What Can I Find in Canadian Church Records?

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Different denominations, different time periods, and practices of different record keepers will effect how much information can be found in the records. Sometimes, you will only find a simple membership list. This outline will show the types of details which might be found in the best case scenario.

Baptisms or Christenings

In Catholic and Anglican records, children were usually baptized a few days after birth, and therefore, the baptism record proves date of birth. Other religions, such as Baptists, baptized at other points in the member's life. Baptism registers might give:

baptism date
the infant's name
parents' names
father's occupation

status of legitimacy
occasionally, names of grandparents
names of witnesses or godparents, who may be relatives

birth date and place
the family's place of residence
death information, as an added note or signified by a cross

Marriages

Canada Presbyterian Marriage Record

Marriage registers can give:

the marriage date
the names of the bride and groom
indicate whether the bride and groom were single or widowed
their ages

birth dates and places for the bride and groom
their residences
their occupations

birthplaces of the bride and groom
parents' names (after 1800)
the names of previous spouses and their death dates
names of witnesses, who might be relatives.

Burials or Funerals

Burial registers may give:

the name of the deceased
the date and place of death or burial
the deceased's age
place of residence
cause of death

the names of survivors, especially a widow or widower
deceased's birth date and place
parents' names, or at least the father's name
funeral sermon
biography of the deceased

Membership Lists

Membership lists may give:

the name of the person
the date and the place the list was made
may also give the spouse’s name
the date of admission
letters of admission or dismission
the name of the congregation they came from or left to
a death date, added later

Minutes or Historical Narrative

Many denominations, intersperse records chronologically throughout
minutes or church history, without placing them in separate registers.

Other Records

Other records, less specifically genealogical, include:

congregational histories (may have membership lists, baptism lists interspersed)
church newspapers (may have notices of birth, marriage, death)
donation lists
pew lists
committee officers or lay officers
business meeting minutes
correspondence
Sunday School records (may have attendance records)
church cemetery records
pastor's notes or memoirs
biographies of pastors