Divorces in Canada

From the Canadian Genealogy Centre's website:

From 1840 to 1968, divorces in Canada were granted by private acts of the Parliament of Canada.Before 1867, only five divorce acts were passed and published either in the Statutes of the Province of Canada or in the Journals of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada. The first divorce that occurred in Canada was between John Stuart and Elizabeth Van Reneselaer Powell in 1841.

From 1867 to 1968, a person wishing to obtain a divorce was first required to place a notice of intent to petition the government for an Act of Divorce in the Canada Gazette and in two newspapers in the district or county where the petitioner resided. It was to appear for a six-month period.

CGC offers their database, Divorce in Canada, which covers those divorces in parliamentary publications from 1841-1968.

Give Me 5 Generations Charts

The Canadian Genealogy Centre still has Give Me 5 Generation charts available to libraries. To get your copies, visit the publication ordering site.

Canada Year Book Historical Collection

Statistics Canada has made available the Canada Year Book from 1867 to 1967 as a searchable database online. It covers the economic and social history of Canada's formative century, and is an invaluble resource to demonstrate the context in which our ancestors lived.

Database: Immigrants from China to Canada

The Library and Archives of Canada in conjunction with the Department of History at University of British Columbia has made available an indexed database of over 900,000 who immigrated to Canada from China between 1885 and 1945. This collection of information is intended for genealogical purposes only. If you would like to learn more about Chinese immigration to Canada, please visit the Canadian Genealogy Centre's discussion located here.

I missed my own blog's 3rd anniversary!

Good grief - it was back in May 2005 that this blog was created, and I missed marking the occasion of it's third anniversary.

This blog was created to bring to one spot Canadian resources that are useful to genealogy and local history librarians who assist family history researchers, particularly within in public libraries. My criteria isn't complicated: Canadian, preferably online resources, and free are all included - fee-based if the resource looks REALLY good. Non-Canadian links are only included if they include Canadian information such as New England ports where some people may have indicated they were heading across the border to Canada, and not remaining in the US.

Have an idea? Like to see a resource included that I haven't talked about before? Please comment!

Nova Scotian Genealogy in Toronto

While "wandering" back from Port Hope, I heard a radio ad for the Toronto Nautical Festival at Queens Quay Harbourfront, taking place from June 19-22. Don't know how I'm about to make the genealogy leap? Well, turns out that there will be genealogy booth at the Festival where assistance will be provided to help you discover your Nova Scotia roots. So, think Black Loyalist, Acadian, Maritime genealogies, and that's just a start!

IFLA Satellite Genealogy Conference for Librarians in Ottawa, August 6&7

Genealogy and Local History for All: Services to Multicultural Communities

Early registration will close in less than two weeks (June 20). Register now!

The conference is for librarians and archivists and will take place in Ottawa, Ontario on August 6 and 7 at Library and Archives Canada. For full details, please see the conference website.

The programme will feature presentations on a wide variety of topics including DNA and genealogy, resources and services for specific ethnic groups, and global initiatives being undertaken by FamilySearch. It will also provide an excellent opportunity to make new contacts with librarians and archivists working in the area of genealogy and local history. There will also be tours of the Canadian Genealogy Centre, Library and Archives Canada and the Gatineau Preservation Centre.

For further information, please contact:

Janet Tomkins, Information Coordinator
janettom at vpl.ca
Standing Committee
Section 37 - Genealogy and Local History
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions