When I first started doing genealogical research I didn’t
really know where to find Canadian records online, let alone ones that didn’t
require a subscription. After over a decade of
researching my Canadian roots I have established a list of some of my favourite
databases and websites. Some of these resources are international, however they
do feature large Canadian collections.
This page provides an overview of what each of the 75+ sites has to offer. I have provided links to some blog post where I go into further detail on how to get the most out of them . The resources have been organized by the geographic region that they cover. National resources apply to all provinces and territories, where as the provincial resources only cover a specific province. In some cases, these regions have been further divided into specific topic (ie. newspapers, military).
Sites that require a paid subscription have been identified with ($), and reference materials have been identified by (*).
National Resources
1. Library and Archives Canada
When performing Canadian research this is one of the best sites to start with. They have a wide range of free collections which include census, military, and immigration records among many others. I have written a series of posts called "Get to know Bac-Lac" where I have further explained how to use the census and immigration collects. The posts have been linked below.
Canadian Census Records (Part I)
Canadian Census Records (Part II)
Canadian Census Records (Part III)
Canadian Census Records (Part IV)
Canadian Immigration Records (Part I)
Canadian Immigration Records (Part II)
Was Your Ancestor Double Enumerated?
Tips for Finding Your Family in the 1931 Canadian Census
2. Provincial Databases (some $) - Familysearch Wiki - Canada
Each province keeps their own vital records, therefore the easiest way for me to provide a link to each was through the Familysearch Wiki. Simply select the province you are interested in, then follow the link to their website. Each province has their own vital statistics website, however not all feature a free
database. For example, New Brunswick allows you to search and download records,
Nova Scotia allows you to search and view but not download records, and Ontario
doesn’t allow you to view any records or personal information. I have only used the New Brunswick and Nova Scotia provincial websites at length and therefore cannot speak to the user friendliness or content provide on any of the others.
3. Internet Archive
Internet
Archive is really just one giant free online library. Although this is
technically an international website, there are many Canadian libraries that
have contributed. They have books on local histories, founding families, city
directories, and more.
6 Tips to get the Most out of City Directories
4. Familysearch
Familysearch is a completely free database run by the LDS church. It offers many of the same records as paid services but without the cost. If you want to contain your search to Canada click on it on the map, then select if you want to search nationally or provincially.
5. ProQuest ($)
ProQuest offers a large selection of historic and current Canadian and American Newspapers. Once you have an account your able to download and save pages. When searching it is important to remember that it uses optical character recognition (OCR) therefore poor quality or low visibility results may be missed.
6. CanadaGenWeb’s Cemetery Project
Founded in 1996, and debuting its website in 2004, it is a fully volunteer run project that's goal is to provide free transcriptions of headstones. Searches can be performed for a person or a cemetery.
7. Canadian Headstones
It is a federal non-profit website and registered Canadian charity who's goal is to "capture, preserve, and present" free digital images and transcriptions of headstones. They boast Canada's largest digital collection of headstones.
8. Glossary of Medical Terms Used in the 18th and 19th Centuries (*)
Alphabetized list of medical terms that commonly appeared on death certificated during the 18th and 19th centuries.
9. List of Post Offices in Canada with the Names of Postmasters
This collection of books provides the names of postmasters and information about post offices across Canada. The entire collection is searchable and free to access via the Project Gutenberg transcription. Note that additional information can be found on bac-lac via: Canadian Post Office publications (1759-1900) and Post Offices and Postmasters (1851 - 1981).
Immigration
1. Nanaimo Family History Society - Passenger Lists
Although the website name implies otherwise, the database has indexed 757, 749 passengers who passed through the port of Montreal or Quebec City between 31 Jul 1903 to 13 Oct 1910. This database serves as a great starting point if you are trying to research somebody who immigrated before the introduction of 30A forms in 1919 because the additional indexed information can help you find the person in the non-indexed passenger lists.
2. Olive Tree Genealogy - Ship Passenger Lists
There are no comprehensive ships passenger lists of immigrants arriving in Canada prior to 1865 when it became a requirement by the government for shipping companies to keep copies of their passenger manifests. Olive Tree contains transcriptions of a wide range of shipping manifests.
3. The Ship List
TheShipsList website, online since August 1999, will help you find your ancestors on ships' passenger lists.We also have immigration reports, newspaper records, shipwreck information, ship pictures, ship descriptions, shipping-line fleet lists and more; as well as hundreds of passenger lists to Canada, USA, Australia and even some for South Africa. The Saint John Customs House Passenger Lists 1815, 1832, 1833-1834 & 1837-1838 are the only known surviving lists from this time period.
World War I and II
I wrote a blog post here about how to use some of the following resources.
1. Database: WW1 Service Files
Library and Archives Canada has digitalized WW1 military service files of personnel who served with the Canadian Expeditionary Force members (CEF). These files consist of documents dealing with enlistment, training, medical and dental history, hospitalization, discipline, pay, medal entitlements and discharge or notification of death for soldiers, nurses and chaplains.
In addition to providing service files, bac-lac has another collection (known as the 'brown binders') which provides the circumstances of death for soldiers who were killed in action. The records are arranged in alphabetical order. It should be noted that there are no records for surnames Sip- to Z-.
2. Database WW2 War Dead Service Files
Library and Archives Canada has digitalized over 44,000 WW2 military service files of personnel who died while serving with the Canadian Expeditionary Force members (CEF).
3. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission aims to commemorate the men and women of the Commonwealth who lost their lives during the World Wars. Their variety of databases feature a wide variety of information including military service files and pictures of headstones.
4. Veterans Affairs Canada
The Canadian Virtual War Memorial (CVWM) is a registry to honour and remember the sacrifices of the more than 118,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders who, since Confederation, have given their lives serving in uniform. The names of fallen soldiers found in the CVWM are also inscribed in the seven Books of Remembrance.
5. Wikipedia WW1 CEF Battalions (Some $)
This Wikipedia page provides a list of the official battalion websites. The services provided by each can vary from a highly detailed free database to some that require individual paid requests to be submitted to their archives.
6. Canadian Great War Project
The Canadian Great War Project is a collaborative effort among those interested in researching Canada and the Great War, and has collected the records of over 648,441 people.
7. A Street Near You
This project currently contains records for over one million men and women who died whilst serving in the First World War, with over 600,000 locations worldwide. This database is unique in that the records are displayed on a map.
8. The Fallen
The Fallen is a record collection that has been compiled by The National Wall of Remembrance Association. Their online databases feature a wide range of records including more personal information such as diaries.
9. The Regimental Rogue - Researching Canadian Soldiers of the First World War (*)
This site contains detailed information about WW1 and what life would have been like for the soldiers.
This site provides a list of abbreviations that were commonly used on WW1 service files.
11. Abbreviations Used in Service Records (*)
This site provides an alphabetized list of abbreviations that were commonly used on WW1 service files.
12. Central Ontario Branch, Western Front Association (*)
The Western Front Association was formed in 1980 to maintain interest in the period 1914-1918, to perpetuate the memory, courage and comradeship of those on all sides who served their countries in France and Flanders and their own countries during the Great War.
13. Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) Study Group (*)
The site is compromised of a group of enthusiasts with an interest in the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) and its role in the First World War. The interests discussed in the forums are broad: Family History/Genealogy, Military History, Weapons/Equipment, Tactics, Militaria Collecting, etc.
14. National Library of Scotland Digital Archives - Great War Trench Maps (*)
The website is an extensive compendium of a wide range of topics on War from the perspective of Scotland. Of specific interest are the numerous digital trench maps and associated tools to search, access and utilize these digital maps including measuring distances and areas.
15. The CEF Paper Trail - Official Canadian Army Service Records from the Great War (*)
This project involves collating examples of each type of document found in a soldier's World War I Canadian Expeditionary Force Service Records. The guide shows researchers what they may expect in a soldiers' service records.
16. Doing Our Bit: Military and Family History Research
Doing Our Bit began as a tribute to one soldiers service and has since expanded to cover most of the WW1 CEF. It provides a wide range of materials including war diaries, nominal rolls, regimental histories, trench newspapers, etc.
17. Canadian Soldiers (*)
This site was established in 1998 as the "Canuck Website", tying in with the webmaster's first book which had been published in 1996. The sites operating system is rather old and at times can be difficult to navigate, however it does contain fantastic information about Canadian wars and campaigns.
18. The Vimy Foundation - The First World War in Colour (*)
The pictures contained within this collection capture the essence of the first world war in a way that is both fascinating and horrifying. In 2018, The Vimy Foundation, with the support of the Department of Canadian Heritage and the R. Howard Webster Foundation launched a unique and innovative project to colourize images of the First World War, a project aimed at re-engaging young Canadians in a defining moment in our history. The images featured within this project highlight the important battles in Canada’s history, but also life on the home front, wartime industries, the contributions of women, and advances in medical and communications technologies.
19. The Canadian Letter and Images Project
The Canadian Letters and Images Project is an online archive of the Canadian war experience, from any war, home front and battlefront, as told through the letters and images of Canadians themselves. Note that as of 2023, due to the number of submissions, not all letters are being transcribed.
Loyalists
If your interested in learning more about Loyalist research, I wrote a blog post here.
1. UEL Association Canada
The United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada is an organization dedicated to conserving and sharing the history of the United Empire Loyalists. Their site features a database of Loyalist names as well as a wealth of reference material.
2. Library and Archives Canada - Loyalists
Library and Archives Canada holds a variety of sources relating to the United Empire Loyalists who settled in Canada after the American Revolution (1775-1783). Their databases include records relating to: Black Loyalists, Maritime Loyalists, and Carleton Papers.
3. Ancestry - UK American Loyalist Claims, 1776-1835
Ancestry's collection includes books of evidence and memorials given by witnesses, accounts of losses (which can provide detail about places and possessions), evidence of claims, correspondence, indentures, and other documents collected over the course of these examinations.
4. Royal Provincial
This site features a list of all known Loyalist regiments that served in the American Revolution between 1775 and 1784. The list is sorted alphabetically by regiment name and provides the dates of service and type of each regiment.
5. History of the Queen's Rangers
This book is held by Internet Archive and contains the regiments, names, ranks, and other information related to the UELs.
6. Olive Tree - Quakers in New York and Long Island 1755
Quakers comprised an interesting and lesser known third party in the American Revolutionary war. In general they tried to remain neutral, however after being attacked by the Patriots, some of them joined the loyalists. Although this source does not provide direct info on who was a loyalist, it does list the names of Quaker's living in New York City, Jamaica, Queens County, Hempstead, New Town, and Oyster Bay during 1755.
Ontario
This site features historical newspapers from across Ontario.
4. Our Ontario
This site provides a wide variety of free databases including newspapers, images, videos, audio recordings, and family genealogies.
5. Marriages in Ontario (1800 to 1927)
This site contains transcriptions of Ontario marriages that occurred between 1800 and 1927 (microfilm MS932 from the Ontario Archives). The marriages have been organized by year and city. Each page can be searched using CTRL+F.
6. Canadian County Atlas Digital Project
Find the plot of land your ancestors owned
7. Ontario Birth Register (1869 to 1911)
The site has been created to house transcriptions of Ontario Birth Registrations and has a good representation of most Ontario counties and districts. There is also a death index.
Civil registration began in Ontario on 1 July 1869, although in the early years, not all births were registered. For births which occurred after 1911, you will need to contact the Office of the Registrar General for the province of Ontario.
8. The Published Ontario Medical Registers
The Register contains all names that appeared within the printed Register's publication year. Internet Archive holds six copies which were published between 1886 and 1928.
Toronto
1.Toronto Emigrant Office Assisted Immigration Registers (1865-1883)
This database is an index to the four volumes of assisted immigration registers created by the Toronto Emigrant Office between 1865 and 1883. The registers are a chronological listing of those new immigrants who were assisted by the government to travel to many different destinations across southern Ontario. Over 29,000 entries have been transcribed from the registers.
2. Toronto City Archives ($)
The Archives holds a wide variety of records including government records, which include Council minutes, departmental files and reports, and non-government records, which includes photographs, letters and architectural plans. It is free to search the database however individual records must be purchased before viewing.
3. Toronto Historic Maps (*)
This site captures the development of Toronto by overlaying historical maps (1818, 1858, 1880, 1889, 1903, 1913, 1924) over the modern Google map.
4. Toronto Branch Ontario Genealogical Society - Research Guide (*)
The Toronto branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society is a not-for-profit organization of family historians founded in 1967. Although the site does not provide direct access to databases, it does contain links to a variety of resources such as maps, city directories, and information about the different districts of the city.
5. Scarborough Historical Society - Street Names (*)
Provides an alphabetical list of street name origins and documents any name changes that have occurred.
6. The Beach and East Toronto Historical Society TBETHS (*)
The Beach and East Toronto Historical Society (TBETHS) was founded in 1974 and aims to preserve material and information related to the natural, built and documentary heritage of the east end of Toronto. This region is defined as the area bounded by Coxwell Avenue, Victoria Park Avenue, Lake Ontario and the southern boundary of the former Borough of East York.
7. Toronto City Directories (1833-1969)
Toronto Public Library has digitized all of the Toronto city directories in its collections that were published between 1833 and 1969. The digitalized records are available as a PDF download or can be viewed through Internet Archive.
8. Toronto Fire Insurance Atlases and Plans (via TPL) (*)
Fire insurance atlases and plans are detailed maps used to research the history of buildings and neighbourhoods. Atlases cover the city as a whole. Plans cover specific neighbourhoods and often have more detail than atlases. Holdings between 1858 and 1912 can be viewed online.
Quebec
1. History of the Counties of Argenteuil, Que., and Prescott, Ont., from the Earliest Settlement to the Present by Cyrus Thomas (Book)
Cyrus Thomas, a former schoolmaster and author, wrote this comprehensive history of neighboring counties - one in Quebec, and one in Ontario - in 1896. It remains the foremost published history of the settlement and development of the region up to its publication date in 1896. Beginning with a chapter on the Ottawa River, the river that divides the two counties, Thomas continues with sketches on numerous topics including: local government, militias, churches, religious and fraternal societies, business and industries, manuscripts, oral traditions, and oral histories of the counties earliest settlers. To date, his work provides one of the most complete accounts of this region's early history.
He published another regional history in 1866 called: Contributions to the History of the Eastern Townships, in which he details the history of the Quebec settlements of St. Armand, Dunham, Sutton, Brome, Potton, and Bolton.
New Brunswick Resources
1. New Brunswick Vital Statistics
This provincial database contains searchable BMD records between 1800 and 1972. In addition to this collection, there are also others for land grants/petitions, cemeteries, passenger lists, etc.
This site also offers a research tool for searching the history behind place names.
2. New Brunswick Irish Portal
This portal provides a wide range of collections about the Irish in New Brunswick. The collections include: Passenger Lists and Port Returns, illness, education, newspapers, estates, and census returns.
3. NB Crown Land Grants Map
GeoNB has overlayed the crown land grants map over a current map containing the names of the original grantees. The map is searchable by location but not by name.
4. New Brunswick Genealogical Society - First Families
The alphabetized collection contains information about the first families that settled in New Brunswick. The source material for this collection is held in Manuscript Collection 80 (MC80) at the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick (PANB).
5. New Brunswick GenWeb
This RootsWeb page contains a wide range of collections covering the entire province as well as for specific counties.
6. New Brunswick Genealogical Society (some $)
The New Brunswick Genealogical Society, Inc. (NBGS, Inc.) is a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to encourage and facilitate family historical research in New Brunswick, Canada. NBGS publishes queries, free of charge, on this website and in its journal that is published quarterly.
7. York County Cemeteries
The following website contains transcriptions of headstones that have been organized by the cemetery name.
8. York County Probate Court Commentary
This website contains transcriptions of York County probate court records between 1785 and 1835.
9. Queens County GenWeb
This website contains a variety of databases related to Queen's county.
10. Marianne Grey Otty Database
On this site you will find transcribed Anglican Church records (1786-1841) from the Gagetown, New Brunswick area. The records centre geographically on Gagetown, Queen’s County and particularly focus on the New Brunswick communities of Fredericton, Saint Marys, Lincoln, Grand Lake, Waterborough, Long Island, Wickham, Hampstead, Maugherville, Petersville, Sheffield, Kingston, Springfield, Greenwich, and Saint John.
11. New Brunswick's Past (*)
This website provides a wide range of information ranging from newspaper transcription, church pictures, local histories, and more.
12. Facebook - Nackawic Region Historical Photos (Southampton, Pokiok, Hawkshaw, Culliton) (*)
Historical photos of Southampton Parish and region (Nackawic, Culliton, Pokiok, Hawkshaw and area)
Nova Scotia Resources
1. Nova Scotia Vital Statistics
The provincial government's database provides a searchable index (with some viewable records) for births (1864-1877, delayed registrations 1830-1921, 1908-1921), marriages (Bonds 1763-1864 Registrations 1864-1946), and deaths (1864-1877, City of Halifax 1890-1908, 1908-1972).
2. Nova Scotia City Directories
The Nova Scotia archives contains a list of PDF and microfilm city directories. The PDF files are viewable online.
3. Suffrage in Nova Scotia: Search the Petition
This collection provide a non-indexed list of names of people who supported the suffrage movement in Nova Scotia. The petitions are organized by city/town.
4. Nova Scotia Land Papers 1765-1800
This is a searchable database for petitions made to government by individuals or groups of people seeking grants of Crown Land for settlement purposes in early Nova Scotia. The database contains 11,464 names, and will link from the petitioner's name to the fully digitized document file created for that particular land grant — 1890 files, containing 9259 image scans.
5. Crown Land Grants Interactive Map
This site provides an interactive map of Nova Scotia. Each region is connected to relevant land grants.
Cape Breton
1. A Guide to the Genealogical Holdings at the Beaton Institute (*)
This document serves as a guide for what genealogical resources are available at the Beaton Institute. Note that many are not available online.
2. Beaton Institute Archives
The Beaton Institute provides a searchable online database that provides a sampling of their records.
3. Men in the Mines
'Men in the Mines' has been created to open a door into the past, so that Nova Scotians today can look back on the history of how our mines were discovered and developed; and can better understand how the province has been shaped and defined by the traditions of the mining life, its daily challenges and tragedies, and by the unshakeable sense of community which binds together all who dare to go down into the earth for their livelihood. The site contains over 1100 historical photographs, art works, maps, government records, personal documents and published items, supplemented by film clips and sound recordings.
4. Cape Breton Island Petitions 1787-1843
This is a searchable database for early petitions (often called 'Memorials') made to the government by individuals or groups of people seeking grants of Crown Land for settlement purposes in Cape Breton Island (1787-1843). Cape Breton was a separate colony from 1784 to 1820, at which time is was re-joined with Nova Scotia for administrative purposes. Consequently, the government did have some challenges managing records during this time. This database is index only.
5. CBGen: Cape Breton Genealogy and Historical Association (Some $)
The Cape Breton Genealogy and Historical Association (CBGHA) is a Nova Scotia registered not-for-profit society located in Sydney, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was formed in 2003 and is operated by a board of directors and staff who are all volunteers. The site contains: books, cemetery records, census records, monthly magazine the Ezine, family trees, historical records, land grants, maps, helpful links to other sites, military records, newspaper items, obits, parish records, school records and more...
6. Cape Breton Regional Library: Local History & Genealogy Resources
The Cape Breton Regional Library (CBRL) has a great collection of historical books, documents, and even photographs from Nova Scotia and Cape Breton. Some of their collections include: immigration, military service, newspaper archives, and obituaries.
7. Cape Breton Cemetery Transcriptions (archived website on Wayback Machine)
These downloadable files are a compilation which indexes persons who are buried, believed to be buried, or memorialized in cemeteries or on memorials in Cape Breton County, NS.
8. Glace Bay Cemeteries (archived website on Wayback Machine)
About 1990, the four cemetery committees, of the Catholic parishes of St. Anne’s, St. John’s, Holy Cross and St. Leo’s, combined to form one cemetery committee for the Catholic parishes of Glace Bay. Over the last fifteen years the committee worked very hard to organize and correct mistakes and confirm burials in the Roman Catholic Cemetery on Wallace Road, Glace Bay. Any burial that is marked surname – “unknown” has a burial there but no information is available. In section 8 you will notice lot with a surname and no given name.
Newfoundland Resources
1. The Rooms Collection
The Rooms collects and preserves objects, artworks and archival materials relevant to the past, present and future of Newfoundland and Labrador. Their collections include: government records, maps, photographs, film, natural history specimens, archeological finds, historic objects, artworks, and beyond.
2. Newfoundland and Labrador GenWeb
NL GenWeb offers free historical & genealogical information for Newfoundland and Labrador. Arranged in regions & subdivided into districts with all records accessible on the district page.
3. Mannion Collection - Irish Immigration and Settlement
This site focuses on the role of Irish immigrants in Newfoundland's history. It includes records related to all person and place data, religion, date events, life events, and others.
4. Historical Directory of Newfoundland and Labrador Newspapers
Memorial University's Digital Archive Initiative contains a searchable collection of historical newspapers. Searches can be conducted for a specific newspaper or for the entire collection.
5. Heritage: NFLD (*)
The Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Website is an ambitious public history project that aims to provide school students and the general public with a wide range of authoritative information on the province's history, culture, and geography. It is based at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Since its launch in 1997, the Heritage Website has expanded from about a hundred pages to more than a thousand.
6. Keith Matthews Name Files, 1500-1850
This site provides a collection of data on individuals, families and businesses that were involved in the settlement, fisheries and trade of Newfoundland from earliest settlement to 1850.
7. Maritime History Archive - NFLD Genealogy and Family History
A major focus of Memorial University's Digital Archive's holdings are records relating to the fishery, trade and settlement of Newfoundland. This page contains a series of searchable collections
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