Place:Stoney Creek, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada

source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names

Stoney Creek was an independently incorporated town located in the former Saltfleet Township in Wentworth County in southern Ontario. In 1974 the town was amalgamated with the surrounding Saltfleet Township to form the Municpality of Stoney Creek at the same time as the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth was established. Since 2001 the area is a part of the new single-tier City of Hamilton.

History and attractions

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Historic Stoney Creek was settled by Loyalists after the American Revolution and was nondescript until it was put on the map as it were by the Battle of Stoney Creek during the War of 1812. In a night-time surprise attack, the outnumbered British overwhelmed the Americans and forced their retreat to Forty Mile Creek (now Grimsby). In a forty minute battle, hundreds were killed, and the two American Generals were captured. The site of the Battle of Stoney Creek near Centennial Parkway and King Street has been preserved as Battlefield House with its associated museum, monument and park.

The Erland Lee Museum, site of the first Women's Institute in the World, is also located in Stoney Creek.

Branches of the Bruce Trail provide access to Battlefield Park as well as the Devil's Punch Bowl. The latter is marked by a large illuminated cross and offers an excellent lookout for both Stoney Creek and Hamilton. Other green spaces of note include Fifty Point Conservation Area, which includes camping and a small craft harbour.

Both the Devil's Punch Bowl and the large cross mentioned above were featured in the 2006 horror film Silent Hill. It can be seen during the first few scenes. Another movie filmed in the area was the 1998 film The Big Hit starring Mark Wahlberg.

On a more commercial note, the Winona Peach Festival serves up homegrown fruit, crafts and music. Like the peach festival, the Stoney Creek Flag Festival is also held every summer. The Stoney Creek Dairy on King Street — with a stylized Battlefield Monument in its logo — has offered frozen treats to people in the region for decades under a variety of ownership, the current one being Ben & Jerry's. Eastgate Square Mall straddles the former border between Hamilton and Stoney Creek.

Research Tips

The 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.

Early Records

Civil 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.

Vital Records after 1869

Birth, marriage and death registrations are not open to the public until a specific number of years after the event occurred. Births to 1914 are now available [October 2012]; 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.
Images and indexes of civil registrations for the "viewable" years can be found on paid websites, and indexes only on FamilySearch. The latest year published is not yet available online. The FamilySearch Wiki on Ontario Vital Records explains how these records are organized and their availability.

Land Records and Wills

Information 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.

Censuses

The original censuses are in the hands of Library and Archives Canada. All of the original census (1851-1911) images are online with the exception of that for 1861. Not all of them are indexed. Later censuses are not yet available. Census divisions were redrawn as the population increased and more land was inhabited.
Other websites, some paid and some free, also provide Canadian census originals and/or indexes online. One can view censuses on microfilm at the Archives of Ontario or at big libraries throughout Canada.

E-books and Books

• The Internet Archive, particularly texts from Canadian universities, can contain interesting material
• Our Roots is a Canadian website similar to The Internet Archive
• Global Genealogy is an online bookshop specializing in Ontario material who will ship anywhere in the world.
  
  

Some websites with more local information on Wentworth County

• Wentworth GenWeb who have producted a set of township maps indicating cemetery locations. These maps also show roads and concession numbers, good for locating property, and the line of the Niagara Escarpment, an important geographical feature in the neighbourhood.
• Hamilton Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society provide a list of publications and describe their personal research services. They also have lists of people found in the archives of local funeral homes.
• Hamilton Public Library have a website listing the books on local genealogy, township by township.
• Head-of-the-Lakes Historical Society has its own website.
• West Flamborough Heritage Society and Archives has its own website.

source: Family History Library Catalog