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Archiver > CAN-BRITISH-COLUMBIA > 2003-08 > 1060885348


From: Stella Stanger <>
Subject: Re: [CAN-BC] wife required to take husbands nationality
Date: Thu, 14 Aug 2003 11:22:28 -0700
In-Reply-To: <l03130300bb60d3893187@[139.142.113.251]>


Good Morning Arlene,
In 1983 - I planned a vacation to Europe with my 75 year old mother, and my
son. All born in Canada.
We all needed Passports. Everything appeared fine - except that we needed
mothers birth Certificate.
Over the years we had problems obtaining my mothers Birth Certificate
although she was second to last of 13 children, all with birth regs. Her
birth Registration/Certificate could not be found,[the surname is notorious
for being misspelled [ even in the 1901 Census] Missfiled.
We did have her Baptism certificate, a copy of the page of Baptisms,a
registered letter from the church confirming her baptism etc.
Without proof of her birth in Canada. She could not obtain a Canadian Passport.
My stepfather had arrived in Canada - as a 17 year old - the year that my
mother was born. He did not become a Naturalized Canadian Citizen till
1921.The fact that he had become a Citizen when he did was a blessing.- it
appears that this fell in the right time frame,from what I remember being told.

Otherwise: we were advised by the passport office.

Mother would have been considered a citizen of Poland. and not a Canadian
even though she and her siblings had been born here.
{females were chattels of their fathers - then their husbands -From what I
could gather even though women were finally considered persons in their own
right [1928??] the husbands citizenship - was transferred to them]

Because she did not have a Birth Certificate - and problems arose here
because of the time frame we were working in,
[ she needed to obtain a delayed birth registration -the only living person
who could prove her birth was a sister 2 years her senior - not an approved
withness]. She needed to make application for Citizenship. In the time
frame allotted - we did manage to get enough proof of her existence,
Certified copies of various papers,marriage registration, hospital
records,physicians records,etc.
Although, because of fathers naturalization - mother would be considered a
Canadian. She still needed proof of this to obtain a passport.
Mother received her Citizenship Card and paper in time to obtain Passport
. My son and I also received our Citizenship Card and papers even though
we were born here. [pictures seriously outdated now] Just because .

A neighbour went through a similar circumstance. She had been born in
Germany, married in the U.S.A. became a U.S. citizen.After the marriage
broke up. Came to Canada, obtained her Canadian Citizenship - But - is
seems that when she married again - her husband had not been Naturalized -
and she then became an Austrian Citizen. All of this finally resolved.

It really is amazing what we don't know about ourselves - until
circumstances cause an upheaval.

Cheers, Stella







At 11:04 PM 8/13/03 -0700, Arlene Halme wrote:
>Would anyone know when was the last date that a wife was required to take
>her husband's nationality upon marriage in Canada?
>
>Does anyone know what the procedure was if the wife was born in Canada and
>the husband wasn't, how did she take his nationality, did she actually give
>up her being a Canadian. Was a document filed in the Province or to Ottawa
>or at that country's embassy.
>
>Would the woman be informed of this requirement when they applied for a
>marriage licence.
>
>Was 1948 the date when people born in Canada could call themselves
>Canadian citizens.
>
>Were they British citizens prior to that.
>
>My Aunt was born in Ontario in 1913, apparently when she married a man in
>BC, who had been born in Finland, her nationality became Finnish. She
>divorced and subsequently married a man born in Sweden. So how would you
>give up one nationality and take another
>
>Arlene
>
>
>
>==== CAN-BRITISH-COLUMBIA Mailing List ====
>Visit the British Columbia Gen Web page at
>http://www.rootsweb.com/~canbc/

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