I have found a relative on the 1861 census of Frontenac County, Ontario on Ancestry.com in the USA. I know how to get hold of free images for the various census of the United States and am wondering how I can go about it for Canada. Are the images on microfilms at the Library and Archives Canada public domain? If so, do you know where to get a copy of the film or public domain images made from it? If not, are there any public domain images, microfilm or digital, of the 1861 census.

The Canadian census images that appear on Ancestry are provided by Library & Archives Canada (LAC) through a collaborative partnership between Ancestry and LAC¹. With the current exception of the 1921 census (Ancestry only) and 1825-1842 censuses (LAC only), all digitized census images can be viewed on both websites.

Ancestry requires a subscription to access all but the 1921 census (which is free to view with free registration), access to LAC is completely free (no registration or subscription).

Microfilm of Canadian census records can be viewed at any Family History Centre worldwide. For those within Canada it can also be viewed at LAC and any Canadian library or archive with microfilm capabilities.

For terms of use of LAC images see: Using Files Located on Non-Government of Canada Servers and Copyright / Permission to Reproduce

¹ Library and Archives Canada Agreement with Ancestry.ca, Library and Archives Canada Partners with Ancestry.ca

When will the 1921 census be released?

The 1921 census is expected to be released to Library & Archives Canada on June 2, 2013. However there's no date set for when the LAC will allow public access to the census though it's presumed to be sometime later this year.

John Reid's "Anglo-Celtic Connections" provides excellent updates on the status of the 1921 census.

My grandparents were married in Toronto on June 1, 1911, the same day as the census. I cannot find them listed anywhere, and have just checked the new version of the 1911 census. I've even checked page by page hotel census' in Niagara Falls in case they went there on a honeymoon! Perhaps they just missed it altogether and didn't bother. Any advice welcome.

June 1, 1911 is the official date of the census - the day enumeration began and the date each enumerator was told to use in questioning (e.g. As of June 1st how old were you?).  The enumeration process actually took several months.

If a person is missing from the census there could be several explanations besides them not being home.  They could be mis-indexed under names that would not be obvious or they could have moved before enumeration took place in their area to an area where it had already been completed.

 

Check the Toronto City directories for 1911-1912 to get the address where they lived.  Then use that address to locate who was enumerated there in the 1911 census.  

It's also possible they were enumerated as single or they were living in someone else's household and were mis-indexed under that surname - check their relatives or do a search without surnames.

Do you know if there are parts to the 1851 Canadian Personal Census missing?

Quite a few parts of the 1851/2 Census are missing. They were lost or destroyed so no copies remain.

For some areas the personal census was lost but the agricultural was not.

 For a list of Ontario census records, including what is and isn't missing, see our census project.

Do you have information available on your website for the Agricultural Component of the 1851,1861 and 1871 censuses?

Several agricultural census transcripts are available at our Census Project.

The 1851 agricultural census is also available at Library & Archives Canada.  Choose Schedule B.

In the 1861 Ontario census people are listed as "inmates". Any idea what "inmate" means?

One of the column headings of the 1861 census is "Names of Inmates" and refers to all persons enumerated. In this case inmate would mean those living within each dwelling enumerated.

I need the census for 1842 for Oxford County Ontario?

See both our census information page and our census project to learn what is available and where you can locate the appropriate microfilm(s).

I am trying to find out more information about: Gilbert BERKMAN - born abt 1937 in Austria. His name is listed as Gilbert BIRKMAN born abt 1839. Source Publication 1823-19 Source: ELLIOTT, BRUCE S. Index to the 1871 Census of Ontario: Leeds, Grenville, Toronto: Ontario Genealogical Society, 1990.268p Page 17. How can I can this information about my Great Great father Gilbert Berkman (Birkman)

Locate the source. You've got the title "1871 Census of Ontario: Leeds, Grenville", the author "ELLIOTT, BRUCE S.", the publisher "Toronto: Ontario Genealogical Society, 1990." and even the page number the information is on "Page 17".

This index can be purchased from the Ontario Genealogical Society but it can also be searched online at Library & Archives Canada, Queen's University and Family Search

The entire 1871 census (images included) is available through an Ancestry subscription.

I downloaded the 1881 census household record of my grandmother's family using familysearch.org. How can I get a copy of the original census page?

Two ways:
1. Microfilm - Ontario census records are available worldwide on microfilm at LDS Family History Centres. For those who reside in Canada you can also obtain the census at any local library with a microfilm reader using Inter-Library Loan.

2. Internet - The 1881 census has been digitized and you can save or print an image of the original census page. The census can be searched for free at the Library & Archives Canada website, or as part of an Ancestry.ca subscription.

See our Census Project's handy Online Census Records page.

Which ward is Fort York in? In 1851, I found my g-g-gfather in the Barracks, but I didn't copy the record or keep a source, and now I can't find it again.

Help! Do you have an answer to this question? Please post a comment.

Page 17 of the 1861 Census for the Village of Colborne, Ont. shows the name of a Head Master & his Asst. as well as the names of 45 students ranging in age from 7 yrs to 26 yrs. Does anyone have any idea what type of Institution this might have been and during what period it may have operated?

Help! Do you have an answer to this question? Please post a comment.

I found someone in the 1871 census index and I want more information on this person. Now what?

Don't assume that what you see in the index is all there is - this index only shows heads of households and strays, so to get the rest of the family's names, you are going to have to order the microfilm. This is worth the extra time and effort! It will tell you the names and ages of every family member, as well as place of birth, religion, occupation, and other information too. See if you can order it by Inter-Library loan through your local library or Family History Center.

What are the census film numbers for Interlibrary Loan?

The National Archives published them in a book called Catalogue of Census Returns on Microfilm. Actually, there are two books; one covers 1666-1891 and 1901 has a book all to itself. Both are available online

Is there an index to the census for a certain township, for a certain year or for all years?

See our page on Census Records page for information on full-year indexes. For local census indexes, if an index exists, and we know about it, it'll be listed on our books page.

The census record I found is for Monck County, Cardwell County or Bothwell County. I can't find these counties on a map!

Monck, Cardwell and Bothwell were three counties created for municipal purposes by "borrowing" townships from other counties for the purpose of enumeration and political representation. You can find out more about these three counties in Research By Area.

Is there a way to convert an entry from the 1881 Census of Canada to a street address. I have found members of my family in the 1881 Census in District 105, Sub-Dist A, Div 2, Page 26, Household #125. I cannot find anything more and would like to find a street address in Ottawa for the entries.

Have you consulted an Ottawa city directory? This would give an address and allow you to track the family between each census.

I am missing relatives that are nowhere and am now wondering if, when they did the census from 1851 on did they do census in the Mental Asylums, if so where are they located. I am looking mainly for the Middlesex Ontario area

Mental asylums were enumerated but not under the same schedule as the personal census. Schedule A was the personal census, Schedule B was the agricultural census. Institutions were enumerated under a different schedule - to find this schedule consult the microfilm itself as only Schedules A and B were made available online at Library & Archives Canada. Note that these schedules were only microfilmed for the 1851, 1861 and 1871 census returns.

Is it possible to zero in on the village where people lived in a census year? Is there a detailed map with the location of various census sub-district numbers ie) in Manvers Township in the 1901 census there are 7 sub-districts. It would be great to know whether a fmaily lived in Pontepool or Bethany & where they went to church or are buried.

[From Anonymous] Yes it is. When you find your relative in a particular sub-district (on Schedule 1), make a note of the page and line number for the household number. Then go to the Collections Canada website and find Schedule 2 for the same sub-district and look up that page and line number. It will give you the location of the household - for Manvers, it appears to be concession and lot numbers and not town names, but it should give you a better idea of where they lived. collectionscanada.ca does give some hints - sub-district c-5 is Bethany, c-6 is Fleetwood & Franklin, c-7 is Janetville.

I have an 1881 census record for my Ontario ancestors which lists as its census place Olden, Addington, Ontario. But it sure looks to me like Olden Twp is in Frontenac county. Was there an Olden village, perhaps? Were lines redrawn sometime after 1881? Any help you can give me in this matter will be appreciated (PS It also says Distrcit 118, Sub-district 1, Page # 18...if that helps any.)

In the 1871, 1881, and 1891 census Addington was an enumeration district. It has no bearing on geographic county locations. Olden Township is geographically within Frontenac County.

A census lists my ancestor as being born in "Canada ENG" - where is that?

That's difficult to answer as it has many meanings. The assumed answer would be Ontario, but that may not be entirely correct. It's safer to guess that it means your ancestor was born in Canada and their mother tongue was English. It doesn't narrow down the location but it also doesn't have you looking at just Ontario when you should also be looking at other English speaking areas of Canada (like the Maritimes). On the flip side if your ancestor was born "Canada French" assume it means they were born in Canada and their mother tongue was French (this again would not restrict your search to Quebec but to all French speaking areas)