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.

For a list of records by dates currently published in this collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.

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:

What Can this Collection 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

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate year of birth.
 * The name of the ship your ancestor was traveling on.

View images in this collection by visiting the [https://familysearch.org/search/image/index#uri=https://familysearch.org/recapi/sord/collection/2057673/waypoints Browse Page: To search this collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse Images" on the initial search page ⇒Select the appropriate "Box Number and Years" which will take you to the images.

Search the collection by image, comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s crew record, carefully evaluate each piece of information about them. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Search in the Canada Births and Baptisms (FamilySearch Historical Records) collection. There you may be able to further your research when you have found the parents of the crew member.

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking for, What Now?

 * Try using different variations of the name spelling or possible nicknames your ancestor could have used while searching this collection.

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