Canada, Quebec Census, 1861 - FamilySearch Historical Records

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.

Reading These Records
These records are in French or English. For help reading these records see the following guides:
 * France Language and Languages
 * French Genealogical Word List
 * French Handwriting
 * Script Tutorial for French
 * FamilySearch Learning Center videos:
 * Reading French Handwritten Records

What Can These Records 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 This Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor
 * The name of a relative or date of the event

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.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Cite the record. See below for help citing this collection
 * Look at an image of the original record. The original may contain information that was not recorded in the index. To find a copy of the original record, visit the Public Archives, Ottawa page


 * Use the information you have found to find the person in census records
 * 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 the Person I’m Looking for, What Now?

 * If your ancestor does not have a common name, collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This can help you find possible relatives
 * Search the records of nearby areas
 * Check for other names. An individual might appear under an unexpected name for a variety of reasons:
 * They might have been listed under a middle name, nickname, or abbreviation of their given name
 * A woman may have returned to her maiden name after the death of her husband

Record Finder

 * Consult the Quebec Record Finder Table to find other records

Citing this Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.


 * Collection Citation:"Québec, recensement, 1861." Database. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : 14 June 2016. Citing Archives Publiques, Ottawa (Board of Registration and Statistics. Public Archives, Ottawa).

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