Ontario. Dept. of Reform Institutions

• Department of Reform Institutions

The Reformatories and Prison Branch of the Department of the Provincial Secretary became the Department of Reform Institutions, with its own Minister, on April 1, 1946.

The Department consisted of a number of individual offices including those of the Chief Inspector (as well as several assistant Inspectors), the Superintendent of Construction, and the Provincial Bailiffs. In 1954, a Director of Rehabilitation, Chief Parole and Rehabilitation Officer, and a Chief Psychologist were added, followed by a Director of Neurology and Psychiatry, in 1955. Other offices and services created within the Department included the Director of Social Work, the Chaplaincy Services, the Farm's Administrator and various administrative offices.

In addition to the city, county and district jails for which it was responsible, the Department also had responsibility over a number of reformatories, training schools and treatment centres. These included Ontario Reformatories in Guelph, Elliot Lake, Millbrook, and Mimico; the Andrew Mercer Reformatory; the Ontario Women's Guidance Centre; Ontario Training Centres in Brampton, Brantford, Fort William, Merrickville, and Monteith; Industrial Farms in Brantford, Burwash, Fort William, Merrickville, and Monteith; Ontario Training Schools in Bowmanville (Pine Ridge School), Cobourg (Brookside School), Guelph (Hillcrest School), Simcoe (Glendale School), Galt (Grand View School), Port Bolster (Trelawney House), Lindsay (Kawartha Lakes School), and Hagersville (Sprucedale School and White Oaks Village); and several Treatment Centres, including the Reception, Diagnostics and Treatment Centre in Guelph, the Alex G. Brown Memorial Clinic in Mimico, the Drug Addiction Clinic in Mimico and a Neuro-Psychiatric Centre in Guelph.

On July 1, 1968, the Department of Reform Institutions was replaced with Department of Correctional Services.

The Department of Reform Institutions was responsible for holding in custody those persons sentenced by the courts of the Province and for providing training and treatment services to these individuals in hopes of modifying their attitudes. The Department had responsibility for reformatories, training centres and training schools, industrial farms, treatment centres, female refuges, and city, county and district jails in Ontario (although the Department had responsibility over the Gaols Act, local jails were administered by their respective city, county or district until 1968, when this authority was transferred to the province).

The Department of Reform Institutions Act, Statutes of Ontario 1946, Chap. 22

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

Directory and Guide to Services of the Government of Ontario, 1949-1967

Government of Ontario Telephone Directories, 1962-1968

Canadiana Name Authorities, 1996-12- 24

Archivist(s):
Robert Anger