Canada, New Brunswick Census, 1861 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Canada New Brunswick

What is in this Collection?
This census was taken in 1861 for the census year 1860

Census schedules were taken on large sheets of paper with preprinted rows and columns. They are bound into volumes, arranged by county, then by district.

This collection contains the 1861 census for the province of New Brunswick. At this time New Brunswick was considered a separate colony from the rest of the old Province of Canada. This census was created separately and differs from the form used in the other areas of the Province of Canada. Census takers were asked to record information about all those who were in each household on the census day. A census taker might have visited a house on a later date, but the information he collected was supposed to be about the people who were in the house on the census day.

The recording of names for the 1861 New Brunswick census was by census district. For the most part, census districts were identical with cities and counties, and sub districts were identical with towns, townships, and city wards. Villages, small towns, and parishes were generally enumerated as part of the township in which they were located. Census district and county boundaries were not always the same and there were many variations from location to location.

Canadian census records were taken to enumerate the population for representation, taxation, and other purposes.

This census records the birthplace or ethnic origin for each person, along with his or her age, and other personal information. Since the census attempted to record all the people living in a household, it may identify individuals for whom other records simply do not exist.

The accuracy of the census depended on the knowledge of the informant and the care of the enumerator. Realize that the information may have been given to a census taker by any member of the family or even by a neighbor.

Records usually contain the following information:


 * Full name of family members
 * Gender
 * Relationships of all individuals in household to head of household
 * Age
 * Place of birth
 * Residence
 * Occupation
 * Religion

How do I Search the Collection?
Search by Name by visiting the Collection Page.

As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

I Found Who I was Looking for, Now What?

 * Use the age to calculate the year of birth. When calculated, you can search within the New Brunswick, Provincial Returns of Births and Late Registrations (FamilySearch Historical Records), or the New Brunswick Births and Baptisms (FamilySearch Historical Records). You can also use the year of birth, to help you find the names of the parents in the birth record.

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

 * Try searching again using variations of the name or nicknames.
 * Search for the name of the spouse (if your ancestor was married) instead of your ancestor's name.

Citing This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually. Collection Citation

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):