Microfilm reader, Queen's Square
Services | March 11, 2019
Historical documents on microfilm and microform readers are kept at our Idea Exchange, Queen's Square location. Please ask at Member Services for assistance.
Our microfilm holdings include local newspapers dating back to 1849, census, church records, and local history. Browse the complete list below or skip to:
- Newspapers (Local)
- Census
- Vernon's Directories
- Galt Church Records
- Local History (Galt, Hespeler, Preston)
- Historical Records
What is Microfilm?
Microfilm is a 16 mm or 35 mm continuous roll of photographic film containing miniaturized (micro) images of text. Micro filming is a way to preserve fragile documents, e.g. rare books, back runs of newspaper titles and/or journals.
Newspapers (Local)
Cambridge Times
January 1985 – December 2003 (Microfiche)
Dumfries Reformer
November 10, 1849 – October 7, 1892 (Reels 1-21)
| Reel 1 | Nov.10, 1849 – Sept.17, 1856 | Reel 10 | July 2, 1879 – June 8, 1881 |
| Reel 2 | Sept.24, 1856 – Dec.14, 1859 | Reel 11 | June 15, 1881 – Dec. 27, 1883 |
| Reel 3 | Dec.21, 1859 – Dec.31, 1862 | Reel 12 | Jan. 3, 1884 – Jan. 28, 1886 |
| Reel 4 | Jan.14,1863 – Apr.26,1865 | Reel 13 | Feb. 4, 1886 – Aug. 25, 1887 |
| Reel 5 | May 3, 1865 – Oct.28, 1868 | Reel 14 | Sept.1, 1887 – Jan.31, 1889 |
| Reel 6 | Nov.4, 1868 – Dec.27, 1871 | Reel 15 | Feb. 7, 1889 – Aug. 7, 1890 |
| Reel 7 | Jan.10, 1872 – June 25, 1873 | Reel 16 | Aug. 14, 1890 – Feb. 4, 1892 |
| Reel 8 | July 2, 1873 – April 26, 1876 | Reel 17 | Feb. 11, 1892 – Oct.7, 1892 |
| Reel 9 | May 3, 1876 – June 25, 1879 |
Name Change: to Dumfries Weekly Reformer – October 14, 1892 – December 30, 1897
| Reel 17 | Oct.14, 1892 – June 16, 1893 |
| Reel 18 | June 23, 1893 – August 16, 1894 |
| Reel 19 | Aug.23, 1894 – Sept.12, 1895 |
| Reel 20 | Sept.19, 1895 – Oct.29, 1896 |
| Reel 21 |
October 29, 1896 – Dec.30, 1897 Additional Single Issues:
|
Galt Daily Reporter
1857-September 19, 2003 (ceased publication)
Special Notes:
- Masthead Name Changes: 1922; 1932 (Apr-June); 1933 (Apr.4); 1948 (Nov.29 & Dec.31)
- December 1947 (film b) Reunion Special Edition (includes 1901, 1926, 1927, 1946, 1947)
- Flood 1974 (May)
- Missing Dates (Mostly during WWI, WWII, and the 1950s polio epidemic):
| 1900 – 1901 | 1921 Jan-Mar; July-Sept | 1950 July-August |
| 1903 January-June | 1924 Jan-Mar, July-Sept | 1951 May-June |
| 1904 April-December | 1925 | 1952 Sept-Oct. Polio |
| 1905 | 1926 July-September | 1953 July-August Polio |
| 1906 | 1927 April-June; Oct-Dec | 1955 May-June |
| 1908 July-December | 1929 October-December | 1956 September-October |
| 1910 July | 1930 October-December | 1957 Jan-Feb; July-Aug; Nov-Dec |
| 1911 July-September | 1935 April-December | 1958 Sept-Oct; Nov-Dec |
| 1912 April-June | 1936 October-December | 1959 May-June |
| 1913 October-December | 1937 Jan-June; Oct-Dec | 1970 June; Sept; Dec |
| 1914 WWI | 1938 Apr-June; Oct-Dec | 1971 July-October |
| 1916 April-Dec | 1939 Jan-Mar; Oct-Dec | 1972 Sept-December |
| 1917 January 1-16 | 1940 Jan-Mar | 1973 Jan; August; Sept |
| 1917 May-December | 1941 July-Sept | 1974 Jan; Feb; July |
| 1918 Sept-December | 1948 Mar-April |
The Hespeler Herald
1902 – 1930 (Reels #1-10)
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Missing: 1907, 1919, 1920
| Reel 1 | 1902,1903,1904,1905 | Reel 6 | April 18,1918-December 1918 January 1921-December 1922 January 1923-March 8, 1923 |
| Reel 2 | January 18, 1906-Dec.27,1906 January 6,1908 – Dec.31 1909 |
Reel 7 | March 15,1923-Jan-Dec 1924 |
| Reel 3 | January 1, 1910 – Nov.21, 1912 | Reel 8 | 1925 – 1926 |
| Reel 4 | November 28, 1912 – July 8, 1915 | Reel 9 | Jan.6, 1927 – Dec.27, 1928 |
| Reel 5 | July 15, 1915 – April 11, 1918 | Reel 10 | Jan.29, 1929 – December 25, 1930 |
The Prestonian
September 19, 1912 – September 10, 1931 (Reels #1-16)
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Missing: (World War I) September 17, 1914 – March 9, 1916
| Reel 1 | Sept.19, 1912 – Sept.10, 1914 | Reel 9 | Sept.10, 1925– July 11, 1926 (pg3) |
| Reel 2 | March 16, 1916 – May 30, 1918 | Reel 10 | July 22, 1926 – June 2, 1927 |
| Reel 3 | June 13, 1918 – December 24, 1919 | Reel 11 | June 2, 1927 – February 23, 1928 |
| Reel 4 | January 2, 1920 – March 24, 1921 | Reel 12 | March 1, 1928 – January 3, 1929 |
| Reel 5 | March 31, 1921–May 4, 1922 | Reel 13 | January 3, 1929 – October 31, 1929 |
| Reel 6 | May 11, 1922 – May 17, 1923 | Reel 14 | Oct.31,1928 (pg16) - July 31,1930 (pg3) |
| Reel 7 | May 17, 1923 – July 10, 1924 | Reel 15 | July 31, 1930 – May 21, 1931 |
| Reel 8 | July 17, 1924 - Sept 3, 1925 | Reel 16 | May 21, 1931 – September 10, 1931 |
Census
1851 Canada West Census: (Reels 200-201)
- Townships: North Dumfries, Wilmot, Waterloo, Woolwich and Wellesley
- Villages: Galt and Preston
1861 Canada West Census (Reels 202-203)
- Townships: North Dumfries
- Villages: Galt and Hespeler
- Waterloo County: includes villages of Preston and Waterloo
- Townships: Waterloo North; Waterloo South and Wellesley
1871 Waterloo County South Census (Reel 204)
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Wilmot, New Hamburg Village, Dumfries North, Galt Town, Waterloo South, Preston Village, Hespeler Village
1881 Waterloo County Census (Reel 205-206)
- Counties Brant and Waterloo
- Townships: Wilmot, North Dumfries, Waterloo South, Waterloo
- Towns: Galt, Preston, Hespeler and Berlin
1891 Waterloo County South Census (Reel 207)
Waterloo County South
- Villages: Hespeler, Preston, New Hamburg, Ayr, Galt
- Townships: Waterloo South, Wilmot, Dumfries North
Welland County & Victoria South County
- Villages: Chippewa, Fort Erie
- Townships: Bertie, Crowland, Humberstone
1901 Waterloo County (North & South) (Reel 208-209) (includes Victoria South and Welland County)
Waterloo South (Reel 208)
- Villages: Ayr; Town: Galt
- Townships: North Dumfries
Waterloo North and Welland County (Reel 209)
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Villages: Hespeler, New Hamburg, Preston, Chippewa, Fort Erie
Gazetteer & Vernon's Directories
Reels #101-108
- Gazetteer Directory – 1880
- Voters List: Town of Galt – 1896
- Vernon's Directories - 1912-1972
Galt Church Records
Waterloo County Churches by Rosemary Willard Ambrose is an excellent guide to the history of area churches, which records have survived and where the records are located.
Central Presbyterian Church, Galt 1846-1980 (Reels 20-22) (including Union, Melville and 2nd Canada Presbyterian Churches)
Union Presbyterian Church - founded 1870
St.Andrew’s and Union Churches joined to form Central Presbyterian (Reels 20 & 22)
2nd Canada Presbyterian Church - founded 1861
Originally the United Presbyterian Congregation founded 1857. Renamed Melville Presbyterian Church in 1866
Central Presbyterian Church– founded 1880
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- Baptisms 1857 – 1880
- Communion Roll 1857
- Session Minutes 1870-1880
- Communion Roll 1863
- Session Minutes 1856 – 1870
- Marriages 1849-1880, 1898-1925
- Marriages Baptisms and Burials 1856-1870
- Baptisms 1879-1979
- Communion Roll 1880-2000
- Church History 1882-1982
First United Church, Galt 1833-1895 (Reel 13)
- Baptismal Records 1833-1902
- Burial Records 1850-1907
- Communion Roll 1824, 1889, 1896
- Congregation Minutes 1828-1910
- Marriage Records 1835-1901
- Session Minutes 1861-1895
Knox’s Church, Galt 1856-1890 (Reel 12)
- Baptismal Registers 1856-1901
- Annual Report and Directory 1889-1890
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church founded 1832; closed 1880. A schism here formed Knox’s Free Church (Reels 21-22)
- Baptisms 1832-1875
- Board of Trustees Minutes 1846-1884
- Communion Roll – 1876
- Marriages 1849-1879
- Session Minutes – 1849
Trinity Anglican Church, Galt 1877-1916 (Reels 1-2)
- Parish Registers (Baptisms, etc.) 1850-1916 (N.B.: 1850-52 almost illegible)
- Vestry Meetings, marriages, families of Parish, baptisms (Reel 24)
- Vestry Minutes book 1877-1915
Wesley United Church, Galt 1888-1904 (Reels 2-3)
- Marriage Register – 1888-1902
- Membership Register – 1888-1902
- Church Pamphlets
- Trustees Minutes Book 1897-1924
- Women’s Missionary Minutes 1888-1898
Local History (Galt, Hespeler and Preston)
History of Galt from 1798
(Reel 6)
- Insurance Plan of Galt, 1910 (map includes hydro, water, railway, type of building construction)
(Reel 7)
- Jubilee Souvenir, 1897
- Picturesque and Industrial Galt, 1902 (index)
- Canadian Industrial Record, 1914
- Historical Reminiscences, 1915 (index)
- Waterloo County Outlook
(Reel 8)
- Our Todays and Yesterdays, 1967
- Galt, the gem city
- Galt USA 1971
- Galt Centennial & Old Home Week (incl. Picturesque & Industrial Galt)
- Galt Street names
- 1974 Flood, Souvenir Book
- Early History of Galt by R.S. Hamilton
- Also letters, documents re: Fort Niagara, 1814 (land grants, indentures, etc.)
(Reel 9)
- Scott’s Opera House, (Galt), programs
- Galt Centennial and Old Home Week
- Biography of William Dickson by James Kerr
- Dickson Petition re: installation of Russian cannon from Crimean War on Queen’s Square
Gouinlock Manuscript (Reels 8 and 9)
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A reading book for children and schools in prose and verse; includes the original textbook lessons in spelling, reading, the bible, arithmetic.
Galt Daily Evening Reporter Highlights 1951-1978 (Reel 6)
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Includes 100th Anniversary edition, 1952
Galt Deeds
- 1853-1875 (Reels 14-19)
- Index to Galt Deeds (Reel 19)
Galt Obituaries
- 1896-1903 (Reel 5)
- A-W – Reel 9
- W-Z – Reel 10
Galt Town Council Minutes: 1850-1900
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Council Members 1850-1903 (Reel 24-26)
Maple Grove Women’s Institute (Reel 23)
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Tweedsmuir History
History of Preston (Reel 10)
- Fire Insurance Plan of Preston, 1910 (revised up to March 1924)
- Souvenir of Industrial Preston – 1908
- Report to Niagara Historical Society – by William Dickson (1917) re: WWI conditions
History of Hespeler (Reel 10)
- Winfield Brewster’s History of Hespeler (includes novellas, plays: La Rue de Commerce, the Barefoot Farm Boy, New Hope, The Floodgate). Includes Brewster Index
- Lot 6 in the 3rd of Waterloo (Hespeler Mill industrial development)
- Hespeler Souvenir: Hespeler 1947
- Hespeler a good place to live
- Founders, Jacob Hespeler, etc; C.W. Panabaker, biography
- History of Hespeler by Berry Davis
Historical Records
Ontario Land Records Index: ca. 1789 - ca. 1920 (Microfiche)
(Reels 1-29)
Municipal Records: 1842 – 1895 (Galt and Dumfries Township) (Reels 1-5)
Dumfries Township: Assessments 1850
North Dumfries Township: (Waterloo Co.) (Reel 29)
- Assessments: 1855, 1871
- Town Council Minutes: 1852
South Dumfries Township: (Brant Co.) (Reels 27 & 28)
- Collector’s Rolls: 1852, 1895;
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Town Council Minutes: 1819-1901
Statute Labour Certificates: 1842 (Reel 1)
Dickson Ledgers: 1817-1866 (Reels 3-5)
Plowing Match Records: 1855-1877 includes scrapbook (Reel 5)