A One-Name Study for the BARNUM/BARNHAM Surname
In the birth record of his son Herbert his occupation is listed as upholsterer. In that of his son George he was listed as a carriage trimmer.
In the 1891 Canada Census for St Marks Ward, District 119, Toronto City, James was enumerated as aged 25, married, Baptist.
In the 1901 Canada Census for City Ward #4, Toronto West, Ontario, Canada the family of James F. Barnum was enumerated as follows:
Dwelling #52; Family #57
Barnum, James; M; W; Head; Married; b. 8 Dec 1865; 35 at last birthday; b. Ontario; English origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist; Carriage trimmer; Employee; Employed in factory; Employed 9 months during the census year; $450 earnings from occupation; Can read, write and speak English; Mother tongue English
Barnum, Josephine; F; Wife; Married; b. 13 Feb 1863; 38 at last birthday; b. Ontario; Norwegian origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist; Can read, write and speak English; Mother tongue English
Barnum, James; M; Son; Single; b. 7 Sep 1889; 11 at last birthday; b. Ontario; English origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist; Attended school 9 months during the census year; Can read, write and speak English; Mother tongue English
Barnum, Herbert; M; Son; Single; b. 17 Nov 1891; 9 at last birthday; b. Ontario; English origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist; Attended school 9 months during the census year; Can read, write and speak English; Mother tongue English
Barnum, Lorenzo; M; Son; Single; b. 27 June 1894; 6 at last birthday; b. Ontario; English origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist; Attended school 9 months during the census year; Can speak English; Mother tongue English
Barnum, John; M; Son; Single; b. 13 May 1900; 11/12 at last birthday; b. Ontario; English origin; Canadian nationality; Baptist
In the 1911 Canada Census for Ontario North Sub-District 2 (Uxbridge) the family of James was enumerated as follows:
James L. (sic) Barnum, Head, Male, 45, b. Ontario
Josephine Barnum, Wife, Female, 48, b. Ontario
Lorenzo Barnum, Son, Male, 17, b. Ontario
Frank Barnum, Son, Male, 11, b. Ontario
Beatrice Irene Barnum, Daughter, Female, 9, b. Ontario
Florence Mildred Barnum, Daughter, Female, 6, b. Ontario
George Edward Barnum, Son, Male, 3, b. Ontario
From the Oshawa (Ontario) Courier, 19 July 1945: Oshawa Man Owns Precious Relic of 1838 Rebellion Days – Heirloom Jealously Kept. Small Wooden Box, Made by Rebel in "Durance Vile," and Given to Owner's Ancestor. James F. Barnum who resides at 133 Agnes Street, Oshawa, and has passed his 79th birthday, is the proud owner of one of the rarest and most interesting relics linked with the William Lyon Mackenzie Rebellion of 1837. The relic in question consists of a small wooden box which was carved out of a piece of wood by one Henry Weaver, a faithful follower of Mackenzie, during his own imprisonment at the old Berkley Street jail in Toronto, with two of the ringleaders of the rebellion, Lount and Matthews. The latter two were hanged publicly, and Weaver, who received a pardon eventually, was obligated to witness the hangings of his co-conspirators.
Interesting Box. The box is 2-1/4 inches in length, 1-1/4 inches wide, and 1-1/4 inches in depth. It was whittled out of a single piece of wood presumabley with a jacknife, and has a sliding cover, all made from the same piece of wood. From what can be learned Weaver gave this box when finished to Mrs. Lydia Barnum, who was apparently his younger sister. She was the maternal grandmother of Lorenzo V. Barnum [sic, s.b. Lorenzo Dow Barnum], father of the present owner of the little box, James F. Barnum, and therefore his maternal great grandmother.
This valuable memento of a past revolutionary period in Canadian history bears several inscriptions which while still visible are becoming more difficult to decipher with the lapse of time.
Inscriptions on Box. The first inscription on the top of the box reads as follows: "Mrs. Lydia Barnum from Henry Weaver." Below this appears the following lines now partially obliterated but still readily descipherable:–
"In prison bonds I thus prepare,
Amid great trials, gloom and care
Though chains, dark cells surround,
In God I trust shall heal this wound."
On one side there is this verse:
"Freedom's sons were caused to dwell
With chains and bolts in dreary cell;
And witnessed from the massy grate
Poor Lount and Matthews meet their fate;
These hours of sorrow, yet will end,
And Jesus be the prisoner's friend."
Below are the initials "J.G.P." in Old English script.
On the opposite side of the box Weaver carved the words:–
"Alas for my liberty" while on the other end appears the word "Toronto" and the date "1838" on the left.
Several years ago Lorenzo Barnum, father of the present owner, resided at 52 Stanley Street, Mimico, and at that time an article appeared in a newspaper presumably published in Mimico or in one of the Lakeshore municipalities. All that remains of this article now is the newspaper clipping itself, but directly below it appears an item concerning the Long Branch Bowling Club. At the head of the newspaper article there is a "cut" of the box reproduced by "courtesy of Globe" and showing clearly on the "cut" the inscriptions already mentioned. Whatever happened to this "cut" cannot be ascertained but it is not among the records of the present "Globe and Mail," which was formed by the amalgamation of the two former Toronto daily papers — "The Mail and Empire" and the "Globe." For that reason it is impossible to reproduce the "cut" in this newspaper and if one were made today from a photograph of the box the inscriptions would not appear sufficiently legible to be identified.
The father of the present owner, James F. Barnum of Amimico, had been a stationary engineer at the Central Prison on Strachan Ave., Toronto, and for 30 years at the School for Boys at Mimico. Possession and ownership of the heirloom descended from father to son in the Barnum family.
Frank inherited the box mentioned above upon the death of his cousin Nelson Barnum.
A Research Guide to the Genealogy of the Barnum/Barnam/Barnham Family Worldwide
AncientFaces - Family History Photos
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