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Saturday, September 25, 2010

Finding an Upper Canada (Ontario) Marriage Bond Before 1867

Walter asked about Protestant marriages in Ontario in the early 1860s.
My ancestor married in Ontario around 1861. How can I find his marriage when there aren't any Marriage Registrations online before 1869? They were Protestant.
ASK OLIVE TREE RESPONSE: Hi Walter - That's a challenge. It can be difficult to find a marriage that took place in a Protestant church in Quebec (Lower Canada) or Ontario (Upper Canada) before 1867.

Marriage bonds were prepared for Protestant marriages by licence. After obtaining the bond, a licence was issued and the marriage took place a few days later. The good news is that Library and Archives Canada holds the following:

* 2960 marriage bonds for Lower Canada (Quebec) issued between 1779 and 1858

* 7899 marriage bonds for Upper Canada (Ontario) issued between 1803 and 1865

A typical bond has the following information:

* Name of the future husband
* Name of the future wife
* Their place of residence
* Names of the sureties (people who knew the groom and would
guarantee that no legal reasons existed why the couple could not marry)
* Date and place where the bond was issued

These bonds are freely available online at Library & Archives Canada

1 comment:

  1. Did Walter already search the County Marriage Registers 1858-1869 for Ontario? (They are indexed in Ancestry's Ontario Marriages database or available at the Archives of Ontario and FHL on microfilm.) Just asking ... since they normally require the names of parents of bride and groom, which may be something he is seeking(?). I can't tell if he asked about a marriage record in general or specifically a marriage bond. You are provising a great service here, Lorine!