CHURCH RECORDS

CATHOLIC CHURCH RECORDS and information

See below for information and missing years and records not done yet as well as a little history

I live in Norway and a big thanks to Judy Sindel Dorsey who took photocopies for me of the microfilms to make possible the transcribing of these records

Below you can find what I have copies of, what is transcribed and what is coming. Because of the cost of coping if anyone has copies of any records or part records from this area that I don't have and can send me them (or scan) I'd be very happy to transcribe them and put them on this site, as well as other records you have written up.

The spellings in the church records vary a lot (Crowley Crowly Growly) (Heron Herron Heran Herring) etc etc. No doubt part of a language problem Irish with their thick Irish accents and a German priest trying to spell them-sometimes the names don't even resemble what they should be----The writing is also extremely hard to decipher sometimes  I've had to do a lot of guessing at both what he wrote and what the name should have been...so you have to use your imagination. ( a mistake a lot of new beginners in genealogy do is only looking at names with correct spellings) This is one of the reasons I've put them on this site in a more or less soundex (removed all the double consonants-then the vowels-the prefixes O' Mc and Mac (sometimes keeping the C if they start with a vowel)  and sometimes De--and combined names beginning with C and K) and indexed both after person and parents to make it easier to find other spellings. So look further down in the lists or on names starting with another letter as you may find more of your name with other spellings.

As for cemetery inscriptions I have found quite often there is a discrepancy between church record dates and inscriptions. Some have more than 2 tombstones with inscriptions in two different cemeteries. It appears that often these were put there at a much later date and people haven't remembered the correct dates. Although some may be mistakes and hard to read older stones when transcribing. Some stones are erected at a later date " in memory of"  so it doesn't necessarily mean the person was buried exactly there.

The village of St Columban was once called Irishtown. The first Catholic public masses were said in a tavern on lot 29 in 1832 and in the home of Dennis Downey in 1835. Rev. Father J. B. Werreat, a German priest, from Waterloo, stopped at the Downey home on a mission to Goderich and stayed several days. These were among the first religious services attended by the early settlers.
Under the direction of Rev. Peter Schneider of Goderich, known as the apostle of the Huron Tract, a log church was built on Con.1, lot 9 of McKillop Twp. on land donated by Dennis Downey.
In 1864 a large brick church to be called St Columban was built when the Rev. Dean James Murphy was priest. The present cemetery was opened in 1866. During 1870's the bodies from the old burying grounds at the rear of the church were interred in the new lot.
In 1900 St Columban was divided when Dublin built a church. St Columban became a parish and Irishtown was named St Columban. The church burned in 1909 and was rebuilt and blessed in 1911. 
(excerpts from St Columban R. C. Church 75th anniversary booklet compiled by Beryle Morningstar and used as introduction to Perth Co OGS Cemetery inscriptions for St Columban cemetery Inscriptions can be purchased from Perth OGS)

Parish registers, 1849-1910
Catholic Church. Saint Columban (St. Columban, Ontario) 
Microfilm of original records in possession of the St. Columban Rectory.
Contents: Baptisms, 1849-1910 (copy; one 1911 entry) -- 
Baptisms, marriages, 1869-1871 (copy; entries possibly from Zurich or French
Settlement, Ontario) 
Marriages, 1849-1910 (copy) 
Interments, 1850-1910 (copy; entries out of chron. order)
Confirmations, 1900- 1907 (two copies) -- 
Baptisms, marriages, burials, confirmations, 1849-1910 (some
entries out of chron. order) -- 
Births and baptisms, 1900-1910 (one 1911 entry) -- 
Marriages, 1858-1869, 1896-1910 -- 
Marriages, 1903-1910 -- Deaths, 1901-1910.
St. Columban is in Huron and Perth counties.
Format:  Manuscript (On Film)
Language:  English
Publication:  Salt Lake City : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah,1981
Physical:  1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm.
Film Parish registers  FHL US/CAN Film 1312067

On this website for St Columban- these are not original records but a certified copy of written index to records
which means double possibility for mistakes first from person who wrote up indexes ( often writes b for s) second from me in transcribing
baptisms/births1850-1869 St Columban
Baptisms 21 Jan 1849- 1910 (done from 1849 until 1869 rest not done yet)

marriages 1849-1910 St Columban (finished)
Start 22 Jan 1849 End 18 July 1910
Missing 1871-1896 and some records out of order

interments/deaths  St Columban 1850-1910 (finished)
Start 8 Feb 1850 End 13 May 1910 
missing completely 1872-1900 and a lot of missing in between

St James Catholic Church 22 Victoria Street Box 8 Seaforth Ontario

I don't have much on this church. it appears to be built in 1880 as this is when the first records appear.

On August 12 1893 St James Church Seaforth, purchased 2 1/4 acres of land for 600 dollars from Edward Devereau for a cemetery. It is on the southwest corner of the farm on the town (McKillop) side of the No 8 highway just East of the town limits,
The first burial from St James parish was that of John Duncan 43, of Seaforth Nov 8 1893 by Fr Joseph Kennedy. Before that all burials took place in Irishtown (St Columban) cemetery, the first from St James church being Mary Jean Burns 17 August 1880 by Fr. P. I. Shea. A new entrance was built when No 8 highway was rebuilt and resurfaced in 1955.

(excerpts from A History on McKillop by Mrs Joseph Grummett in 1867 and used as introduction to Huron Co OGS Cemetery inscriptions for St James cemetery Inscriptions can be purchased from Huron OGS)

Parish registers, 1880-1910
Catholic Church. Saint James (Seaforth, Ontario) Huron Co
Microfilm of original records in possession of the St. James Rectory.
Baptisms, marriages, burials, confirmations, 1880-1910 (copy; some entries for 1911)
Baptisms, marriages, burials, confirmations, first communions, 1880-1910
Baptisms, 1880-1910 (copy; with index to 1918)
Marriages, 1880-1910 (copy; with index past 1910)
Marriages, 1896-1910 -- 
Burials, 1880-1910 (one entry for 1911; index to 1942)
First communions, 1903.
Format:  Manuscript (On Film)
Language:  English
Publication:  Salt Lake City : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1981
Physical:  1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm.
Film Parish registers  FHL US/CAN Film 1312055

On this website for St James- these are not original records but a certified written index to records
which means double possibility for mistakes first from person who wrote up indexes second from me in transcribing
baptisms/births1880-1910 St James
Baptisms 20 Oct 1880-18 Dec 1910 (not done yet)

marriages 1880-1911 St James  (finished)
Start 3 Feb 1880 End 25 Oct 1911

Interments/deaths  1880-1910 St James (finished)
Start 13 Aug 1880 End 30 Nov 1910 
(Burials until Oct 1890 are at St Columban although interment records are St James other than 1 person John Kirch buried at Zurich. After that date there is both St Columban and St James as well as a few others.)

St Joseph's Church Hullett Twp Clinton Ontario

No mention of the original church building is made in the history of Hullett Township book (1977) but in the history of Clinton, 1875-1975, we do find mention on page 38:

The first Catholic Church in this community was a log church built in Hullett Townshio, Concession 5, about 3 miles from the present church......
This log church was built in 1857. The land was donated by Dominic Reynolds. Father Wasserea came once a month to say mass, in 1860 Clinton changed its original name, Rattenbury Corners, in that year Father Snider became the second priest. The Blyth Catholic Church began about the same time as the Hullett settlement and the priest had to serve both communities just as he does to-day. At this time Father Snider had to serve in Goderich and St Columban (then named Irishtown).
It was under Father Hanlon's guidance that the present church was built (1905-1910) The cornerstone was laid 31 May 1908
No mention was made in this article of what happened to the old log church building.

History of cemetery compiled August 1880 by Elizabeth Morrison Medd and Dorothy Flynn Dupee
Hullett R. C. and Clinton Cemetery
In 1848 a group of Irishmen left their native land to make their home in the "New World" because of famine caused their by the failure of the potato crop. They settles on the land north of Clinton which was owned by the Canada Company and became known as "Paddy's Settlement" Many of them died young and a cemetery was needed and used in the early 1860's. This cemetery was used for many years and may of the original settlers are buried there with their families. 
The cemetery is closed but not abandoned.

(excerpts from introduction to Huron Co OGS Cemetery inscriptions for St Joseph cemetery Inscriptions can be purchased from Huron OGS)

No plans for this at present time

Parish registers, 1843-1910
Catholic Church. Saint Peter (Goderich, Ontario) 
Microfilm of original records in possession of the Diocese of London Archives.
Text in English and Latin.
Format:  Manuscript (On Film)
Language:  English Latin
Publication:  Salt Lake City : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1981
Physical:  on 2 microfilm reels ; 35 mm.
Film Birth, 31 July 1828 Baptisms, marriages, burials, 1843-1910 (with confirmations) 
FHL US/CAN Film 1310847 Item 5
Baptisms, marriages, burials, 1843-1868 (some duplication of entries)
Marriages, 1896-1910  
FHL US/CAN Film 1310848 Items 1-4 Numbers 1-2 of 2 film notes

On this website for St Peters- these are from copy of original records NOT a  index to records
baptisms/births marriages Interments 1843-1850 St Peters (finished)

These records are combined for these years
No plans of doing more at present time

Parish registers, 1901-1910
Catholic Church. Saint Patrick (Dublin, Ontario) Perth Co
Microfilm of original records in possession of the St. Patrick Rectory.
Baptisms, 1903-1910 (with an index to 1959) --
Marriages, 1901-1910 (with an index to 1954) --
Burials, 1903-1910 --
First communions, confirmations, 1904-1910.
Manuscript (On Film)
English
Publication:  Salt Lake City : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1981
Physical:  1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm.
Film Parish registers  FHL US/CAN Film 1312057

No plans of doing these at present

List of Churches

Seaforth
Bethel Bible Church
Egmondville United Church
First Presbyterian Church
Northside United Church
St. James Catholic Church
St. Thomas Anglican Church

Goderich
Berea-By-The-Water Lutheran Church
Bethel Pentecostal Church
Bible Missionary Church
Calvary Baptist Church
First Baptist Church
Holy Apostolic Church
Knox Presbyterian Church
North Street United Church
St. Georges Anglican Church
St. Peter's Catholic Church
Trinity Christian Reformed Church
Victoria Street United Church