Source:British Columbia, Canada. Marriage Registrations, 1859-1932

What is in This Collection?

This collection includes records from 1859 to 1932, 1937 and 1938. The set contains 8 volumes but v. A1 (A to J surnames, 1859-1872, British Columbia mainland) was missing at the time of filming and is not included in this set. The only persons excluded from the Births, Deaths, and Marriages Act of 1872 were Chinese and Aboriginals. This was changed by an amendment in 1897, stating the registration would apply to all races. These restrictions did not apply to pre-confederation marriages. Early registration records are very incomplete chiefly due to the fact that a majority of the population lived great distances from the registry offices and communication was difficult. The coverage of these records is small.

The pre-confederation marriages occurred in the colonies of British Columbia and Vancouver Island and were submitted to the Colonial Secretary by clergy. The two colonies were united in 1866 prior to the entry of British Columbia into the Confederation of Canada. British Columbia became a province of Canada in July 1871. The registration of vital events began in 1872.

The marriage registrations, begun in 1872, are recorded on individual, printed forms. They consist of completed statements regarding marriages submitted to district registrars and registered by the director of Vital Statistics. Note that these forms are not marriage certificates but registrations of marriages. Marriage certificates contain information from the original registration records and are only available through the British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency. The records prior to 1872 are pre-confederation (or colonial) marriage records.

Pre-confederation marriages were gathered and registration of marriages begun in order to keep a written record for use by the government. Pre-confederation records consist of certified marriage certificates, or returns of marriages, submitted by clergy of various denominations, as well as typed certified extracts (ca. 1933) from marriage registers maintained by churches and missions.

Marriage registrations were registered by the Director of Vital Statistics and include delayed registrations of marriages (1933-1977), registrations of Indian marriages (1917 -1956); and registrations of Doukhobour marriage (1959 - 1982). Registration images are arranged in order of registration number, which is often a red sequential number in the upper right-hand corner of the image. An alphabetical index by last name of groom has a "finding number" listed which is used to find the individual registration number. [from British Columbia Marriage Registrations - FamilySearch Historical Records 16 Oct 2019]