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At some time in the second half of the 20th century, it would appear that Sarnia Township was renamed the Town of Clearwater. In 1991 the Town of Clearwater was amalgamated into the City of Sarnia. The following is one of the few bits of online information found: Sarnia Township bears its name from the same source as that of the County Town, namely the Roman name for the Island of Guernsey, which was given this section of the county by Sir John Colborne. Its western boundary lying on the St. Clair River probably accounts for this township being the earliest settled part of Western Canada. While the Anglo Saxons began their settlements in this locality in the early thirties, yet there had been a French settlement where Sarnia now stands, a century and a half prior to this. The first municipal organization of the township took place in 1836. Today Sarnia Township is one of the best developed [townships] in the county. The district lying adjacent to the City of Sarnia is divided up into small farms for market gardening, for which its soil is wonderfully adapted and the products of these farms find ready markets in the city and northern ports. The township was surveyed in 1829 by one Rosswell Mount, and its population in 1921 was 2583 Its area covers about thirty-nine thousand acres. (source:Canadian Genealogy) The map of Lambton County circa 1951 from Ontario Archives locates the individual townships, city, towns and villages of the county. (Click at the bottom of the page to see the map enlarged.) A sketchmap from Ontario GenWeb provides a simple illustration of the location of the townships. [edit] Research TipsThe primary source for basic documents (vital statistics, land records, wills) for people who lived in the Province of Ontario is the Archives of Ontario, 134 Ian Macdonald Blvd, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M7A 2C5. [edit] Early RecordsCivil registration did not begin in the province until 1869. Before then there may be church records of baptisms and burials. For the most part these are still held by the denomination who recorded them. Copies of marriage records made pre-1869 had to be sent by individual clergymen to the registrar of the county in which the marriage took place. These marriage records are available through Ontario Archives, on micorfilm through LDS libraries, and on paid and unpaid websites, but because they were copied at the registrars' offices, they cannot be considered a primary source. [edit] Vital Records after 1869Birth, marriage and death registrations are not open to the public until a specific number of years after the event occurred. Births to 1915 are now available [October 2014]; dates for marriages and deaths are later. Birth and death registration was not universally carried out in the early years after its adoption. Deaths were more apt to be reported than births for several years. The more rural the area, the less likely it would be that these happenings were reported to the authorities.
[edit] Land Records and WillsInformation on how to access land records and wills is best sought on the Archives of Ontario website. An ancestor's land holding might be found on Canadian County Atlas Digital Project if he was in occupancy circa 1878. Association for the Preservation of Ontario Land Registry Office Documents (APOLROD). A list of Land Registry Offices for all Counties of Ontario. [edit] CensusesThe original censuses are in the hands of Library and Archives Canada, known to Canadians as "LAC". Copies of original microfilms are online at the LAC website for all censuses up to 1921. Each census database is preceded with an explanation of the geographical area covered, the amount of material retained (some census division material has been lost), the questions on the census form, and whether there is a name index. Census divisions were redrawn as the population increased and more land was inhabited. [edit] Hard-to-Find Places
[edit] E-books, Books and Newspapers
[edit] Some websites with more local information on Lambton County
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