Canadian arranged marriages?

[groom]

Not sure if this should go here or on the Canadian board as it is a general question.

Greensleeves and I are working on a tree for a friend of hers and I have found a member of the family, Mabel Emily Sutton born 1885 Bristol, who went to Canada, arriving in Quebec on the 18th July 1920. On her application form dated 8th April 1920 she stated that she was going to be married, that her ticket was paid for by Thomas Harris and she was going to her aunt Mrs Gale. She gave her next of kin in England as her mother Julia at an address in Bristol. It was the first time she'd been to Canada.

I then found her marriage certificate for 21st July 1920 at Elgin, Ontario to Thomas Harris, a farmer and widower. Parents match exactly, so I know it is the right person and a witness was Eliza Gale.

Next thing I found was the family on the 1921 Canadian census. Thomas was older than Mabel and was born 1879 in Herefordshire, he emigrated to Canada in 1884. There are 5 children with them - 2 aged 10 and 6 born in Ontario, two aged 13 and 5 born in England and a baby born in 1921. On investigation I believe the two born in England are Mabel's illegitimate children who travelled out with her.

So to my question - how would Mabel have got to know Thomas? He was in Canada before she was born and married until at least 1915. Did Canada advertise for women as I know Australian farmers did earlier on? Could the marriage have been arranged by Eliza Gale? Or could Thomas have fought in WW1, been sent to England and met her that way - he would have been in his late 30s then and a farmer?   

Any ideas?

[Blue70]

Letter writing courtship?


Blue

[groom]

That's possible, but how did they get to know about each other in the first place, that's the mystery?

I'm trying to work out how Eliza Gale was related and whether she was really an aunt, or was she some sort of "go between."

[Lydart]

When this is answered it might possibly also help me .... how did my Great Aunt Lizzie manage to travel to Canada as a lone, single woman aged around 20, and then get married within a year to a man from Manchester who had been in Canada already for 11 years ?    She'd have been 11 years old when he left the UK for good, and her family lived 200 miles from Manchester, so she can hardly have known him before he went !

[nanny jan]

I think Canadian WW1 Army records are available, might be worth a search for Thomas.   

[Romilly]

I wonder what the equivalent of Match.com was in the 1920's?
Newspaper advertisements? (Personal Section:-)

Romilly.

[groom]

Your's is slightly easier Lydart, as she could easily have just met him there, fallen in love and married. However in the case of Mabel and Thomas, she arrived 18th July and married him 3 days later. The marriage was obviously planned as he paid for her ticket to Canada.

I wonder what the equivalent of Match.com was in the 1920's?
Newspaper advertisements? (Personal Section:-)

That was my though as well, Romilly. I've read stories where farmers from Australia and NZ advertised for wives, but that was earlier than 1920. He was obviously prepared to accept her two children as in the 1921 census they are listed under his name.

Thanks NJ - any idea where they are, I have access to Ancestry and FindMyPast?

[nanny jan]

Some years ago I was researching a distant ancestor who had emigrated with her family and found all three sons had served in WW1; I'm sure the records were not on a subscription site but a general Canadian government one.  I'm away from my files at the moment but will have a look when I get back.

[nanny jan]

http://www.rootschat.com/links/01e8n/

Bit rusty at shrinking links.....hope that works!