Vital Records - British Columbia
Civil registration in British Columbia began in 1872. Any earlier records are called “colonial” as British Columbia was a colony prior to becoming a province. Privacy laws restrict public access to these records, imposing a waiting period before records are released, as follows:
- Births released: after 120 years
- Marriages released: after 75 years
- Deaths released: after 20 years
Immediate family may bypass privacy restrictions and apply for a copy of a birth, marriage or death directly to the department of vital statistics: This is NOT a free service.
Scroll down to the “Genealogy” section.
Online
The best resource to find a free, publicly available registration is the BC Archives Index online.
Most entries are digitized, but if there is no jpg file showing the original document note the microfilm number (which starts with a B) and the registration number, as this will be available on microfilm (see below).
Two other groups of records that are available at BC Archives are the following:
- Baptisms: 1836-1888
- Colonial Marriage 1859-1872
These are particularly useful for First Nations research, especially when searching by location. *Hint* Use the “Advanced” search form. Please note that the only record is what you see on the BC Archives database. NO microfilm exists for these two types of records.
The Family History department has some finding aids for vital records in its print collection. An example:
BC Genealogical Society. British Columbia Vital Statistics from Newspapers. Library call number: 929.3711 POR 1994
Microfilm
The Family History department has microfilm records for the following years:
- Births: 1854-1903
- Marriages: 1872-1933
- Deaths: 1872-1988
To find your vital record on microfilm, you will need a B series film number, and the registration number. For example, from the following indexed marriage record from the BC Archives online index, the B number is B13890 and the registration number is 1924-09-008790.
Usually, of the last six digits of the registration number (008790 from the above example), the first 3 digits represent the volume number, and the last three indicate the file number. In most cases you will simply find the 6-digit registration number on the film just as you saw it online. However, if you can’t find your record on the film because the numbers appear to be wrong, your number may be split. Check that you are searching the correct volume on the film (top or bottom of the record). Once you are in the correct volume, search within that volume for the last 3 digits of the registration number, ignoring all other preceding numbers on the film record. From the example above, within volume 008, look for the file number ending in 790.
FamilySearch.org is a good secondary resource for digitized BC Vital records. Search results with a camera icon indicate that the record has been digitized.
You may also find some more recent vital records in newspapers. Three good sources for BC historical newspapers are: