Imagine finding the address of where your ancestor once lived, only to discover the municipality changed the numbers on the buildings decades ago. That’s the plight for genealogists, except for those researching in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
To help researchers find the current or former address of homes and commercial buildings in the city, Halifax Municipal Archives has posted on its website a 295-page former civic address cross-reference to convert a pre-1960 former civic number to a current four-digit address — and vice-versa.
Stoddard House (Old Presbytarian Manse), built in 1828, is located at 1361 Barrington Street in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Its former address was 319-1/2 Barrington Street. Photo: Coastal Elite. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
So, why did Halifax change the numbers on buildings?
In 1958, city planners adopted a grid-based four-digit civic numbering system that is still used today. Prior to that, as the city grew, street numbering had been ad-hoc, and new developments required awkward re-numbering.
The new grid-system imposed a geographic logic to civic numbers that was popular in many North American cities at the time.
By the end of 1965, every house in Halifax was assigned a new number.
Halifax Municipal Archives has posted on its website a guide about the evolution of civil addressing in the city, along with other guides that will interest genealogists.
Halifax directories
To learn where your ancestors lived in Halifax in the 19th and early 20th centuries, search for family names in the McAlpine’s City Directories of Halifax from 1869 to 1900 on Library and Archives Canada’s website.
It’s funny that this post should come up. Both my sister and I ended up renting houses that were once owned by our grandfather. These addresses were confirmed by marriage, telephone directories and birth certificates. It led to me writing a book on oyr family.
Very considerate of the archives to post a cross-reference. I have come across this problem quite often and need to figure out the changed addresses on the basis of cross-streets, neighbours, comparing different directories or rate books.