Welcome to Canada.ca

More than a century ago, on June 6, 1919, the Canadian National Railway Company was born. Its incorporation consolidated private and public railway systems in 1920 to one public organization. The intention was for the new rail company to provide stable rail service to all parts of Canada.

A land settlement division, called the Canadian National Land Settlement Association (CNLSA), was established within CN’s Colonization and Agriculture Department on March 9, 1925, as part of their program to promote immigration and land settlement in Canada, which had significant negative impacts on First Nations, Inuit and the Métis Nation. Over 27,000 immigrants were assisted by the CNLSA. Land was located and money released to immigrants to purchase land, equipment and livestock.

Many of these photographic reports were recently digitized. You can help tag and transcribe these reports. Maybe you will see where your ancestors came from, or maybe you will spot the first farm they purchased! These CNLSA archival records are a treasure trove of information, particularly for Western Canadian farm settlement, and we hope this will excite new and long-term genealogists alike.