I am responding to a message entitled "Ontario-Canada researchers" which
was sent to the APOLROD email address. I am the president of that
organization, and also the lady that gave the presentation that probably
started this whole chain.
Some of the information in the message is correct, and some misleading.
The land registry offices did contain information from the 1790s ...
documents prior to 1867 have been removed to the Archives of Ontario .
The list given in the message below is a list of samples I showed, but they
are not correctly identified:
- Oath of Office Register -- should be Oath of Office of the Registrar
- Canada Registers --- these are Canada Land Index Registers, and are an
abstract index to the plans showing easements across reservations
- Debenture books ... --- these are actually documents which show by-laws
enacted by the municipality to raise money for schools, sidewalks, roads,
etc.
"The bad news"... from here on, let me correct, please:
In actually fact, the Ontario Government, through the Ministry of Consumer
and Commercial Relations, Real Property Registration Branch and the
Archives of Ontario, has formulated a working agreement with APOLROD
entitled "A Plan for Ontario's Pre-1955 Land Registration Records: Joint
Approach to Preservation and Placement by Archives of Ontario and Real
Property Registration Branch, Ministry of Consumer and Commercial
Relations".
This plan calls for an inventory of documents in the registry offices of
Ontario by APOLROD, the identification of provincially significant material
by the AO, the identification of operationally required material by the
Registrars of the offices, and the placement of the remaining documents and
registers with local heritage groups and repositories.
The process is working well. There are 55 registry offices in the Province
.. we have visited and organized inventory teams in over 40 of those
locations, with the remainder having meetings planned within the next six
to eight weeks. About 30 of those teams are working at doing the inventory
.. they have to 1 Jul 1998 to complete it. Many areas have had heritage
groups come forward to receive the documents and registers that will become
available after that date. In those areas where no group has indicated
interest there is still a year [to July 1999] to determine where these
records may go.
APOLROD, the Association for the Preservation of Ontario Land Registry
Office Documents, welcomes memberships of $5.00 and donations of whatever
to help cover the costs of organizing and supervising this inventory and
placement of documents and registers. These can be sent to APOLROD 251
Second Street Stouffville ON Canada L4A 1B9
We welcome your support, and thank you for your interest and concern for
the material documenting the heritage of Ontario.
----------
From: Shanna Jones <sjones(a)redrock.net>
To: rburk(a)platinum1.com
Subject: Fw: Ontario-Canada researchers.
Date: Thursday, September 25, 1997 4:24 PM
> ----------
> From: Edward W. Lollis <geovis(a)erols.com>
> To: campbell-l(a)emcee.com; Kirk Belanger <kbelang(a)pathcom.com>
> Subject: Re: Ontario-Canada researchers.
> Date: Friday, September 26, 1997 2:34 AM
>
> Genealogists of the world unite!
>
> Thank you, Kirk, for sharing this outrage from Ontario. Yes, my
> Campbell ancestors are from Ontario, and, although I haven't yet gotten
> around to using the provincial land records, I blithly assumed that all
> such records, at least in "civilized" North American countries, will
> always be available when needed. You message IS helpful -- and may
spur
> me to tapping this resource before it's too late.
>
> What is driving the provincial decision to destroy the records?
Storage
> space? Is there some way for the the government to achieve its
goal
> without destroying the records? Microfilm? Private depository? What
> is the Ontario Genealogical Society doing about this crisis? Is there
> some way the rest of us can help the OGS protest the destruction and/or
> safe- guard the records?
>
> Kirk Belanger wrote 09/25:
> >
> > My wife attended a meeting of the Ontario Genealogical Society A
couple
of
> > nights ago and brought back this rather disheartening news:
> >
> > The Land Record Offices in Ontario stores information from the 1790's
forward.
> > The information is a veritable treasure trove of research material,
it
contains:
> >
> > Marriage Settlements
> > Patent Records
> > Oath of Office Register
> > Indian Land Sale to non-native individuals
> > Canada Registers - plans of highways/phone lines to reservations
> > Lists of naturalization records
> > Wills
> > Purchase of house
> > Guardianships to estates
> > Oath of minister to perform marriages
> > Orders of protection for married women
> > They also have debenture books and schools, sidewalks roads etc.
> >
> > The bad news: The Ontario government is in the process of destroying
these
> > records forever and only keeping the records for the past 50 years.
The
City
> > of Toronto has already destroyed the records up to 1945.
> >
> > The lady that gave the presentation stated that they have secured a
> > temporary stay of execution for these records because she told them
how
> > valuable this information is to many, many people.
> >
> > If you are researching your family history in this area, I can tell
you
how
> > to access these records for the time being if you send me an email,
so
we
> > don't clutter the list or, I can post it if you wish.
> >
> > Finally, you can access some of the government archives at:
> >
> >
http://www.gov.on.ca/mczcr/archives
> >
> > I hope this is helpful to someone.
> >
> > Kirk
>
> --
> Regards, Edward W. Lollis, Partner, GEOVISUAL BUSINESS SERVICES
> "Business Consultants Specializing in Geographic Analysis & Display"
> 12700 Virginia Manor Road, Beltsville, Maryland 20705-1228, USA
> 301-470-0100 or 410-813-2001. Fax 301-210-1020. E-mail geovis(a)erols.com
>