Ontario Gazetteers

Online Gazetteers

 * The Changing Shape of Ontario: A Guide to Boundaries, Names and Regional Governments Archives of Ontario
 * FamilySearch Places
 * World Gazetteers at Archive.org
 * The Canadian Atlas Online
 * 1849 - Smith's Canadian Gazetteer, 1849
 * 1910-1911 - Province of Ontario Gazetteer, 1910-1911

Why Use Gazetteers
A gazetteer is a dictionary of place-names. Gazetteers list or describe towns and villages, parishes, states, populations, rivers and mountains, and other geographical features. They usually include only the names of places that existed at the time the gazetteer was published. Within a specific geographical area, the place-names are listed in alphabetical order, similar to a dictionary. You can use a gazetteer to locate the places where your family lived and to determine the civil and religious jurisdictions over those places.

There are many places within a country with similar or identical place-names. You will need to use a gazetteer to identify the specific town where your ancestor lived, the state the town was or is in, and the jurisdictions where records about the person was kept.

Gazetteer Contents
Gazetteers may also provide additional information about towns, such as:


 * Different religious denominations
 * Schools, colleges, and universities
 * Major manufacturers, canals, docks, and railroad stations
 * The population size.
 * Boundaries of civil jurisdiction.
 * Ecclesiastical jurisdiction(s)
 * Longitude and latitude.
 * Distances and direction from other from cities.
 * Schools, colleges, and universities.
 * Denominations and number of churches.
 * Historical and biographical information on some individuals (usually high-ranking or famous individuals)

Print Only Gazetteers

 * Gazetteer of Canada. Ontario Canada, Dept of Mines and Technical Surveys, Gazetteer of Canada Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario : Geographical Branch, Dept of Mines and Technical Surveys, 1962
 * Administrative Atlas of Canada Marc Albert Schindler, Administrative Atlas of Canada, Gloucester, Ontario : Schindler-Spring Family Organization, c1986-c1993
 * Place Names of Ontario Floreen Ellen Carter, Place Names of Ontario (book on Fiche), London, Ontario : Microfilmed for Phelps Pub. Co. by David Hallan Information Graphics, 1985
 * Alpha Index to Counties and Townships in Ontario Margaret Williams, Alpha Index to Counties and Townships in Ontario (taken from E. Hancocks' maps), Oakville, Ontario : Ontario Genealogical Society. Halton-Peel Branch, 1990
 * Directory of the Province of Ontario, 1857, with a gazetteer Thomas B Wilson, Directory of the Province of Ontario, 1857, with a gazet[t]eer, Lambertville, NJ : Hunterdon House, c1987
 * Gazetteer of Canada. Ontario = Répertoire géographique du Canada. Ontario Canadian permanent Committee on Geographical Names, Gazetteer of Canada. Ontario = Répertoire géographique du Canada. Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario : Canada. Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. Surveys and Mapping Branch, c1988
 * Inventory of Cemeteries in Ontario : a genealogical research guide' Verna Ronnow, Inventory of Cemeteries in Ontario, Toronto, Ontario : Ontario Genealogical Society, c1987
 * Guide to southern Ontario place names for family researchers Mary Kearns Trace, Guide to Southern Ontario Placer Names for Family Researchers, Calgary, Alberta : Traces, c1986
 * The Province of Ontario, a History, 1615-1927 Jesse Edgar Middleton and Fred Landon, The Province of Ontario, a History, 1615-1927, Toronto, Ontario " Dominion Publishing, c1927-28
 * Townships of the province of Ontario, Canada Muriel Gartner and Frederick Prong, Townships of the Province of Ontario, Canada : a complete index of the townships in all the counties & districts, Toronto, Ontario : Ontario Genealogical Society, Nipissing District Branch, c2007