Canada's Census Records
The first national census enumeration occurred in 1871. From then a Canada-wide census was taken every 10 years until 1951. Starting in 1956 the census was taken every five years with the most recent occurring in 2016.
The Prairie provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta) had a census every five years starting in 1906.
Due to privacy laws census records are held by Statistics Canada for 92 years before being released to Library & Archives Canada (LAC). Once in the care of LAC it can take a year or more to process and ready the census for public viewing.
The chart below includes only national census records or those that cover more than one province. For province-specific census records, please see the GenWeb that covers that area.
Census Year | Provinces/Territories Included | Where Available |
---|---|---|
1666 | QC (New France) | Library & Archives Canada |
1671-1753 | NS, NB, QC (Acadia) | Acadian & French-Canadian Ancestral Home |
1 Feb 1842 | QC, ON | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (ON) FamilySearch (QC) $ Ancestry (QC) |
1851 / 12 Jan 1852 | NB, NS, ON, QC | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (index only) $ Ancestry |
14 Jan 1861 | NB, NS, ON, PE, QC | Library & Archives Canada $ Ancestry |
2 Apr 1871 | NB, NS, ON, QC | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (index only) $ Ancestry |
4 Apr 1881 | BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch $ Ancestry |
6 Apr 1891 | BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (index only) $ Ancestry |
31 Mar 1901 | BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, YT | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch $ Ancestry Automated Genealogy |
24 Jun 1906 | AB, MB, SK | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (index only) $ Ancestry Automated Genealogy |
1 Jun 1911 | AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch (index only) $ Ancestry Automated Genealogy |
1 Jun 1916 | AB, MB, SK | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch $ Ancestry |
1 Jun 1921 | AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT | Library & Archives Canada Ancestry |
1 Jun 1926 | AB, MB, SK | Library & Archives Canada FamilySearch |
1 Jun 1931 | AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT | Will be transferred to Library & Archives Canada on or after 1 Jun 2023 |
1 Jun 1936 | AB, MB, SK | Will be transferred to Library & Archives Canada on or after 1 Jun 2028 |
AB = Alberta
BC = British Columbia
MB = Manitoba
NB = New Brunswick
NL = Newfoundland
NS = Nova Scotia
NT = Northwest Territories
NU = Nunavut
ON = Ontario
PE = Prince Edward Island
QC = Quebec
SK = Saskatchewan
YT = Yukon