Since 1897 many WI branches have started and disbanded as membership needs changed.  A chart has been created of the more than 2,000 Women's Institute (WI) Branches that existed in Ontario since 1897.  It is a work in progress, hoping that Members and the general public can provide missing information. 

The chart lists the WI Branches, whether active, when organized and disbanded, whether they produced a Tweedsmuir Community History Collection (TH), and, if so, the location of the original books.  It also provides, if applicable the digitizing status, including minute books in some cases where the TH could not be found.

The list follows the FWIO structure, being divided into Regions, Areas, Districts, and Branches.  The Branches are sorted by historic Districts, starting with the most easterly Districts, moving westward, then south, and finally north.  This allows Branches to be grouped together as closely as possible geographically.

The list of Branches started with the list created in 1995 in the book For Home & Country – The Centennial History of the Women’s Institutes in Ontario by Linda Ambrose.  From there, additions and corrections were made from information received from members and the public, and as the digitizing progressed.

Year Ended – Where the actual year is not known, ‘post 1995’ indicates disbandment after 1995, while ‘disbanded’ indicates disbandment prior to 1995.

Amal. - If Branches or Districts amalgamated and a new name is given, the original Branches/Districts are given an end date and the new one is added with the inception date of the amalgamation.

Microfilm - Indicates whether the TH Collection was microfilmed by the Archives of Ontario in the 1960's.  This collection is available at the University of Guelph, as well as the Archives of Ontario.

This chart is a work in progress and is normally updated once a year.  If you have more information, please contact the Office (contact information below).

NOTE:  Many Tweedsmuir collections and other WI documents have been digitized and are available to search and view in our Digital Archives (link is at the bottom right side of each webpage. ) More documents will be released on an ongoing basis after they are digitized and then reviewed for privacy considerations.

Press the button below to open a PDF of the list of branches Past and Present.

Each PDF document is searchable, so if you wish to find a specific branch press Ctrl + F to open the search function.

Branches Past and Present PDF Link