Halton County, Ontario, Canada Genealogy
| Ontario Wiki Topics | |
| Beginning Research | |
| Record Types | |
| Ontario Background | |
| Cultural Groups | |
| Local Research Resources | |
Guide to Halton County ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
Prior to 1816, Halton County was part of the Home District of Upper Canada. In 1816, the Gore District was formed, comprising of two counties: Halton and Wentworth. [1]
Halton County has seen many changes over the course of the years:
- In 1816, Halton County contained the following townships: Beverly, Blandford, Blenheim, Dumfries, Flamborough, Nelson (formed in 1806), Nichol, Trafalgar (formed in 1806), Waterloo and Woolwich.
- In 1821, the Esquesing and Nassagaweya townships were added.
- In 1840, Halton County is divided into East and West Ridings. The West Riding included Garafraxa, Nichol, Woolwich, Guelph, Waterloo, Wilmot, Dumfries, Puslinch and Eramosa Townships.[2]
- In 1845 the townships of the West Riding of Halton form Waterloo County and the townships of Blandford and Blenheim become part of Oxford County.[3][4]
- In 1849, all Districts including the Gore District ceases to exist. [5]
- In 1853, the Beverley township was transferred to Wentworth County.
- In 1854, the Flamborough township was transferred to Wentworth County. [6]
- In 1973, Halton County was dissolved to form the Regional Municipality of Halton.[7]
Civil Registration[edit | edit source]
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1801-1948 Canada, Ontario Church and Civil Records, 1801-1948 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images; incomplete
- 1869 - 1911 Ontario Births, 1869-1911 at FamilySearch — index & images
- 1858 - 1913 Ontario, Canada Births, 1858-1913 at Ancestry.com--index & images. ($)
- 1869 - 1912 Ontario Births, 1869-1912 at [1]--index. ($)
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1801-1948 Canada, Ontario Church and Civil Records, 1801-1948 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images; incomplete
- 1801-1858 Ontario, District Marriage Registers, 1801-1858 at FamilySearch — index & images.
- 1801-1928, 1933-1934 Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1801-1928, 1933-1934 at Ancestry.com--index & images. ($)
- 1826 - 1938 Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1826-1938 at Ancestry.com - index & images ($)
- 1858-1869 Ontario, County Marriage Registers, 1858-1869 at FamilySearch — index & images.
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1801-1948 Canada, Ontario Church and Civil Records, 1801-1948 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images; incomplete
- 1869-1937, and some 1939-1947 Ontario Deaths, 1869-1937 and Overseas Deaths, 1939-1947 at FamilySearch — index & images
- 1869-1938, 1943-1944, and some 1939-1947 Ontario, Canada, Deaths, 1869-1938, 1943-1944, and Deaths Overseas, 1939-1947 at Ancestry.com--index & images. ($)
- 1869 - 1948 Ontario, Canada, Deaths and Deaths Overseas, 1869-1948 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
Writing for a More Recent Birth, Marriage, or Death Record[edit | edit source]
- ServiceOntario, Birth Records is the only government-authorized source for obtaining birth certificates. Go to the section entitled "Order a Birth Search". This is the most economical, searches the widest time period, and allows searches for people not immediately related. A letter of information is provided rather than a certificate.
- ServiceOntario, Marriage Records offers a marriage search option and a historical certificate option.
- ServiceOntario, Death Records offers a death search option and a historical certificate option. Also official death certificates are available to a wider range of relatives than birth and marriage certificates.
FamilySearch Library Microfilmed Records[edit | edit source]
Some of the church/civil records have been microfilmed by FamilySearch.These microfilms may be available for viewing at FamilySearch Centers around the world. To find a microfilm:
- a. Click on records for Canada, Ontario, Halton County. You will see a list of available records for the county.
- b. You will also see above the list the link Places within Canada, Ontario, Halton County. This will take you to a list of towns in the counties, which are links to records for the specific town.
- c. Click on any topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
- d. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record.
. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm.
Census Records[edit | edit source]
| Year | Census | Links |
|---|---|---|
|
1800-1842 |
Ontario and Nova Scotia Census, 1800-1842 |
|
|
1851 |
Canada Census, 1851 |
|
|
1861 |
Census of Canada, 1861 |
|
|
1871 |
Census of Canada, 1871 |
|
|
1881 |
Census of Canada, 1881 |
|
|
1891 |
Census of Canada, 1891 |
|
|
1901 |
Census of Canada, 1901 |
|
|
1911 |
Census of Canada, 1911 |
|
|
1921 |
Census of Canada, 1921 |
- 1841 census for Trafalgar Township - online transcription
- 1852 census for Halton County - online transcription with original images
- 1901 census for Halton County - online transcription with original images
- 1911 census for Halton County - online transcription with original images
For more information see Ontario Census.
Church Records[edit | edit source]
Church records can include baptisms, marriages, burials, membership lists, financial business, and other records for a particular congregation. They may be available online or on microfilm, but frequently they are still with the local church or in centralized archives by religion. The Canadian census records asked for the religion of those listed, so you will be able to narrow down which archives to consult. For help with writing a letter requesting copies of records, see Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy.
- Link to Anglican church archives
- Link to Baptist church archives
- Link to Catholic church archives
- Link to Lutheran church archives
- Link to Moravian church archives
- Link to Presbyterian church archives
- Link to United Church of Canada (including Methodist) church archives
Online Church Records[edit | edit source]
These records are incomplete.
- 1801-1948 Canada, Ontario Church and Civil Records, 1801-1948 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images; incomplete
- Ontario Births and Baptisms, 1779-1899 collection includes indexed Ontario church records.
- Ontario Marriages, 1800-1910.
- Ontario, Roman Catholic Church Records, 1760-1923., images only.
- Ontario, Canada, Roman Catholic Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1760-1923, index and images ($).
- Ontario, Canada, Catholic Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1802-1967 ($).
- Ontario, Canada, Roman Catholic Marriages, 1827-1870 ($).
- Various individual church records at Findmypast ($).
Halton County Marriages - online transcriptions of 1858-59, 1860, 1865-66, 1868, Georgetown Congregational 1858-1872
Halton Marriage records - manual transcription lookups for:
- Halton Journal 1855- 1858 - Halton Co. Ontario
- Halton-Peel Marriages performed at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church,
- Halton-Peel Marriage performed at St. James Anglican Cathedral
Home District - online transcriptions of:
- 1840-56 (Vol II pg 37)
- 1831-33 (vol 10)
- Register of Stephen Howard, Clerk of the Peace, 1803-1830 (Vol 6)
- Register of Rev. James Harris, Presbyterian Church, 1823 - 1825 (Vol. 7)
- Register of Rev. James Harris, Presbyterian Church, 1826-1831 (Vol. 8)
- Brock Parish, Anglican Church records
For more information see Ontario Church Records.
Cemetery Records[edit | edit source]
See, Ontario Cemeteries for information on cemetery record collections not yet digitized, but available in published sources and on microfilm.
Online Cemetery Records[edit | edit source]
- Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid website has a free, searchable database of over 2 million burials in Ontario. It can be searched by name, cemetery, county and town, but its references do not include dates of death. Although it does not include any gravestone inscriptions, it can be used to locate graves in Ontario.
- Ontario Cemetery Index - Directory to transcriptions
- Ontario Name Index (TONI)
- The Ontario section of Canada GenWeb Cemetery Project
- Ontario, Canada Headstones.com
- Ontario, Toronto Trust Cemeteries (FamilySearch Historical Records)
- Canada, Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
Transcriptions and online resources
- Archives of Ontario Microfilm collection for Halton provides a list of the cemetery transcriptions available at the archives and through ILL (Interlibrary Loan)
- Halton-Peel branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society provides a list of cemeteries transcribed in Halton and available for purchase. Also includes an online Index to Cemeteries, providing historical details about each cemetery and GPS co-ordinates.
- Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid - online database for names of individuals interred in various Ontario cemeteries. Searchable by given name, last name, cemetery, township and/or county.
- Cemeteries in Halton Regional Municipality at Find a Grave
- Cemetery search in Halton Regional Municipality at Find a Grave
Taxation[edit | edit source]
- 1834-1899 Canada, Ontario Tax Assessment Rolls, 1834-1899 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Resources[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
Thomas Merrick (Oakville)
Colonel William Chisholm and family (founder of Oakville)
Chief Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea) - (Burlington) He owned the land which later became Burlington
For more information see Ontario Biography.
Directories[edit | edit source]
Online searchable index of Halton names in the following directories:
- Canada Directory of Professional and Business Men, Montreal: John Lovell, 1851
- Canada Directory of Professional and Business Men, Montreal: John Lovell, 1857
- Fuller's counties of Peel and Halton Directory for 1866 & 1867, Blackburn's City Steam Press, Toronto, 1866
- County of Halton Directory, 1869-70, Hamilton: A. Lawson and Co., 1869
- Lovell's Business and Professional Directory of the Province of Ontario for 1882, Montreal: John Lovell & Son, 1871
- Lovell's Business and Professional Directory of the Province of Ontario for 1882, Montreal: John Lovell & Son, 1882
- Morrey's Business Directory - Halton, Waterloo and Wellington, Ingersoll: Union Publishing Co., 1896
- Morrey's Business Directory - Halton, Waterloo, Wellington counties, Ingersoll: Union Publishing Co., 1899
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
1877 Halton County Illustrated Historical Atlas
1877 Halton County and township maps - includes list of property owners
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
- Brief Georgetown History
- History Alive at GeorgetownOn Magazine
- Oakville Images collection (searchable)
Newspapers & Obituaries[edit | edit source]
A Number of Halton County and present day Regional Municipality of Halton newspapers have been digitally scanned, indexed and are searchable online. Halton News provides a portal to search for birth, marriage and death announcements, article and in some cases, full issue browsing.
Searchable and/or archived Halton newspapers, including publication dates ranges:
- Acton Free Press, 1875-1984 (HHPL)
- Acton Tanner, 1992-1997 (HHPL)
- Burlington Gazette, 1899-1986 (BPL)
- Burlington Post (BPL)
- Canadian Champion (MPL)
- Daily Journal Record
- Erin Advocate (HHPL)
- Georgetown Gemini (HHPL)
- Georgetown Herald, 1867-1992 (HHPL)
- Georgetown Independent, 1973-1978 (HHPL)
- Georgetown Leader (HHPL)
- Halton Hills This Week (HHPL)
- Hamilton Spectator
- Independent & Free Press, 1985-present (HHPL)
- Nassagaweya Country News
- New Tanner (HHPL)
- North Halton Compass (HHPL)
- Oakville Beaver (OPL)
- Oakville Journal Record (OPL)
- Oakville News (OPL)
- Oakville Record (OPL)
- Oakville Record-Star (OPL)
- Oakville Star & Independent (OPL)
- Oakville Trafalgar Journal (OPL)
- Standard and Halton and Peel Gazetteer
The acronym in brackets after each newspaper denotes the public library (see Libraries below) that holds archived material for these papers (microfilm, microfiche etc).
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Burlington Public Library (BPL)
Central Branch
2331 New Street
Burlington, ON L7R 1J4
Phone: 905-639-3611
Website
Halton Hills Public Library (HHPL)
Georgetown Branch
9 Church Street
Georgetown, ON L7G 2A3
Phone: 905-873-2681
Website
Milton Public Library (MPL)
Main Street Branch
1010 Main Street E
Milton, ON L9T 6H7
Phone: 905-875-2665
Website
Oakville Public Library (OPL)
Central Branch
120 Navy Street
Oakville, ON L6J 2Z4
Phone: 905-815-2042
Website
Societies[edit | edit source]
- Bronte Village Historical Society
- Burlington Historical Society
- Esquesing Historical Society
- Milton Historical Society
- Nasagiweya Historical Society (Nassagaweya Township)
- Halton-Peel Genealogical Scoiety
- Oakville Historical Society
- Trafalgar Township Historical Society
Populated Places Table[edit | edit source]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|
POPULATED PLACE |
FORMER NAME, if applicable | TYPE |
FHL CATALOG |
WIKIPEDIA |
| Acton | Link | Link | ||
| Aldershot | Link | Link | ||
| Appleby | Link | Link | ||
| Bronte | Link | Link | ||
| Burlington | Link | Link | ||
| Campbellville | Link | Link | ||
| Drumquin | Link | Link | ||
| Dumfries | Township | Link | Link | |
| Eden Mills | Link | Link | ||
| Esquesing | Township | Link | Link | |
| Georgetown | Link | Link | ||
| Glen Williams | Link | Link | ||
| Halton Hills | Link | Link | ||
| Hornby | Link | Link | ||
| Kilbride | Link | Link | ||
| Limehouse | Link | Link | ||
| Lowville | Link | Link | ||
| Merton | Link | Link | ||
| Milton | Link | Link | ||
| Moffat | Link | Link | ||
| Nassagaweya | Township | Link | Link | |
| Nelson | Link | Link | ||
| Nelson | Township | Link | Link | |
| Norval | Link | Link | ||
| Oakville | Link | Link | ||
| Omagh | Link | Link | ||
| Palermo | Link | Link | ||
| Stewarttown | Link | Link | ||
| Tansley | Link | Link | ||
| Trafalgar | Township | Link | Link | |
| ANY NEW LOCATIONS IN FS Library CATALOG??? | Link |
Websites[edit | edit source]
The Forebears website will give you an extensive list of websites that could have information for people who lived in this county. Some sites cover just the county, some cover all of Ontario, and some cover all of Canada. Some sites are databases of names and facts about people; other sites cover background information such as maps, history, geography, or genealogy strategies and methods for the region.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ http://www.halton.ca/cms/One.aspx?portalId=8310pageId=8886
- ↑ http://sites.rootsweb.com/~onbrant/twpoak.htm
- ↑ http://sites.rootsweb.com/~onwaterl/waterloo-history.htm
- ↑ http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~onbrant/twpoak.htm
- ↑ http://www.halton.ca/cms/One.aspx?portalId=8310pageId=8886
- ↑ http://www.myhamilton.ca/articles/chronology-cities-towns-and-township-hamilton
- ↑ http://www.halton.ca/cms/One.aspx?portalId=8310pageId=8886