A look at the Canadian records available to genealogists.
Censuses
A census–an official government enumeration of the people residing in a city, town, village, county, district, or an urban or rural area–can provide a wealth of information about a person. Details in a census may include name, sex, family relationship, marital status, age, birthplace, immigration and naturalization information, ethnic origin, religion, occupation, and education. A census reveals the characteristics of a population or area at a particular period in time, allowing the researcher to discover the historical, social, and genealogical features of people and places.
Censuses were first conducted in what is now Canada in the seventeenth century. These–and subsequent censuses conducted up to the year 1851–were scattered and selective in regard to the time periods in which they were conducted and the areas enumerated. These very early censuses generally listed only the head of the household, his/her age and occupation, the number of family members, and perhaps the person’s birthplace and religion and a few other facts.
The first comprehensive censuses conducted in Canada were the 1851 and 1861 censuses of Upper Canada (Ontario) and Lower Canada (Quebec). These censuses provide a listing and information for each person in a household. They consist of an agricultural and a personal schedule. The agricultural schedule presents information on crops an d land. The personal schedule includes genealogical information such as name, age, sex, marital status, relationship of occupants, occupation, education, and information on ownership of property, land, and livestock.
The 1871 census was the first nationwide census to occur after provincial confederation in 1867, when Canada became a unified nation of provinces. This census is much larger, consisting of nine schedules. The first schedule, the personal schedule, provides information on name, age, sex, marital status, place of birth, ethnic origin, religion, occupation, and education. The other schedules provide information on property, land, livestock, manufacturing, forestry, shipping and fishing, and mining.
The 1881 and 1891 censuses consist of only one schedule. They provide information on name, age, sex, marital status, place of birth, ethnic origin (1881 census), place of birth of father and mother (1891 census), religion, occupation, and education.
The 1901 census is the most comprehensive census available and consists of two schedules. Schedule 2, property, precedes schedule 1, population. Schedule 2 provides the following information: reference to schedule 1, which in this census indicates exact street address of the population enumerated in schedule 1, as well as building information. Schedule 1 provides the following genealogical information: name, age, sex, year and date of birth, age, year of immigration to Canada, year of naturalization, ethnic origin, nationality, religion, occupation, and employment and education information.
The 1901 census is the last federal Canadian census available to researchers. (The only exceptions are the 1921, 1935, and 1945 censuses of Newfoundland, which did not join confederation until 1949.) There are no national census indexes similar to the U.S. Soundex indexes. However, many individuals and genealogical societies have published indexes for some census years and locations.
Canadian census records are available t o U.S. researchers on interlibrary loan through the family history centers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In Canada they are available on interlibrary loan from the National Archives of Canada in Ottawa, Ontario. Visitors to Toronto will find a complete set of Canadian census records, as well as many census indexes, in the Canadiana Room of North York Central Library and at Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library.
Naturalization Records
Canadian censuses can provide much valuable genealogical information to the researcher. But while they will provide the country or possibly province or state of a person’s birth, only in rare cases will they provide the exact city, town, or village where a person was born. There is only one Canadian source that will almost universally provide this. Canadian naturalization records provide this and much more, although they include somewhat less information than the average U.S. naturalization record. There is no master index available to the public for Canadian naturalization records from the period of Canadian confederation in 1867 to the present. There is, however, a partial index available in selected issues of a government newspaper called the Canada Gazette. Issues between 1918 and 1938 offer, at various intervals, lists of aliens who have been naturalized by the Secretary of State. The newspaper is available at the National Archives of Canada in Ottawa and at some Canadian university libraries.
There are basically two types of naturalization records available: those completed prior to 1918, and those processed after this date. Prior to 1918, naturalization was handled locally in Canada by provincial courts. The basic information in these early records was forwarded to the Secretary of State and placed on index cards which have been microfilmed. (The original records held by provincial courts have been destroyed in most cases.) These index cards contain the name of the person natural ized, residence at time of naturalization, occupation, former residence, date and place of naturalization, number of naturalization, and name of court. These entries provide only basic genealogical information, but they are valuable if the country of birth and place of residence in Canada are not known. Many people who were naturalized prior to 1918 often had further correspondence with the Secretary of State for reasons such as applying for a new naturalization certificate. In these instances, full records are available.
Naturalization records issued after 1918 are usually complete and contain much genealogical information. A typical record may consist of an Application for a Decision, a Royal Canadian Mounted Police Report, a Petition for Naturalization, an Affidavit Proving Petition, an Oath of Allegiance, and other documents and correspondence. Information provided on these documents may include name, date and exact place of birth, address, occupation, details of entry into Canada, marital status, physical description, information on relatives (limited), reasons for wanting naturalization, and names and addresses of persons who can vouch for the character and reputation of the applicant. Naturalization records can be obtained by writing to: Steven M. Clemenhagen, Public Rights Assistant, Public Rights Administration, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Journal Towers North, Third Floor, 300 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 1L1.
The cost is five Canadian dollars for each naturalization record requested; check or money order should be made out to the Receiver-General of Canada. It should be stated that the request is being made through the Freedom of Information Act. The following information should be provided to aid in the search: name at time of naturalization (include all known forms of name used); approximate year of birth within five to ten years; approximate year or place of naturalization, if known; and proof that the person has been dead twenty years (for those individuals born fewer than one hundred years ago). Any other known identifying information about the individual may also be provided.
The information provided in the documents sent should allow the researcher to determine the individual’s exact place of birth, as well as his or her method of entry into Canada. This will allow for the search of other records, such as ship passenger manifests.
Glen Eker has master’s degrees in sociology, political science, recreation and leisure, and library science. His articles on genealogy and census indexes have appeared in publications of the Manitoba Genealogical Society and the Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada. His census indexes are available through LDS family history centers, and have been published on microfiche by Avotaynu and in print and CD-ROM format by the Ontario Genealogical Society. He is a genealogical researcher with the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee in Toronto. Glen’s article on Canadian passenger ship manifests appeared in the March/April 1996 issue of Ancestry Magazine.
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