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BACKGROUND.
By tradition, the Attorney-General was the Crown's chief
legal adviser and its principal representative in court
on criminal and civil matters. In pre-Confederation Ontario
(Upper Canada/ Canada West), the Attorney-General -- as
Law Officer of the Crown -- advised the Governor and the
Indian Department on questions relating to the acquisition
of Indian lands and the application of English law to Aboriginal
people.
70. RG 4 Series 4-01.
Minister's Office. Pre-Confederation Records. -
1794-1865. - (10 Boxes).
CONTENT.
Unfortunately, this limited, miscellaneous collection is
all that remains of what was once a large body of material.
Related records of the Attorney-General may be found in
the federal Department of Justice records (NA RG 13) at
the National Archives of Canada in Ottawa. Besides the Attorney-General's
legal opinions on topics related to Aboriginal people in
the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
records (see entry for D 9, NA RG 10), researchers should
also check for submissions to the Executive Council (D 4,
NA RG 1), Provincial and Civil Secretary's (D 16 and D 23,
NA RG 5) and Governors' (D 6, NA RG 7) records at the National
Archives of Canada. This is especially true for cases relating
to Negawnausing, Shawanakiske, and Angélique Pilotte.
Some of these records are available on diffusion microfilm
at the Archives of Ontario, listed in Section E.
FINDING AID. See the RG 4 Inventory.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Minister's Correspondence. - 1957-1985. UNPROCESSED.
CONTENT.
This series continues - and overlaps -- the series above.
FINDING AID.
There is no file list or subject index to this series. Researchers
should ask the portfolio archivist for assistance.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Minister's letterbooks. - 1957-1985. UNPROCESSED.
CONTENT.
Although the correspondence presumably contains material
of interest, there is no index or file list to these letterbooks.
FINDING AID. None.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Deputy Attorney-General's Letterbooks. - 1868-1899.
- 12 linear feet (46 Volumes).
BACKGROUND.
Because many of the registry files in RG 4 Series 4-32 were
destroyed (see Entry 75) these letterbooks are often the
only source of material on certain matters.
CONTENT.
There is no easy way to use this material. Researchers who
have other information relating to a criminal or civil matter
involving Aboriginal people should search the letterbooks
by personal name, or around the target date. Researchers
should also be aware that the books are fragile and the
blotter-copy paper is difficult to read.
FINDING AID.
See the RG 4 Inventory, Appendix 16. The letterbooks are
all indexed by personal name, not by subject.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Open.
Deputy Minister's Correspondence. - [ca. 1965]-1985.
UNPROCESSED.
CONTENT.
General administration files. As with the Minister's files
(RG 4 Series 4-02 and 4-03), there is no subject or nominal
list, so it is difficult to identify relevant documents.
FINDING AID.
Consult the portfolio archivist.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Central Registry. Civil and Criminal files. - 1871-1955.
- 360 linear feet.
BACKGROUND.
This series consists of correspondence sent to the department
of the Attorney General by Crown Attorneys, Police officers,
other civil servants, and members of the public about a
wide variety of civil and criminal cases involving the Ontario
government. They should be distinguished from Court files
on the same actions (see RG 22 below). Many documents in
this series were culled and destroyed in 1964, thus, not
all files listed in the indexes and registers (RG 4 Series
4-30 and 4-31) will actually be found. For cases involving
Aboriginal people, the Department of Indian Affairs and
Northern Development (NA RG 10) records at the National
Archives of Canada should be searched for complementary
material.
CONTENT.
Despite the culling which took place, this series includes
a huge number of files of potential value. Researchers should
comb the RG 4 Inventory, Appendix 2 very carefully, as the
subjects cover a variety of topics, as well as all geographical
areas of Ontario. The following are examples of the type
of material available:
1876 File E2187. File Title: R.H. Oates, Toronto.
Letter from R.H. Oates, President of the United
Canadian Association, Toronto, 8 July 1876. Applies for
leave to bury the remains of Tecumseh near those of General
Brock. Includes letter with signature of John Smoke Johnson,
Speaker of the Six Nations Council.
1894 File 403. File Title: Att. Gen. Office.
Original correspondence and marginal notes from
the Attorney General of Ontario Re: Agreement between Canada
and Ontario for Settlement of Certain Questions Respecting
Indian Lands, 6 February 1894 to 23 October 1899. There
are many other files in the series which deal with this
and similar topics.
1898 File 573. File Title: Fish and Game Dept., Ottawa.
Letter from Game and Fish Dept, Ottawa, concerning
the killing of deer in the vicinity of Garden River Indian
Reserve at Sault Ste. Marie. Attorney General of Ontario
gives his opinion about the subjection of Indians to Ontario
Game Laws.
1916 File 1572. File Title: J.D. McLean, Indian Affairs.
Letter from J.D. McLean, Secretary of Indian
Affairs and Northern Development, Ottawa, reporting the
death from exposure of an Indian returning to Sioux Lookout
after his release from the Port Arthur Jail. The deceased
had been sentenced for the illegal sale of moose meat.
1921 File 2868. File Title: Rev W.M. Rochester, Lord's
Day Alliance, Toronto.
Letter of complaint against Seneca Indian Lacrosse
Club and Mohawk Stars for a lacrosse match played on Sunday.
File includes a poster and police report naming the players
involved.
1935 File 903. File Title: H.A. Aylen, Barrister, Ottawa.
A letter concerning a proposed reference to the
Supreme Court of Canada as to the meaning of "Indians"
under Head 24 of Section 91 of the British North America
Act.
FINDING AID.
As noted above, this series is controlled by the Indexes
and Registers in RG 4 Series 4-30 and 4-31. Since files
which no longer exist in RG 4 Series 4-32 may well have
been transferred to other departments, researchers should
check the "remarks" column for information on
file disposition. On the other hand, the RG 4 Inventory,
Appendix 2 (Volume 4) contains a detailed Calendar, divided
into four parts, of the surviving documents up to 1948.
This is a much simpler way of accessing existing material
than wrestling with the Indexes and Registers. For criminal
cases, once researchers have the name of an accused, and
the county and date of the alleged offence, they can consult
the index to RG 22 Series 392 (Criminal Assize Indictments)
to see how the case was proceeded with.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS.
Because of the sensitive personal information contained
in many of these files, those less than 75 years old are
restricted under the FOI/P Act.
76. RG 4 Series 4-32.
Central Registry Files. Criminal and Civil. -
1948-1959. UNPROCESSED.
CONTENT.
This is the continuation of the series listed above. The
type and quality of materials it contains should be similar.
The series has not been heavily culled after 1948.
FINDING AID. RG 4 Series 4-30 includes
bound indexes up to 1956, and Series 4-31 has indexes up
to 1959. Given the sensitive nature of much of their content
under the FOI/P Act, an inventory of these files is not
a high priority for Archives of Ontario staff.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Legislative Counsel. Legislation Files and Public
Bills. - 1940-1951. - 22 linear feet (52 Boxes).
CONTENT.
Correspondence and explanatory notes on suggested legislation,
copies of bills, and related documents. The material has
to be requested by year and name of legislation. Researchers
therefore require some prior knowledge of particular statutes,
such as the Game and Fish Acts, to find relevant material.
FINDING AID. See the RG 4 Inventory.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS.
There are no access restrictions on the pre-1971 records.
Post-1971 material is controlled by the FOI/P Act.
Legislative Counsel. General subject files. -
1906-1978. - 2.3 linear feet (7 Boxes).
CONTENT.
Correspondence, memoranda and background documentation.
The File listing has nothing which specifically mentions
Aboriginal people. Researchers should therefore check headings
like "miscellaneous", or "game and fish".
FINDING AID.
See the RG 4 Inventory, Appendix 15, which lists files by
general headings.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
Civil Law Division. Solicitors' General Files.
- 1932-1964. - 5.3 linear feet (16 Boxes).
CONTENT.
These are working files which indicate how positions on
particular issues were developed. Some files have been removed
and refiled in RG 4 Series 4-32 above. The file headings
do not immediately reveal a great deal of aboriginal material.
But see, for example:
Box 9 File 9.17. Parks Assistance Act
Question of whether Indian Bands are classifiable
as Municipalities. 1962
FINDING AID.
See the RG 4 Inventory, Appendix 12.
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS.
Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
80. RG 4 Series 4-48
Constitutional Law Division. Constitutional and
Conference files. - 1960-1974. - 15 linear feet (45 Boxes).
BACKGROUND.
These files are from the office of the Minister (Group I)
and from the office of the Constitutional law division (Group
II).
CONTENT.
Correspondence, position papers, legal case references,
printed materials, and related background documents. There
are no overt references to aboriginal matters in the headings
listed in the finding aid, but there is undoubtedly material
in later files -- particularly from the 1970s and 1980s
-- on constitutional matters concerning Aboriginal people.
FINDING AID. .
See the RG 4 Inventory, Appendix 6
MICROFILM VERSION AVAILABLE? None.
ACCESS. Subject to FOI/P Act restrictions.
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