Monday 20 March 2017

Historical Vital Statistics in Alberta



Vital Statistics Alberta

For years, the question has been asked:
"When is Alberta going to get historical vital statistics online?"

The time is now! 
The Provincial Archives of Alberta has digitized vital statistics indexes and or registers and are now available online.


Under current legislation, registration documents are available publicly:
  • birth records that are 120 years or older*;
  • marriage records that are 75 years or older* 
  • death records that are 50 years or older* 
  • stillbirth records that are 75 years or older* 


  •                                                                          *from the date of the event

    Indexes are now available online for you to view at the Provincial Archives of Alberta website http://provincialarchives.alberta.ca/
    under "How To" then "Find Birth Marriage and Death Records"

    Words of Advice
    ➦ Many of the older indexes are alphabetical by the first letter, then alphabetical by the first vowel.
    For example: 
                        Brown would be found under "Bo"
                        Smith would be found under "Si"
    There are a few exception. I found "Be" surnames in the "Bo" section. Human error, it happened then, it happens now, it will always happen. 

    Information about the registers
    ➦Prior to 1917, letters were used in place of the year


    YEAR 
    CODE
    up to
    II / III
    1898
    A
    1899
    B
    1900
    C
    1901
    D
    1902
    E
    1903
    F
    1904
    G
    1905
    H
    1906
    J
    1907
    K
    1908
    L
    1909
    M
    1910
    N
    1911
    O
    1912
    P
    1913
    Q
    1914
    R
    1915
    S
    1916
    T

    Once you find the registration you are looking for, write down the following information (you will need it later):
    • Registration Number
    • Event type
    • Year
    • Surname, Given name
    • Place
    In some registers, there is a column for year born and beside it 'pr". The year born column speaks for itself. The province born column uses numbers to represent province/country born. 

    I share with you what I learned from other genealogists over the last 15 years:

    Canada
    01-PEI
    02-NS
    03-NB
    04-PQ
    05-ON
    06-MN
    07-SK
    08-AB
    09-BC
    10-Yukon
    11-NWT
    13-Newfoundland*

    21 - England
    23 - Ireland*
    24 - Scotland
    25 - Wales
    26 - Jersey Channel Islands* 

    33 - 
    35 - 36 - 
    37 - 

    41 - USA
    45 - 

    52 - Austria*
    53 - Belgium*
    54 - Bulgaria
    55 - Czechoslovakia
    56 - Denmark
    57 - 
    58 - Finland
    59 - France

    60 - Germany*
    61 - 
    62 - Netherlands
    63 - Hungary*
    64 - Iceland
    65 - Italy
    66 - 
    68 - Norway
    69 - Galicia *Austria or Ukraine

    71 - Bukovina
    73 - Scandinavia / Sweden*
    74 - Switzerland
    76 - Luxembourg
    77 - USSR

    [*additions to the above list made June 27, 2017, with thanks to Donald K.]

    Over time, when people share what they know the list above can become more complete. I encourage you to contact me and share your findings of what the other numbers stand for. alberta.research2@gmail.com


    ➦be patient, wait for the files to load, they are HUGE files. 

    ➦If you used "ctrl f" to find surnames on the PDF forms and no result was found, review the names line by line. Always be diligent about reviewing forms manually to ensure a complete search has been done. OCR is good but not always reliable.

    Remember that information you wrote down? Now you are ready to order the registration document by clicking on the "Vital Stats request form" button.

    Cost per photocopy: 35¢ 
    Seriously, 35¢ !!!
    Have it mailed to you 
    $3.00 (in Canada) 
    $6.00 (outside of Canada)
    (see below)

    It's a great day for genealogists! Alberta vital statistics for genealogical purposes online. Wonderful!!

    I don't know about you, but I will be busy for the next little while.
    ~Shannon

    Update: September 27, 2019 costs and services of ordering vital statistic records through the PAA has changed.
    Digital Scans: $5.25  sent by e-mail when complete
    Photocopy 79¢ sent through Canada Post
    Shipping costs remain the same 











    11 comments:

    1. Hi Shannon - Found the update via Gail Dever's site - http://genealogyalacarte.ca - such great news! We've been waiting a very long time so I'm sure it will be well worth the wait. Can't imagine the amount of work the archives staff had to undertake. Please pass on our (the genealogist community) many, many thanks. I've updated my Canada's Vital Stats page - http://ukcdngenealogy.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/birth-marriage-death-records.html All the best! Penny

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      Replies
      1. Hi Penny, hope all is well with you. I am sure it has been loads of work, and now more is certain with all who know about it now and ordering these treasured documents! A very historical day in Alberta, absolutely!
        I am sure the PAA would love to hear people's comments.

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    2. Thanks so much for posting this information and your extra tips. Could be useful for so many genealogists as well as those looking for lost loved ones. Thank you! Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail

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      Replies
      1. Hi Danielle!
        Thanks for you comment and great to hear from you!

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    3. Hi, Shannon, Thanks so much for spreading the news about Alberta vital stats. We have waited for a long time for improved and less expensive access to these records. I have passed the news on to some others who are interested in Alberta vital stats.

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      Replies
      1. Hi "M", thank you for your comment. It's always a good thing to pass along genealogy information, right? We all need to spread good news and knowledge.
        Each one teach one

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    4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    5. Hey Shannon, I'm curious with these documents, do you know what the actual certificate information contains? For example do you know if it contains parent information? It's my only hope of tracking down parents of a grandfather and grandmother.

      Thanks!

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      Replies
      1. Hi Kevin, what you are applying for is the registration document. This is the first document completed at the time of the event. Much more informative than a certificate. For the price, order whatever you can, it's worth a shot!

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    6. I take this opportunity to say a BIG THANK YOU to friend BELINDA CHOBAN, now retired, lives in Edmonton with her Mother Maria. Back in 1999 and 2000, Belinda was working in Horticulture/Agronomy Canada and during her summer vacation she showed me the Boian Church and the museum. Some of her friends from the village, prepared for me the wonderful traditional Romanian Meals and that was so emotional. THANK YOU!! from Carmen Ciubotariu

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    7. This is fantastic. What a resource - thank you so much.

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