Hamilton

[oly]

Albert Downing a singer musician left England in 1922 and worked in Canada - we have Alberts death certificate which states he died at 74 Main West, Hamilton, Ontario. 21st May 1938. He attended and was the musician for the First United Church. His total length of stay was 27 years this was broken with a visit back to England in 1921, so it states his last length of stay was 3 years. A memoriam in his English home town newspaper says that Albert died in Pennsylvania, USA at the home of his sister, we have no knowledge of a sister in America and no idea of who posted the article.
Is it possible to find out who was living at 74 Main West at the time Albert was there or if a memorial tribute was posted in a local Hamilton newspaper or Church Magazine
Thank you in anticipation 
Oly     

[cosmac]

For clarification.  Ontario death registration states that he had been in Canada for 27 years and Ontario for 27 years.  He had been in the city of Hamilton for the last 3 years of that 27.

[RunKitty]

Yes - I am seeing ads for his teaching services --- in Toronto.  Also, just had a look in the 1917 Toronto Directory and he is there.  Musical Director of Dovercourt College of music and soloist for the Bloor Street Presbyterian Church

1914 - Dovercourt.  Also the Riverdale Academy of Music on Gerrard (Toronto)

in 1921 (directory) he is 42 and a vocalist.  Living at 220 Yonge Street Toronto

Looks like he spent a lot of time in Toronto.  I am looking for an obituary in the Toronto papers, but I don't see one yet.   

He was a tenor...

RK

[RunKitty]

IN 1935, looks like he is living in Buffalo.

http://www.rootschat.com/links/01f97/

See top right.  Says he has lived in Cleveland and Toronto

RK

[RunKitty]

I don't see any online Hamilton Directories.. Also, I can't access the Hamilton Spectator newspaper for that time period.

You could try the Hamilton Library.

http://www.hpl.ca/

RK

This man seems to have had a very long and interesting career!!

[cosmac]

He seemed to have had a number of sisters.  The oldest sister Amelia "might" have gone to the United States.  There is an Amelia V. Rainey and husband Victor found on the 1940 census in Philadelphia.  Her given age of 59 supports a connection as does her place of birth - England.  Victor is younger, 46 and born England.  However the same couple in 1930 shortens the age difference.  He is 36 and she 40.  Immigration year for Amelia is 1919 and Victor 1913.  They have been married 11 years.  The couple is together on the 1920 census in Brooklyn, New York.
Victor died in 1972 in Pennsylvania but so far I can't definitively connect Amelia to the Downing surname.

[lilybell]

The 1891 British census for Mexborough, Yorkshire there are 2 sisters to Albert.

Amelia born 1881 and Eva born 1887

1901 census shows another sister Lavinia born 1891

1911 census shows a sister Ruth born 1901

There were also 4 brothers Joseph b 1884, Richard b 1881,Eli b ?, Eric b 1895

Albert performed both in U S and Canada and probably in England also.

I keyed in his name and found several hits online for him, several on Google News.

The one thing I did not find for him was a photo.

I have sent off a request to the Hamilton Public Library asking if they might have a obituary for him.

Will pass on any info they can provide.

Will keep looking


Cheers
Lilybell

[Jacquie in Canada]

He seemed to have had a number of sisters.  The oldest sister Amelia "might" have gone to the United States.  There is an Amelia V. Rainey and husband Victor found on the 1940 census in Philadelphia.  Her given age of 59 supports a connection as does her place of birth - England.  Victor is younger, 46 and born England.  However the same couple in 1930 shortens the age difference.  He is 36 and she 40.  Immigration year for Amelia is 1919 and Victor 1913.  They have been married 11 years.  The couple is together on the 1920 census in Brooklyn, New York.
Victor died in 1972 in Pennsylvania but so far I can't definitively connect Amelia to the Downing surname.

There are some family trees at Ancestry which indicate Amelia married a Horace Greenfield in 1903. There is a passenger list for the Missanabie with Amelia and a 11 year old son named Albert arriving in Quebec on 23 Sep 1916. There is a definite connection to the Downing family here as there is a border crossing document dated 24 Jun 1923 for Albert Pearson Greenfield who was 19 and born in Burnsley, England. His last permanent residence was Hamilton and he was going to visit his father, Horace Greenfield, in New York for 2 weeks. He listed his nearest relative in Canada as Albert Downing, Dominion Bank Bldg, Toronto. He was a year out on the date of arrival in Canada (not uncommon) but the month and ship match.

The family trees indicate Albert Greenfield died in 1977. This is a picture of a possible grave marker for Albert at Eastlawn Cemetery in Hamilton:
http://geneofun.on.ca/names/photo/289423

There is a Record of Registry dated 28 Aug 1931 for a Amelia Rainey Greenfield. It says she arrived in the US on 21 Feb 1919 at Niagara Falls, NY. At that time, she was 36 and her last residence had been in Toronto. At the time she entered the registry, she was 48 and her address was Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It also indicates she was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire.

I've also seen documents where the Amelia with Victor Rainey is referred to as Amelia Victoria Rainey.

In some ways we're further ahead and in other's we are not.

Jacquie

[*Sandra*]

Hi,

There are Canadian WW1 Attestation papers for Albert Downing - these are in the process of being digitalised and unfortunately they have not got as far as "D" yet.  Keep an eye on them and you should be able to down load his complete military file. Dated 19 July 1918

http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/military-heritage/first-world-war/first-world-war-1914-1918-cef/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=364169

Click on the image to view page 1.

Sandra