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A court record is a document created by or submitted to the judge, jury, or clerk of a court. The earliest German vital records were usually kept by one of many city courts. Some German cities began keeping records containing birth, marriage, and death information | A court record is a document created by or submitted to the judge, jury, or clerk of a court. The earliest German vital records were usually kept by one of many city courts. Some German cities began keeping records containing birth, marriage, and death information for certain segments of the population in the 1400s, but only a small fraction of Germans are represented in court records. | ||
Courts may be found on various levels of government: within the local community, on the district- or Kreis level, or higher. They vary widely in function and the types of records that may be be created within their jurisdictions. Marriage contracts and permission papers, guardianship records, probate records, land records, and property transfers are some records kept by courts. Marriage contracts are the most common early court records of value to family historians. | == Courts and their records == | ||
Courts may be found on various levels of government: within the local community, on the district- or Kreis level, or higher. They vary widely in function and the types of records that may be be created within their jurisdictions. Marriage contracts and permission papers, guardianship records, probate records, land records, and property transfers are some records kept by courts. Marriage contracts are the most common early court records of value to family historians. | |||
There were over fifty kinds of courts (each with a different jurisdiction) in the German states before 1870. Court records are rarely indexed, so finding an ancestor in them is difficult. Search court records only after you have tried all other record types first. You may need professional help to use court records. | There were over fifty kinds of courts (each with a different jurisdiction) in the German states before 1870. Court records are rarely indexed, so finding an ancestor in them is difficult. Search court records only after you have tried all other record types first. You may need professional help to use court records. | ||
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They may also be listed under the name of the A.G. Amtsgericht [lower court]. The name of the lower court that had jurisdiction over a community can be found in the German gazetteer, Meyers Orts- und Verkehrslexikon. This gazetteer is online. | They may also be listed under the name of the A.G. Amtsgericht [lower court]. The name of the lower court that had jurisdiction over a community can be found in the German gazetteer, Meyers Orts- und Verkehrslexikon. This gazetteer is online. | ||
== Saxony court records == | == Saxony court records == | ||
A large collection of court records has been filmed for Saxony. These records have been cataloged by town. Some indexes and finding aids are available. | A large collection of court records has been filmed for Saxony. These records have been cataloged by town. Some indexes and finding aids are available. | ||