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Welcome to Liffiton Family History at www.liffiton.net. This site explores history and genealogy related to the Liffiton surname, which originated in England around 1758.

News
Muriel Liffiton Biography Published

Cathy Converse, British Columbian historian and writer, recently completed a book on Muriel Liffiton, who wrote The Curve of Time under her married name, M. Wylie Blanchet. The hardcover biography, published by TouchWood Editions, went to press the first week of March 2008, and is now available through your local bookseller under the title, Following the Curve of Time: The Legendary M. Wylie Blanchet. For several months last year it ranked number one on the British Columbian best seller list.

Muriel's friends knew her as "Capi," the captain of a 25 foot boat, Caprice, which she and her children used to explore the coastal waters of British Columbia. The Converse biography is a wonderful combination of Capi's life story with modern day accounts of the seacoast locations Capi visited. You can read the Liffiton Family History article on Muriel in the section titled "Capi," or download it from the Archives section. But the new book has the full story.

New: Military Service and George Liffiton

A new subtopic area added this week is "Military Life" in the "Features" menu.

In addition to adding material on Liffitons who have served in the military, updated information on George Liffiton and his family is now in the Archives under Canada. Family lore said George came to Canada with the British Army.

While that may be true, at present no evidence supports this story. However, an 1835 court transcript from the Old Bailey in England identified George as a tailor with the prestigious firm of John Jones of London. John Jones was well known for supplying uniforms to British officers.

Also, until recently the last resting place of George Liffiton was unknown by any Liffiton. The Internet finally provided that answer - just Google "George Liffiton" and cemetery, and the answer appears. Or you can find out by reading about George Liffiton here at Liffiton Family History. Go to Canada under Archives.

Notman Collection Contains Liffiton Photos

The McCord Museum of Canadian History in Montreal recently located seventeen images of Liffitons taken by the Notman Photographic Studios between 1870 and 1913. Charles Albert Liffiton (1849-1927) or members of his family are the predominant subjects. A photograph of William Thomas Liffiton (1852-1916) and a second of his hockey pro son, Charlie Liffiton, were also discovered. Both were taken on the same day in 1899.

The McCord Museum houses the Notman Archives, a collection of over 1,250,000 photographs from the Notman Studios. Permission to display some of the photographs at liffiton.net has not yet been granted, but today you can view online two Liffiton images taken in 1910. To see Miss Violet Liffiton and her sister Miss Muriel (Capi), go to the McCord Museum web site at www.mccord-museum.qc.ca. Type in "Liffiton" in the search field at the top right of the page.