Medical personnel

Find records for researching nurses, doctors and others who worked in the medical field, such as coroners.

Before you start

Gather as much information as you can about the person, such as:

their approximate year of birth
the type of medical profession they worked in
the location where they worked
the time period when they worked

If you are not sure where the person worked, try city directories or census returns.

Places to look

Most records relating to medical professions are held at provincial and territorial institutions, organizations or associations, and university archives. However, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) holds the following records relating to medical licences and applications made before 1867. There are also some published sources.

Applications for Medical Licences from 1788 to 1848 in Quebec, Lower Canada, Canada East

These records are arranged by date and indexed by name in the General Index. If you find a reference in the index, it will give the reference, volume and page number(s). Some documents are in French and some in English.

The microfilm is digitized on Héritage.

Court of Quarter Sessions from 1818 to 1841 in Quebec

These records are typed transcripts of authorizations for licences to practise medicine in the Province of Lower Canada (MG8-B10, volume 1). There are 25 applicants who lived in the city of Québec. The licences are in English.

To search for a name, use Collection Search. In the search box, enter the person’s name and MG8-B10. If you find a reference, make a note of the page number. You will need it if you want to order a copy of the item.

Medical licences, 1818–1841, MG8-B10

Authorizations for licences to practice medicine in the Province of Lower Canada (Quebec)

Name	Type of licence (as written in the document)	Year	Page number(s)
Blanchet, John	Surgeon	1820	1
Bowles, Joseph	Chymist, Druggist and Apothicary	1837	24 and 25
Brent, James	Apothecary and Druggist	1829	15 and 16
Christie, Robert Andre	Physician, Surgeon and Manmidwife	1837	25 and 26
Fortier, Octave C.	Physic and Surgery	1830	17 and 18
Hall, John Lilly	Physic, Surgery and Midwifery	1839	26, 27 and 28
Lyons, William	Physic and Surgery	1831	12, 13 and 14
Marsden, William	Physic and Surgery	1830	14 and 15
Martin, Francis Joseph	Physic, Surgery and Midwifery	1827	11 and 12
Martin, Vincent	Physic, Surgery and Midwifery	1832	23 and 24
Michaud, Alexis Thomas	Physician, Surgeon and Manmidwife	1833	22 and 23
Murray, Francis	Medecine, Surgery and Midwifery	1825	7 and 8
Nault, Jean Zephirin	Physician, Surgeon and Manmidwife	1835	18 and 19
Parent, Joseph	Medecine and Surgery	1820	9 and 10
Perrault, Charles N.	Doctor in Medecine	1818	3
Poole, Charles	Physician, Surgeon and Manmidwife	1835	20 and 21
Reece, William	Physic and Surgery	1823	2
Roberts, George	Physic, Surgery and Midwifery	1823	10 and 11
Rowler, John	Surgeon	1819	8 and 9
Scott, Montague	Physician, Surgeon and Manmidwife	1836	21 and 22
Seguin, François Jacques	Physic and Surgery	1822	16 and 17
Sims, Lindsay	Ship's Surgeon HMS MUTINE	1826	5 and 6
Tessier, François-Xavier	Physic and Surgery	1826	4
Whitelaw, John	Physic and Surgery	1826	6 and 7
Wolff, James Fitzgerald	Physic, Surgery and Midwifery	1841	28 and 29

Medical Board Certificates and Reports, Upper Canada (Ontario), 1819 to 1854

These records are indexed by name in the General Index. If you find a reference in the index, it will give the page number(s). Use this list to find the corresponding volume number, which you will need if you want to order a copy.

RG5-B9, volume 61, 1819 to 1828, pages 1 to 226
RG5-B9, volume 62, 1829 to 1834, pages 227 to 605
RG5-B9, volume 63, 1835 to 1846, pages 606 to 941
RG5-B9, volume 64, 1846 to 1848, pages 942 to 1006
RG5-B9, volume 65, 1849 to 1850, pages 1007 to 1011
RG5-B9, volume 66, 1851, pages 1012 to 1060
RG5-B9, volume 67, 1852 to 1853, pages 1061 to 1148
RG5-B9, volume 68, 1854, pages 1149 to 1191

Register of Medical Licences Issued, Upper and Lower Canada (Ontario and Quebec), 1819 to 1867

This register is a list of names showing the date each person’s licence was issued. The register is arranged by surname.

RG68, Register Medical Licences, microfilm C-3947

Registers of Licences for Surgery and Midwifery, Canada West (Ontario), 1866 to 1867

These are copies of licences issued for the practice of physic surgery and midwifery. Each certificate includes a name, date and place.

RG68, Liber Canada LT, microfilm C-3908

Register of Coroners of Upper Canada (Ontario), 1800 to 1867

These records relate to people who were appointed to act as coroners. The documents include name, date and place. At the front of each register there is an index arranged geographically by county and city:

RG68, Liber Canada HR, 1800 to 1866, microfilm C-3908
RG68, Liber Canada LE, 1866 to 1867, microfilm C-3908

Other

If a doctor or other medical worker donated their personal papers to LAC, the collection will be described in Collection Search.

Select “Collections and Fonds” and enter the person’s name in the keyword box.

Published sources

Search the Aurora library catalogue for books, using keywords such as:

medicine
biographies
history
physicians
a name or place

Here are some examples:

Access the records

Digitized records

If you find a record of interest, there may be a digital image. Some of these are available through Collection Search. Some microfilm reels are available through Héritage.

Records that are not digitized

For records that are not digitized, you will need to see them in person. If you cannot visit us in person, you may want to order copies or hire a researcher.

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