Voter's Lists Abbreviations

Nat asked this question on a mailing list and I responded. Hoping my answer helps others, I am posting the Q and A here as well:

I'm hoping someone can decode the acronyms I'm encountering on the 1891 North Crosby Voter's list. Most make sense other then the column for "Qualification". I'm presuming it relates to the property ownership.

I have one relative listed as "M.F. and Tenant" and the other listed as "M.F. and F.S." These relatives were brothers and living on the same property. Most of the
other people on the page are listed as "M.F. and Owner"

Olive Tree Answer: That's a great question Nat.

Books and other resources almost always have an explanation either in the front, or the back, of the abbreviations used. Unfortunately Ancestry has not included the first pages of the Voters Lists which would provide abbreviations and their meanings.

I took a look at the Internet Archives and searched their texts for VOTERS LIST ONTARIO. I chose a list for London Ontario for 1895 and on the first page is a list of abbreviations used.

m f = manhood franchise

Here is the page where that is found
http://www.archive.org/stream/cihm_01426#page/n4/mode/1up

f s is not given that year so it would mean searching another voters list to find out what that means. One Voter's List from an earlier year provided a meaning of "Farmer's Son" but I cannot say if this is correct for the year you want.