Canada, Merchant Marine Agreements and Accounts of Crews - FamilySearch Historical Records

Canada

What is in this Collection?
This collection covers the years of 1890-1920.

These records cover ports in British Columbia (primarily in Victoria), some in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and a few foreign ports. The documents are organized by ship and include, among other information, the signatures of crew members, their ages and birthplaces. Each box includes a general inventory of its contents listing box and file numbers, date, ship name, location and owner. The original records are in possession of the British Columbia Archives in Victoria.

What Can these Records Tell Me?
Records may contain the following information:


 * Full name of crew member
 * Year of birth
 * Place of birth
 * Previous ship served on
 * Date and place of agreement
 * Date, place, cause of death
 * Name of ship

Sample Images
Each box has a list that includes the name of the ship and the year of departure. Below are sample images of the indexes and ship lists:

How Do I Search the Collection?
You can search the index or view the images or both. To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name and age of your ancestor
 * The name of the ship they traveled on

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page.
 * 1) Select Box Number and Years

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.

For more tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.



I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Search in the Canada Births and Baptisms (FamilySearch Historical Records) collection for records that list the parents.
 * Then find other records such as marriage census, court, land and death records.
 * Use the information to 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 Who 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, especially French versions.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of Canada Genealogy.
 * Search in the Canada Archives and Libraries.
 * Search in the FamilySearch Library Catalog

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image. Collection Citation:

Image Citation

Top of Page