Roundtable Recap – Church Records
December 12, 2024
Do you know what religion your ancestors practiced or which church,
synagogue, etc., they attended? The December Roundtable Discussion Group
provided many ideas for finding this information and the associated records
which could lead to more details about our ancestors.
We often know the religion preferred by our recent ancestors, but
what about those we are unsure of? There are a number of possible sources that
can provide this information or clues to find it. Newspaper articles, including
wedding announcements and obituaries, often mention the church or location of
services, give the name of the minister, or even state the person’s religion. Personal Mention type articles could include publicity about church group meetings, such
as a Women’s Aide Society, often listing the members or maybe a couple
celebrating a special anniversary naming the church they were married at. A christening
or baptism might even be mentioned. Civil records can also provide clues such
as a death certificate listing the burial place which could be a church
cemetery. Once the name of a minister or cemetery is found, further searching in
city directories, newspaper sites, or even Google can lead to the specific
church or religious affiliation. If you are fortunate to have an ancestor
written up in a county or town history, you will probably find their religious
affiliation mentioned. History of the local churches including founding members
is also often found in these.
Once you have determined the religion your ancestors practiced,
there are multiple ways to find records for the specific church or meeting
place they attended.
The Family Search Wiki has a section titled How to find Church Records in the United States with
advice on how to prepare for your search and where to look for records. Among
other things, it provides a list of 50 major religions in the US with links to
archive information and also a clickable list of all the states leading to Wiki
articles for church records for each state.
A research guide, Church and Synagogue Records for Genealogists, is
offered by the Library of Congress (LOC). It includes links to some
external websites and databases in addition to search strategies for using the
online LOC Catalog. A genealogist, Sunny Morton, shares her knowledge, tips and
stories from her research using church records in a featured webcast located on
the Introduction page.
Gazetteers can be used to find names of churches in specific areas
during specific years. A good tool for this is OldMaps Online.
Colleges, especially those with a religious affiliation, likely
have collections and archives possibly containing church records. Swarthmore College is an
example, with its large collection of Quaker records.
Historical societies and other state and local organizations often
have information, some of which is not available at the larger search engines.
ArchiveGrid includes over 7 million
records describing archival materials, bringing together information about
historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over
1,400 archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking
for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and
historical societies. A broad search for ‘church records’ brought up
over 68,000 hits. The search can also be narrowed to a specific religion,
location, etc.
A few specific sites for international records mentioned during the Roundtable are:
Archion –
German church records
National Library
of Ireland (NLI) – Catholic Parish Records at the NLI
Matricula – Church records from various European countries
Video options for those of us who like visuals
and/or need some inspiration:
A quick search on YouTube for ‘church records for
genealogists’ brought up many videos. The search can be refined for a specific denomination
or location, too.
Legacy Family Tree Webinars offers
webinars about church records, but a subscription might be required to view
them.
Remember to check ConferenceKeeper.org for virtual seminars about church records.
Additional tips:
Also search for the maternal/maiden name. Records are sometimes
recorded that way for different reasons.
When contacting a specific church and the person says there are no records available, watch for a change in the staff. A new person might be more agreeable to helping.
The records for a closed Catholic church should be available through that diocese.
Books are available to help with this research. One specifically mentioned was How to Find Your Family History in U.S. Church Records: A Genealogist's Guide by Sunny Morton. It is easily found online both for purchase or for viewing at libraries including Haggard Library in Plano.
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