In addition to the clues pointing to other record groups, they may point to other people who could possess information on your family. It may be very advantageous to locate the people mentioned in these records in city directories or other modern references. Working with new found relatives can make the experience even more enjoyable, not to mention more profitable as every family member might provide another clue to your ancestry.

For More Help
Learning to analyze records properly takes practice. Professionals like Angus Baxter have written up their techniques In Search of Your Canadian Roots (available through Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, Maryland). Terrence M. Punch edited the Genealogist's Handbook for Atlantic Canada Research available through the New England Historic Genealogical Society. It covers Newfoundland-Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Acadian research. It also describes the availability of other record types. You might want to use this resource in conjunction with civil registrations. Brenda Dougall Merriman has covered the province of Ontario well in Genealogy in Ontario: Searching the Records.

If you find yourself with a French-Canadian research problem be sure to consult Dennis M. Boudreau's Beginning Franco-American Genealogy. It particularly helps the English speaker who knows little French and explains how to read the original French Canadian records and published marriage repertories.

Quebec researchers are also greatly aided by Marthe Faribault-Beauregard and Eve Beauregard-Malak. La Généalogie: Retrouver ses ancêtres. (Genealogy: To Find One's Ancestors.) It focuses on French Canadian Catholic sources in Quebec.