Daniel Holmes Family History Association Document

The Daniel Holmes Family History Association gathered annually from 1924 to 1928. They decided to research their history and write it. I have acquired this document and plan to write it out a page at a time, and add my notes. See label to the side: "DHFHA Document" to follow this document. Please read the notes that follow the article.

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The Daniel Holmes Family History Association

The following few historical facts regarding the Daniel Holmes Reunion Association are all that the Historian has, so far, been able to gather:

Parsboro, (sic) Nova Scotia, seems to have been the place of origin of the first Holmes of whom we have record, for here was born, probably in the seventeen sixties, Obedia Holmes. Here also was born his son Samuel, who married one Susan Downey of the same place. They were the father and mother of DANIEL HOLMES, who was born in Parsboro, July 9th, 1813.

In the year 1836 he married Charlotte Hoyt. Her people first settled in the Southern States, but being loyalists, migrated to New Brunswick and settled in Sussex, where Charlotte was born in 1814.

Daniel Holmes and his wife settled in Petitcotiac, (sic) New Brunswick. He engaged in the business of farming, lumbering and milling. They were affiliated with the Baptist church, though Charlotte was an Episcopalian. Here were born to them twelve children.

The family crest, or coat of arms, was destroyed by fire.

Daniel died May 24 1883 aged 69. Charlotte died Mar. 27 1872 aged 58.

My Notes:

This document of the Daniel Holmes Family History Association, generally referred to in future as the DHFHA, was compiled by the Historian, who I believe is Kingsley A Ballantyne. He was listed as the historian in the write up of the 1926 reunion. It was probably written about 1928.

Fenwicke W Holmes, great-grandson of Daniel and Charlotte Holmes through his son, William N Holmes, researched the Holmes family in the late 1980's through the early 2000's. He studied this document and compared it to Vital Statistics, visiting places and hiring profession genealogists in an era before much of the information could be found on-line. He determined that some of the above information was myth.

Karl and Doug and their father, James Holmes (great-grandson of Daniel and Charlotte Holmes through his son Charles), researched this family at the same time as Fenwicke.

I have researched this family since 2003. Much of my work is based on Fenwicke W Holmes' work.

The paragraph beginning Parsboro. Parrsboro, as it is correctly spelled, is in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia. To the best of my knowledge, none of our Holmes family members lived in Parrsboro, but rather settled about 55 km to the north, in or near Amherst. We are not descended from Obadiah Holmes, although he did exist, and we find no record of a Susan Downey. Daniel was actually the son of Samuel Holmes and Phoebe Holstead, and was indeed born on July 9, in either 1813 or 1814.

The following paragraph, which begins "In the year 1836." He did marry Charlotte Hoyt in the year 1836. The Hoyt family settled in the same area of the country as the Holmes family. They both eventually lived in Stamford, Connecticut. Simon Hoyt and Francis Holmes both came from England. That's as south as they lived. They were Loyalists, and the Hoyt's did settle in Sussex. They married in Portage Vale, in her family home, about 37 km from Sussex.

The paragraph beginning "Daniel Holmes and his wife . . ." They did settle in Petitcodiac, and he did engage in farming, lumbering and milling. Daniel Holmes was Baptist; Charlotte was Episcopalian. It would appear by the 1871 census of Canada that they raised some of their children in one faith and some in the other. They did have 12 children.

I know nothing about the family crest, when and where it burned, and where they found that information. The Holmes family homestead existed well into my lifetime, and was probably torn down when they built the new Trans-Canada highway. I know of no fires in the homestead.

According to the Christian Visitor of Saint John, New Brunswick, July 25, 1883, Daniel died on March 23rd. I do not have a death certificate. As far as I know, Charlotte's date of death is correct. I do not have a death certificate for her either.