| Tracing Your Family Tree in Ontario | |
|
Census
Records
Census records are considered some of the most valuable for genealogy research
due to the wealth of information they provide about entire families. Canada-wide
censuses were begun in 1851 and have been taken every ten years since. Due to
privacy restrictions, the 1901 census is the most recent one available for
public viewing. There was also an Ontario census in 1842, but it only names the
head of household and not all returns have survived. There were a few other
scattered censuses prior to 1842. Information about these can be obtained from
the National Archives, the Ontario Archives, the Ontario Genealogical Society
and local archives and libraries.
A few important things to keep in mind as you conduct research in census records:
- The information found in
census records is not always reliable as it was usually collected from a
single member of each household who may or may not have been sure of the
exact details of each family member. Sometimes information may even have
been provided by friends and neighbors. Errors could also occur if the
census enumerator misheard or miswrote some of the facts (dates were often
transposed, names were often spelled the way they sounded). Many census
takers were also not blessed with good penmanship!
- Census districts and county boundaries were not always the same as they are today. Townships could also be transferred from one census district to another, and the names of towns also changed. For example, in the 1851 census, you will not find Kitchener but you will find Berlin.
Places
where you can find census records:
The National Archives of
Canada
The National Archives (NA) maintains copies of census records still in existence
for the province of Ontario. These include the Canada-wide returns from
1851-1901, the Ontario head-of-household census from 1842 (for those localities
where the returns have survived) and pre-1842 census records for a few scattered
locations around the province. These are available for research in person at the
National Archives Reading Room in Ottawa, ON and through interlibrary loan. In
order to borrow microfilms through your nearest local library (make sure they
have a microfilm reader) you will need to know the location where your ancestor
was living (street address in a city or township in a rural area). You can learn
this information through family records, area directories or some of the early
township maps which show names of early settlers. You may borrow up to three
microfilms at one time from the NA, and you may keep them for viewing at your
local library for up to four weeks.
Family History Centers
Census records for Ontario have also been filmed by the LDS Church and can be
requested for viewing at Family History Centers located around the world.
Local Libraries
Many libraries will have microfilms of the census returns for their area, so if
you are fortunate enough to live close to the area in which you are researching,
this may be your best bet. As an added benefit, many libraries or local
genealogical societies have worked to index the records for their location,
which will make your life much easier. This may be your only option if you don't
know exactly where your ancestor lived.
Index to 1871 Ontario
Census
A wonderful research tool, the entire head-of-household index to the 1871
Ontario census is available for free searching online. The index provides brief
details on each family. For more detailed information, including details of
other family members, you can locate the actual census record for your ancestor
from any of the sources detailed above.
Next page > Ontario
Cemetery & Church Records > Page
1, 2, 3,
4, 5
Stay in touch with what's new in Genealogy by subscribing to our newsletter, About Ancestry, joining us in chat, or posting messages and/or surname queries in the Genealogy Forum.
URL: http://genealogy.about.com/library/weekly/aa0
41101a.htm© 2001 Kimberly Powell and About.com. All Rights Reserved.
