Chile Church Records

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Chile

Church Records

High altar at La Tirana, Tarapacá, Chile.

For information about records for non-Christian religions in Chile, go to the Religious Records page.

Online Resources and Websites

Ancestry.com, MyHeritage, and FindMyPast records can be searched free of charge at a Family history Center near you.

• Chile, Catholic Church Records, 1710-1928, index.
  

• Chile Baptisms, 1585-1932, FamilySearch, index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Select Baptisms, 1585-1932, Ancestry.com, ($) index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Baptisms, 1585-1932, MyHeritage, ($), index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile Marriages, 1579-1930, Family Search, index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Select Marriages, 1579-1930, Ancestry.com, ($) index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Marriages, 1579-1930, MyHeritage, ($), index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile Deaths, 1700-1920 , FamilySearch, index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Select Deaths, 1700-1920, Ancestry.com, ($) index, incomplete, dates vary.
• Chile, Deaths, 1700-1920, MyHeritage, ($), index, incomplete, dates vary.

• British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, index and images, ($)
• British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages,, index and images, ($)
• British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, index and images, ($)

Historical Background

The declining majority religion in Chile, according to a 2019 survey Encuesta Nacional Bicentenario, is still Christianity (63%), with an estimated 45% of Chileans belonging to the Catholic Church, 32% not religiously affiliated, 18% to Protestant or Evangelical churches and 5% to any other religion. The religiously unaffiliated population (32%) includes: atheists, agnostics and people who do not identify with any particular religion.

Protestants represent 13% of Chilean people. Protestants first arrived in the first half of the nineteenth century, with American missionary David Trumbull and with German immigrants from Protestant parts of Germany, mainly Lutherans. Later came Anglicans, Presbyterians, Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, Methodists, Pentecostals, and other Protestant Christians. Seventh-Day Adventist missionaries first arrived in 1895.

Information Recorded in the Records

Different denominations, different time periods, and practices of different record keepers will effect how much information can be found in the records. This outline will show the types of details which might be found (best case scenario);

Baptisms

In Catholic and Anglican records, children were usually baptized a few days after birth, and therefore, the baptism record proves date of birth. Other religions, such as Baptists, baptized at other points in the member's life. Baptism registers might give:

baptism date the infant's name parents' names father's occupation

status of legitimacy occasionally, names of grandparents names of witnesses or godparents, who may be relatives

birth date and place the family's place of residence death information, as an added note or signified by a cross

Marriages

Marriage registers can give:

the marriage date the names of the bride and groom indicate whether the bride and groom were single or widowed their ages

birth dates and places for the bride and groom their residences their occupations

birthplaces of the bride and groom parents' names (after 1800) the names of previous spouses and their death dates names of witnesses, who might be relatives.

Burials

Burial registers may give:

the name of the deceased the date and place of death or burial the deceased's age place of residence

cause of death the names of survivors, especially a widow or widower deceased's birth date and place parents' names, or at least the father's name

How to Find Records

Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Watch for digitized copies of church records to be added to the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:

a. Click on the records of Chile.

b. Click on Places within Chile and a list of towns will appear.

c. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.

d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.

e. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. . The magnifying glass indicates that the record is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the records.

Writing for Records

You will probably need to write to or email the national archives, the diocese, or local parish priests to find records. See the Spanish Letter Writing Guide for help with composing letters.

Catholic Church Records

Writing to a Local Parish

To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a local parish, consult:

• The Catholic Directory: Chile

Historical Background

There are about nine million Catholics - around 58% of the total population. There are 5 archdioceses, 18 dioceses, 2 territorial prelatures, 1 apostolic vicariate, 1 military ordinariate and a personal prelature.

Catholicism was introduced by priests with the Spanish colonialists in the 16th century. Most of the native population in the northern and central regions was evangelized by 1650. The southern area proved more difficult. In the 20th century, church expansion was impeded by a shortage of clergy and government control.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Records

Online Records

Information is available to current members only for deceased members and immediate family members who are still living. Sign in to FamilySearch and then select Family Tree in the drop-down menu.

Historical Background

Church President David O. McKay visited expatriate Church members in Santiago in 1954. On May 26, 1956, Chile became part of the Argentine Mission, and the first Chilean branch was organized in Santiago on July 5. The Chile Mission was organized on October 8, 1961, with 1,100 members. When the first stake (diocese) was organized 11 years later, with Carlos A. Cifuentes as president, membership had grown to more than 20,000 members.

Total Church Membership (2020): 595,526. Congregations: 590.

Anglican (Episcopal) Church Records

Writing for Records

• Directory of Anglican Dioceses (Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Santiago and All Chile)
• Directory of Local Churches by Region
• Google Maps search results for Anglican churches in Chile

Historical Background

During the 19th century, British immigrants to South America brought Anglicanism with them. The Patagonian Missionary Society, renamed South American Mission Society (SAMS) in 1868, was initially active in Tierra del Fuego and later extended its activities to the Araucanian region. It was responsible for the formation of all the early Anglican churches and missions in Chile.

Waite Stirling, a missionary from the South American Missionary Society, was consecrated at Westminster Abbey on 21 December 1869 as the first Bishop of the Falkland Islands. The see of the bishop was in Buenos Aires. This was due to legal requirements at the time which did not allow the Church of England to consecrate or appoint bishops outside those territories under the jurisdiction of the Crown, but the jurisdiction of the bishop was stated to be all of South America apart from British Guiana.

The Diocese of Chile, Bolivia and Peru was formed in 1963.

Baptist Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Baptist churches in Chile

Historical Background

Baptists arrived in Chile from Germany, Scotland and the United States from 1884 to 1917. They were the first real movement of Baptists to Chile, although President (General Director) Bernardo O’Higgins had invited Scottish Baptist Pastor James Thompson in 1821 to work to improve Chilean primary education using the Lancaster method.

There were also a few Baptists included in the more general immigrations of Germans during the 1850s and 1860s to Valdivia, La Unión and Osorno, along with the later settlements around Lago Llanquihue. Some of the earliest German Baptists settled from Contulmo to Los Ángeles, down to Victoria, and also El Salto, Quillén Viejo and Temuco, including the Lichtenberg, Reinicke, Rolof, Meir, and Berg families, evangelizing German-speaking Roman Catholics.

In 1908, twenty years after his initial arrival in the country and extensive labors, missionary William MacDonald and three hundred Baptist brethren founded the first evangelical Baptist convention in Chile.

Eastern Orthodox Church Records

Writing for Records

• Orthodox World Directory for Chile
• Directory Greek Orthodox Church
• List of Russian Orthodox Churches in Chile
• Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Chile

Historical Background

Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Santiago and All Chile: The Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Santiago and All Chile is a Metropolia of The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch with jurisdiction over all the Republic of Chile. The migration of Christian Arabs from Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria to different parts of the Americas during the late nineteenth Century and early twentieth century brought the Orthodox Faith to Chile. In 1910, the first Orthodox Presbyteros arrives to Chile from Syria. On October 24, 1917, St. George Cathedral in Santiago was inaugurated as the first Orthodox temple in Chile. In 1996, after being a Patriarchal Vicariate since 1951, the Orthodox Church in Chile was raised to the level of a Metropolia. The Archdiocese now has six parishes, and served by seven priests, four of whom have a degree in Theology. Services are conducted in Spanish, since most of the people that attend the church are Chilean citizens despite their Arab ancestry. There is also an increasing number of non-Arab Chileans who are joining Orthodoxy.

There are more than 70,000 Orthodox Christians in Chile, the majority of them of Russian or Greek origin. Russian Chileans form a minor part of the Russian diaspora and a small group in comparison to the other ethnic groups in Chile. The first Russians came to Chile in the early 19th century as part of naval expeditions circumnavigating the globe, among them captains Otto Kotsebu, Fyodor Litke, and Vasili Golovnin. However, they were just temporary visitors; the earliest Russian migrants came in 1854. The 2002 Chilean Census reported 638 Russian citizens, although Russia's government estimates that 1,300 Russians live in Chile.

Presbyterian Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Chile

Jehovah's Witnesses

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Jehovah's Witnesses churches in Chile

Lutheran Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Lutheran churches in Chile

Methodist Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Methodist churches in Chile

Pentecostal Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Pentecostal churches in Chile

Presbyterian Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Chile

Seventh-day Adventist Church Records

Writing for Records

• Google Maps search results for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Chile

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