The Archives of Ontario and the Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU) hold identical microfilm copies of many of the Ontario Surrogate Court records. However, each institution has applied its own numbering system to its copy of the microfilm. The tables below cross-reference the microfilm codes used by both institutions for the same reels. If you will be accessing the microfilm through a GSU Family History Centre, use the tables below to convert the Archives of Ontario Microfilm Reference Number to the one used by the GSU.

A Word about the Archives' microfilm numbers . . .

The earliest acquisitions of microfilm by the Archives of Ontario were filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, hence the use of the "GS" abbreviation. The GS 2 microfilm group consists of the Surrogate Courts' indexes, while the GS 1 group contains the Surrogate Courts' estate files. Each reel is identified by a GS number (either GS 1 or GS 2) and a reel number (e.g. GS 1, reel 1324).

When the Archives began doing their own microfilming, the microfilm code identified the type of document being filmed: "N" for newspapers, "B" for bibliographic volumes, and "MS" for archival (or "manuscript") records. Our early microfilm numbering system identified each series of records with an MS number, followed by consecutive reel numbers (e.g. microfilm MS 8 reel 1; microfilm MS 8 reel 2; microfilm MS 8 reel 3). As a result, each MS group could contain between 1 and 1,000 reels of microfilm.

As our holdings of microfilm grew, this numbering system grew unwieldy, especially with the advent of computerized inventory management. Consequently, in 1992, the Archives changed to a "one MS code = one reel" numbering system, beginning with reel MS 1000. As a result, in the tables below, any four-digit MS code denotes a single reel of microfilm.

When using the tables to determine the correct Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU) Microfilm Reference number scroll down to the correct GS or MS number and reel #, if there is one. The right hand column of the table will provide you with the GSU number you need.

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GS and MS Tables	GS 1	GS 2	MS 584	MS 638	MS 887	MS 1192 - MS 1795