The New Brunswick Museum Archives & Research Library

New Brunswick Museum – Saint John

The New Brunswick Museum is Canada’s oldest continuing museum. It was officially incorporated as the “Provincial Museum” in 1929, and received its current name in 1930, although its lineage can be traced back as far as 1842.

The holdings of the Archives & Research Library complement the artifact and specimen collections of the museum. The archival holdings include business records, personal papers, and ephemera, relating to the economic, social, legal, military, religious and political life of New Brunswick, with a 19^th century emphasis.

The library collections include the Museum library with approximately 45,000 monographs and 500 periodical titles; the Webster Canadiana library, and the Ganong library. Both the library and archival collections are used on a regular basis by genealogical researchers, and there are many resources in both collections which relate to Irish ancestry.

The archival holdings include resources such as correspondence in individual family papers; scrapbooks, diaries, journals, records of service, Saint John County Alms and Work House admittance and emigrant registers, as well as ephemeral items which include certificates, programs and invitations. Thematic guides have been created for some subject areas, including Irish ancestry, and finding aids are available for larger collections. The library holdings include census records and indexes, microfilm of the genealogical and historical card index, city directories, marriage/probate indexes, published family histories, county and city histories, and reference resources dealing specifically with Irish immigration.

Both the library and archival databases are accessible online through the New Brunswick Museum’s website at www.nbm-mnb.ca

Archives & Research Library – NB Museum

At various times throughout the year, the Archives & Research Library holds genealogical information sessions which include a tour of the archives as well as information on the types of resources available to genealogical researchers. These sessions are free to the public, but do require pre-registration.

The Archives and Research Library is situated in Saint John at the Douglas Ave. location of the New Brunswick Museum and is open to the public from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm, Monday to Saturday (not open Saturdays during July and August, or on long weekends). Inquiries can be directed as follows: