Talk:Henry Ferguson (politician)

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Incorrect death date

Latest comment: 5 months ago1 comment1 person in discussion

Previously, this article relied entirely upon one source, "A Directory of the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758-1958", Public Archives of Nova Scotia, 1958. page 68. https://0-nsleg--edeposit-gov-ns-ca.legcat.gov.ns.ca/deposit/b10729380.pdf . Unfortunately, the death date for Henry Ferguson is incorrect in this source. I have been in discussion with a legislative librarian who says that on his copy of the Directory, the 1777 date has been crossed out in pencil and replaced with a 1791 date, but the update never made it to a published Directory.

I am not sure how best to cite sources for the 1791 death date. There was a magazine/newspaper account of Ferguson's tragic death, in which his death date, 21 April 1791, is clearly communicated (""Halifax, April 28. A Melancholy accident occurred here on Thursday last.—As Deacon Henry Ferguson was sitting by the fire...". The citation for that article is:

"Domestic Affairs, Halifax, April 28. A Melancholy accident..." [death of Deacon Henry Ferguson]. The Nova-Scotia magazine, Vol. 4, no. 4, Apr. 1791. Halifax, N.S. : Printed by John Howe, 1791, page 252. https://www.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.8_06254_22/65.

The other supporting evidence is from primary sources: wills and estate papers. These are very clear sources because they contain references to his family members, so Ferguson's identity is unmistakable. I do not know how Wikipedia deals with this type of source:

Estate of Henry Ferguson in Original estate papers of Halifax County, Nova Scotia, 1750-1930, 1791. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSRS-9SSP-C.

Will of Henry Ferguson in Probate records of Halifax County, 1749-1968, 1791. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS21-K247.

WorldCat citations of the above FamilySearch records:

Original estate papers of Halifax County, Nova Scotia, 1750-1930; index, 1750-1968 Author:Nova Scotia Court of Probate (Halifax County) (Composer) Summary:Beginning in 1842, files are generally arranged by the earliest filing date within a file. Dates vary within a file and files are not always in chronological order Microform, English, 1968-2003 Publisher: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, 1968-2003

Probate records of Halifax County, 1749-1968 Author:Nova Scotia Court of Probate (Halifax County) (Composer) Microform, English, 1968 Publisher: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, 1968

There is also a burial record at Saint Paul's Church in Halifax for Henry Ferguson in April 1791, but I have not accessed the original document.

Katedu (talk) 17:39, 20 January 2024 (UTC)Reply

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