British Columbia Genealogical Society

Photo Courtesy of Chris Albrecht

Welcome to the British Columbia Genealogical Society

We are a registered charitable organization with over 300 members from a variety of backgrounds and, like you, we all have an interest in researching our family history in British Columbia and beyond. We hope you will consider joining our Society.

The BCGS Library is OPEN Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 10AM - 3PM

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The BCGS Library is OPEN Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 10AM - 3PM 〰️

The BCGS would like to acknowledge the ceded and unceded Indigenous ancestral territories of BC and Canada. We are grateful for the opportunity to learn the history, culture and traditions of the First Nations Peoples, alongside our personal investigations of familial settler history and encourage everyone to reflect on the Indigenous history of the lands where they reside.

BCGS Activities and Highlights

  • Members Meeting & AGM Mar. 12th 7:30 pm via Zoom

    Guest Speaker:Ron Williams
    The Lost Fifty-Seven:
    A Genealogical Journey of Discovery, Deception, Secrets, and Scandal

    Join us! Non-members email
    info@bcgs.ca to receive an invitation.

    Learn more

  • **Open Research Day at the BCGS Library**

    Sunday March 16th 9:30 am - 4:00 pm
    Join us for an Open Research Day at the BCGS Library - the largest genealogical library in Western Canada.

    More details here

  • Genealogy for Beginners (via Zoom)

    Next Classes Begin: May 2025 
    Mondays, 7-9 pm (6:40-9:15 Zoom) 
    May 5, 12, 26, Jun 2, 9, 16.
    (skip May 19 for Victoria Day Holiday)

    Presented by Celia Lewis
    and Eunice Robinson
    Registration is now OPEN.

    Details & Registration

Calendar of Upcoming BCGS Local & Zoom Events

 

March 12, 2025

BCGS AGM and
Members’ Virtual Meeting

Members Chat - 7:00 - 7:30 pm
Meeting Starts - 7:30 pm

Guest Speaker: Ron Williams

The Lost Fifty-Seven: A Genealogical Journey of Discovery, Deception, Secrets, and Scandal

For a ZOOM invitation, please contact info@bcgs.ca.

 

“What’s Up” In Genealogy in BC and Beyond

  • Canadian Letters and Images Project

    Canadian Letters & Images Project - A digitization project for those who served Canada in conflict or war. Learn how you can contribute and what has already been digitized.

    Canadian Letters

  • ProQuest - Online Access to BC Newspapers

    ProQuest provides free online access to past issues of the Vancouver Sun (1912-2010), Vancouver Province (1894-2010) and Victoria Times Colonist 1884-2010) for anyone in B.C. or the Yukon.

    ProQuest

  • Legacy Family Tree Webinars

    The world’s most popular webinar website for genealogy and DNA testing, where you can enjoy a robust offering of live and recorded webinars presented by top speakers. Over 2000 webinars to choose from.

    Legacy Webinars

  • The Old Cemeteries Society of Victoria

    2025 Tours and Excursions
    Our tours begin at 2 pm. No reservations needed. It costs $5 for non-members and $2 for members. The fee can be paid by cash or e-transfer.

    Tour locations are noted in the description. Most of our tours take place at Ross Bay Cemetery, RBC. For the Ross Bay Cemetery tours we meet at the cemetery entrance on Fairfield Road, opposite the south end of Stannard Street.

    Details and Schedule
  • Donna Rutherford

    The Hull Mystery (the Story of John Dring)

    15 March 2025 11am-1pm (EST)

    Speaker: Donna Rutherford. Presented by The International Society for British Genealogy and Family History. The Hull Mystery uncovers a century-old secret about my great grandfather John Dring. Born in 1874 in Sculcoates Hull, Yorkshire, John ran off to New Zealand, unaware that his true parentage may have been hidden right next door. DNA evidence suggests that John might not have been who he thought he was – but did he know? 

    Register Here

  • Scottish Indexes Conference

    Saturday March 15, 2025

    Interested in tracing your Scottish genealogy? The Scottish Indexes Conference is an opportunity to learn new research skills, discover diverse records and see how others have put these into practice. If you want to trace your Scottish family tree, this is the event for you. It is a FREE online event.

    Details & Registration

  • Caribbean Research for your British Ancestors

    24 March 2025 11am-6pm (EST)

    Presented by the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History. Join us for a genealogical journey through the Caribbean Islands! Our expert guides, Dan Poffenberger, AG, and Todd Knowles will describe the “five W’s” of Caribbean research. You’ve got questions? They’ve got answers!

    Register Here

  • Nova Scotia Genealogy Virtual Conference

    The Genealogical Association of Nova Scotia's annual virtual genealogy conference is returning for its third year from May 3 - 4, 2025. Registration is now open for this two day conference.

    If you register by March 18 you can enter into our Brick Wall Buster Session where genealogical experts will tackle your toughest Nova Scotia genealogy brick wall.

    Details and Registration

  • Briitsh Institute 2025

    6 -10 October 2025 in Salt Lake City Presented by the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History. Attend in person or purchase access to video recordings.
    Scotland: Chris Paton
    Feudalism, Foes and Fornication: Tracing Your Family History in Scotland
    Ireland: Fintan Mullan and Gillian Hunt,
    Tracing Irish and Scots-Irish Ancestors
    England: Paul Milner
    English Research: The Fundamentals and Beyond

    Register Here

Become a member