The Canada Gazette (1841 to 1997)
The Canada Gazette is the official newspaper of the Government of Canada. It informs Canadians about government operations and involves them in the legislative process. It includes statutes, new and proposed regulations, administrative board decisions and public notices. You may search the collection of Library and Archives Canada (LAC) for digitized issues from 1841 to 1997.
To find digitized issues from 1998 to the present, visit the official website of the Canada Gazette .
Search Canada Gazette, 1841 to 1997
You may search LAC's Collection Search database to find digitized issues from 1841 to 1997.
Search tips
If your search is not successful, it may be for one of these reasons:
- If you don’t get results from keyword searching, it may be due to significant problems with the scanned text in the back end of the database. For example, the letter “o” often didn’t scan properly. In that case, you may want to try entering keywords without the “o,” such as “immigratin” instead of “immigration.” If that still doesn’t work, check the indexes for the series/title or year.
- If you can’t find a particular issue or page, it may have been missed in the initial digitization
- If you can’t find a particular item, it might be in another series or part of the Gazette; knowing how the Gazette is structured can be very helpful when you are searching, see “What is in the Canada Gazette, 1841 to 1997”
Ask Us a Question if you need help using indexes or finding missing issues and pages.
For more general guidance on how to use Collection search, visit Using Collection Search.
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From the search results, click on the links to see images of the records.
About the images
The images in this database were created from a microfiche copy of paper copies. Because the paper was very thin, the text on the opposite page can be seen, sometimes making the text hard to read.
What is in the Canada Gazette, 1841 to 1997
The Gazette has been published without a break since 1841. Many changes have been made over the years in the way it is organized.
History
- 1841 — started publication on October 2
- 1841 to 1946 — published in two different series (Province of Canada and federal)
- 1947 to today — published in 3 parts
For more information:
- 160 years of the Canada Gazette
- Deavy, Betty and Norma Gauld. “The Canada Gazette.” Canadian Parliamentary Review. Vol. 17, no. 2, summer 1994: 30-32
1841-1869 (Province of Canada)
The first series of the Gazette replaced the Upper Canada Gazette and the Lower Canada Gazette, and deals with matters such as:
- appointments
- proclamations
- regulations
- bankruptcy and sales of real estate under the Insolvent Act, 1864
- divorces
From 1841 to 1853, there were no volume numbers, only issue numbers. In 1853, volume numbering started with Volume 12.
Indexes
- 1841 — has the cumulative index for 1841-1844
- 1845 to 1868 — indexes for each year
The language of a published notice or item is not noted in the index.
1867-1946 (Dominion of Canada)
The second series of the Gazette started with the creation of the Dominion of Canada. It overlaps with the previous series for two years and deals with matters such as:
- proclamations
- parliamentary, government, and corporation notices (majority dealing with Quebec)
- general Orders in Council
- some material from London (such as notices from the British government)
- notices of bankruptcy
- sale of real estate
- rules of court for Quebec
- new statutes (occasionally published as a supplement)
Volume numbering restarted for this series, and it runs from volumes 1-80.
Indexes
- 1867 to 1946 – annual indexes
Some of the indexes were done by the calendar year (January to December), and some by the government’s fiscal year (July to June in the early years, April to March in later years).
Sometimes two years were published in one volume, which has been filed under the earlier year in the database.
If an item is available in French, the page number of the French appears in brackets after the English page number in the index.
Part I (1947-1997)
In January 1947, the Gazette was divided into Part I and Part II. Part I was published weekly on Saturdays and includes:
- awards, appointments, uncleared bank accounts
- announcements of appeals, decisions, public notices, public hearings, inquiries and notices from Government House concerning
- proclamations
- statutory instruments other than regulations
- starting in 1986, text of proposed regulations, including Regulatory Impact Analysis Statements
- some Orders in Council (also see Part II)
- some divorces (also see Part II)
Volume numbering for this part continues from the previous series, and it runs from volumes 81-131.
Indexes
- 1947 to 1971 — indexes for each year
- 1971 forward — quarterly indexes with no annual cumulation
Up to December 1969, if the item is available in French, the page number of the French appears in brackets after the English pagination. From January 1970 on, each issue is bilingual, with English and French in parallel columns.
Part II (1947-1997)
In January 1947, the Gazette was divided into Part I and Part II. Part II was published every other Wednesday, and includes:
- regulations: Statutory Instruments (SI) and Statutory Orders of Regulation (SOR)
- Orders in Council
- divorces
Volume numbering for this part continues from the previous series, and it runs from volumes 81-131.
Indexes
- 1947 and 1948 — has a list of subjects for each year
- 1947 to 1949 — includes a table of contents and a list of statutory orders and regulations
- 1950 to 1997 — quarterly consolidated indexes that include a list of subjects and a list of statutory orders and regulations (from March 1950 onward, all indexes are cumulated back to January 1, 1950)
Part III (1974-1997)
In December 1974, the Gazette added Part III for acts that concern the public. Part III was published as needed (decided by the Department of Justice), and includes:
- full text of all public acts that received Royal Assent and became law
- related proclamations or Orders in Council
Volume numbering for this part starts over, and runs from 1-20.
Indexes
-
1974 to 1993 — includes these tables:
- Table of
roclamations (in each issue), non-cumulating
- Table of Public Statutes (in many issues, cumulating)
- Table of Acts and the Ministers Responsible for their Administration (in each issue, cumulating)
- Table of
- August 1993 to 1997 — includes Table of Proclamations (in each issue)
-
August 1993 to 1997 — these tables were published separately:
- Table of Public Statutes
- Table of Acts and the Ministers Responsible
Extras and Supplements
Extras and supplements were created as needed. They do not always follow the numbering and pagination of the regular issues. You will find them in all series and parts except Part III.
Indexes
- 1841 to 1946 — indexes for each year
- 1947 forward — indexes in their respective parts
Language of the material
The language of the Gazette depends on the year of publication:
- 1841-1843 — very little French content
- 1843 to 1969 — French content gradually increases
- In earlier years, English is almost always printed first, then translated into French and published in a separate issue
- In later years, French content may appear in mostly-English issues
- 1970 to 1997 — every issue is fully bilingual with English and French in parallel columns
