Canada, Ontario District Marriage Registers - FamilySearch Historical Records

Canada Ontario

What is in this Collection?
This collection includes marriage records from 1801-1858. The collection contains images of district marriage records. Most marriage entries are between the 1830s and 1850s, but there are a few entries earlier and later.

During the time of the records in this collection, Canada was run on a system of districts and counties. A district was the larger of the two and a district could contain several counties. The districts were used mainly for administrative and court purposes. To find out more about districts and counties, including tables and maps that explain the history of the districts and counties, visit | Ontario's Ministry of Government and Consumer Services website.

What Can these Records Tell Me?
Marriage records may contain the following information:
 * Name of groom
 * Name of bride
 * Residence at time of marriage
 * Date of Marriage
 * Witnesses, who might be related
 * Person who performed the marriage
 * District the marriage was performed in

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor
 * At least one other piece of information

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page.
 * 1) Select District
 * 2) Select Years and Volume Number

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Use the information to find other records such as birth, christening, census, land and death records.
 * Use the information to find additional family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family.
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking for, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search.
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name, especially French or Latin versions.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of Ontario, Canada Genealogy.
 * Search in the Ontario Archives and Libraries.
 * Search in the FamilySearch Library Catalog

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image. Collection Citation: Record Citation (or citation for the index entry): Image Citation: Top of Page