Burlington Bash or the Vermont venture

[art.robinson]

Neat story, Jim. I'm glad that you were able to connect with your
family.

Art in TO

-----Original Message-----
From: The Masons [mailto:masonjs at nrtco.net] 
Sent: 30 September 2007 17:29
To: Paul Heim; gpzlist at micapeak.com
Subject: Burlington Bash or the Vermont venture


I arrived home about 14:30 hrs after a very good trip to New England.
One 
glitch--I did lose my passport some where between Tupper Lake NY and
Crown 
Point VT on the may there Thursday.
Rob & Michele were exceptional hosts.
I was a little apprehensive about problems at the Canadian border on the
way 
home, but my preplanned route home through an out of the way border
crossing 
was to my advantage.  I crossed into Quebec nrth of the village of 
Chateaugay NY.  Three USA border guards stopped me and wanted to know 
whereed been, how long I'd been in the country, was I a Canadian
citizen, 
where I lived (standard questions) but wanted to know why (since I had 
Ontario plates) that I chose this remote crossing.  I told them that my 
grandfather had been born in the Quebec village of Huntingdon just
accross 
the border in 1875 and I wanted to see the village.  They let me go.  50

yards further the Canadian guard stops and asks exactly the same
questions. 
Since this area of Quebec is all small farming communities he wanted to
know 
my grandfathers name.  When I told him Robert Tannahill he replied that 
there were a lot of Tannahills in the area, asked me a few more
questions 
about my grandfather and let me go.  The guard looked a hell of a lot
like 
my cousin Ralph Tannahill from London ON. On the out skirts of
Huntingdon I 
stopped at a yard sale.  I walked across the road and a lady asked if
she 
could help me.  I aked if she knew of any Tannahills in the area and she

said --yes !! my mother who is having this sale.  I talked to her mother
for 
about 20 minutes and we realized that her grandfather Huge and mine were

brothers. I looked around the yard and noticed several other people who
have 
close similarities to my aunts, uncles and cousins.  It was cool.  My 
sisters will be extatic with this news.

Jim