Place:Lincoln, Ontario, Canada

Watchers
NameLincoln
TypeCounty
Coordinates43.15°N 79.4°W
Located inOntario, Canada     (1792 - 1970)
Also located inUpper Canada, Canada     (1792 - 1841)
Canada West, Canada     (1841 - 1867)
See alsoHome District, Upper Canada, Canadaadministrative district 1792-1800
Niagara District, Upper Canada, Canadaadministrative district 1800-1850
Niagara, Ontario, Canadaregional municipality into which Lincoln was amalgamated in 1970


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

Lincoln County is an historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario, formed in 1792, and named after the County of Lincoln, or Lincolnshire, in England. In 1845, the southern portion of Lincoln County was separated to form Welland County.

end of Wikipedia contribution

Lincoln benefits from a very mild climate and from the Niagara Escarpment which follows the line of the Lake Ontario shore, but is situated about 10 miles inland. The land on the lake side of the escarpment is good for growing fruit and vegetables of all kinds, and the land on the slope of the escarpment is used as vineyards. Above the escarpment the land is flat and arable crops are grown. Lincoln is known as Ontario’s bread basket.

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

In some census and election records from the late 19th century, the townships of Caistor and Gainsborough were enumerated as part of Monck County, while Grantham and Niagara Townships were enumerated as part of Niagara County. However, neither Monck nor Niagara ever existed as incorporated municipal counties, but rather as electoral districts.

In 1970, Lincoln and Welland Counties were amalgamated to form the Regional Municipality of Niagara.

The map of Lincoln 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.)

Historic Townships

  • North Grimsby, facing Lake Ontario, between Wentworth County border and Clinton, population centre: Grimsby
  • South Grimsby, inland, between Wentworth County border and Clinton, population centres: Smithville, Kimbo
  • Caistor, in the southwest corner of the county, name changed to West Lincoln since 1970, population centres: Abingdon, Caistor, Caistor Centre, Caistor Corners
  • Gainsborough, an inland township between Caistor and the border with Welland County, population centres: Bismark, Port Davidson, St. Anns, Silverdale, Wellandport, Wilcox, Winslow
  • Clinton, facing Lake Ontarion between Grimsby and Louth, name changed to Lincoln since 1970, population centres: Beamsville, Beamsville Station, Campden, Vineland
  • Louth, facing Lake Ontario, between Clinton and Grantham, population centres: Bridgeport, Jordan, Vineland
  • Grantham, facing Lake Ontario between Louth and Niagara, population centres: St. Catharines, Port Dalhousie, Merriton
  • Niagara, facing Lake Ontario and the Niagara River, population centres: Niagara-on-the-Lake, Queenston, St. Davids

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 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.
Images and indexes of civil registrations for the "viewable" years can be found on paid websites, and indexes only on FamilySearch. The FamilySearch Wiki on Ontario Vital Records explains how these records are organized and their availability.
In September 2014 Ancestry.ca announced that its paid website has been subjected to a "houseclean" of its Ontario BMD database, adding data that had been omitted and making many corrections. Its provision now includes

  • Births, with 2,172,124 records covering 1869-1913.
  • Marriages, with 3,393,369 records for 1801-1928 including Ontario county, district and Roman Catholic origins as well as province-wide civil registration.
  • Deaths, with 2,190,030 records comprising Ontario civil registrations of deaths, 1869-1938 and registrations of Ontario overseas deaths for 1939-1947.

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, 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.
Other websites, some paid and some free, also provide Canadian census originals and/or indexes online. One can also view censuses on microfilm at the LAC, at the Archives of Ontario (see address above), or at large libraries throughout Canada.

Hard-to-Find Places

E-books, Books and Newspapers

  • 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.
  • The Ancestor Hunt is a blog listing old Ontario newspapers that are available online, both free and pay websites. This is a very extensive list.

Some websites with more local information on Lincoln County

  • Niagara GenWeb provides a combined site for Lincoln and Welland. In places it appears to be "under construction" but another click away is a list of early settlers for a township with the date they settled, birthplace, post office address and business. There is also a surname database, a query page, a list of the census microfilms with LAC code numbers (not FamilySearch), a list of cemeteries in the county, biographies of settlers, libraries and county offices, land records, links to family websites and other links.
  • The Niagara Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society have a list of their publications both online and off- and their research facilities. Niagara Branch will be hosting the OGS annual province-wide conference in 2014.
  • The St Catharines Public Library has a website devoted to their genealogical holdings.
source: Family History Library Catalog
This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Lincoln County, Ontario. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with WeRelate, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.