Prussian Poland Civil Registration: Difference between revisions

==Information Recorded in Civil Registers (1874-1918/1945)==

Information recorded in Prussian civil registration records was quite standardized. German forms were used, which required specific details. After 1918, the records followed the Napoleonic records of Russian Poland.

Birth records '''usually''' give:

Births were generally registered within a day of the child’s birth by the father, a neighbor of the family, or the midwife. Corrections to a birth record may have been added as a marginal note, sometimes years later.

Marriages were often recorded in the parish where the bride lived. After 1874 Prussian law required a civil marriage ceremony in addition to a church ceremony. There may be records for both. Civil marriage records may include more information than the church records. When church and civil records are available, search both.  

Supporting documents were often filed by the bride or groom in support of their request to be married. Records proving their birth may have been required at the time, although these papers were probably not kept in the marriage register. Information obtained from supporting documents was often written into the actual marriage record. These documents are usually not microfilmed but might be obtained from a civil registration office.

Divorces before the mid-20th century were uncommon. The Catholic Church did not allow divorces, and divorces were discouraged in protestant religions, although some marriages may have been annulled. Civil officials began keeping divorce records with the beginning of civil registration. Records of divorces may contain:

The Family History Library has almost no divorce records in its Polish collection. You may be able to obtain information from divorce records by contacting the courthouse of the town where the divorce took place or the archives serving the area.

Death records are especially helpful because they may provide important information on a person’s birth, spouse, and parents. Civil death records may exist for individuals for whom there are no birth or marriage records. Deaths were usually registered within a few days of the death in the town or city where the person died.  

The following reading aids are designed to help you read a typical birth, marriage, or death entry in Polish civil registration. Since the wording of these records was standardized, it is possible to learn the format, and with careful effort, to read Polish records.   

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