Rick Bell Family fonds, 1874-1875, 1879, 1884, 1886, 1888-1889, 1896, 1898, 1909-1910, 1939, 1945, n.d.

Lewis Tyrell married Jane Gains on August 31, 1849 in Culpeper Court House, Virginia. Jane Gains was a spinster. Lewis Tyrell died September 25, 1908 at his late residence, Vine St. and Welland Ave., St. Catharines, Ont. at the age of 81 years, 5 months. Jane Tyrell died March 1, 1886, age 64 years. Their son? William C. Tyrell died January 15, 1898, by accident in Albany, NY, age 33 years, 3 months. John William Taylor married Susan Jones were married in St. Catharines, Ont. on August 10, 1851 by William Wilkinson, a Baptist minister. On August 9, 1894 Charles Henry Bell (1871-1916), son of Stephen (1835?-1876) and Susan Bell, married Mary E. Tyrell (b. 1869?) daughter of Lewis and Alice Tyrell, in St. Catharines Ontario. By 1895 the Bell’s were living in Erie, Pennsylvania where children Delbert Otto (b. 1895) and Edna Beatrice (b. 1897) were born. By 1897 the family was back in St. Catharines where children Lewis Tyrell (b. 1899), Gertrude Cora (b. 1901), Bessie Jane (b. 1902), Charles Henry (b. 1906), Richard Nelson (b. 1911) and William Willoughby (b. 1912) were born. Charles Henry Bell operated a coal and ice business on Geneva Street. In the 1901 Census for St. Catharines, the Bell family includes the lodger Charles Henry Hall. Charles Henry Hall was born ca. 1824 in Maryland, he died in St. Catharines on November 11, 1916 at the age of 92. On October 24, 1889 Charles Hall married Susan Bell (1829-1898). The 1911 Census of Canada records Charles Henry Hall residing in the same household as Charles Henry and Mary Bell. The relationship to the householder is step-father. It is likely that after Stephen Bell’s death in 1876, his widow, Susan Bell married Hall. In 1939, Richard Nelson Bell, son of Charles Henry and Mary Tyrell Bell, married Iris Sloman. Iris (b. 22 May 1912 in Biddulph Township, Middlesex, Ontario) was the daughter of Albert (son of Joseph b. 1870 and Elizabeth Sloman, b. 1872) and Josie (Josephine Ellen) Butler Sloman of London, Ont. Josie (b. 1891) was the daughter of Everett Richard and Elizabeth McCarthy (or McCarty) Butler, of Lucan Village, Middlesex North. According to the 1911 Census of Canada, Albert, a Methodist, was a porter on the railroad. His wife, Josephine, was a Roman Catholic. Residing with Albert and Josie were Sanford and Sadie Butler and Sidney Sloman, likely siblings of Albert and Josephine. The Butler family is descended from Peter Butler, a former slave, who had settled in the Wilberforce Colony in the 1830s. Rick Bell b. 1949 in Niagara Falls, Ont. is the son of Richard Nelson Bell. In 1979, after working seven years as an orderly at the St. Catharines General Hospital while also attending night school at Niagara College, Rick Bell was hired by the Thorold Fire Dept. He became the first Black professional firefighter in Niagara. He is a founding member of the St. Catharines Junior Symphony; attended the Banff School of Fine Arts in 1966 and also performed with the Lincoln & Welland Regimental Band and several other popular local groups. Upon the discovery of this rich archive in his mothers’ attic he became passionate about sharing his Black ancestry and the contributions of fugitive slaves to the heritage Niagara with local school children. He currently resides in London, Ont.

William Van Every fonds, 1784, 1804-1806, 1815-1816, 1828, 1832, n.d.

William Van Every, son of McGregory and Mary Wilcox (Jaycocks) Van Every, was born in New York state in 1765. During the Revolutionary War he joined Butler’s Rangers and served under Captain John McDonnell. He was granted three lots of land in the Township of Niagara, with additional lands granted at later dates. William married Elizabeth, daughter of George Young. Elizabeth was the widow of Col. Frederick Dochstader and mother of Catherine Dochstader, b. 1781. William Van Every died in 1832, his wife Elizabeth in 1851. Both are buried in the Warner Cemetery, in present day Niagara Falls. The children of William Van Every and Elizabeth Young were Mary, Elizabeth, Phoebe, John, Peter, William, Rebecca, Samuel and Joseph. Source: Mary Blackadar Piersol, The Records of the Van Every Family, Toronto : Best Printing, 1947. And, Patricia M. Orr, Historic Woodend, sponsored by Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, 1980?

Welland Canal Survey of Lands William May Jr., 1826

Survey map and description of William May Jr.'s land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. The land is described as having 2 good acres and the rest being swamp. The property borders 12 mile creek in Grantham township. Noteable features include; a large pond, division line between lots 20 and 21 as well as 21 and 22, concession line. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map. Click on 'detail' to see Map

Welland Canal Survey of Lands William Hamilton Merritt Esquire 1826

Survey map and description of William Hamilton Merritt's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. The drawing also includes John Hainer's Land. Noteable features include; saw mill, salt works, line between Hainer's and Merritt's land,line between John Clendennan's and Merritt's land, road, bridge, tow path, 12 mile creek and canal. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map. The survey was signed and submitted on August 23rd, 1826. The land is 17 acres, 3 roads and 20 perches.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands William Chisholm 1836

Survey map and description of William Chisholm's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; line between Elias Adams and Chisholm's land, line between Chisholm and Shipman's land, canal. The land is a total of 1 acre and 2 perches. The deed for the land is dated August 23, 1836. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands William C. Chace 1826

Survey map and description of William C. Chace's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; concession line. The land totals 1/4 of an acre. The survey was signed and submitted on August 23, 1826. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands Isabella Steward and William Sanderson, 1826

The first survey map and description is of Isabella Steward's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; high water mark. The survey was signed and submitted on August 23rd, 1826. The land totals 1/4 of an acre. The second survey map and description is of William Sanderson's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; line between Sanderson and Clendenning's land, line between Sanderson and Adam's land, canal. The survey was signed and submitted on August 23, 1826. The land totals 14 perches and 1 road. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map. This image contains two seperate surveys.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands William McLellan

Survey map and description of William McLellan's land created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; line between lots, canal. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands Village Lot in Allanburgh, 1833

Survey map and description of a village lot in Allanburgh. Created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a written description of the land along with a drawing of the lot. Noteable features include; Holland road, grave land, Niagara street. The land totals 3/4 of an acre. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map.

Welland Canal Survey of Lands Village of Allanburgh, 1833

Survey map and description of the Village of Allanburgh, created by The Welland Canal Company. Included is a drawing of the land. Noteable features include; lot divisions, Welland Canal, Niagara street, Holland road, lock 36 and 37, foundry, Canal street, mill, Canby street, Dover street, Rose street, Helen street, Water street, Falls street, Centre street, Welland street, Hall street, Clifton street, James street, Mary street, Catherine street, J.G. Stockley's land, reservoir, graveyard. Surveyor notes are seen in pencil on the map.

William Still's Boarding House advertisement [n.d.]

Original advertisement for William Still's Boarding House, No. 832 South Street, below 9th, south side Philad'a [sic]. Not dated. The advertisement includes handwritten marginalia, possibly by William Still, on the left-hand side referring to St. Catharines. There is a small embossed stamp on the upper left-hand corner of the advertisement. This item was in the possession of the Rick Bell Family of St. Catharines.Handwritten marginalia (original spelling and punctuation): "Do remember me very kindly to all my enquiring friends _ I but seldom hear of late from St. Catherines" The street number printed in the original advertisement (374) has been crossed out in black ink and a handwritten "832" has been inserted. William Still was an African-American abolitionist from Philadelphia and clerk of the Anti-Slavery Society who by his own account assisted 649 slaves receive freedom. He kept records on fugitive slaves so their relatives could find them later. In 1872, he published his records in a book entitled, The Underground Railroad. Source: William Still Underground Railroad Foundation: http://www.undergroundrr.com/foundation/about.htm

Promissory Note, February 2, 1812 - William and Abraham Nelles and Nathanial Pettit Estate

A promise by Abraham and William Nelles to pay 50 pounds with interest, New York Currency, to John Pettit and Jonathan Woolverton, executors of the late Nathanial Pettit estate, three years after the date. Witness Will Crooks.

Promissory Note, February 2, 1813 - William and Abraham Nelles and Nathanial Pettit Estate

A promise by Abraham and William Nelles to pay 50 pounds with interest, New York Currency, to John Pettit and Jonathan Woolverton, executors of the late Nathanial Pettit estate, four years after the date. Witness Will Crooks.

Promissory Note, February 2, 1811 - William and Abraham Nelles and Nathanial Pettit Estate

A promise by Abraham and William Nelles to pay 50 pounds with interest, New York Currency, to John Pettit and Jonathan Woolverton, executors of the late Nathanial Pettit estate. Paid in full. Witness Will Crooks.

Promissory Note, February 2, 1814 - William and Abraham Nelles and Nathanial Pettit Estate

A promise by Abraham and William Nelles to pay 50 pounds with interest, New York Currency, to John Pettit and Jonathan Woolverton, executors of the late Nathanial Pettit estate, five years after the date. Witness Will Crooks.