Dear Editor,
I am sad to report that on Aug. 12, 2020, Lynn Martin, neé Dale, passed away. She was my distant cousin, having descended from John Dale Jr. of Clarendon Township just as I have.
I felt compelled to write a short article about the historical and genealogical work that she, her brother Ron, and sister Val, have done over many years in tracking down all the Dales who . . .

descended from John Dale Sr. who came to the Pontiac in 1821. I had been in touch with Ron Dale as early as 2007 to let him know that I was interested in doing some research on my Dale family, imagine how thrilled I was to find out that Ron and his sisters Lynn and Val had already done an immense amount of work. On the other hand, it took the wind out of my sails and I decided to put off any work on my Dales at that time.
In 2015, to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary, I decided it was time to get the story of the Dales and their role in the settlement of Clarendon and Shawville down on paper. One of the first places I visited was the Pontiac Archives. I was asked by one of the volunteers if I knew the “Dale girls.” It didn’t immediately sink in that she was talking about my cousins, Lynn and Val. Apparently the two sisters had spent many years visiting the Pontiac Archives as they amassed data about the Dales and anyone who had any relationship with the Dales. They were also in direct contact with anyone in the area who could fill in the gaps in their research.
One story Lynn told me was about she and Val visiting Athol Dale. During their conversation he mentioned that someone else had written him several years before asking him for information about the Dales. When he fetched the letter for them to have a look at, it turned out it was a letter from Lynn. It seems the Dale girls left no stone unturned.
My three cousins have been very generous with both their time and their information. I have been able to use the Dale database they provided me with which has saved me an immense amount of time and trouble. All three visited Northern Ireland where they met some of our distant Dale relatives and they inspired me to do the same thing. Like them, I visited Dale’s Hill in Ballymulderg Beg, County Derry close by to where we think the Dales and Wilsons came from.
By working on the history of the Dales of Clarendon, I have come to appreciate how fortunate we are to have the Pontiac Archives in Shawville, but also to have people like Lynn, Val and Ron who are prepared to contribute their time and effort to documenting family history.
Sadly, Lynn became ill a few years ago and was not able to pursue her work on the Dales and on Aug. 12 she passed away. Her efforts, along with those of all the others who value history and help to document it, are worthy of notice and our thanks.

Nancy Conroy neé Dale