Correspondence Received : Registers and Indexes : 1841-1867.

            The primary function of the Civil Secretary to the Governor was to support the civil administration of the province through the management of correspondence.  At the Union of Upper and Lower Canada in 1841, the division of responsibilities between the Civil Secretary and the Provincial Secretary was refined, and further clarification occurred with the evolution of responsible government shifting authority to the Provincial Secretary.            

            The arrangement of the correspondence files in this series is chronological. Each item was assigned a file number in the order of its receipt, which was then entered in a register.  The contemporary registers and indexes serve to identify the correspondence received and must be used in conjunction with the shelf list in order to locate specific files.  The shelf list identifies the microfilm reels on which the correspondence files will appear.            

            A detailed explanation of how the Registers and Indexes function, in conjunction with the correspondence, can be found at the beginning of the microfilm reels of the Registers.

This inventory description is also available in print and as a PDF in the electronic finding aids section, along with the microfilm shelf list for both the Correspondence, the Registers and the Indexes.