British Home Children have really been a focus for us over the last few years – And now even when we’re trying to focus on our own ‘family tree’ and the many branches of it, there’s more and more BHC stepping forward to be recognized. Today we’re presenting the information on a child taken into Fegan Home care, his name was Robert Salmon. We located him in passing on the 1921 Canadian Census, where he was living with Lauretta Lahmer and Jesse Keffer and their sons.
Descendants on Ancestry seem to have a few trees but I’m not even sure they realize Robert is BHC. Here’s hoping he had a super full and loving life, and all of this work makes some connections for his family.
1911 English Census records place Robert Salmon (9) as an Inmate of Stockwell Orphanage For Fatherless Boys and Girls, Clapham Road, Stockwell in Lambeth, London, England. Robert notes he was born in Vauxhall in London.
Interestingly, there is also a boy named Edward Salmon (9) who also claims to be born in Vauxhall.
Information about Vauxhall on Wikipeda
It’s noted that there was a boy named James Salmon (15) on the same shipping manifest from Fegan Homes. We could not connect the two boys. James notes his Next of Kin as a sister, Alice Salmon Bolten of the Tenbury Workhouse in Worcestershire, England.
Library and Archives of Canada
Item: Robert SALMON (93660)
Given Name(s): Robert
Surname: SALMON
Gender: M
Age: 17
Year of Arrival: 1921
Ship: MINNEDOSA
Date of Departure: 1921-04-20
Port of Departure: Liverpool
Date of Arrival: 1921-04-29
Port of Arrival: Quebec
Party: Fegan Homes
Destination: Toronto, Ontario
Children travelling together: Q21AD
Comments: General Correspondence File C-4726 File 2571
Type of Records: Passenger Lists
Microfilm Reel Number: T-14712
Reference: RG 76 C1a
Source: Library and Archives Canada
Database Item Number: 93660
Item: Robert SALMON (137768)
Given Name(s): Robert
Surname: SALMON
Gender: M
Age: 17
Year of Arrival: 1921
Ship: MINNEDOSA
Sent by: Fegan
Record Title: Records of the Fegan Distributing Home in Toronto
Page Number: 284; see also an addition to 284 at the end of the volume
Volume Number: 6
Family History Library Microfilm Reel Number: 2027622
Reference: Genealogy CS88 A2 F43 1995, microfilm #2
Source: Library and Archives Canada
Database Item Number: 137768
Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935
Name: Robert Salmon
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1904
Date of Arrival: 29 Apr 1921
Vessel: Minnedosa
Port of Arrival: Quebec, Canada
Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
Canada, Ocean Arrivals (Form 30A), 1919-1924
Name: Robert Salmon
Gender: Male
Estimated birth year: abt 1904
Age: 17
Date of Arrival: 30 Apr 1921
Port of Arrival: Quebec
Ship Name: Minnedosa
Notes: Confirms Fegan Homes as sending agency. Next of Kin is a Sister, Miss Salmon of 58 Hampton Road, Redland, Bristol.
1921 Canadian Census records place Robert Salmon (17) in the home of Lauretta and Jesse Keffer in Vaughan, York, Ontario, Canada. Also in residence were sons Norman (17), Garnet (15) and Reynold (10). Robert is noted as a Lodger who was born about 1904 in England and had arrived in the current year.
Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1801-1935
Name: Winnifred Hazel Lovis
Gender: Female
Age: 20
Birth Year: abt 1906
Birth Place: Glengarry
Marriage Date: 10 Mar 1926
Marriage Place: York, Ontario, Canada
Father: James Lovis
Mother: Catharine Matilda Whissel
Spouse: Robert Salmon
Age: 22
Note: Robert Salmon notes his father’s name was John Salmon, but he isn’t sure of his mother’s first name. Her surname was Mansfield.
Unfortunately none of these leads have panned out, from a genealogical point of view. Until ‘S’ is released with the BHC registry we won’t know if family has claimed Robert or knows more of his story, but hopefully we’ll have more to contribute to his file if his descendants haven’t managed to put together his story yet.
Edit 11 Nov 2017:
http://heritage.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.lac_mikan_161388
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