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Warwick is a rural township or municipality in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada, with a population (2011) of 3717. In 1832, the township began to attract settlers when the Egremont Road (which bisects it) was surveyed to link London with the Lake Huron shoreline. The early incomers included those helped by charitable organizations, such as Lord Sheffield's Petworth settlers, and retired soldiers from the British Army. Warwick Village was surveyed within the township where Bear Creek crossed the Egremont Road. The larger Village of Watford was established to the southeast of Warwick Village when the Great Western Railway was established in the 1850s. Watford became an independently incorporated village in 1873. Parts of Warwick were removed from its jurisdiction when the villages of Forest and Arkona were incorporated in the 1870s. With municipal restructuring in 2001, Watford and Warwick were merged. While agriculture remains a mainstay, the township's location between the cities of London and Sarnia means that increasingly residents find work in these larger centres. Since 2005 a group of volunteers has been actively working to research and write a detailed history of the township and collect a substantial archive of historical materials. In addition to Warwick and Watford, the township also includes the smaller communities of Birnam and Wisbeach.
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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