Selected colonial-period inquisitions/inquests
- GR-1328
- Series
- 1859-1871
The series consists of copies of inquisitions and inquests selected from GR-1372, Colonial Correspondence (1852-1872). It includes inquisitions (inquests) conducted during the colonial period, including the following:
-Vancouver Island (Colony), 1859 - 18 Nov 1866 numbered VI 1859/1 to VI 1866/4
-British Columbia (Colony), 1859 - 18 Nov 1866 numbered BC 1859/1 to BC 1866
-British Columbia (United Colony), 19 Nov 1866 - 20 Jul 1871 numbered BC 1866/2 to BC 1871/3
The files usually contain an inquisition form, which indicates the name of the deceased, the coroner's name, where the inquest was held, the date, names of the members of the coroner's jury and the cause of death.
These inquests were filed in the Colonial Correspondence under the name of the coroner or person conducting them. The indexing was incomplete and only those inquests held by persons whose last name begins with letters from A-M have been listed. It is not known whether this section of listings is complete.
To locate unindexed colonial inquests, researchers should look under the heading "deaths" in the index to miscellaneous correspondence inwards to the British Columbia Colonial Secretary, 1858-1863 (C/AB/30.lKl/l). Letters to which the index refers will be found in the Colonial Correspondence under the name of the author of the letter. Researchers should also look in indexes under the names of the Gold Commissioners, since they acted as coroners. Indexes of correspondence inward to the Colonial Secretary should be checked generally for references to deaths.
British Columbia. Dept. of the Attorney-General