Course: 2026-09
Faculty:
- Coordinator and Instructor: Kathryn Lake Hogan, BA, PLCGS, UE
- Other Instructors: Luana Darby, MLIS, AG®; Anna Dutfield, PLCGS; Kaye Prince-Hollenberg, PLGCS, MI; Kate Penney Howard, MDiv; Jenna Lemay, MLIS
Tuition:
- Regular Price: $615.00
- NGS Member Price: $575.00
Description:
Ontario and Québec are home to most of Canada’s population, past and present. Take a deep dive into the early English and French records of these foundational provinces and learn how to navigate challenges unique to First Nations, Jewish and early colonial research. From civil and religious records to land and estate files, students will learn to access, interpret, and apply research techniques through hands-on activities and case studies to trace their ancestors in Ontario and Québec.
Student Prerequisites:
- Familiarity with how to use the Library and Archives Canada website.
- A basic understanding of Canadian history and geography.
Recommendations:
- Suggested reading: Morton, Desmond. A Short History of Canada, 7th ed. 2017.
- Suggested subscription websites: Ancestry, Généalogie Québec, FamilySearch.org, and Newspapers.com.
Important Notice Regarding Course Materials:
- An electronic syllabus for personal use.
- This course includes homework and in-class activities for selected sessions.”
NOTE:
Sessions will be recorded and available through Friday, 10 July 2026, at 11:59 PM ET
All times are listed in Eastern Time.
Live Sessions may be subject to schedule adjustments by your course coordinator.
| Day | Session | Time | Session Title | Description | Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 22 June |
Intro | 10:00 AM – 10:30 AM | Class Introductions | Hogan | |
| 1 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | Repositories, Archives and Websites for Researching Ontario Ancestors | Learn about the federal, provincial, and regional repositories, archives and websites to find your Ontario ancestors. Discover the records, collections, and information they hold to further your family history research in the Trillium province. | Hogan | |
| 2 | 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Repositories, Archives, and Websites for Researching Québec Ancestors | Successfully researching your ancestors in Québec includes knowing which repository, archive or website you need to find the records you want. Provincial archives, regional libraries, other repositories and key websites will be discussed. | Darby | |
| 3 | 2:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Counting the Colony: Census Records from New France to Confederation | Explore Canadian census records from 1666 to 1871 and discover how they can enhance your Ontario and Québec research. Learn strategies for locating and analyzing census data, including early colonial and provincial returns. Examine how questions varied over time, what was recorded, and the enumerators’ instructions. Students will gain practical techniques for using these records to uncover details about their ancestors and their communities. | Hogan | |
| 4 | 3:45 PM – 5:00 PM | Understanding Vital Registration Records in Ontario | Key records in researching Ontario ancestors are civil registration of vital statistics: birth, marriage and death records. This session will introduce students to the Registration Acts, the use of vital registration numbering system, including delayed registrations, and a brief look at adoptions and divorces. Limitations and access of the public records, as well as how to order birth, marriage and death documents from the Ontario Registrar General will be explained. | Hogan | |
| Tuesday 23 June |
5 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | First Nations and Métis Research in Ontario | This session will teach you the basics of researching First Nations and Metis people in Ontario. Basic records, as well as those specific to this type of research will be examined along with tips and tricks for the unique problems faced by those carrying out this research. | Lemay |
| 6 | 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Unlocking the Mysteries of ‘Dit’ Names in French-Canadian Genealogy | Students will explore ‘dit’ names and learn how these unique surname variations can both challenge and enhance French-Canadian genealogical research. This session will guide participants through the origins and significance of ‘dit’ names, while providing step-by-step research strategies and highlighting the best resources for success. Practical tips for identifying and tracking ‘dit’ names will enable genealogists to overcome naming variations in order to confidently document their ancestors. | Dutfield | |
| 7 | 2:15 PM – 3:30 PM | First Nations Research in Québec | This session will teach you the basics of researching First Nations people in Québec. Basic records, as well as those specific to this type of research will be examined along with tips and tricks for the unique problems faced by those carrying out this research. | Lemay | |
| 8 | 3:45 PM – 5:00 PM | Coming to Canada: Immigration and Border Entry Records | Although immigrants have been coming to Canada since the 1600s, there are no comprehensive nominal passenger lists before 1865. From 1865 onwards, official records of immigration to Canada were passenger lists and border entry records.
These records contain a wealth of information about our ancestors. This session will discuss the desired immigrants to Canada, some of the immigration schemes used, who may have crossed the Canadian-American border for immigration, migration or opportunity. Ontario and Québec entry points will be examined. Reasons our ancestors travelled back and forth across the border will be discussed. |
Hogan | |
| Wednesday 24 June |
9 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | The Importance of Religion in Ontario: Church Records | Learn what were the major religious denominations of Ontarians in the late 18th through to the early 20th centuries. Gain an understanding of the holdings of church records such as parish registers, membership lists, session records, communicant rolls, board minutes and newsletters, how to access them, and the information they hold about our ancestors. Most church records discussed will be English, and a few in French. | Hogan |
| 10 | 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Drouin, Loiselle and More: Gaining Access to Québec Church Records | Church registers are the most important class of record for Québec research. From 1679 to 1993, most vital events in Québec were recorded in the various churches of the province. Key finding aids and other documents will be covered and help in using these records to their fullest extent. | Darby | |
| 11 | 2:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Jewish Records in Ontario & Québec | Explore the various resources and records available for Jewish research in Ontario and Québec, including those available online and those held by Jewish archives and libraries in both provinces. We will also look at how Jewish headstones can further your research, provincially specific immigration and naturalization records, and the role of Jewish community groups in post-war resettlement of Jewish orphans and displaced persons. | Prince-Hollenberg | |
| 12 | 3:45 PM – 5:00 PM | Seigneurials, Grants, and Other Land Records in Québec | Québec has a long history of land records, reaching back to the earliest seigneurial grants in 1623. This session will discuss the unique land ownership of Québec and the records associated with it. Discover settlement patterns, where the records are, and how you can find them and use them in your own ancestral research. Includes New Brunswick records. | Darby | |
| Thursday 25 June |
13 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | Understanding Notarial Records | Discover the role of notaries and notarial records in Québec history. These important records can often be hard to find or follow, but once found, can be a rich source of genealogical information. Learn the difference between apostolic and seigneurial notaries and the records they created. Finding aids to these collections and repositories where they can be found will also be discussed. | Darby |
| 14 | 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Tracing the Legacy of New France’s Pioneer Brides | This session will highlight repositories and record sets that chronicle the lives of Les Filles à Marier and Les Filles du Roi, the women whose courage and resilience helped shape New France. Analytical techniques for uncovering and documenting the lives of these foundational women will be modeled while simultaneously applying the Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS) so that students will be prepared to research these matriarchs in their own family trees. | Dutfield | |
| 15 | 2:15 PM – 3:30 PM | And Your Petitioner Will Ever Pray: Crown Land Records | The land granting system of early Ontario, then known as Upper Canada, produced a vast quantity of records that are full of details about the settlers who petitioned for land and were often, but not always, successful in securing a land grant. We will examine the land petitioning process and where to find the land records both in real and virtual repositories and archives. This session includes the Upper Canada Land Board records. | Hogan | |
| 16 | 3:45 PM – 5:00 PM | Digging into Ontario Land Registry Records | Dig into the changes in Ontario from districts to counties and the use of the English land system with concessions and lots. Students will learn where to find the all-important lot and concession number of their ancestor’s land. The process of the land granting system will be discussed including the Land Registry records, township papers and how to use the OnLand website. How to find the instrument number in the land abstracts will be explained and then using the instrument number, the land transactions can be found for your ancestor. | Hogan | |
| Friday 26 June |
17 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | Navigating Ontario’s Wills and Estate Records | The history of inheritance laws in Ontario will be discussed. Students will learn how to apply this knowledge to interpretation and location of wills and estate records including Probate and Surrogate Court records for testate and intestate estates and records of inheritances that went through the Land Registry Office instead of the courts will be examined. | Hogan |
| 18 | 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Navigating French-Canadian Endogamy and Solving Surname Mysteries Using Technology | Discover how DNA testing can break through brick walls in French-Canadian research. Learn to navigate endogamy, uncover hidden female ancestors, and interpret shared matches more effectively. We’ll explore why French-Canadian, Acadian, and similar populations show distinctive genetic patterns, and how this “genetic amplification” can make traditional DNA relationship predictions unreliable. This session offers practical strategies and case studies to help you analyze complex genetic connections and solve long-standing family history mysteries. | Howard |