All Surrey Libraries branches will be closed Friday, April 18 for Good Friday and Monday, April 21 for Easter Monday. All branches are open Saturday, April 19, and all branches, except Port Kells, are open on Sunday, April 20.
Newspaper Resources
Directories
These directories at Cloverdale Library will help you determine which newspapers were being published at the time and place of death.
- Union Catalogue of British Columbia Newspapers, Vol. 3 Komorous, Hana (comp.) Call No. GEN 071.11 UNI 1987
- Union List of Canadian Newspapers held by Canadian Libraries National Library of Canada Call No. GEN 071.1 NAT 1977
- New Brunswick Newspaper Directory, 1783-1988 Craig, Helen (comp.) Call No. GEN 015.7151 CRA 1989
- Early Toronto Newspapers, 1793-1867 Firth, Edith G. (ed.) Call No. GEN 071.13 EAR 1961
- Historical Directory of Manitoba Newspapers, 1859-1978 Loveridge, D.M. Call No. GEN 071.127 LOV 1978
- Inventory of Ontario Newspapers, 1793-1986 Gilchrist, J. Brian (comp. & ed.) Call No. GEN 071.13 INV 1987
Newspapers on Microfilm
Most historic newspapers are in this format. The following links will help you locate institutions that have the particular newspaper you are looking for. Some microfilms are available through inter-library loan. You will need to know the date and place of death in order to find an obituary on microfilm.
- B.C. Archives: The B.C. Archives is located in Victoria. While their microfilm collection is not available via interlibrary loan, the collection is open to the public.
- Canadian Newspapers on Microform held by Library & Archives Canada: The list is organized by Province.
- Surrey Archives
Located next door to Cloverdale Library, the Archives has the following newspapers on microfilm: Surrey Leader (1929-2004), The British Columbian (1864-1885), The Daily Columbian (18-1910 & 1949-1951), The British Columbia Fraser Valley Edition (1890-1922), Westminster Columbian (1964-1966), The Surrey Gazette (1917-1929), The Surrey Times (Apr-Oct 1895), The Now (1992-2015). - Surrey Public Library – Cloverdale Branch
Cloverdale Branch has the following newspapers on microfilm: Province (1993-2019), The Vancouver Sun (1979-2019), Surrey Leader (1929-2005), Surrey Now (1984-89; 1994-2009), Surrey Times (1985), Surrey Gazette (1917-1929). Visit Cloverdale yourself or check with Information Staff about obtaining copies of obituaries from these microfilms. - University of British Columbia: Lists newspapers both in print and on microfilm held at Koerner Library which is open to the public.
- Vancouver Public Library has a large collection of newspapers on microfilm.
Newspapers Online
Many newspapers have their own website; however access to obituaries varies from paper to paper. Many offer free access to obituaries from the past 30 days but charge a fee for older ones. Obituaries older than 2004 are harder to find. Check the website of the newspaper you are interested in for details. The following links will help you locate online newspapers where you can search the obituary section.
- The British Columbia Digital Library provides links to current and historic newspapers world-wide.
- The Surrey Leader provides free online access to obituaries from 2004 to the present.
- The Vancouver Public Library website offers access to digital images of the Globe & Mail from 1844-2018 and Canadian Historical Newspapers. You will need a Vancouver Public Library card to access these records.