Genealogy Chat

In the past many people emigrated from Britain to countries administered by the British. Some returned, others stayed and raised their families there.

Each country and even the states within, have a different procedure for discovering those people. I am trying to find such a family in Ontario. Different it seems to finding one in British Colombia and other states...

Is there a guide book ---paper or computer, which shows what records are likely to be available to an on line search? Or even what a paid researcher in that location might find? I realise that in some cases where a person might still be living this would not be allowed, so what would be the date limitations on records open to the public?

Can anyone advise on what is possible in these different places? :-S

short answer ..................... no!


As you have found, there is no central record for bmds or records, other than censuses, in Canada .......... and this applies to other coutnries such as Australia and the US


You have to know which province or state a person lived in before you can search bmds, and yes most do vary form each other.


I would suggest that you always start by finding censuses for the country in which you are interest, to see if you can find out where your people are living


In Canada, bmd records are usually called Vital Statistics


Googling Vital Statistics Canada gives you the links to the government run sites for each province......................


for WW1 soldiers, try

http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/military-heritage/first-world-war/first-world-war-1914-1918-cef/Pages/search.aspx


for access to censuses

http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/pages/census.aspx


I'm not sure how good this site is .........

http://canadianheadstones.com/



always google to see if you can find a site ................... and always look for a government site or other free before paying for information



Do the same for any Commonwealth country


For Australia, try the following for when people emigrated ......

http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/search/




There actually is lots of information on the web ............... many of us have our quirky little sites that we know about ........... even for the UK :-)





I would never ever go to a paid researcher .............


google to see if you can find links to free sites that will provide your information


ask on here for specific information on people or provinces

I should add that Canada has the 50 / 75 or 80 / 100 year rule ......................


this refers to the time that must elapse before data can be released on the birth, marriage or death of anyone ............



I'm having to wait to find out the death information for someone who died in 1919


I think the other countries also have similar rules

thank you for that info.

I have from an acquaintance--- who found it on line, the obituary of a man and his wife who died in 1957, in Toronto, which mentions their two sons.

It is likely that they were born between 1920 and 1925 in Toronto, and I wondered if it was possible to check that in anyway. They may well have died by now of course.
But that would fall in time line of the rulings?.

As you have noted, each of Canada'a 13 provinces and territories has its own central register and its own rules regarding registration and certificate availability, which is quite unlike the UK where UK BMD certificates are held by 4 difft countries, each with its own rules regarding registration and certificate availability. A further difference is that all BMDs for Canadian births are still held in Canada, unlike UK BMDs, where some are held in a foreign country.
Whose constitution did you think the British dominions followed?

For Canada's civil registration, use the links at:
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogy/022-906.006-e.html

For Ontario, B/M/Ds are closed for 97/82/0 years. However, although deaths are public, there's no index published until 70 y afterwards.

Sylvia's census page link doesn't deal with 1921, which is online with images, and free to all right now, but only via:
http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=8991

For souther ON, there are concession maps (if your folk were farmers) at:
http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/Countyatlas/SearchMapframes.php

Thank you for those web sites.

I have looked at the 1921 census, I cannot find the mans name, but in a barely readable copy of the York Township sheet in Ontario, there is listed the wife's name.
Since they were married the previous year I expect the man with her is the husband -, but whose name is transcribed incorrectly, its hard to read anyway.
It doesn't help with the finding more on any children they may have had.

Interesting though and helpful to know that the 1921 Canadian census is on line.

thank you for your considerable effort in sending the search details.

If you are lucky, you may find them all living together on the ER. Ancestry holds Canada, Voters Lists, 1935-1980 for various cites.

mgnv may be able to direct you to a free site. Alternatively, if you cared to give a few more details, someone with a sub to Ancestry may be able to check for you.

There are also passenger lists to Canada up to 1935. They often give the name of nearest relative back home as well as the name of the person they are going to join in Canada.

Margaret - Ancestry put 1921 online a couple of weeks after it was released. Naturally, there was no index of names initially, and one had to go by geographic location. After playing around with google searches, I found:

The Toronto City Directory 1921
http://archive.org/details/torontodirec192100midiuoft

No doubt there are other years online if you google for them..

[NB Canadian censuses are closed for 92 y - a difft law applies to the pre-confederation (i.e., pre-1949) Dominion of Newoundland censuses, and their 1945 is online:
http://ngb.chebucto.org/census.shtml ]

It seems that in 1927 they were living in York, Ontario. which I guess is an outer suburb, outside Toronto- this was at the death of the infant.

Margaret - Ancestry put 1921 online a couple of weeks after it was released. Naturally, there was no index of names initially, and one had to go by geographic location. After playing around with google searches, I found:

The Toronto City Directory 1921
http://archive.org/details/torontodirec192100midiuoft

No doubt there are other years online if you google for them..

[NB Canadian censuses are closed for 92 y - a difft law applies to the pre-confederation (i.e., pre-1949) Dominion of Newoundland censuses, and their 1945 is online:
http://ngb.chebucto.org/census.shtml ]

As DetEcTive has guessed, I can direct you to a (temporarily) free site:
http://home.ancestry.ca/
Exactly what is free, I don't know, and it's only free until midnight tonight (EST), i.e., 5am Tuesday UK time - the voters lists are at:
http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=2983

A pet peeve - it's supposed to be a labour day freebie, but I'm in a difft time zone from Toronto, so I get cut off in the evening, before my labour day is done.

Checking out the Canadian portal for Ancestry, the only free census or later ER available seems to be 1921 Census of Canada and 1940 United States Federal Census.

Have you tried search various cemetery indexes?
http://cemetery.canadagenweb.org/ON/
You may find that a certain surname are buried in the same plot which leads to speculation that they are related.

knowing now that Ancestry.ca is free until the wee hours

you could try these

telephone directories 1995-2002
http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=8820

voters lists 1935-1980
http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=2983

... except I don't understand, I'm not getting visible results there ... the free access applies only to some other records? in any case you might be able to find an indication, and a trial subscription could find more


presumably you know the sons' names from the obituary?

men born 1920-1925 could have been in WWII, or Korea

notices of recent deaths of former military members can sometimes be found at the Legion's Last Post

https://legionmagazine.com/en/last-post/


also never discount plain googling, things like

"smith john" obituary

to look for the sons who are very likely deceased

if you use http://www.google.ca instead of .co.uk you can narrow your search results to 'in Canada' using the 'search tools'

Thank you.

I guess they were born in the years 1920 - 27. They are named in the obituary as James & Leonard , alive in 1947, but as you say the following wars could have claimed them.

I shall give the other sites a look.

I found the mother - I think on the 1921 census in East York, the fathers name either transcribed incorrectly ---or the wrong couple. No children then of course.