Gone Researching's Cheat Sheet to the Digitized Upper Canada Land Books at the Héritage website

Upper Canada Land Books
(with ad covered up)

So last week I wrote about a handful of digitized microfilms related to the Upper Canada Land Petitions from the Library and Archives of Canada. Of these digitized microfilms collections a couple collections have online indexes while some have microfilms of card index sets digitized, and yet others have no index at all. Index or not what they all have in common is lists or tables of microfilm numbers without any quick visual clues as to what each "film" contains.

After I searched for my people making notes of what was on each "film" and where (which image number) each specific volume started, I realized I had the beginning of a cheat sheet for this collection and decided to share it. My plan was to just make a cheat sheet for the digitized microfilm of the actual books but I discovered a webpage with a guide to the other half of the "films" containing the card index sets. Using both my "cheat sheet" and the other guide should save you time searching.

The collection known online as the Upper Canada Land Books at the Héritage website is known in the LAC's catalog as Land Minute Books of the Executive Council, 1787 – 1841 (formerly RG1 L1 now R10875-2-1-E.) 

This collection contains Minutes of the Land Committee of the Executive Council of Upper Canada, 1787-1841. These minute books are commonly called “Land Books” which record the petitions read and decisions made (approved or dismissed) regarding those petitions. You will also see some patents being surrendered. (Note: Usually you do not learn from these books what location of land an individual was given.) Originally labeled volumes A through U, later these volumes were assigned volume numbers 18-39 for cataloging. Also included are the Minutes of the Land Committee of the Executive council of the united Province of Canada, 1841-1867. Again, originally labeled using letters and later given the volume numbers 40-48 for cataloging.

Though there is no online index to this collection at this time, there actually are two index options. First, these particular minute/land book volumes each start with its own nominal index of petitioners. Second, there are digitized microfilm of two card index sets (see below) that index these records.

Regardless of the two index options to use, you still have to find the book and page you seek. So rather click around aimlessly this "cheat sheet" shows you where each individual volume starts and what time frame is covered by each volume. (The gray text volumes listed below belong to other collections.)

Upper Canada Land Books (Minute Books) Microfilm Reels

• C-100  v. 18-19
  image 0001 vol. K (23 Mar 1838 - 27 Jul 1838) continued 
  image 0044 vol. L (28 Jul 1838 - )
  image 0320 vol. M (27 Apr 1839 - )
  image 0662 vol. Selections from Quebec Land Books A & B (1787 - 1791)
  image 0886 vol. A (8 Jul 1792 - 27 Jun 1796)
• C-101  v. 19-23
  image 0001 vol. A continued at page 233
  image 0084 vol. B (1 Oct 1796 - 7 Apr 1797)
  image 0269 vol. C (11 Apr 1797 - 19 Jan 1802)
  image 0480 vol. D (22 Dec 1797 - 22 Jun 1802) note: finding aid says 23 May 1798 - 22 Jun 1802
  image 0927 vol. E (23 Jun 1802 - 28 Mar 1804)
• C-102  v. 23-27
  image 0001 vol. E continued at page 112
  image 0152 vol. F (2 Apr 1804 - 27 Feb 1806)
  image 0389 vol. G (28 Feb 1806 - 29 Mar 1808)
  image 0669 vol. H (9 Apr 1808 - 23 Jan 1811)
  image 0905 vol. I (12 Feb 1811 - 10 Aug 1816)
• C-103  v. 27-30
  image 0001 vol. I continued at page 138
  image 0131 vol. J (13 Aug 1816 - 10 Feb 1819)
  image 0440 vol. K (25 Feb 1819 - 27 Dec 1820)
  image 0755 vol. L (16 Jan 1821 - 4 Feb 1824)
• C-104  v. 30-33
  image 0001 vol. L continued at page 485
  image 0045 vol. M (9 Feb 1824 - 13 Dec 1826)
  image 0467 vol. N (3 Jan 1827 - 20 May 1829)
  image 0785 vol. O (2 Jun 1829 - 23 Aug 1831)
• C-105  v. 33-36
  image 0001 vol. O continued at page 362
  image 0095 vol. P (1 Sep 1831 - 12 Mar 1833)
  image 0362 vol. Q (21 Mar 1833 - 28 Mar 1835)
  image 0737 vol. R (2 Apr 1835 - 16 Jun 1836)
• C-106  v. 36-39
  image 0001 vol. R continued at page 429
  image 0038 vol. S (20 Jun 1836 - 27 Jul 1837)
  image 0418 vol. T (10 Aug 1837 - 27 Jun 1839)
  image 0768 vol. U (4 Jul 1839 0 6 Feb 1841)
• C-107  v. 39-42
  image 0001 vol. U continued at page 389
  image 0172 vol. A (15 Mar 1841 - 13 Aug 1842) note: finding aid says 15 Mar 1841 - 22 Dec 1839
  image 0458 vol. B (10 Jan 1843 - 27 Sep 1844)
  image 0829 vol. C (4 Nov 1844 - 28 Dec 1846)
• C-108  v. 42-45
  image 0001 vol. C continued at page 351
  image 0174 vol. D (8 Jan 1847 - 19 Aug 1848)
  image 0551 vol. E (23 Aug 1848 - 8 Oct 1850)
  image 0931 vol. F (11 Oct 1850 - 30 Dec 1852)
• C-109  v. 45-47
  image 0001 vol. F continued at page 198
  image 0254 vol. G (19 Jan 1853 - 27 Mar 1855)
  image 0596 vol. H (4 Apr 1855 - 10 Jul 1858)
  
• C-110  v. 47-48
  image 0001 vol. H continued at page 652
  image 0020 vol. I (18 Aug 1858 - 31 May 1867)
  image 0305 vol. A (13 Feb 1841 - 11 Oct 1842)
  image 0584 vol. B (1 Nov 1842 - 29 Jun 1843)

Finding Aid MSS1802 also known as Upper Canada Land Index

Also part of this collection is Finding Aid MSS1802 Index to the Upper Canada Land Petitions (RG1 L3) and the Executive Council Minute Books on Land Matters (formerly RG1 L1 now R10875-2-1-E) commonly called the Upper Canada Land Index. It consists of two card index sets that as the title says indexes two collections. (Note: The online index to the Upper Canada Land Petitions does not index these Minute/Land Books.)

• H-1976, H-1977, H-1978
  A supplementary card index to the Upper Canada Land Petitions (RG1 L3) and Executive Council Minute Books on Land Matters (formerly RG1 L1 now R10875-2-1-E) which was filmed in 1991.
  
  
• C-10810 to C-10836
  A card index to the Upper Canada Land Petitions (RG1 L3) and Executive Council Minute Books on Land Matters (formerly RG1 L1 now R10875-2-1-E) which was filmed in 1981.

The FamilySearch Research Wiki Ontario Land Records Land Books and Petitions Index Film Numbers has a helpful list (see the pink column on the right) that breaks down what cards/names are on each "microfilm" of these card index sets making up Finding Aid MSS1802. So rather than duplicate something that already exists I simply point you to that aid for the card index sets.

When you are at the Archives of Ontario: For Upper Canada Land Books diffusion material see inventory D 355 for microfilm numbers. (AO refers to this collection as RG1 E1 at National Archives but LAC has it as formerly RG1 L1 now R10875-2-1-E.) At the Archives of Ontario, these card index films (both sets) are part of Upper Canada Land Petitions diffusion material D 29 see user’s guide to Upper Canada Land Petitions and Land Books for detailed descriptions and microfilms.

I hope this cheat sheet helps you. Hopefully, one day we will get a better website interface for these digitized microfilm collections.

Finally, there is yet one more article/post to come that goes with what became a series on Upper Canada Land Records Research.


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