Norfolk County Land Records
The
following explanation of Ontario Land Records
was posted on Ontario-L Mailing List by Lorine
McGinnis Schulze of Olive Tree Genealogy and is posted here with permission
Land
records are very useful. Originally all land in
Ontario belonged to the Crown. Although there
were small areas of settlement in 1763 after the
British took over, major settlement of Upper Canada
began in 1783 and utilized Crown Grants.
The
CLRI (Computerized Land Record Index) is an index
(not on computer!) which summarizes land grants
from sales of of Crown Land in Ontario from Canada
Company sales and leases, and from Peter Robinson
settlers' grants. It provides invaluable clues
for further research! Most settlers bought land
soon after arrival, although of course there were
exceptions to this - some lived with family previously
settled, others had no urgent need for land (a
blacksmith didn't need land as urgently as a farmer
for example)
The CLRI only shows the first time owner of Crown
Land so if your ancestor purchased land from someone
else his name will not show on this index but
it is still a very useful tool. Not only does
it provide you with exact location (township,
lot #, concession #) it provides you with a date
of transaction, whether or not there were special
circumstances surrounding the transaction (a free
grant, a hardship grant, a military grant, etc),
and it provides you with an Archival Reference
number.
This
Archival Reference number can provide more detail;
often it does not but it is still a stone that
should be turned. With a date of transaction you
have narrowed the field for immigration. Beyond
that the value of the CLRI is in the interpretation
of the one line index entry which can lead you
to other avenues of research. I have a more detailed
explanation of the CLRI
and other land
records in Ontario on my site under my ONTARIO
RESEARCH section.
Once
you have the exact land location for your ancestor
(lot, concession #, township and county) you can
venture into more records such as the Abstract
Indexes to Deeds and Township papers, which can
contain a wealth of genealogical treasure!
Location of Land Records
Upper Canada Land Petitions
Upper
Canada Land Petitions (UCLP)
are the actual Petitions for land which were submitted
in Upper Canada (Ontario). They frequently contain information
about the petitioner and his or her family. Loyalists
and discharged soldiers often mentioned the regiment in
which they served.
Land
Books
Land
Books
are basically a summary of land grants. They rarely contain
more info than name, date and location. Sometimes they
have little gems in the comment section. But they're helpful
because if you can't find a petition in the UCLP it may
be in the Land Book so at least you have some record of
the event.
Ontario
Land records
are organized by townships, concessions and lots. Early
townships were divided into concessions. A BF concession
refers to a Broken Front which is an uneven piece
of land along a river or other geographical feature.
A Gore may be a leftover piece of land in a township
after being surveyed; it is not as wide as a regular
concession. |
Township Papers
Township
Papers
are a miscellaneous group of land-related records have been
arranged by township name, then by concession and lot or
by town name and lot number. They're a mixed bag - they
may contain correspondence re land, some petitions, copies
of orders-in-council, etc
Abstract indexes to
Deeds
The Abstract
Indexes to Deeds are the indexed record of every transaction
on a plot of land since it left Crown ownership. Fathers
willed land to sons or to wives or daughters. Men parcelled
off smaller sections of land and sold it to sons. Brothers
settled near each other, or on the same land. Armed with
the Abstract Indexes to Deeds you can check for every instance
of your name of interest on that parcel of land. By referring
to the date and Instrument Number found with each transaction,
you can look up the complete record. You may find a will
(Many wills are filed in the Land Records Offices) or other
important document.
Wm. H. Smith's 1846 Canadian Gazetteer
Wm. H. Smith's 1846 Canadian Gazetteer,
Upper Province or Canada West.
Published for the author by H. & W. Rowsell, Toronto.
[Courtesy of Elva Sanghera, Burnaby, B.C.]
Names of Settlers & Landholders in 1877
Transcribed by Barbara Lesser
Settlers & Landholders Charlotteville Township 1877
Concession 1;
Concession 2;
Concession 3;
Concession 4;
Concession 5;
Concession 6;
Concession 7;
Concession 8;
Concession 9;
Concession 10;
Concession 11;
Concession 12;
Charlotteville-St. Williams
Settlers & Landholders Townsend Township 1877
Concession 1;
Concession 2;
Concession 3;
Concession 4;
Concession 5;
Concession 6;
Concession 7;
Concession 8;
Concession 9;
Concession 10;
Concession 11;
Concession 12;
Concession 13;
Concession 14
Settlers & Landholders Windham Township 1877
Concession 1;
Concession 2;
Concession 3;
Concession 4;
Concession 5;
Concession 6;
Concession 7;
Concession 8;
Concession 9;
Concession 10;
Concession 11;
Concession 12;
Concession 13;
Concession 14
Settlers & Landholders Woodhouse Township 1877
Concession 1-6;
Gore Concession & Miscellaneous
Land Records available from Norfolk Historical
Society [$]
- Early Norfolk County Land Patents
- Index of Norfolk County Tremain Map-1856
- Sketch of Norfolk County-1857
- Norfolk County Gazeteer-1877
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