Every once in a while, I come across a person in my research who is so larger than life, the page their story is written on can barely contain them. The memory of them is so vivid in the words describing them, I can almost hear their voice.
I've never seen a better example of this than George Liston, the ferryman of Halifax.
I'd be remiss if I didn't give credit once again to the venerable Judith Fingard for her work in "Rescue and Reward: Corporal George Liston's Heroism on the Halifax Waterfront." It never ceases to amaze me that whenever I'm arriving at another ancestor in the black community of Halifax, Judith has always been there before me, leaving sign posts and directions for me to follow.
I also owe a great debt to the r/genealogy community on Reddit. I couldn't have put this story together with the hours and hours of assistance from their kindhearted users over there. It started with a singular request for an obituary for my 4th great grandmother, Hannah Bailey, from Newspapers.com. From there, it quickly snowballed into one of my favorite deep dives I've ever done.
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| Clipped obituary for Hannah Bailey, The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 20 Sep 1909, p.12; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
William T. Bailey and Mrs. Rose Bailey Pinheiro are her children. William's wife name is Charlotte Dixon. I made a mental note that Charles Dixon is probably a close connection of hers, their families were friends, and to explore those connections deeper at another time. I cannot chase every shiny thing at once and right now there's something even shiner than that.
I had no idea that Hannah has a brother named George Liston. I've never heard this name before. And my excitement about it was palpable because my new friend over on Reddit proceeded to send me every mention of George in every newspaper from eastern Canada.
I was totally unprepared for how many there were going to be.
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| "Heroism at Home," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 22 Jul 1895, p.4; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
The person on Reddit who was assisting me said that the vast majority of these articles had already been clipped by someone else. That's likely how they ended up in the Ancestry Hints were I saw the one for Hannah in the first place. I wouldn't have known there was anything to find without this person coming through and clipping the articles first.
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| "The Militia of Nova Scotia in 1861," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 18 Aug 1897, p.7; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
This user on Newspapers.com had hundreds upon hundreds of clippings, mostly related to members of the military. Possibly putting together some sort of military history exhibit at a museum in Canada? They probably took an interest in George one of the more public-facing and well-remembered names associated with the Victoria Rifles, the black militia regiment assembled in 1860.
Judith Fingard provides additional insight into the history of the Victory Rifles. The black troops received a mixed reception by the community of Halifax. Some targeted them with racial attacks. Others came to their defense. Anyone foolish enough to target George with racism could expect an immediate and unforgiving response. Fingard outlines some of those interactions, pointing out that he would largely walk away with little to no consequences.
Court records also provide some evidence of Liston's response to racism. One incident concerns a minor assault by Liston of a labourer he accused of 'calling out names after him' while he was attempting unsuccessfully to collect a bill from a client on Hollis Street. In his aggravated mood, Liston gave the offending party a swipe which knocked him against the wall of the Hollis Hotel. Liston was once again fined and bound over to keep the peace.
That may seem remarkable to anyone in the United States, whose history of lynching black men is well-known across the world.
How did George avoid that same fate?
By saving dozens upon dozens of people from drowning.
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| "George Liston's Great Record as a Saver of Life," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 10 Dec 1902, p.12; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
The count of people George has saved is unknown, but it includes dozens upon dozens of people. No one was even afraid to fall into the harbor because they trusted George so completely to pull them out. the local joke was that they wouldn't even have time to get wet before they would be rescued. George had endeared himself to so many families from the rescues he had undertaken, he was a local hero in Halifax. And as a practical matter, attacking with racial epithets the person who may be tasked with saving your life one day isn't exactly a winning survival strategy.
Which isn't to say he was immune to coming into contact with Halifax's underbelly. Punching an assailant hard enough to flatten them takes a real amount of skill. George managed it in 1918 when he was in his early eighties.
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| "Assaulted Aged Boatman," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 3 Sep 1918, p.2; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
What hurts my heart is knowing that he likely had a traumatic brain injury after this, which led to a steep decline for him. It's clear in the articles that follow this attack that George was a treasured member of this community. It was difficult for them to see he was in decline.
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| "Faithful Old Servant Too Ill to Ring Fog Bell," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 24 Jun 1921, p.4; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
The community rallied around George, to advocated for him to receive better treatment than to be put into the poor house.
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| "George Liston Deserves Better Treatment from the Citizens of Halifax," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 23 Nov 1921, p.15; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
He received a medal recognizing his years of dedicated service and the many lives he saved. He was also formally recognized by Mayer Parker of Halifax, who also took up the effort to get George Liston a better living situation in his final days.
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| "The Death of George Liston," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 13 Mar 1922, p.3; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
He passed away on 12 March 1922 at the age of 89. His obituary added incredible details that his parents were black refugees from the War of 1812, freed from slavery by the British and brought to the Maritimes. Judith Fingard was able to identify his parents' names in the cemetery registers at Camp Hill Cemetery: John and Mary Liston. From George's obituary, we gather they were freed from Richmond, Virginia. Taken together with the details from "Hero at Home" (posted above) that his parents were among the cohort of freed people that left in 1812, I have more details about my family's history during the time of slavery than I ever thought possible.
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| "Not a Sister, But a Niece," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 14 Mar 1922, p.14; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
Some of his contemporary family members are also listed: Mrs. Charles (Rose) Pinheiro and William Bailey, his niece and nephew. Also, a brother who is also buried in Camp Hill Cemetery. Note that a correction is posted later correcting the relationship from "sister" to "niece."
News of George's passing made it all the way to Montreal.
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| "George Liston, Negro, Aged 89, Dead in Halifax," The Montreal Gazette, 14 Mar 1922, p.10; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
His absence was so keenly felt after his death, he was the star of the Remember When? column almost two weeks later, referencing the visit on Queen Victoria's son, Albert Edward, to Canada in 1860.
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| "Remember When," The (Halifax) Evening Mail, 25 Mar 1922, p.11; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 18 Sep 2022). |
George Liston never married or had a family. He dedicated his life to being the ferryman, the watchman over the waters of Halifax Harbor. The only descendants he has are through his siblings children. And since many of ours have since left Halifax, there was no one among us who remembered his name or knew he was one of our own.
Until now.
For the rest of my life, I will hold a special place in my heart for George Liston. I already know I will be telling his story to anyone who will listen. As a giver of so many gifts, even beyond the grave he has given a special one to me. I treasure anyone who preserves the exact piece of information I need exactly where I will find it.
George did that with a greater finesse than anyone else I've met in my journey so far.