Introduction
Books
Handbooks
Bibliographies/Catalogues/Census Indexes
Newspapers and Newspaper Indexes
Registers and Cemetery Records
Directories
Atlases, Maps and Gazetteers
Early Publications from Canada and Elsewhere
Biographical Resources
Journal Indexes
Family Histories
Regional and Ethnic Histories
Government Documents
Archives
Websites
While there is no collection or staff dedicated specifically to genealogy at the U of L Library, the Library does have many books, newspapers, atlases, and digital resources of interest to genealogists. Some examples are listed below.
If you require assistance locating or using Library resources, please ask at the Information and Research Assistance (Reference) Desk opposite the entrance on Level 10 of the Library. You can also Ask Us online. For information on parking, borrowing privileges, etc. click here.
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The Library's online catalogue provides access to the Library's collections including books, audiovisual materials, government documents, microforms, electronic resources, and more.
You can search the online catalogue for specific titles, works by a particular author, or on a specific subject.
Public Search Stations are available on all levels of the Library to access the online catalogue, which can be accessed via the Library's homepage from both on and off campus.
The following terms are examples of Library of Congress Subject Headings that you may find useful when searching the online catalogue:
| Alberta southern - History Alberta southern - Bibliography Alberta southern - Biography Alberta - History Alberta - History - Maps Alberta - Bibliography Alberta - Biography Canada - Biography |
Canada - Emigration and immigration Canada Genealogy Canada - Historical Geography - Maps Canadian Newspapers Genealogy Mormons Prairie Provinces - Biography Prairie Provinces - Emigration and immigration |
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Handbooks and guides can provide quick access to summaries of important concepts or procedures as well as basic factual information in summary form.
Genealogical research and resources: a guide for library use
In search of your roots: a guide for Canadians seeking their ancestors
The origin and signification of Scottish surnames: with a vocabulary of Christian names
Records and record searching: a guide to the genealogist and topographer
A treatise on heraldy, British and foreign: with English and French glossaries
Understanding Ontario First Nations genealogical records: sources and case studies
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Bibliographies list publications on a particular topic and normally include relevant books, journal articles, government publications, audiovisual materials, etc. Abstracts, or summaries are often included for each item. To locate a bibliography related to Genealogy, consult the online catalogue under the relevant subject term(s) followed by the term "bibliography", e.g., Canada genealogy bibliography. The examples below also include catalogues and census indexes.
Bibliography of material relating to Southern Alberta published to 1970
Index to the 1901 census, Unorganized Territories No. 206a, Athabasca
A preliminary guide to archival sources relating to Southern Alberta
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We have some major international, Canadian, provincial and Southern Alberta newspapers dating back to the 1800's on microfilm. We also have a sizeable collection of Canadian newspapers in electronic form (Canadian Newsstand) and full text electronic access to the Lethbridge Herald from 1905 to 2006. In addition the Library has indexes for some of these newspapers where one can search for a reference to a particular name or family name.
Please note that titles marked with an asterisk (*) are licensed resources. Users not affiliated with the U of L can access them in the library; off campus access is limited to U of L students, faculty and staff.
ELECTRONIC NEWSPAPER RESOURCES:
Alberta Newspapers Collection
When completed, this database will contain the full text of all Alberta newspapers back to 1880.
Canadian Newsstand*
Offers full text access to more than 200 Canadian newspapers and other news sources.
Globe and Mail: Canada's Heritage from 1844*
Provides access to the full text of The Globe and Mail from 1884 to 2005.
Lethbridge Herald Newspaper Collection 1905-1955
Full text access to 50 years of The Lethbridge Herald, from 1905 through 1955.
Lethbridge Herald Newspaper Collection 1905-2006*
Full text access to The Lethbridge Herald from 1905 through 2006.
Times Digital Archive 1785-1985*
Provides full text access to 200 years of The Times (London).
NEWSPAPERS AVAILABLE ON MICROFILM (in Woodworth Collection):
| Calgary Eye Opener | 1902-1922 | AN 1 C3 |
| Calgary Herald | 1888 | AN 1 C35 |
| Calgary Weekly Herald | 1888-May/1893; 1897-99 | AN 1 C36 |
| Cardston News | Sept/1925-June/1958 | AN 1 C38 |
| Daily Colonist | 1858-1896 | AN 1 D23 |
| Le Devoir | 1910-1974 | AN 2 D48 |
| Edmonton Bulletin | Dec/1890-Dec/1906 | AN 1 E36 |
| Globe and Mail | 1849+ | AN 1 G6 |
| Great Falls Tribune | 1885-1889 | AN 1 G7* |
| High River Times | Dec/1905-Dec/1982 | AN 1H |
| Lethbridge News | Dec/1885-Dec/1906 | AN 1 L42 |
| Lethbridge Telegram | 1914-18 | AN 1 L48 |
| Lethbridge Herald | 1905+ | AN 1 L4 |
| Mackenzie's Gazette | May/1838-Dec/184 | AN 1 M26 |
| Mackenzie's Weekly Message | Dec/1852-Aug/1860 | AN 1 M28 |
| Macleod Gazette | July/1882-89; 1891-1906 | AN 1 M3 |
| Medicine Hat News | Dec/1889-1982(some gaps) | AN 1 M34 |
| Medicine Hat Times | Nov/1885-1889 | AN 1 M36 |
| Medicine Hat Weekly | 1890-1917;1920-47;1949 | AN 1 M38 |
| Nanton News | 1903-1980; 1982 | AN 1 N26 |
| New York Examiner | Sept-Nov/1843 | AN 1 N39 |
| Patriot de L'Ouest | Aug-Nov/1910,Jun/1911-Sept/1940 | AN 1 P38 |
| Pincher Creek Echo | 1900; 1903-1906 | AN 1 P5 |
| Saskatchewan Herald | 1878-1900 | AN 1P7 |
| Sentinel & Orange & Protestant Advocate | 1876-1930 | AN 1 S36 |
| The Times (London, Eng.) | 1785-1850 | AN 1 T5* |
| Toronto Star | 1946-1948 | AN 1 T6 |
| United Farmer | 1922-1935 | S 1 U5* |
| Winnipeg Free Press | July/1874-Dec/1969 | AN 1 W5 |
PRINT NEWSPAPER INDEXES:
Newspaper indexes: a location and subject guide for researchers
3 volumes
Canadian newspaper index
1977-1979 3 volumes
Canadian news index
1980-92
Canadian index (continues Canadian news index)
1993-2000; v. 9, no. 1-6, 2001
The Times index
1973-1993
Obituaries from the Times: including an index to all obituaries and tirbutes appearing in the Times during the years 1961-1970
Contains obituaries from 1951-1975
Lethbridge News & Macleod Gazette, 1882-1900: a subject and biographical index
Lethbridge News, 1901-1906, and Lethbridge Herald, 1905-1918: a subject and biographical index
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These are important sources for data on births, baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials.
A guide to the archives of the United Church of Canada, Alberta and Northwest Conference
A library of stone pages: and other records of the Wesleyan Burial Ground, Saint John, NB.
The Pitcairn Island register book: together with map, index and appendices
A record of service: a guide to the holdings of the Central Archives of the United Church of Canada
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Directories identify, locate, and provide various other information on individuals, organizations, and institutions.
Farm and ranch directory for Lethbridge trade area
1957-59, 1959-61, 1965
Lethbridge, Alberta, city directory (Henderson Directory)
Print: 1948; 1970-1977; 1979-2000
Some years are also available online
Lethbridge 1891: a settlement becomes a town
Includes transcript of Lethbridge listing from Henderson's Manitoba, Northwest Territories and British Columbia Gazetteer and Directory for 1891
Official telephone directory, District of Lethbridge and Southern Alberta, December 1904
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These are useful for looking at where ancestors came from, in terms of geography and politics.
Manitoba historical atlas: a selection of facsimile maps, plans, and sketches from 1612 to 1969
Maps
We have a limited collection of Canadian historical maps. Ask at the Information and Research Assistance Desk for assistance in locating these maps.
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Please note that online resources marked with an asterisk (*) below are licensed. Users not affiliated with the U of L can access these resources in the Library; however, off campus access is limited to U of L students, faculty and staff).
Alberta Heritage Digitization Project (AHDP)
This Alberta historical collection includes the full text of early Alberta newspapers (1880 to 2001 when complete), local histories, folklore, legal documents (bills, statutes, gazettes), art, airphotos, maps, municipal bylaws, medical history and more.
Book of letters: 150 years of private Canadian correspondence
Book of war letters: 100 years of private Canadian correspondence
British and Irish women's letters and diaries*
Access personal narratives of 500 women who lived between 1500 and 1950.
Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproduction (CIHM) microfiche collection
Woodworth FC 15 C3 (Microforms area)
A microfiche collection of early printed Canadian publications ( monographs, pamphlets, leaflets, playbills and broadsides, catalogues of books, etc.) predating 1901. See Early Canadiana Online (below) for an electronic index to this collection, as well as some full text documents.
Early Canadiana online*
A collection of early printed Canadian publications ( monographs, pamphlets, leaflets, playbills and broadsides, catalogues of books, etc.) predating 1901.
Eighteenth century collections online (ECCO)*
Contains full text documents of over 155,000 historical works published in the U.K. between 1701 and 1800, plus thousands of important works from the Americas. Includes works from many disciplines, as well as rare and ephemeral materials.
In the first person
Access personal narratives in English for more than 18,000 individuals worldwide who lived from the 1500's to the present. Available free over the Internet at: www.inthefirstperson.com
Magee Photograph Collection
The Magee Photograph Collection contains a selection of nearly 1,000 digitized photographic negatives depicting life on the Blackfeet Nation [Browning, Montana] and in Glacier National Park [U.S.] during the early twentieth century. All materials in the collection were originally produced by photographers Thomas B. Magee, 1862-1930 and Henry L. Magee, 1896-1966 of Browning, Montana. The collection was purchased by the University of Alberta in May, 2007 from Donald L. Magee.
North American immigrant letters, diaries and oral histories*
Access personal narratives of more than 2,100 North American immigrants who lived from 1784 to the present.
North American Indian thought and culture*
Access biographies, autobiographies, letters, diaries, oral histories, reference works, speeches, manuscripts, and photographs of American Indians, Alaskan Natives and Canadian First Peoples from earliest times to the present.
North American women's letters and diaries: colonial to 1950*
Access more than 1,300 North American women's correspondence.
Oral history online*
Access more than 2,700 English language oral history collections from around the world from the 1700's to the present.
Peel bibliography on microfiche
Woodworth FC 3237 P42 (Microforms area)
A collection of ca. 3,500 early Canadian publications from Peel's Bibliography of the Canadian Prairies to 1953 (FC 3237 P4 2003, Reference Collection). Includes many useful items, such as old Henderson directories. Use the U. of L. online catalogue to search for items by subject, author, title, or keyword. Free access to electronic versions of some items are available on the Peel's Prairie Provinces web site. Some Alberta-related items can also be found at on the Alberta Heritigage Digitization Project web site.
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See also the section on "Early Publications from Canada and Elsewhere" (above) for biographical information. Print biographies in the Library can be located by searching the online catalogue using the individual's name as a SUBJECT term, e.g. McClung, Nellie
Biography and genealogy master index
1981/82-1984; 1987-1993; 1997
Biography index
1946 to 2005
The Canadian men and women of the time: a hand-book of Canadian biography
Dictionary of Canadian biography
15+ volumes. Covers the years from 1000-1930
Also available electronically via the Internet.
Lethbridge Cenotaph Collection
Biographies of the WWI soldiers named on the Lethbridge Cenotaph
100 women in 100 years: 1885-1985
Subjects are Lethbridge women
Who was who: a companion to who's who, containing the biographies of those who died
1897 to 1970
Who's who
1931; 1936; 1940; 1943; 1947; 1949; 1951-52; 1955-56; 1958; 1960; 1962; 1966; 1969+
Who's who in Canada
1912-1913; 1917/18-1922; 1927-1928/29; 1934/35; 1943/44; 1956/57; 1960/61; 1966/68-1977/78; 1980/81-1982/83; 1984/85+
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Electronic indexes (databases) allow you to search for magazine and journal articles on specific subjects. In addition to citations to articles, indexes/databases usually provide abstracts (short descriptions or summaries of articles), and sometimes they provide the actual journal article itself (full text). Some of the Library's indexes/databases cover not only journal articles but also newspaper articles, obituaries, dissertations, conference proceedings, book chapters, government publications, and other types of information.
Note that some, but not all, journal indexes/databases contain the full text of journal articles in addition to the article citation. If the index you are searching does not provide the full text, click on the Find Full Text button near the citation in the index you are searching to find out if the Library subscribes to a particular journal in either print or electronic form. You can also do a Journal Title search in the Library's online catalogue to see if the Library has the journal you are seeking in its holdings or provides access to it electronically.
Some of the most useful indexes for finding information on Genealogy are listed below. Many more indexes are available in the Library and these may be useful to you depending on your specific topic. See the Library's Indexes/Databases web page for a full list of available online indexes and abstracts.
Note: Indexes marked with an asterisk (*) below are licensed databases and cannot be accessed from off campus by persons who are not current University faculty, staff, or students. All are accessible to anyone from Library computers.
INDEXES/DATABASES
America history and life*
1964+ ; An index to over 1,700 journals published worldwide for references to the history of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present. Also available in print format (1954-2003): E 31 A48 1954+ Reference Collection
Canadian index (Print Format)
1993-2001; AI 3 C238 Reference Collection
Canadian periodical index (Print Format)
1920-47; 1964-93; AI 3 C238 Reference Collection An index to over 400 Canadian and American periodicals, including obituaries. Available electronically from 1980+ as CPIQ: Canadian Periodical Index Quarterly (see below).
Canadian reference centre*
Access the full text of Canadian magazines, reference books and newspapers, including leading Canadian and international periodicals. Also includes full text of almost 85,000 biographies and an image collection of over 235,000 photos, maps and flags.
CPIQ: Canadian periodical index quarterly*
1980+ ; Provides access to Canadian and international journals, magazines, Globe & Mail, Canadian biographies and other material, all with a Canadian focus. Some full text.
Historical abstracts*
1955+ ; The world's leading index to the history of the world, excluding Canada and the U.S., from 1450 to the present. Also available in print format (1955-2003): D 299 H5 1955+ Reference Collection
History resource center: world*
Access full-text reference books, scholarly journal articles, primary source documents, images and maps on the history of the world from antiquity to the present.
World History Collection*
Offers a global look at history with content from Africa, Asia, North and South America, Europe and the Middle East. Provides full-text coverage of 150 journals and magazines from 1964 to present.
JOURNALS (To locate journals, both print and electronic, do a "Journal Title" search in the library catalogue.)
Alberta historical review
1953-74; FC 3651 A6 Main Collection, Woodworth (microfilm)
Alberta history (formerly Alberta historical review)
1953+ ; FC 3651 A6 Main Collection, latest issues in Current Serials
BC studies
1968+ ; FC 3801 B2 Main Collection, latest issues in Current Serials
Newsletter-Lethbridge Historical Society
1991+ ; FC 3652 H58 A1 Main Collection, latest issues in Current Serials
Also available online 1960+
Newsletter-Historical Society of Alberta, Whoop Up Country Chapter
1967-1990; FC 3652 H58 A1 Main Collection
Ontario history
1899+ ; FC 3051 O6 Main Collection, latest issues in Current Serials
Saskatchewan history
1948+ ; FC 3501 S3 Microfilm Collection (Woodworth), Main Collection, latest issues in Current Serials
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Below are some examples of family histories found in the Library. This is not a complete list.
A baronial family in medieval England: the Clares, 1217-1314
The Jesse Knight family: Jesse Knight, his forebears and family
The Otis family: in provincial and revolutionary Massachusetts
Thomas Mellon and his times: printed for his family and descendants exclusively
Wealth, kinship, and culture: the seventeenth-century Newdigates of Argury and their world
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Below are some examples of regional and ethnic histories found in the Library. (This is not a complete list.) These histories include biographical sketches of community members, lists of local politicians, teachers, business persons, etc., membership lists for community organizations, and information on the settlement and development of a particular community.
Many more Alberta local and regional histories can be found online at the Alberta Heritage Digitization Project web site.
Defiant sisters : a social history of Finnish immigrant women in Canada
Land of the second chance: a history of ethnic groups in Southern Alberta
The long journey of a forgotten people: Metis identities and family histories
Nishiki : nikkei tapestry : a history of southern Alberta Japanese Canadians
Recollections of a handcart pioneer of 1860: a woman's life on the Mormon frontier
A treasure of memories: a story of the Monitor and Pemukan Districts in Alberta, Canada
The triumph of citizenship : the Japanese and Chinese in Canada
Uprooted: the story of Dutch immigrant children in Canada, 1947-1959
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The University of Lethbridge Library is a partial depository library for federal government publications. Thus, we have a sizeable collection of government documents from Agriculture Canada to Royal Commissions including laws, regulations, reports, and hundreds of departmental documents. Early government publications such as census publications and sessional papers from the nineteenth and early twentieth century are also available. Alberta government publications can be found in the library as well. Government publications can be located using the Library Catalogue or go to our Government Information webpage.
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The University of Lethbridge Archives is responsible for selecting, preserving and making available for reference the University's non-current official records. Records include all information, regardless of media or characteristics, made or received by the University. These records include correspondence, reports, minutes, registers, directives, announcements, publications, photographs, video recordings, building plans, and more. Items related to the history of southern Alberta (e.g. papers of Cleo Mowers) can be found here as well. Archives material cannot be found in our online catalogue. If you wish to use the archival collection, please contact Library Administration at 329-2261. For more information on the University Archives, check out the Archives webpage.
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Mary's Genealogical Treasures (formerly Lethbridge Family History Website)
Created by Judy Droessler and Joanne Overn
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Maintained by
Content Revised: March 24, 2010
Content Created: February 9, 2005
