Once you're on site, my best tip for getting the most out of an archives visit is asking for a quick tour. Most times the archivist will ask you what area, subject, or time frame you're researching. They will also show you how to fill out a record retrieval slip and while I am an experienced researcher, I always appreciate the reminders. Every archive follows archival best practises, which means...
Tag: Vancouver
A trip to the United Church of Canada Archives, Vancouver
After census records and vital statistics (birth, marriage, and death records), church records are some of the most important fonds in a genealogist's toolkit. For the Chinese, however, it was a circuitous path to worship and so it appears relatively few Catholic or Protestant records exist. I am working on understanding better how the Methodist Church ministered to the Chinese populations in Canada. My research shows they established missions for non-white congregants and it was the Vancouver and Victoria mission fonds I wanted to explore.
The history of my grandparents’ house
The surprising fate of my grandparents' house
We’ll tell you where you can live – BC’s Land Titles Act
Ah Vancouver! Fighting over real estate is nothing new.
Putting the “British” in British Columbia, or I get the funny feeling you’re trying to tell me something
BC looks at its racist past and decides to say sorry. Vancouver does too.
An uncertain homecoming, Part I: WWII, the Chinese, and the fight for civil rights 1939-1967
Introduction Like all (Chinese) Canadians, I have been given a gift of priceless value: the gift of civil rights. I have not worked for this gift. I doubt I’ve earned it. Worst of all, I haven’t known who to thank for it, nor how much it cost. I’ve just taken it all for granted – […]