Category Archives: Genealogy & Family History

Did your ancestors come from the Ukraine?

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Do you ever wonder who your first Ukrainian ancestor was and when he or she left the Ukraine and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your family’s Ukrainian heritage?

If so, our website is a great place to begin your research. For instance, you will find a page specific to genealogical research about Ukrainians.

It provides you with historical background information, archival and published material from our collection, as well as links to other websites and
institutions.

If your ancestor came to Canada between 1865 and 1935, you might find his or her name on passenger lists.

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

Did your ancestors come from Acadia?

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Do you ever wonder who your first Acadian ancestor was and when he or she arrived in Acadia? Are you curious about your family’s Acadian heritage?

If so, our website is a great place to begin your research. For instance, you will find a page specific to genealogical research for Acadians. It provides you with historical background information, archival and published material from our collection, as well as links to other websites and institutions.

You may begin by consulting the Parish Registers fonds, which contains transcriptions of parish registers of various Acadian parishes and from the Gaspé peninsula.

You may also consult the biographies of the 37 main Acadian families, such as “Surette” and “Poirier” [available in French only], from the Université de Moncton’s website.

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

Summary of comments received in French up to September 30th, 2013

  • A user mentioned that he used and will still use Library and Archives Canada’ services to document the descendants of Jacques Bourgeois and Jeanne Trahan. The results of this work is available online at http://Histoire-de-Bourgeois.ca.

New Podcast Episode: The Shamrock and the Fleur-de-Lys

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We are pleased to announce the release of our latest podcast episode: The Shamrock and the Fleur-de-Lys.

In this episode, we consult a panel of experts about the massive immigration of Irish settlers to Quebec in the 1800s. We examine the journey they made in order to establish their new lives on foreign soil, as well as the cultural bond that formed between the Irish and the Québécois.

Subscribe to episodes using RSS or iTunes, or just tune in at: Podcasts – Discover Library and Archives Canada: Your History, Your Documentary Heritage.

For more information on recent announcements at LAC, visit “News“.

Did your ancestors come from Russia?

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Do you wonder who your first Russian ancestor was and when he or she left Russia and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your family’s Russian heritage?

If so, the LAC website is a great place to begin your research. For instance, you will find a page specific to genealogical research for the Russians. It provides you with historical background, LAC’s archival collections and published material, as well as links to other websites and institutions.

If your ancestor came to Canada between 1865 and 1935, you might find his or her name on passenger lists.

Tip:

Tracing your Russian ancestor in Canada is the first step. Joining a genealogical society is an ideal way to begin your genealogy research.

Learn where and how to begin your research at Library and Archives Canada by watching this short orientation video: Orientation Services for Clients at 395 Wellington.

For more information on recent announcements at LAC, visit “News“.

Did your ancestors come from Italy?

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Do you wonder who your first Italian ancestor was and when he or she left Italy and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your family’s Italian heritage?

If so, the LAC website is a great place to begin your research. For instance, you will find a page specific to genealogical research for the Italians. It provides you with historical background, LAC‘s archival collections and published material, as well as links to other websites and institutions.

If your ancestor came to Canada between 1865 and 1935, you might find his or her name on passenger lists.

Tip

Tracing your Italian ancestor in Canada is the first step. Joining a genealogical society is an ideal way to begin your genealogy research.

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

Royal Tour: The Duchess of Cornwall’s Canadian Ancestors

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Did you know that Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and wife of Prince Charles, has among her ancestors a Premier of the Province of Canada and two New France pioneers, Zacharie Cloutier and Jean Guyon?

How is this possible?

It’s simple. The Duchess of Cornwall’s great-great grandfather, William Coutts Keppel (1832-1894), visited Canada and married Sophia Mary MacNab (1832-1917), on November 15, 1855, in Hamilton, Ontario.  She was the daughter of Sir Allan Napier MacNab (1798-1862),  Premier of the Province of Canada from 1854 to 1856, and Mary Stuart.
As we continue to climb Mary Stuart’s family tree, we discover the names of Zacharie Cloutier and Jean Guyon.

You can find many archival and published materials regarding these historical figures in our collection; some are digitized and available online. Try finding them by “Searching all”!

Learn more about Allan Napier MacNab’s career by consulting the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.

Do you wish to know if you have someone famous as an ancestor? Learn more by discovering our Genealogy Services!

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

New France Census Records

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Did you know that several nominal censuses dating from the early French colonial period have been digitized and are available on our website?  You will see that most of these census records list only the heads of the household. Here are a few examples (in French, only):

To find other censuses such as those mentioned above, simply enter the keywords “recensement nominatif”, “recensement habitants” or “recensement familles” in our “Collection Search” database  and select “Online: yes.”

Note that since the records are of French origin and have been written only in French you must use French keywords to search.

For more information on census records, we invite you to visit our Genealogy and Family History pages.

Happy hunting!

Did Your Ancestors Come From Poland?

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Do you wonder who your first Polish ancestor was and when he or she left Poland and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your family’s Polish heritage?

If so, you will find a specific page about genealogical research for the Poles on our website.  It provides historical background, main LAC archival collections and published material and links to other websites and institutions.

If your Polish ancestor came to Canada before 1865, a good starting point would be to consult the three following databases:

If your ancestor came between 1865 and 1935, you might find his name on passenger lists.

Tip:

Tracing your Polish ancestor in Canada is the first step. Joining a genealogical society is an ideal way to start your genealogy research.

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

Did Your Ancestors Come From the Netherlands (Holland)?

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Do you wonder who your first Dutch ancestor was and when he or she left the Netherlands and arrived in Canada? Are you curious about your family’s Dutch heritage?

You will find on our website a specific page about genealogical research for the Dutch. It provides historical background, main LAC archival collections and published material and links to other websites and institutions.

If your Dutch ancestor came to Canada before 1865, a good starting point would be to consult the three following databases:

If your ancestor came between 1865 and 1935, you might find his name on passenger lists.

Tip

Tracing your Dutch ancestor in Canada is the first step. Joining a genealogical society is an ideal way to start your genealogy research.

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!

 

Census Search Tips and Tricks

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Genealogists researching census records may encounter various challenges, including:

Spelling variations

  • Indexers may sometimes have trouble making out enumerators’ handwriting or interpreting records when they are in poor condition
  • Enumerators’ ability to spell and transcribe the information they received correctly may greatly influence search results
  • Enumerators occasionally translated names into their mother tongue or transcribed them phonetically. Accordingly, French-Canadian names like Jean-Baptiste or Marie-Anne might be translated as John Baptist or Mary Ann

Date variations

  • Many dates of birth may also be inaccurate. For example, our ancestors sometimes had trouble remembering their children’s exact date of birth and even their own

Inaccurate information

  • The household member interviewed by the enumerator might have provided incorrect information, which will also influence search results

Help is at hand!

Over the years, genealogists at Library and Archives Canada have come up with research tricks. Here are a few that are sure to help:

  • If you located your ancestor in the 1901 census, for example, but have trouble finding him or her in the 1911 census, just jot down the names of your ancestor’s neighbours from the 1901 census, then try to find them in the 1911 census. With luck, your ancestor will have stayed at the same address, and you will easily trace him or her
  • If you are having difficulty finding an ancestor, try limiting your search criteria; for example, if your ancestor has an uncommon name or surname, search for him or her using only that name
  • You may find information about your ancestor in a city directory if he or she lived in a large city. If this is the case, try searching the directory of the city your ancestor lived in to confirm his or her residence there. Read our blog post What Can Canadian Directories Do for You? to learn more
  • Our Genealogy and Family History section provides search tips and a list of abbreviations found in censuses

Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you!