To discuss the idea of forming an historical society, a date for an exploratory meeting should be selected and advertised as widely as possible in the community and the surrounding area. Two people should be selected to act as chairperson and as secretary for the introductory meeting so that there is some structure to the meeting. An agenda should be prepared for the meeting so that a framework exists in which to work. The agenda might include:

• introduction of all those attending
• brief outline of concerns of those organizing the meeting
• guest speaker (from a neighbouring society, The Ontario Historical Society, or the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Regional and Corporate Services Division), describing the steps necessary to form a society
• discussion about goals and objectives
• geographical area to be covered
• a question and answer period
• a discussion of the way to proceed for the development of this particular society (if sufficient interest is generated by the group present).

The secretary should record the names, addresses and telephone numbers of all those attending and keep minutes of the meeting. If the decision is made to proceed with forming a society, a steering committee, consisting of a chairperson, secretary and publicity co-ordinator (and perhaps others) should be selected for an interim period until the group formally organizes. The chair should select an appropriate date, time and place for the next meeting in consultation with those attending. Everyone present should be encouraged to bring at least one guest to the next meeting.

Immediately following the meeting the publicity co-ordinator should prepare a news release about the meeting and forward it to all local papers (if reporters were not present).

A news release should be prepared well in advance of the next meeting and taken in person (if possible) to the local newspapers, radio and TV stations and other local media. This news release, like all other news releases, will be the image of the new society in the community. It should be clear, concise, brief, to the point and answer the questions who? what? where? when? why? It should also contain the name and telephone number of someone to contact for further information.

Several goals should be achieved at the founding meeting. They include:

1. choice of a name for the society*
2. election of officers
3. appointment of a committee to prepare the constitution and by-laws
4. discussion of the advantages and responsibilities of incorporation
5. membership costs, benefits and responsibilities
6. schedule of meetings – both public meetings and executive meetings.

*The name of the organization should be chosen with care to ensure that it reflects the interests of the group and the geographical area to be served. If the group decides to become incorporated, and at some later date wants to change the name, the members will find that this can be a costly and time consuming process.

The election of officers may be spontaneous, with nominations coming from those attending the meeting, or a nomination report may be prepared in advance and presented at the meeting. In either case, consider filling the following positions:

Honourary President(s) President Vice President(s) Secretary – Recording and Corresponding Treasurer

How many committees will be needed to carry out the work of the new organization? Consider the following: Membership, Programmes, Publicity, Social, Fund Raising. Are there others?

Successful organizations and institutions must have the support of the community, whether it is a geographical community or a community of interest, to grow and prosper. From the very beginning it is important to communicate regularly with your community through the media, newsletters and outreach programmes. The programmes should complement your goals and objectives while appealing to the broadest possible audience.

A new organization has the challenge of projecting a positive profile to the community. Everyone will be interested in observing how you prepare your publicity, how you organize your programmes and how you conduct your affairs. This places an added responsibility on all those assuming leadership to ensure that every aspect of the society’s activities is interesting, of a high quality and very professional, in order to attract and hold the interest of the community.

Annually:

• Payment of your annual OHS membership fee, by credit card, cheque, or Interac e-Transfer (to payment@ontariohistoricalsociety.ca) (see membership fees). Affiliates will be emailed a renewal notice 30 days in advance of their renewal date, with a secure link to pay online.
• A copy of your annual report to your members, with information on activities and events held during year.
• A copy of your annual financial statement.
• A copy of any publications produced during year.
• Additionally, please log in to your membership profile and review the contact and officer information. If any updates need to be made to your profile, please click “Edit Profile” to edit.

Documents may be emailed to ohs@ontariohistoricalsociety.ca or mailed to The Ontario Historical Society, 34 Parkview Ave., Willowdale, ON M2N 3Y2.

Note: a copy of the paper Affiliate Annual Report form is no longer required.

As part of the new Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, on October 19, 2021, the Province of Ontario launched the Ontario Business Registry for not-for-profit corporations to register, file annual returns, and update their information online.

All not-for-profit organizations must register their organization here: https://www.ontario.ca/page/ontario-business-registry to keep their corporation status in good standing.

Ontario Business Registry Instructions for Not-for-Profits

Please see this step-by-step instructions document prepared by the OHS.

Ontario Business Registry Instructions (opens a 13-page PDF)

Please note that the OHS is a non-government organization and not associated with the Ontario Business Registry. Any mistakes in the instructions are our own. The document will be updated as we learn more about the new system.