User:Chrisb

In the 1960's or '70s, my great uncle, Hugh Cheney, researched our family history back to John Cheney, the head of the American line of the family. My uncle typed up the history and distributed it to the families who were descendants of Albert Gardiner Cheney, late of Vankleek Hill, Ontario, Canada. I remember the report being on tissue paper. The genealogy report was prefaced with the following source information.

"According to a book of Genealogy, sold at Goodspeeds' Book Shop, 9 Ashburton Place, Boston, Mass., our Cheney ancestors came to England in 1066 from Normandy, and the name at that time was spelled Chaine and pronounced Chainay. One branch of the family still spell their name Chaney, but our branch has gradually been altered to Cheney, the present way of spelling. According to the history given, the Chaine's or Cheney's who came to England from Normandy, were titled people and in later years, many of them English landowners."

Along with the genealogy report, a short autobiography was included, detailing the life of Rev. James McNally. He was born in Ireland and sailed to Canada in 1825 and settled in West Hawkesbury township in eastern Ontario. He was the father of Emily McNally, who was married to Nelson Cheney and grandfather of Albert Gardiner Cheney.

In researching the family from John Cheney back through time, I have come across the work others have done and shared on the Internet. Where I have used their information, I have included their website as a source. As well, some birth and death dates for some of the family members who lived around Vankleek Hill, Ontario, Canada were gathered from cemetery information posted on the Internet (source identified where used).

Like others before me, I have become hooked into finding and sharing more information. It is amazing and rewarding to find what is available.

Chris Cheney