Genealogical Resources
in
Elgin County, Ontario, Canada
Elgin County Archives
The Elgin County Archives was opened in the fall of 2002. It is located in the same building as the Elgin County Library at 450 Sunset Drive, St. Thomas, Ontario N5R 5V1. It is open Tuesday - Friday, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The Archivist can be reached at 519/ 631-1460; fax 519/631-9209 or by email at archives@elgin-county.on.ca
The collection includes the available Elgin County and St. Thomas newspapers; Ontario censuses from 1842 to 1891(complete) and part of the 1901 census; Surrogate Court records for Elgin County from 1854 to 1959; Early Township Land Papers for Elgin County, assorted assessment rolls for different municipalities within the County; and various other genealogical material. There are microfilm readers and one microfilm reader-printer available. The ECA includes records of the county government back to 1852, The Scott-Sefton Photo Collection (almost a 100,000) of negatives from Elgin area studio photographers, Alma College records, Women's Institute Records and some maps and plans of the county. Free parking is available.
Take a look at the Elgin County Surrogate Court Indexes now posted on the Elgin Archives Web site at Estates 1 and Estates 2 - (2 text files 1800-1900). Click on "Search our Collections", and select "Collection Highlights" from the drop down menu.
Elgin County Library
The Elgin County Library system has eleven branches located in:
All have small collections of books and local history material about their area, as well as the cemetery transcriptions. Aylmer, Dutton, Port Stanley, and other smaller libraries have limited microfilm collections (duplicates at St. Thomas Public Library). The headquarters of the Elgin County Library is at 450 Sunset Drive (Highway # 4 ), St.Thomas, phone 519/631-1460. The office is open 9:00 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. It has a collection of assessment rolls and other municipal records on microform, some church and other records on microform, original paper copies of municipal records, a few business records, copies of Elgin County census microfilms, British Military and Naval Records Index on microfilm, books about Elgin County and area, family histories, a local history clipping file index on a computer database, Elgin County cemetery transcriptions, and other county's cemetery transcriptions.
Over the years Elgin County Library has published many genealogical and historical books. These are for sale at the headquarters.
The Elgin County Library (ECL) Catalog Online Check out history and genealogy subjects.
Aylmer & District Museum
The Aylmer Museum is open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 9-12 & 1-5, Wednesday afternoons 1-5 (March to May and September to December) Open Tuesday to Saturday 9-5 the months of June, July & August. Closed holiday weekends, Sundays and Mondays. There is an admission charge to the museum and a charge for archival use of their collection. Please call ahead and make an appointment with the curator if you wish to access the archives. This is a teaching museum with one staff member. Located at 14 East St, Aylmer, phone/fax 519/773-9723. The Aylmer Museum has a collection of business and private papers, including the papers of a company which made cemetery markers. It has a microfilm reader and copies of the Aylmer Express newspapers. Also in its collection are cemetery transcriptions for Malahide Township and the Town of Aylmer and a large collection of mortgage posters.
The Aylmer Museum can be contacted at aylmermuseum@amtelecom.net
The Elgin County Museum
The Elgin County Museum is located at 450 Sunset Drive, St. Thomas, Ontario N5R 5V1. The hours of operation are given at the Museum's web site. The museum has a collection of photographs and papers stored in the Document Room.
The Elgin Military Museum
The Elgin Military Museum collection contains information about the men and women of Elgin County who served in the service. Military records cover from the War of 1812 to the Korean War. Records consist of lists of people who served in various regiments. as well as records of several of the early payrolls from the militia regiments of the County.
The Elgin County Branch of The Ontario Genealogical Society
Members of the O.G.S. branch who live locally are very willing to help and will do limited research for members. They can be contacted at Box 20060, St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, N5P 4H4. Both libraries have the phone numbers of contact people willing to help researchers. Elgin County O.G.S. keeps its library materials at the St. Thomas Public Library in the George Thorman Room. All of the known cemeteries are recorded and available there. In addition, donated family charts and histories are kept there. The Elgin County O.G.S. makes its copy of the Ontario Vital Statistics Indexes on microfilm available to researchers at the George Thorman Room. The meetings are held on the fourth Monday of the month, except July and August, at 7:30 p.m. in the Carnegie Room of the St. Thomas Library.
Family History Centre of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
The Family History Centre is located at 436 Elm St, St. Thomas, phone 519/631-2641. It is open Wednesday 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and on Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The majority of its collection is in microfilm and microfiche. It offers such materials as the International Genealogical Index, The Family History Library Catalog, different indexes to censuses of England and Scotland, guides to countries and their genealogical resources, the Ontario Vital Statistics Index and part of the Registrations. The centre has computer access to the IGI, the Family History Library Catalog, Ancestral Files and other material. The St. Thomas Family History Centre is a branch of the Family History Centre and Library maintained by the Latter-day Saints at Salt Lake City, Utah. Each centre can borrow microfilm and microfiche from the main collection housed at Salt Lake City at a minimum charge.
St. Thomas Public Library
The St. Thomas Public Library is open Monday to Thursday 9:30 a.m.- 8:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday 9:30 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. It is located on 153 Curtis St., St. Thomas; phone 519/631-6050.
This library has a very good collection of microfilms in the George Thorman Room. The collection includes some available Elgin County and St. Thomas newspapers and various other genealogical material. There are microfilm readers and one microfilm reader-printer available. It also has an excellent local history and genealogy card file. This is a name and subject card file, organized alphabetically. It gives the user the name or subject and the location where the information was found, such as a newspaper, a book, or a cemetery listing.
There are also newspaper scrapbooks, census indexes, cemetery transcriptions, books on the history of Elgin County and its municipalities, church histories, family histories and much more. The Elgin County branch of The Ontario Genealogical Society houses its collection of family histories, census indexes, newsletters and other library material here.