Part IV: Historical Books: Canada Lands Index

On December 18, 2017, the Ontario Land Registry built a web portal (https://www.onland.ca/ui/) to deliver key statutory services relating to land and property ownership in Ontario to land registry professionals and the public.

These online land records are gold mine of information for genealogists with ancestors in Ontario.

This post, Part IV,  is about the Canada Lands Index which contains plans of public lands under the Canada Lands Surveys Act, Navigable Waters Protection Act, Transfers of Jurisdiction and Control, Indian Reserves and National Parks. Of the 53 Land Registry Office records online, only 17 (highlighted below) had Historical Books / Canada Lands Index records.

This post, Part IV, is an Index of sorts to the 53 Land Registry Offices in Ontario and I indicate below IF they even have a "Canada Lands Index" book online and I summarize ALL of the historical books that are available online in this new OnLand resource.

Canada West in 1857; Source: Colton, G. W., Colton's Atlas of the World Illustrating Physical and Political Geography, c. 1857 edition. (Public Domain) (Visit link to enlarge)

When I searched for "Essex County" in the "Historical Books; Canada Land Index", there were two books:

• Mersea: Navigable Waters (3 pages); 1996; This contained entries from 1957-1980 regarding the navigable waters in Lake Erie across from Mersea township
• Canada Lands (13 pages) This book had five sections:
• Point Pelee National Park (Mersea Twsp) (1967-1997)
• Wyandotte Cemetery (Anderdon Twsp) (1967) recorded a survey; this was referred to as the Wyandotte Indian Cemetery and I have written about it before and our connection to Joseph and Angelique (Fortier) White who were descended from  Chief Joseph White Sr. - Chief of the Wyandotttes (he died in 1885).
• Fort Malden (Town of Amherstburg) (1976)
• Boblo Island (1989-2003)
• Navigable Waters (1985-2003)

I turned my attention to the Land Registry Office "Peel" to see if it contained more results than the Essex county book but Peel did not even have a "Canada Land Index: and the only two historical land books that were available to browse For Peel were the  Abstract/Parcel Register Book and the By-Law Index.

The Land Records / Historical Books 

available online vary across the 

53 Land Registry Offices

As I checked the "Canada Lands" books, they did not seem to be a helpful resource for genealogists. The exception to this would be items such as "List of Reserves" (see Manitoulin below) and the expropriations (see Halton County below). If surveys related o Reserves or expropriations are important to your research, these books my offer additional insight.

Ontario Land Records: Historical Books: 

Online Holdings Listed by LRO

The former Registry Office in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada. (Rick Harris from Whitby, Ontario, Canada; Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic l)

Below is an itemized list of  all of the books that were available at each of the 53 Land Registry Offices (LROs) I have highlighted the seventeen LROs that had a "Canada Land Index" book and highlight the ones that had a "Retake Book" (explained below)

1. Algoma: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book and Retake Book
2. Brant: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book
3. Bruce: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book and Retake Book
4. Cochrane: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book and Retake Book
5. Dufferin: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item "Navigable Waters" 4 pages)  There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book
6. Dundas: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book and Retake Book
7. Durham: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; and Retake Book
8. Elgin: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item "Navigable Waters" 3 pages) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; Power of Attorney Index; First Registration Book; and Retake Book
9. Essex: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Two items "Navigable Waters" 3 pages and Canada Lands, 13 pages) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; First Registration Book; and Retake Book
10. Frontenac: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; Retake Book and General Register Index
11. Glengarry: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
12. Grenville: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book
13. Grey: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
14. Haldimand: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index; and Retake Book
15. Halton County: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item "Navigable Waters" 28 pages; Expropriation Plans 1990-2017) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index; Subdivision Plan Index; Reference Plan Index; Condominium Corporation Index
16. Hamilton Wentworth: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book;  By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index;  Condominium Corporation Index; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index;
17. Hastings: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item "Navigable Waters" 9 pages; ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index;
18. Huron: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
19. Kenora: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
20. Kent County: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
21. Lambton: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book;
22. Lanark: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book;
23. Leeds: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Eight items: PLAN 326 TO 328 (356 pages); PLAN 338 TO 341 (14 pages); PLAN 344 (59 pages); PLAN 374 (149 pages); PLAN 416 (245 pages); PLAN 410 TO 412 (2 pages); CANADA LANDS (31 pages); PLAN 337 (115 pages) ) (These mostly deal with the National Park Island on the St. Lawrence) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; First Registration Book;
24. Lennox: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book;  Retake Book; Condominium Corporation Index;
25. Manitoulin: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Two items: Plan (165 pages) and  "Navigable Waters Index" 48 pages) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; ;First Registration Book and Retake Book
26. Metro Toronto: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index and Retake Book( I do not understand why there would not be a Condominium Corporation Index?)
27. Middlesex County: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Two items: Middlesex -  16 pages and Middlesex ("Names of National Parks and Indian Reserves") West- 24 pages) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Subdivision Plan Index and Condominium Corporation Index
28. Muskoka: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; Power of Attorney Index; Condominium Corporation Index and Retake Book
29. Niagara North: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Two items "Navigable Waters Index" - 8 pages and "Index to Canada Lands" - 7 pages ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index; Subdivision Plan Index; First Registration Book and Retake Book
30. Niagara South: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Subdivision Plan Index; and Retake Book
31. Nippissing: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item; 48 pages "Canada Land Index" includes "Nipissing Indian Reserve" ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
32. Norfolk: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
33. Northumberland: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (One item; 166 pages ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; Condominium Corporation Index; First Registration Index; and Retake Book
34. Ottawa-Carleton: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; First Registration Index; and Retake Book
35. Oxford County: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book;
36. Parry Sound: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (Two items; "Canada Lands" 19 pages; "Navigable Waters" 12 pages) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index ; First Registration Index; and Retake Book
37. Peel County: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; By-Law Index;
38. Perth: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index
39. Peterborough: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; By-Law Index; Reference Plan Index; Condominium Corporation Index; and Retake Book
40. Prescott: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; First Registration Index;
41. Prince Edward: There is a Canada Lands Index Book ( one item "General Registers" 15 pages;  ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; and Retake Book
42. Rainy River: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
43. Renfrew: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (one item "Crown Lands" 10 pages ) There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; and Retake Book
44. Russell: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; and Retake Book
45. Simcoe: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
46. Stormont: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (one book "Cornwall - Crown Lands" 11 pages; "Indian Reserve") There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index ; First Registration Index; and Retake Book
47. Sudbury: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; and Retake Book
48. Thunder Bay: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index ;Subdivision Plan Index; Reference Plan Index;   First Registration Index; and Retake Book
49. Timiskaming: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; Condominium Corporation Index; and Retake Book
50. Victoria: There is a Canada Lands Index Book (one book "Canada Lands" 184 pages)  There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index ; Condominium Corporation Index; First Registration Index; and Retake Book
51. Waterloo: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Subdivision Plan Index and Retake Book
52. Wellington:There is a Canada Lands Index Book (one book "Navigable Waters" 4 pages )  There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Power of Attorney Index ; Subdivision Plan Index; Reference Plan Index; Condominium Corporation Index;
53. York Region: No Canada Lands Index Book: There is an Abstract/Parcel Register Book; General Register Index; By-Law Index; Condominium Corporation Index; and Retake Book

Source:Ontario Land Records; Historical Books; Manitoulin LRO Canada Land Index Book

Retake Books

Retakes are rescanned pages of documents that were not viewable in the initial scanned version of the document. These pages must be searched and viewed separately from the document itself.

Almost ALL 53 LROs have "Retake Books"  so if you are finding an illegible pages in your searches, check these documents.

In Essex County. I looked at the "Retake Book" andd there were three books

1. M16, CONCESSION 2
2. PLAN M73
3. PLAN M74 

Other Ontario Land Records Links 

• Part I: Historical Books: First Registration Book: where genealogists can find their ancestors Crown Patents etc.
• Part II: Historical Books: Abstract/Parcel Register Book: where genealogists can find all the entries of every transaction on their ancestors land from the date the Crown Patent was issued (all instruments recorded) up to January 30, 1981
• Part III: Historical Books: General Register Index: where genealogists can locate information about their ancestors wills, etc.
• Part IV: Historical Books: Canada Lands Index:where genealogists can find information about public lands under the Canada Lands Surveys Act, Navigable Waters Protection Act, Transfers of Jurisdiction and Control, Indian Reserves and National Parks
• Family Search: Digitization of Essex County Land Records 1779-1955