Getting Started with Online Services & Databases

Canadiana Online is a digitized collection of books, periodicals, government publications, annuals and newspapers about Canada published from the time of European contact to the early 20th century.  

Monographs

Topics from major historical events to the development of institutions, laws and science, from Canadian literature to philosophy, agriculture to politics and trade. Available in 47 languages, including 14 Indigenous languages.

Periodicals

Includes specialized journals (e.g. trade and industry journals, and mass-market magazines, city directories, and annual reports from churches, schools and corporations).

Government publications

Includes committee reports, royal commission reports, voters’ lists and treaties.

How to access Canadiana Online

1. Go to the library's home page and enter “canadiana online” in the search window
2. Click on “Access Online” under “Canadiana Online”

Search

1. Enter term(s) in the search box for all collections.
2. Browse one of the three specific collections by accessing at the bottom of page: monographs, periodicals or government publications.
3. Click on "?" for helpful tips on how to search for an exact phrase or for alternate terms, etc. 

Results

Results show the title and date of the document.

1. Limit the search results with options on the left.
2. Add a term to your original search term(s).
3. Search in a particular field, e.g. Titles, Creator Names, Subjects.
4. Change the sort order of results from relevance to date of publication, from newest to oldest or the reverse.
5. Limit by date range and language.
6. Search within a specific collection; or, if you started by searching in a specific collection, expand the search to all collections.

Documents

Click on the title in the results to go to the page viewer where you can:

1. Search within the document (at the top of the screen) or jump to a specific image or page
2. Use the arrows to navigate through the document
3. Rotate the image (curved arrows)
4. Zoom in / out
5. Download and print a PDF copy if available.

The “About” tab gives bibliographic information about the document. Use the Creator names or Subjects to perform a name or subject search back on the search results page, to find similar documents.

For more information or for help, please contact our Answerline service.