What is it?
Some of Library and Archives Canada manuscript group collections were indexed on cards. The cards are arranged alphabetically and include names, places and subjects. The collections are from various time periods between the 1600s and the early 1980s.
The General Index is in card cabinets in the Reference Services room on the second floor at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa.
The cards were microfilmed in 1982 on reels H-1312 to H-1342. Any additional cards that were created were not added to the main set of index cards, but were filed in supplementary indexes. Those four additional indexes were also microfilmed, on reels H-1762, H-1763, H-1764, H-1458 and H-1814. We recommend that you search all the supplementary indexes as well as the original General Index.
Some of the collections indexed on these cards were later indexed in electronic formats that are now searchable in
Collection Search. You can also search many of our other archival collections in that database.
How to search it
Browse the
General Index and the
Supplementary Indexes lists below for the content of each microfilm reel.
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General Index
* Microfilm H-1312 begins with a series of cards that itemize the collections and finding aids included in the General Index (Abbott to Wurtele family, images 4 to 521). The General Index starts with image 522 (Aartsengel).
Microfilm numbers | Starts with | Ends with |
---|
H-1312* | Abbott, Sir John Joseph Caldwell | Wurtele Family |
H-1312* | Aartsengel | Association nationale des fonctionnaires fédéraux |
H-1313 | Association of American... | Bell, J. Jones |
H-1314 | Bell, J. Langlois | Bourgeois, Phileas F. |
H-1315 | Bourgeois, Pierre | Butterfield, Monsieur |
H-1316 | Butterfield, Col. D.S. | Carleton, Sir Guy |
H-1317 | Carleton, Sir Guy | Clarke, Sir G.T. |
H-1318 | Clarke, G.W. | Crawford, Mr. |
H-1319 | Crawford, Allan | Desjardins, Pierre Léonard |
H-1320 | Desjardins, Raimbault | Eager, Joseph S. |
H-1321 | Eager, William L.P. | Fisheries - New Brunswick |
H-1322 | Fisheries - New Brunswick | Gasy, J. |
H-1323 | Gate, A. | Great Britain - Foreign Relations |
H-1324 | Great Britain - Imperial War Cabinet | Healy Falls |
H-1325 | Healey, Jeremiah | Ilsley, Hon. J.L. |
H-1326 | Ilsley, J.L. | Kellum, Lebbeus |
H-1327 | Kelley (Kelley), A. | Langevin, François |
H-1328 | Langevin, Sir Hector | Livestock |
H-1329 | Livestock | Louis, Major de St. |
H-1330 | Makalainey, T. | McGillivary, William |
H-1331 | McGillivray, William | Mitchel, Jehial |
H-1332 | Mitchel, John | Needham, Mark |
H-1333 | Needham, Richard | Owen, W. |
H-1334 | Owen, W. | Plante, Joseph |
H-1335 | Plante, Joseph | Ranson, William |
H-1336 | Ransted, James | Routh, Randolph |
H-1337 | Routh, W. | Semelle, 0. |
H-1338 | Semelte, Count | Spry, Graham |
H-1339 | Spry, Graham | Thibitts, Alexander |
H-1340 | Thibodeau, A.A. | Upper Canada |
H-1341 | Upper Canada | Wheeler |
H-1342 | Wheeler, A. | Zybala, Stan |
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Supplementary Indexes
Microfilm numbers | Starts with | Ends with |
---|
H-1458 | Supplementary index 1: A | Young |
H-1814 | Supplementary index 2: A | Z |
H-1762 | Supplementary index 3: Allard, Thomas | Yuzack |
H-1762 | Supplementary index 4: (starts on image 67) Abbott, Hon. D.C. | Guillett, George |
H-1763 | Supplementary index 4: Guion, Antoine | Secord, Laura |
H-1764 | Supplementary index 4: Sedwick, Gordon | Zynchuck |
Digitized microfilm
The reels are digitized on our partner website Héritage:
General Index: digitized microfilm
From the list on Héritage, select the relevant reel number and click on it to open the digitized microfilm. You can browse through the images, skipping ahead to find the relevant alphabetical section.
What to do next
Each card usually includes a brief description of the item, a date and the name of the fonds (collection). The information on the cards is in the language of the records.
Some cards will give a complete archival reference, for example MG29 D61, volume 9, pages 3201 to 3203.
For complete references, see our web page that explains options for how to
access the records.
Note that there are some cards from collections relating to immigration before 1865. Those references are now indexed in these databases:
Partial references
Some cards only give a manuscript group number, for example MG8 F20, without a volume, page or other identifier. Sometimes there is a volume number, but no page number.
Some cards only give a finding aid number, for example FA438. Sometimes a page number from the finding aid is provided. A finding aid is a descriptive list of contents of a collection.
For incomplete references, you should start by reading the description of the fonds. Use Collection Search and enter the name of the fonds as the keyword. Many of the record descriptions include digitized finding aids that provide volume, page and microfilm numbers. If you can find the relevant reference information for the item you found in the index cards, you can then read the options for how to
access the records.
If you need further assistance, you can send an inquiry using our
Ask us a question form. Be sure to include all the information from the index card and explain that you found it in the General Index.
List of abbreviations and terms
Here are some of the terms you will see on the cards.
- F.A. (f. a.)
- Finding Aid (a descriptive list of contents of a collection)
-
I.R. (i.r.)
-
Instrument de recherche
-
Instrument de recherche
- Finding Aid
- MG or FM
- Manuscript Group or
Fonds Manuscrits
- Public Archives of Canada
- former name of Library and Archives Canada
- RG
- Record Group
See
Glossary of Terms to learn about finding aids, fonds and other archival terms.