Partnership, Sole Proprietorship and Benevolent Society records

A guide to finding Partnership and Sole Proprietorship records from 1870-1991 and Benevolent Society records from 1874-1969.

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About Partnerships, Sole Proprietorships and Benevolent Societies

Partnerships and Sole Proprietorships are types of small businesses that are registered with the government. Unlike with Corporations, the people who register a Partnership or Sole Proprietorship are personally liable for the business’s debts and losses. These types of businesses do not use abbreviations like “Corporation,” “Corp.,” “Incorporated,” “Inc.,” “Limited” or “Ltd” in their title.

Benevolent Societies are organizations that are registered with the government that provide services for their members, including arranging loans, offering collective insurance and burial benefits. Historically, membership was based on profession, religion or political affiliation. Examples from Ontario include the Ancient Order of Foresters, the Knights of Pythias and the Oddfellows Independent Order Lodge.

Partnerships, Sole Proprietorships and Benevolent Societies have different purposes, but we group them together in this guide because the records we have for them are similar.

What the records include

We hold the registration records for Partnerships, Sole Proprietorships and Benevolent Societies that were filed with district or county land registry offices.

These records can include:

he registration, officially called a “Partnership Declaration”
index books
copybooks, containing an official transcript of the Partnership Declaration

What they don’t include

These records do not provide information about:

financial or administrative decisions
products or marketing
public or private communications
employees

We have the records for all districts except Thunder Bay.

Find Partnership records by year

Information you need to request these records

To request Partnership or Sole Proprietorship records before 1975, you need to provide:

partnership declaration number
location where the Partnership or Sole Proprietorship was filed
the name(s) of the Partners or Sole Proprietor
the year that the Partnership or Sole Proprietorship was registered

To request Partnership records after 1975, you need to provide:

partnership declaration number
the name(s) of the Partners or Sole Proprietor
the year that the Partnership or Sole Proprietorship was registered

Once you’ve gathered this information, submit a request to view the records in person.

1870 to 1975

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Some indexes are available on microfilm in the Reading Room.

To search the indexes:

Go to Expired partnership and sole proprietorship registrations, pre-1975 (RG 55-17) in the collections search.
Open the “View the Description Hierarchy” table and select the county, district, city or region where the registration took place. This will take you to the description page for records for that place.
Consult the “How to order these records” section or “Finding Aid” section to determine where the index you need is located, either microfilm or bound volume.
Select the matching microfilm reel from the self-service cabinets in the Reading Room or order the index book at the reference desk.
Search the index to find the declaration number and date of registration. Make a note of both.

Each index covers several years and is arranged first by the first letter in the name, then in chronological order.

To find the registration records:

Return to the Expired partnership and sole proprietorship registrations, pre-1975 (RG 55-17) in the collections search.
Open the “View the Description Hierarchy” table and select the county, district, city or region where the registration took place. This will take you to the description page for records for that place.
Consult the “How to order these records” section or “Finding Aid” section to determine which microfilm reel you need or which box you need to order based on the declaration number you found in Step 1.
Search the reel or box to find the Partnership Declaration and other registration records.

1975 to 1991

Expired partnership and sole proprietorship registrations (RG 55-16) for 1975 to 1991 are available for self-service research in the Reading Room.

The registrations are in the form of index cards:

one card with information about the business
one or more cards with personal information about the partners/proprietors

The cards are arranged by year first, then alphabetically by business name.

1975-1982

These are available on microfiche which can be found in cabinet “FICHE B”, next to the AV viewing rooms at the back of the Reading Room.

The 1975 microfiche also includes registrations from 1973.

1983-1991

These are available on microfilm located in the Reading Room. Consult this online list to find the microfilm that matches the business you seek.

Registrations for 1983-1989 are listed from Z-A instead of A-Z.

Beginning in 1973, partnership and sole proprietorships declarations had to be renewed every five years, or the partnership would be deemed to no longer exist. For example, a partnership that existed from 1976 to 1989 was declared in 1976, then again in 1981 and 1986. Businesses that existed on January 1, 1973, had to file a new declaration before December 31, 1974.

Find Benevolent Society records

Information you need to request Benevolent Society records

To request Benevolent Society records for 1874-1969, you need to provide:

registration number
the name of the Benevolent Society
the year the Society was registered

Once you’ve gathered this information, submit a request to view the records in person.

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To request a Benevolent Society file:

Consult the online finding aid for Benevolent societies corporation files (RG 55-8).
Use the registration number and year to find the container that holds the records you are looking for.
Order the box at a reference desk or submit a request online to view the items, providing the reference code and box number.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for in the Partnership and Benevolent Society registrations, you can try researching related records.

Corporation records of the government of Ontario
We have corporation records kept by the Government of Ontario up to 1979. They contain information about who was involved in setting up and managing a corporation and provide records of revenue.

Benevolent society private records
We hold some of the private records of benevolent societies. They include constitutions and by-laws, minutes of the society’s governing body and committees, lists of beneficiaries and publications.

Find these records in Collection Search by inputting the name of the society you are looking for.

Get research help

We can point you to useful resources to help you with your research. Contact us.

For professional research help, we have a list of private companies and freelance researchers who can do research on your behalf.

Glossary

Benevolent society: an organization that provides benefits for its members, often organized along professional, ethnic or religious lines.

Partnership: a business relationship between two or more individuals who are liable for business debts and losses.

Partnership declaration: the official registration documents for a partnership or sole proprietorship held by a local Ontario Land Registry Office.

Sole proprietorship: a type of business registered to an individual that is liable for business debts and losses.