This is the follow up post to "Chinese Immigration Act Case Files: Finding aids at LAC," written exactly three years ago. In that post, I'd hoped to one day acquire a Canadian Chinese Case file. Now I have seen four and they are everything I'd hoped - and feared - they would be. For my community, simultaneously ignored by some systems while being overdocumented in others, it feels right that we reacquire the information collected about us.
Tag: research tips
My Chinese family in Vancouver was overlooked by the 1931 Census of Canada -a guest post by Carol F. Lee
Censuses are considered some of the foundational record collections in genealogy. However, as comprehensive as they are, they are not a full picture of who was in the country. Gaps include the people of all underrepresented populations. In this post, guest Carol F. Lee shares her story about looking for – but not finding – her grandfather Quan Gow in the 1931 Canada census.
Don’t overlook free digital records with my Heritage Canadiana / Library and Archives Canada hack, part 2
I like poking around in HC. There's the thrill of discovery - what will I find today - but once I find something, I automatically want to know more about it. This is when we need to find our way back to LAC. There are other ways to search LAC - by collection title or mikan number to name two - but using the reel number gives more targeted results. Multiple results for a single reel reference number means there are multiple collections on one reel.
Don’t overlook free digital records with my Library and Archives Canada / Heritage Canadiana hack, part 1
This weekend, I noticed more than one reel digitized at HC with no indication at LAC. Maybe at some point in the future, LAC will sync seamlessly with HC and the two will work simultaneously. Until that happens, check for the "secret" reels.
Explore the new Library and Archives Canada site (Oct 2022)
... Before, you went to Library Archives Canada's site, and then you went to the siloed databases. Like if you wanted "Immigrants before 1865," you search there. And then if you wanted "Russian Immigrants," you'd search there. So it was extremely difficult to find anything at Library and Archives Canada. And what was missing was a central collection search. Well, guess what, there is now a central collection search...
My trip to the archives: how I prepare and what I found
Like you, I spend inordinate amounts of time researching obscure documents at odd hours. (Truthfully, sometimes it's research and sometimes it's getting lost down rabbit holes.) If only everything was online. I read archival finding aids like a Christmas wish list: I want this, and this, and this too. My curiosity is far bigger than my budget (to pay external researchers).
What if the record is wrong?
It may come as a surprise to learn that not all historic records are accurate. Here's my unofficial ranking of genealogy records, with an example.
An extraordinary, ordinary life: Dorothy Gibson
The story of Dorothy Gibson and her life as a journeyman printer, living through WWII and the Great Depression
The Office of the Custodian of Enemy Property – genealogical documents for Japanese Canadians
I tell you about the Office of the Custodian of Enemy Property - what it was, who was in it, where the docs are, and how to navigate thousands of records.
Reader’s choice – the top 10 list for 2019
I look at my top 10 best read blog posts and reflect on what made them the best.