Friends of St Hubert's Church - Host Bemister Descendants

Just discovered this article from The Daily Echo, in Bournemouth, Dorset which tells of our 2004 visit as part of the Bemister family reunion in England to the churchyard grave at St Hubert's Church where my Bemister ancestors are buried - GGGG grandparents John Bemister (1747-1832) and Mary (Willis) Bemister (1749-1838).

A very special site, we also held a small memorial service within St Hubert's Church to honour their memory as well as gratitude for the special opportunity of sharing a moment of reflection in the church which had held such great importance for family members over the years.

-- The Daily Echo article --

A village graveyard provided the unlikely setting for a family reunion when 28 descendants of a Corfe Mullen couple joined to pay homage to their ancestors.

The group had travelled from Canada and America to visit the graves of Mary and John Bemister at St Hubert’s church, Corfe Mullen.

Two of the couple’s sons emigrated to Newfoundland in the early 1800s. Between them, William and Edward fathered 18 children who were to continue the Bemister family’s links with Canada for the next two centuries.

Poole’s links with Newfoundland date back to when fishermen from the Dorset town sailed west to catch the cod.

In 1802 the Poole fleet numbered 350 ships whose mariners braved mountainous seas and bloody clashes with privateers.

But the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815 signalled the end to the lucrative cod trade.

William Bemister came to Carbonear in 1803, where he earned a reputation as a respected businessman and community leader.

His brother Edward left England in 1812 and it is likely that he was on the high seas in June, unaware a war was raging.

His vessel was captured by the Americans and he was imprisoned on a ship in Boston for a year and a day.

On his release Edward was given a suit and enough money to find his way to Newfoundland.

The family reunion was organised by local historian Dr Alan Perry, who has just returned from his 47th visit to Newfoundland and Cameron Hopkins, Mary and John’s great- great- great- great-grandson who now lives in Ontario.

“Various people including my sister helped trace the family tree,” recalled Cameron.

“I came here nine years ago but for many it was their first visit to England.

“They were very excited about seeing the places where their direct ancestors lived and died all those years ago.”

As well as paying their respects at Mary and John’s graves, the party visited Wimborne’s historic Minster where the couple were married in 1785 and were guests of Lord and Lady Digby at their home in Minterne near Dorchester.

Dr Perry, who is chairman of the Wessex Newfoundland Society and was awarded an OBE in 1997 for his work there, said: ”It was quite emotional. Family members had travelled a long way and they weren’t disappointed.

“We had a wonderful farewell dinner in the Blue Boar in Poole, surrounded by letters and deeds on the walls from Newfoundland. It was the perfect ending to a very successful trip.”

Dr Perry is planning another trip to Newfoundland next month.

(By Julie Magee, published in the Daily Echo, Thursday August 12, 2004. Courtesy of The Daily Echo, Bournemouth)

2010 Bemister Family Reunion - History

Since we first began this Bemister voyage of discovery in the spring of 1997, we have had picnics, dinners, lunches, reunions and fun from coast to coast in Canada – and a wonderful 1995 reunion on the old sod at the home of John and Mary Bemister in Corfe Mullen, Dorset. More than 500 Bemisters have gotten involved for activities in Carbonear, Vancouver, Toronto area (twice), St John’s and Dorset. Our cousins have not only enjoyed the events, the genealogy, the history and the artifacts – they have enjoyed each other! Many who come to our 2010 event in Carbonear will be meeting lots of old friends; some will be discovering distant cousins with a common heritage for the first time. But ALL will say they are glad they came! You will be too

Sincerely,
Cameron Hopkins
on behalf of the Organizing Committee

2010 Bemister Family Reunion - Transportation and Accommodations

You can easily fly into St. John’s International airport by major airlines and from there it will take just over an hour to drive to Carbonear. West Jet and Air Canada have been running seat sales with discount fares right up to the period of our reunion. Currently you can fly return from Toronto for under $500. For our American cousins it may be worth making a connection through Vancouver or Toronto or a border city to take advantage of Canadian air line discounts. However you can easily drive from Ontario or the Boston States in 3 days, including a ferry ride from North Sydney, Nova Scotia. The East Coast ferry to Argentia takes about 14 hours overnight (ask for dormitory accommodation) followed by a 2 hour run to Carbonear. Check with Marine Atlantic for schedules and fares. Also you will need to book a rental vehicle – and book early! Several of the chains have kiosks at the airport and for security you should book well in advance.

Accommodations in the Carbonear area are somewhat limited and we advise you to book early because this will be a very active tourist season. The Carbonear web site and the provincial tourist sites have links to the web sites for motels and bed and breakfast establishments. There are at least three inexpensive motels and several excellent B & B’s in the Carbonear – Harbour Grace – Brigus area. Don’t be shy about staying a bit out of town; it’s only a 20 or 30 minute run from Heart’s Content or Cupids to Carbonear, and even St. John’s is only an hour away. If you book a St. John’s hotel ask for a view of the harbour and Signal Hill if such a room is available. But again, we urge you to book early. And check the web sites for information up-dates on travel and tourist information, not to mention the Bemister Blog for the latest information.

Getting out the word!

At this point the most helpful thing any of you can do – besides sending in your registration form and cheque – is to get the reunion information to others in your immediate family, to your adult children, first and second cousins and anyone else you think is related through your Bemister line. Forwarding our e-mails to all these folk would be a big help. We are mailing by Canada Post to some 400 households, and we think our e-mail coverage is much greater than that. If you send us contact information on your relatives we will be glad to send out hard copies of the notice. This may well be the LAST MAJOR REUNION of our generation in Carbonear, a last great opportunity to meet your cousins from near and far in the town that was the birthplace of Maria 200 years ago, the town that nurtured your Bemister ancestors and welcomes you back this summer with open hearts and unparalleled hospitality. You will never forget it and neither will they! We look forward to seeing you in August.

Sincerely,
Cameron Hopkins
on behalf of the Organizing Committee

2010 Bemister Family Reunion - Activities

Our program of activities will be fleshed out in more detail closer to the event. But following on the pattern of past events and your feedback we have produced a tentative agenda which is on the attached sheet. When your send in your registration form it would be helpful if you would also let us know what your preferences are from the list supplied for tours, workshops and other activities , and for that matter, to make other suggestions and we will try our best to accommodate you in every way.

Our pre and post reunion activity schedule will only be activated if we get enough expressions of interest. But don’t come all that way to Carbonear and miss some of exciting attractions that are available in the area at that time of the year – from whales and icebergs, bird colonies and nature parks, historic sites and museums, folk festivals and live theatre – it’s all there to be discovered on the Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism web site. The Cupids 400 celebration is of particular interest because of its focus on the West Country Migration and the birth place of Capt. Bob Bartlett at Brigus is well worth a visit.

On Friday, August 6, we will be conducting registration all day, and early arrivals will be able to take in walking tours, a bus tour around the Carbonear – Harbour Grace area, a boat ride to Carbonear Island, and of course meet your cousins and view the family pictures and memorabilia as well as the family tree which well be an impressive display connecting all of the participants up to seventh cousins or even 4th cousins three times removed! We will have an excellent souvenir package that will include a souvenir book with new information about our family and about the reunion itself including schedules, tour details and so on. At the end of the reunion we will ensure you get a souvenir CD recording your participation for posterity and containing lots of pictures and information.

2010 Bemister Family Reunion - Registration

2010 Bemister Family Reunion
REGISTRATION

Now is the time to reserve your berth on the Brigantine Bemister, time to let us know you will be taking part in this grand celebration of the 263rd birthday of John Bemister of Corfe Mullen, time to commit to take part in a celebration of our whole family – all eight generations! A registration form is attached and you should fill it out and submit fees based on the actual number of close family members who will be coming; please pay by cheque payable to the Bemisters of Carbonear. The basic fees will be:

Adults: $100 Youth (8 to 18): $50 Children (7 and under): FREE

Additionally there will be charges of ~ $7.50 per adult (and less for younger family members) for bus tours, and ~ $20 pp for 1½ to 2 hour boat rides to Carbonear Island and vicinity. This is all subject to review as we approach the event. The budget has to ensure we break even. No red ink! In 1999 the fees only covered about half the total costs and we were heavily dependent on donations. We need to cover more of the costs from fees this time. But at this point, please pay only the basic fees and tell us your preferences for tours and other activities; we can assess any additional charges when you get to the Legion in Carbonear based on current information at that time. These will not be excessive for sure.

Even if you are not attending, you might like to make a $10 contribution for membership in the Bemisters of Carbonear which would help to pay for some of our overheads and keep you in touch with a post reunion newsletter. If you would like to make a larger donation that would be appreciated too, and for any donation of $50 or more we will send a beautiful 2010 Newfoundland and Labrador calendar or the reunion souvenir package (your choice) and for $100 or more we will send both. Family members with businesses, professional services or arts and crafts may like to post advertisements in our souvenir booklet (anything from business card size to full page); contact us to talk about rates and copy.

2010 Bemister Family Reunion

2010 Bemister Family Reunion
August 6th to 8th, 2010
Carbonear, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada

We are now within six months of our exciting 2010 Reunion to be held at the Royal Canadian Legion, in Carbonear, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada from August 6 to 8, 2010. Carbonear became the ancestral home of the present day Bemisters after William and Edward left Corfe Mullen, Dorset in 1803 and 1812 respectively. For 200 years our Bemister family has been in the New World – but is now scattered far and wide across Canada and the United States leaving only a much smaller contingent in Carbonear and other parts of what is now the proud Canadian Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Our Bemister cousins who still live in Carbonear and environs are very enthusiastic about greeting their family members from up along, and our coast to coast organizing committee has been planning an exciting weekend including tours of historic venues and beauty spots, musical celebrations of our family heritage, and expressions of traditional Newfoundland and Labrador culture and hospitality.

We will have plenty of opportunities to honour our ancestors and greet our quite lively and energetic relatives from near and far, acquire a new appreciation of our history and genealogy, and generally enjoy a weekend of fun and fellowship you will never forget. You will marvel at the artifacts from the Bemister travelling museum – which we hope you will contribute to – containing pictures, bibles and prayer books, watches and jewellery, and lasting mementos of a family that has literally spread its wings like the eagles and flown to the far corners of North America, where our cousins have made a huge contribution to community and business and public life as they have in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Our ancestors have left their footprints for all to see, and present day generations are making their own history which they – and you – will want to share at our August reunion. Do fill out the family group record sheets so we have the most up to date information on your immediate family for our fantastic Bemister Family Tree. We will ensure that everybody at the reunion will know everybody else – including how they are related to one another.