Ontario Adoption and Guardianship Records

Archives of Ontario

 * Guardianship and Adoption Research Aid
 * This research guide has information about guardianships and related records at the Archives of Ontario and offers information on agencies to contact about adoption records. Please note that The Archives of Ontario does not have adoption files, only guardianship records.

Guardianship Records
The Archives of Ontario holds records of guardianships 40 year old and older, with a few exceptions, and some records that are less than 40 years old. Other existing records are at the local courts.
 * Pre-1921 guardianships are often erroneously identified as adoptions, even on the records themselves.
 * Guardianships appeared with the Guardianship Act, 1827.
 * The Act allowed a Probate or Surrogate Court judge to appoint an individual to safeguard the child's "property, person and education" until maturity. *If both parents were dead or destitute, a relative or family friend was often appointed guardian.
 * While the child was often said to be "adopted", they had no claim on their guardian's name or estate.
 * After Ontario made adoption easier in 1921, there were fewer guardianships awarded but some guardianships were made as recently as the 1970s.
 * The province-wide Probate Court existed until 1859. The Surrogate Courts, located in each county and district, existed until 1985.