Interactive map of Ontario patent plans now available online

The Archives of Ontario recently partnered with the University of Toronto’s Map and Data Library to create an interactive online map of patent plans. also known as the Ontario Patent Plan Access Index.

On their Facebook page, the provincial archives wrote, “Land patent records are a rich resource for finding out about land in Ontario, and now you can access thousands of these digitized plans online. They’re georeferenced according to latitude and longitude, and they’re discoverable on the map in the spot they depict.”

Less high-resolution copies of the patent plans are available in the Archives of Ontario’s Collection Search.

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OGS Toronto Branch’s list of local newspapers — an essential resource for researchers

Toronto Recorder and General Advertiser, July 30, 1834.

If your relatives lived in Toronto, you should take a look at the excellent and recently updated Newspapers page on the website of the Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society. There you will find a long list of digitized newspapers, where to access them, and links.

The list includes large and small Toronto papers, along with ethnic and religious ones.

In their latest e-newsletter, the Toronto Branch wrote, “We are overwhelmed by the sudden online availability of Toronto newspapers. At least it seems sudden, but no doubt there has been lots of activity behind the scenes. The Toronto Public Library, in particular, has been busy adding to its Digital Archive. But it isn’t the only player. For several decades we have relied mainly on the Globe and the Star, but that situation has changed.”

The linked sources on the Newspapers page include the Toronto Public Library, Canadiana, Our Digital World, Google News, and the subscription site, Newspapers.com.

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New Brunswick Archives updates birth, marriage and death registrations, expands historical photo collection, and adds new vital statistics search platform

The Provincial Archives of New Brunswick last week uploaded to its website birth registrations for 1929 and marriage and death registrations for 1975.

More than one million historical vital statistics records are now available online, including birth records more than 95 years old and marriage and death records more than 50 years old.

The provincial archives also added a new vital statistics search platform to its website to make it possible for people to quickly and easily find historical records, track requests and access enhanced self-service tools.

The new search platform will soon allow for online payment options.

Also, in less than a year, access to historical photographs on the site has expanded to more than 150,000 images from about 2,200 images.

Recent amendments to the Citizenship Act have resulted in a significant increase in requests for historical records from people seeking documentation to support citizenship applications. The new search platform helps respond to this increased demand. Due to higher demand, however, the cost of certified copies will soon increase.

The Provincial Archives of New Brunswick was the first archives in North America to make historical vital statistics records available online in 1998, and its has processed more than 44 million searches since 2008.

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This week’s crème de la crème — August 1, 2026

Some of the bijoux I discovered this week.

Crème de la crème of genealogy blogs

Blog posts
Sources for researching the Scots in Quebec, 2025 by Dr. Gillian Leitch on Gilliandr’s Blog.

5 things I learned researching the Drouin Collection on Ancestry and Généalogie Québec by Linda Yip on Past Presence.

MyHeritage adds Canada, Alberta Death Index, 1903-1974 and Weir(d?) Times at Library and Archives Canada: A Visit to 395 Wellington by John Reid on Anglo-Celtic Connections.

Acadian Genealogy and Citizenship Part 2: a comment from Patrick Lacroix AND A BRIEF RESPONSE TOO by Christopher Moore on Christopher Moore’s History News.

Book Review: A History of Parish Registers in England and Wales, by John Wintrip by Chris Paton on Scottish GENES.

Why You Should Really Kill Off Your Ancestors by Paul Chiddicks on Stories Behind the Records.

Access Some Articles Directly from PERSI for Free by Nancy Gilbride Casey on Leaves on the Tree.

Can’t Find Your Ancestor? 2 Techniques That Actually Work by Lisa Lisson on Are You My Cousin?

Adding GPS Coordinates to Your Family Tree by DiAnn Iamarino Ohama on Fortify Your Family Tree.

Build Deeper Connections with Our Redesigned Record Page on Ancestry Blog.

Those Old Class Photos: Back to School Coming Up! by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

When AI Challenges the Family Tree by Marcia Crawford Philbrick on Heartland Genealogy.

How to Quickly Identify Matches at AncestryDNA with No Tree, No ThruLines, nor Hints by Jon Smith on Family Locket.

Articles
Getting Started with JewishGen: A Beginner’s Guide by Caitlin Hollander Waas, Family Tree Magazine, Dublin, New Hampshire.

How to Stir Your Own Memories for Genealogy Clues by Sunny Jane Morton, Family Tree Magazine, Dublin, New Hampshire.

Human remains found 50 years ago near North Bay belonged to First World War veteran by Eric Taschner, CP24, Scarborough, Ontario.

Toronto police identify victims in 1995 and 2004 cold cases using genetic genealogy by Meredith Bond, City News, Toronto, Ontario.

For more gems like these throughout the week, join the Genealogy à la carte Facebook group. When you submit your request to join, you will be asked to answer two quick questions about your family history research.

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Five-week online seminar — ‘Tracing Family History in Atlantic Canada’

American Ancestors will host a five-part virtual seminar series, called Tides of History: Tracing Family History in Atlantic Canada, from August 3 to 31.

This five-week online seminar will provide a detailed overview of essential record sets, repositories, and research strategies for exploring Atlantic Canadian roots. The speakers will also discuss the historical context of the changes and events that transformed the region and influenced the lives of the people who lived there.

Each seminar will run on a Monday night during August, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Eastern time. The seminars will all be recorded and made available following the live broadcasts.

The speakers are Judith Lucey, David Allen Lambert, Rhonda R. McClure, and Melanie McComb.

You can see the full schedule and register on American Ancestors’ website.

The cost is US$125 or about CDN$175. (Members receive a 10 percent discount.)

Free research guide
Also available from AmericanAncestors is the free Getting Started in Nova Scotia research guide.

Nova Scotia (formerly Acadia) has a rich history of written records dating to the arrival of the French Acadian population in the 17th century. Current-day Nova Scotia came under British rule in 1713 under the terms of the 
Treaty of Utrecht, which permanently transferred ownership of what was mainland Acadia from French to British governance.

After the end of the French and Indian War, occupation by the British brought settlers from England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, and New England. Settlers from New England known as “Planters” settled lands once occupied by Acadian families. In 1784, after the Revolutionary War, many Loyalists in the American colonies fled to Canada and settled in what is now Nova Scotia and what would later become New Brunswick.

This guide will introduce you to records and other resources that will aid your genealogical research in Nova Scotia.

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New videos on International Institute of Genealogical Studies’ YouTube channel

The International Institute of Genealogical Studies, during the last few days, has treated us with three more video gems on its YouTube channel.

Cracking the German Code: How to read German Genealogies without Speaking German by Drew von Hasselbach

Canada’s 1901 Census: The Good, the bad, the fuzzy birthdates by Drew von Hasselbach

What’s New at FamilyTreeDNA by Katy Rowe-Schurwanz

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This week’s crème de la crème — July 25, 2026

Some of the bijoux I discovered this week.

Crème de la crème of genealogy blogs

Blog posts
Acadian genealogists and citizenship by Ancestry.com by Christopher Moore on Christopher Moore’s History News.

Teach Me How: Basic Advanced Searching by Katrina Yaskowich on Digitization Centre, University of British Columbia.

Bibliotheque et Archives National du Quebec – archives matter 2026 by Dr. Gillian Leitch on Gilliandr’s Blog.

FamilySearch Fills Up Searchable Databases with More Than 100 million Ukrainian Records by Vera Miller on Find Lost Russian & Ukrainian Family.

The 1926 Irish Census: A New Window into Ireland’s Past by Daniel Luftus on FamilyWise.

What made the National Archives of Ireland take down its genealogy records platform? and Ayrshire Archives adds new finding aid for records by Chris Paton on Scottish GENES.

Protestant website in Germany advances by James Beidler on Roots & Branches.

How to Find German Civil and Church Records by Keri on Legacy Tree Genealogists.

Finding Your Ancestral Town: Your Go-To Resource by Michelle Chubenko on Galician Ancestry.

Looking Beyond My Favorite Newspaper Archive by Marcia Crawford Philbrick on Heartland Genealogy.

Stop Looking at Historic Maps Like a Modern Tourist by Jen Baldwin on Jen Baldwin.

Looking for the Rest of the Family by Jacqi Stevens on A Family Tapestry.

A ‘Scotsman’ Born in France – on the Trail of a Family Mystery by Nick Thorne on The Nosey Genealogist.

Review: Learning More About Old Family Photos Using AI, Part 6 by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

Ask AI: “Describe AI Use Cases For Genealogists and Family Historians” by Randy Seaver on Genea-Musings.

What My Husband Discovered About His Cousin Using AI – Part One by Deborah Carl on Mission: Genealogy.

AncestryDNA Updates Their Relationship Predictions by Dr. Leah Larkin on The DNA Geek.

Articles
Trail Museum & Archives and Trail Historical Society Announce Online Newspaper Collection, City of Trail, British Columbia.

“Tracing Forward” – New genealogy resource to find living Irish relatives, IrishCentral, New York, New York.

DNA tests will not answer every question about your family history, experts warn by Rosemary Collins, Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, Bristol, England.

For more gems like these throughout the week, join the Genealogy à la carte Facebook group. When you submit your request to join, you will be asked to answer two quick questions about your family history research.

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Canadian Legion’s Regina branch asks the public to help identify people in historical photos and documents

To commemorate the Royal Canadian Legion’s 100th anniversary, the Regina branch has launched a digital collection on MemorySask with more than 2,000 historical Saskatchewan military photos, letters and documents.

The branch is asking the public to help identify some of the people in the photographs.

The digital collection can be browsed or searched.

Kelsey Lonie, collections manager at the Regina Legion Museum, told the CBC that many of the photographs were donated by family members of people who have died.

“For the past almost 100 years they’ve been collecting and maintaining and holding artifacts in their collection that veterans donate or families bring in,” Ms. Lonie said.

“But a lot of it wasn’t described, and it wasn’t written down who these people were, because at the time everybody knew. But now when we find these items in our collection, we don’t always know.”

Anyone who recognizes an unidentified person on the site is encouraged to reach out to the organization by email at museum@reginalegion.com.

The CBC article about this collection includes a short video.

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Nova Scotia historical reviews available online

The Nova Scotia Archives holds an online collection of more than 70 issues of the Nova Scotia Historical Quarterly, 1971-1980, and the Nova Scotia Historical Review, 1981-1996, in the Library section on its website.

Theses issues are free to read online or download.

The articles include a variety of topics that may interest genealogists, such as Acadians, Loyalists, regional occupations, epidemics, education, religion, and slavery.

Lucky researchers may find articles about family members. For example, starting on page 169 of Volume 14, Number 1, 1994, you’ll find the article, The Tremaine Family of Nova Scotia, 1764-1994, Part One.

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This week’s crème de la crème — July 18, 2026

Some of the bijoux I discovered this week.

Crème de la crème of genealogy blogs

Blog posts
Weir(d?)Times at Library and Archives Canada and Your Stripped Bare Guide to Citing & Using History Sources by John Reid on Anglo-Celtic Connections.

Acadian Genealogical Research by Judy Nimer Muhn – A Review by Lori Samuelson on Genealogy At Heart.

Finding Your Way by Alison Spring on The Frugal Family Historian.

Ethnic origins of Scottish Travellers communities revealed by Chris Paton on Scottish GENES.

The new British Newspaper Archive arrives on 28 July on The British Newspaper Archive Blog.

How Immigrant Communities in the United States Can Help You Discover Your Ancestors’ Origins by Hannah on Legacy Tree Genealogists.

Ancestry’s New Hints Page: More Than a Layout Change by Doris Kenney on A Tree With No Name.

Ancestry’s New AI “Fill in Timeline Gaps” Feature: A First Look by Diane Henriks on Know Who Wears the Genes In Your Family.

The Village That Never Came Home by Paul Chiddicks on Stories Behind the Records.

Saying Goodbye by Jacqi Stevens on A Family Tapestry.

AI and Genealogy – Brick Walls, Breakthroughs and Blunders by Roberta Estes on DNAeXplained.

Outstanding Repair of Old Damaged Photographs by Google Gemini by James Tanner on Genealogy’s Star.

Learning More About Old Family Photos Using AI, Part 3 by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

Behold 2.0 Now Available by Louis Kessler on Behold Genealogy.

Articles
How Tens of Thousands of Irish Immigrants Led the Patriots to Victory During the American Revolution by Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, Washington, DC.

How did it feel to be an American colonist in 1776? Probably itchy, achy and slightly nauseated by Katherine Ott, The Conversation, Waltham, Massachussetts.

How to Find Italian Church Records by Melanie D. Holtz, Family Tree Magazine, Dublin, New Hampshire.

Genealogy Made Me A Better Caregiver for My Father With Dementia by Tamara Buzyna Adams, Being Patient, San Francisco, California.

These 18 Countries May Let You Claim Citizenship Through Your Grandparents or Great-Grandparents by Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, New York, New York.

For more gems like these throughout the week, join the Genealogy à la carte Facebook group. When you submit your request to join, you will be asked to answer two quick questions about your family history research.

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