Canada, Quebec Census, 1861 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Canada Quebec

What is in this Collection?
Census schedules are on large sheets of paper with preprinted rows and columns. The schedules were organized by province and then by census districts and sub districts.

The Census contains the 1861 census for the independent province of Québec. At this time Québec was referred to as “Canada East.” The census taker took the information on the census day starting March 30, 1861. 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. Enumeration was by census district. Census districts were voting districts, not counties, although most have the same names as counties. For the most part, census districts were synonymous with cities and counties, and sub districts were synonymous 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.

This census was taken in 1861 but reflects the population in the year 1860.

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

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. Some information may have been incorrect or deliberately falsified.

This collection is only an index. Images may be accessed on Ancestry.com ($).

These records are in French or English. For help reading the records, see the following wiki articles:

French Word List

What Can this Collection Tell Me?
Records found in the 1861 Québec Census may include:


 * Names of family members
 * Profession, trade, occupation
 * Place of birth
 * Marital Status
 * Religion
 * Residence if out of limits
 * Age
 * Gender
 * Residents that are members of the family or not members of family
 * Births in 1860
 * Deaths in 1860
 * Type of house

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate age of your ancestor.
 * The place where your ancestor lived.
 * The names of family members and their relationships.

Search by Name see the Collection Page: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. 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 census 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?

 * Use the census to obtain the names and ages of family members, which can be used to calculate birth or marriage dates; the town and county where they lived; those currently living with the family, and any relatives that may have lived nearby. The census may identify persons for whom other records do not exist.

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

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Look for another index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor.

Citing this Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Record collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher and archive for the original records. Collection Citation:

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):