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Ontario Surrogate Court Index 1793-1858


RG 22, Appendix A25

RG 22, Appendix A25 is an alphabetical listing of people whose estates were handled by the Surrogate Courts of Ontario for the years 1793 to 1858. Using the list below, click on the portion of the index containing the deceased's surname. Use the scroll bar or the 'find' function of your browser to locate the person that you are looking for.

If you find the person listed: record the information beside their name and return to this page for Step B.

If you do NOT find the person listed: try to find the person in the Ontario Probate Court Records (RG 22, Appendix A1), Surnames A to G, H to N, O to Z .

Please note: Before 1850, Ontario was divided into districts, with each one having a corresponding Surrogate Court (counties originally existed within as militia and electoral areas).  Estate files probated before that date remained with district courthouse where they were probated.

If the Surrogate Court records for a specific county do not include the pre-1859 files, please consult the 1845 district map in our online resource “The Changing Shape of Ontario” (www.archives.gov.on.ca/en/maps/textdocs/districts1845big.aspx ).  This will help you determine which counties made up each district and where the district courthouse was located.  Check the Surrogate Court records for that county to find the estate file you are looking for.

Note: Not all the records indexed in RG 22 Appendix A25 are Estate Files. The following list identifies letters used to indicate other types of records created by the Surrogate Courts.

AW

Administration with Will Annexed: these are grants of Letters of Administration where the original executor mentioned in the Will has died and the courts have had to appoint a replacement. These appointments and other required changes are recorded in the court's Register Books.

AB

Administration Book: If the deceased died intestate (i.e. without a will), these volumes will contain a transcription of the Letter of Administration granted by the Surrogate Court to disperse their estate. While a few Courts had separate Probate and Administration Books (Wills are only in the former), most courts combined these two books into a single Register.

G

Guardianship Files: Lincoln County guardianship files were filed separately and have been microfilmed separately. All other pre-1859 guardianships are interfiled with the Estate Files for their respective County or District.

R

Registers: also known as probate and administration books, they contain the court's copy of all grants of probate (in estates with wills) and administration (estates without wills). Prior to 1858, there was no standard format so their contents and organization will vary.

OS

Huron County renumbered its pre-1859 Estate Files four times. To prevent confusion, each set of Huron County files have been designated as OS, OS1, OS2, or OS3

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Step B


Using the table below, click on the County or District that handled the deceased's estate. The listing of Estate File microfilm follows the Index and Register microfilm listings for that County.

  • Always record the probate year as many Counties arranged their pre-1859 files, first by year then, alphabetically by the surname.

  • If the "No." column is blank (e.g. Philip Wolf, Wellington Co., ____, 1843), the Estate Files for that County are arranged by surname or by the year and surname.

  • If the "No." is given (e.g. Abner DeCow, Haldimand Co., #74, 1855), the Estate Files for that County are arranged by the Estate File number.

  • An "R" beside the name means the name is recorded in a Register only (not in an estate file).

  • A "G" beside the name means the file relates to a guardianship. Most counties filed their guardianships with their estate files. Lincoln County filed its guardianships separately; see individual county pages for more details.

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