Canada, New Brunswick, Provincial Returns of Births and Late Registrations - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
These records include indexes and images of provincial returns of births, 1869-1906 and late registrations, 1810-1906. The late registrations from 1810 to 1899 are arranged by birth year and then surname. Although the index is complete, images are being added to this collection as they become available.

The returns of births, 1870-1906, and the late registration documents which were original certificates and some returns, 1810-1899, are arranged alphabetically within each year.

Beginning in 1900, late registration documents are filed in numerical order within each year. An additional set of late registration of births, 1869-1901 had been registered in the years 1900-1901, is arranged by county then chronologically. The typed cards of late birth registrations are arranged alphabetically within the year range of 1810-1899. The years listed are the birth years and not the registration years. There are few returns or certificates for previous years. The "Mc's/Mac's" are filed before the "M's" in each set.

Registrations were kept on printed forms and then bound into volumes. The entries are arranged chronologically by date of registration. Provincial vital registrations are considered a reliable source in family history research because they contain a record of an event usually registered very near the time the event occurred.

New Brunswick is one of the four original provinces of Canada. The province entered into the Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1867. Following the passing of the Vital Statistics Act of 1887, registrations of birth were collected and kept by the provincial government. The government collected delayed registrations dating back to 1801. Births were recorded in New Brunswick to better serve public health needs, and to provide demographic and personal identification.

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What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Birth • 3

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor
 * The name of a relative or date of the event

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use the information to find other records such as marriage, census, church, land and death records
 * Use the occupations to find employment or military records
 * Use the information to establish a migration pattern and find additional family members
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names

Research Helps
The following articles will help you research your family in New Brunswick.
 * New Brunswick Record Finder
 * New Brunswick Guided Research

Other FamilySearch Collections
These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

FamilySearch Catalog

 * Generations (New Brunswick Genealogical Society)Fredericton, New Brunswick : New Brunswick Genealogical Society. Southeastern Branch, 1983- FS Library 971.5 D25g
 * edited by Terrence M. Punch with George F. Sanborn, Jr., Genealogist's handbook for Atlantic Canada research 2nd ed. Boston, Massachusetts : New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1997, c1989 FS Library 971.5 D27pt 1997

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.