You could write an entire posting about the madness pertaining to Nova Scotia vital records. They decided to have province- wide vital records in 1864 and then discontinued them after 1876. They would start again in 1908. If you have Nova Scotian ancestry then you experience the frustration of events that happened between 1876 and 1908 and breath a sigh of relief for those events between 1864 and 1876. [They are searchable online and free.]
Samuel Pratt was born in 1818 in Upper Stewiace, Nova Scotia, the son of Samuel and Catherine (McKenzie) Pratt. He married Rebecca Denny Thompson on 29 January 1842 at Londonderry [Vital Statistics from Halifax Newspapers, 1840-1843 by Jean M. Holder (Halifax: Genealogical Association of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society, 1985)], she the daughter of Joshua and Mary (Spencer) Thompson.
They are listed in the 1891 Canadian census together, living in Lower Londonderry, he aged 73, she aged 71, both Baptist, with their son Alexander and his two daughters. It also notes that both his mother and father were born in Nova Scotia. Samuel appears in the Nova Scotia Directory for the years 1892, 1896 and 1897, but not in 1902. He is not listed in the 1901 census either. He deeded his farm to his son Alexander in 1896 [Colchester Co. Deeds 96:620].
His wife is listed as a widow in the U.S. census for 1900, living with her daughter Nellie (Ellen) Allen in Westbrook, Maine. [Cumberland Co., Me., ED #83, Page 15]. This record says she came to the U.S. in 1892. Of course, that's the same answer as her daughter and son-in-law. Hmmmm. According to Ellen's marriage certificate from 1894 in Maine, her father's residence was New Brunswick. I can find no obituary or death notice for Samuel. Even his wife's death is reported in the Londonderry Times despite her dying in Maine. Samuel's ultimate end is not known.
I have a very complete picture of this couple except for that one fact. Rebecca's nephew, Gideon Thompson, kept a diary and spoke of his uncle and aunt. A descendant of Gideon's contacted me a while back and shared his diary with me. Also three of the four parents of this couple had the decency to die between 1864 and 1876, thus helping me to push back easily two (or more) generations.
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