for National Statistics. UK Government, 18 May 2016. Web. 30 May 2016. <https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotinwork/unemployment/timeseries/mgsx>.

Unemployment Rate, Monthly Canada and Provinces Unadjusted. N.p.: n.p., 2016. Stats Canada. Web. 30 May 2016. <http://www.stats.gov.nl.ca/statistics/Labour/PDF/UnempRate_Monthly.pdf>.

“Women’s Suffrage.” Wikiepedia. N.p., 28 May 2016. Web. 30 May 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_suffrage#Timeline>.