There was a moment yesterday during Archivist Lindsey Winstone’s live virtual presentation to Ontario Ancestors’ Halton-Peel Branch when I wanted to click pause in order to explore the collection I’d just learned about.
During Ms. Winstone’s presentation about what’s new at the Archives of Ontario, she shared what may be the biggest news for all of this year for family historians researching their ancestors in Canada’s largest province.
So, what’s the news?
FamilySearch is in the process of uploading the microfilm images of all pre-1930 wills and estate files for Ontario. These images can be accessed for free, and many of them are already available to view online.
These microfilms, called Surrogate and Probate Court Records, are organized by county or district and time period. They are not indexed, but Ms. Winstone expects that will happen over time.
For now, researchers must select a digitized microfilm to browse the digitized images page by page. Considering the alternative is to make an appointment at Archives of Ontario to use a microfilm reader, I’ll opt for viewing images on my laptop screen while sipping coffee and wearing slippers.
Locating the online images
The easiest way to find these records is to scroll down to the bottom of the Archives of Ontario’s home page to find and click on Access Our Digitized Microfilm Collections on FamilySearch.
Then, scroll down the new page and click on Surrogate and Probate Court Records. This will take you to another page on the Archives of Ontario’s website that lists the counties and dates. Clicking on one of the collections will take you to FamilySearch where you’ll find a more detailed list.
To look at the digitized microfilms, you’ll need a free FamilySearch account. If you don’t already have an account, it will take about 30 seconds to create one.
Browse the images
On the detailed list of titles, select one of the microfilms. Click on the camera to the far right of the title to browse the images. If there’s a key above the camera, it means the film is locked for now.
FamilySearch is in the process of unlocking all of the files, so check back from time to time to see if the key is still there.
Note: On the Archives of Ontario’s website, it looks like there are no records prior to 1900, but click on the county you want because FamilySearch seems to have made many of the 19th-century records available.
The recording of the Ms. Winstone’s presentation will soon be available on the Halton-Peel Branch’s website in the Members Only section.
