Local History and Genealogy
Brampton Library offers a range of local history and genealogy information, including a wealth of archived materials and online databases, and Ontario Genealogical Society materials, at our Four Corners Branch.
Local History | Genealogy | Multicultural History I Online Databases | Newspapers I Other Local Collections | Memoirs Writing Group I Other Links | Sample video clips | Through Our Eyes
Local History
The purpose of the Local History Collection is to discover and preserve the historical and cultural development of the City of Brampton and the former Townships of Chinguacousy and Toronto Gore. Available resources include books, pamphlets, newspapers, City directories, historic atlases, maps, voters' lists, annual reports of local industries, school yearbooks, and specialized and general reports of the Region of Peel and the City of Brampton. The collection is indexed in an in-house catalogue and can be used in the Library during regular operating hours. It is located on the second floor of the Four Corners Branch. Two (2) microfilm machines and one (1) microfiche viewer are available for customer use. Copies can be made from microfilms for just $0.20 each.
Through Our Eyes - History, Community and Diversity
Brampton Library invites you to learn about Brampton's history directly from the people who lived it. A book of stories by local seniors and a series of interviews on DVD are available for loan individually or as a kit (which includes posters and a portable DVD player that can be used to create a display).
Genealogy
Brampton Library is a repository for the Ontario Genealogical Society's Halton-Peel Branch materials. The Genealogy Collection is housed with the Local History Collection at the Four Corners Branch. Accessible during regular operating hours, this collection includes family histories; census records; church records and church history; cemetery transcriptions; marriage registers; loyalist history; Ontario birth, marriage and death indexes; Perkins Bull collections; passenger lists; genealogy newsletters; and the International Genealogical Index (IGI) (1988 edition on microfiche).
Multicultural History
Celebrating Brampton's Diversity is a special project completed by Brampton Library. Brampton is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in Canada, and in order to recognize and celebrate this diversity, the Library invited prominent members of the multicultural community to participate in a series of videotaped interviews. To see the full interviews and others, please visit the Local History Department at the Four Corners Branch.
Online Databases
Brampton Library offers access to excellent online databases:
- Ancestry Library Edition
(only available from within the Library) - Canada's Heritage from 1844 - The Globe and Mail
Requires your 14 digit library barcode number (no spaces) - Toronto Star - Pages of the Past
Requires your 14 digit library barcode number (no spaces)
Newspapers
The Brampton Guardian is the City's main newspaper for community information. News articles have been indexed from its inception in 1964 and can be viewed at the Library's Four Corners Branch.
The Brampton Conservator/Daily Times ceased publication in 1989. The microfilms are available from 1867-1989. They are only indexed (for births, marriages and deaths only) from 1867-1929. This information can also be viewed at the Library's Four Corners Branch.
The Peel Newspaper Index includes entries for the Brampton Guardian from 1979 to the present (news articles, as well as births, marriages & deaths) can be accessed by clicking here.
Other Local Collections
9 Wellington St E
Brampton, ON L6W 1Y1
(905) 791-4055
Fax: (905) 451-4931
10062 Bramalea Rd (Bramalea Rd & Bovaird Dr)
Brampton, ON
(905) 799-3214
Memoirs Writing Group
A local Memoirs Writing Group meets at the Four Corners Branch on alternate Wednesdays, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., with some exceptions. For more information on the group, please call Diane at (905) 451-8056.
Other Links
Local
- Halinet (Halton County history and indexes, including indexes to land records, census records, surrogate court records, newspapers, military records and more)
- Local Peel History Databases (Peel region libraries and archives links)
- Ontario Genealogical Society (OGS) Halton-Peel Branch
Ontario
- Archives of Ontario - please note - As of April 2, 2009, the Ontario Arcives is now located at their new facility at York University. Phone numbers and email addresses will remain the same.
- Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid
- Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) Ontario Chapter
Canada
United States
- Ancestry.com (Access to Brampton Library's subscription is only available from within the library)
- Ellis Island
- US National Archives
United Kingdom
- Genuki (large collection of genealogical information pages for England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man)
- Public Records Office (London, England)
Miscellaneous
