Storbeck's

This new edition includes information about 2,200 publications. An essential volume for beginning and experienced researchers with useful sources and practical advice.

Contains a brief history of the immigration of the French and French-Canadians. Tells how to begin your research in the U.S. and then follow up into French Canada and France using sources in Canada and France.

This book is a comprehensive guide through the genealogical resources of this large province, first known as upper Canada, then as Canada West. The dedicated family historian will find much more here than just the customary records, including access from a distance, with rewarding tips from an experienced genealogist.

Do you wonder who your ancestors were and just where they came from in Canada -- but have no idea how to find out? Do you have a little information about your Canada family origins, but wonder where to go next? Have you managed to discover material on several generations, only to hit what seems to be a wall? If you fall into any of these groups, In Search Of Your Canadian Roots is the book for you. Here, Angust Baxter, Canada's leading genealogist, gives the reader clear and common-sense tips: hot to work backward from what you know; where to look first; how to test what few facts you may have; how to avoid the most common mistakes; how to construct a family tree; how to find the numerous historical records available ( and how the information can aid your search); and how to weave your research into a coherent family history. Whether your family has been in Canada for centuries or for several generations only, Angust Baxter will show you how to trace your Canadian roots -- and have fun doing it.

In the years following the close of the American Revolutionary War, the Loyalists who settled in Ontario were given land grants in partial recognition of their losses and services during that conflict. In addition, (and here is the reason that this book stands out from all others and why it is considered one of the great works in North American genealogy), there was a special provision that made the children of the Loyalists eligible for land grants free of fees as they came of age or married. As these sons and daughters of Loyalists petitioned for the lands they were entitled to, a notation was made of the authorization for each grant in the records of the Council of Upper Canada. Essentially, what the compiler of this work did was to abstract from the Orders-In-Council thousands of references to the land grants made to the sons and daughters of the Loyalists and arrange them systematically under the name of the Loyalist parent. What evolved is a unique collection of family group records. While not all the family groups are complete, most of them are, and altogether about 15,000 sons and daughters are identified. The references in the Orders-In-Council generally provide, in the case of sons, the name of the petitioner, his place of residence, and the name of his father-the Loyalist through whom he claimed the land grant. In the case of daughters, the reference states the name of her husband, their place of residence, and the name of her father. In addition, from sources outside the Orders-In-Council, the late Mr. Reid, formerly with the Ontario Archives, has supplied, where possible, marriage dates, birth and death dates, and names of wives of the sons of the Loyalists, so from the genealogist's point of view the work as a whole is a godsend, an unparalleled contribution to Loyalist family history.

After the American Revolution several thousand families came to settle in the western part of Quebec, later called Upper Canada, then Canada West and today Ontario. These settlers were former members of American Loyalist regiments, discharged British and German servicemen, and some civilians and refugees. They were offered grants of 200 acres of land on condition that they take an oath of allegiance and remain loyal to the British regime. The military and Loyalist rivals who had come earlier received larger grants, generally in relation to their services to the Crown, their rank or status, and family size. All settlers received certificates showing the location of the lots on which they were to clear land and build houses. First, however, it was necessary to establish who had the right to obtain title deeds and in 1796 a proclamation was issued which required Loyalists and others to surrender their certificates in exchange for title deeds and to make a statement under oath in the district court as to their right to hold them. Subsequently, thousands of settlers appeared before the magistrates in district courts throughout Upper Canada. The magistrates provided additional information in the records, which have been preserved in the National Archives of Canada and are usually called the District Loyalist Rolls of 1796. These rolls have been carefully transcribed for the first time by Dr. E. Keith Fitzgerald, who has supplemented the 4,000 entries with further data from his own research. Details supplied by the settlers, the magistrates, and by Dr. Fitzgerald now provide a rich source of information on the early inhabitants of Ontario. Some entries show, for example, relationships, deaths, military service, maiden names of married women, and remarriage of widows.