India Church Records

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

Church records are an excellent source for accurate information on names and dates and on places of births, marriages, and deaths. Many people who lived in India have information recorded about them in a church record. Since civil authorities did not begin registering vital statistics until 1872, church records are the best source for family information before that date.

The first step in researching European or Anglo-Indian ancestry in colonial India is to use the church records. For administrative purposes, colonial India was divided into three Presidencies, Bombay, Madras, and Bengal. Protestant and Catholic churches began to keep records in India in 1698 (Madras), 1709 (Bombay) and 1713 (Bengal). Each year, these records were transcribed and sent to the capital of the Presidency, where they were indexed. The records and indexes were then sent to headquarters in London. This practice ceased at Independence in 1947. Learn more about family history in the India Office Records.

Parish maps can help you determine which parish to search. Maps will reveal neighboring parishes to search if your ancestor is not listed in the parish where you expected him or her to be. See India Maps for more information.

Online Resources[edit | edit source]

India: British Subjects - Baptisms, Births, Marriages, Deaths and Burials[edit | edit source]

Christian Church Records[edit | edit source]

These include records of baptisms, marriages, and burials. Includes not only British, and European members, but native Indians as well. They generally exist from 1700 to present. Some churches were established in the 1600s, but records generally do not exist from that time.

Burial records give date and place of death and deceased name, if in the military has detachment, if a mariner the name of his ship, if a colonist the words “inhabitant”. European nationality was given if not English and if a native Indian the words “India Man” were used. Initially no age was given however, if an infant it was so noted. Cause of death given. Christenings, baptisms and births are often mixed together in the register. The event’s date, the name and sex of the child, it’s father’s name and sometimes that of the mother is given as is European nationality if other than English. The marriage records show date and place of marriage, full name of bride and groom except in the case of an Indian woman where only a European first name is given, the groom’s military affiliation if any and the word “inhabitant” was generally noted.

Locating Church Records[edit | edit source]

To find an ancestor in church records, it helps to know his religion and the parish where he lived. The Imperial Gazetteer may help you find the parish. See the "Gazetteers" section of this Wiki for information about the gazetteer and for other help in finding a parish.

More than 200,000 transcriptions of indexes to church records are available on FIBIS Families in British India Society and India Office Family History Search. All of the church record transcriptions and indexes have been microfilmed and are available on microfilm at the FamilySearch Library (direct link to a list of FS Library Microfilms of Church registers in India). They can be found by using the Place Search for India - Church Records.

Christian Church Organizations[edit | edit source]

Catholic Church[edit | edit source]

This table lists each Catholic diocese in India along with the province it covers. See also List of Catholic dioceses in India.

Diocese Province
Adilabad Hyderbad
Agartala Shillong
Agra Agra
Ahmedabad Gandhinagar
Aizawl Shillong
Ajmer Agra
Allahabad Agra
Alleppey Trivandrum
Ambikapur Raipur
Amravati Nagpur
Asansol Calcutta
Aurangabad Nagpur
Bagdogra Calcutta
Balasore Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Bangalore Bangalore
Bareilly Agra
Baroda Gandhinagar
Baruipur Calcutta
Belgaum Bangalore
Bellary Bangalore
Berhampur Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Bettiah Patna
Bhagalpur Patna
Bhopal Bhopal
Bijnor Agra
Bombay Bombay
Bongaigaon Guwahati
Buxar Patna
Calcutta Calcutta
Calicut Verapoly
Chanda Nagpur
Chikmagalur Bangalore
Chingleput Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor)
Cochin Verapoly
Coimbatore Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor)
Cuddapah Hyderbad
Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Daltonganj Ranchi
Darjeeling Calcutta
Delhi Delhi
Dibrugarh Guwahati
Dindigul Madurai
Diphu Guwahati
Dumka Ranchi
Eluru Visakhapatnam
Gandhinagar Gandhinagar
Goa e Damão Goa e Damão
Gorakhpur Agra
Gulbarga Bangalore
Gumla Ranchi
Guntur Visakhapatnam
Guwahati Guwahati
Gwalior Bhopal
Hazaribag Ranchi
Hyderabad Hyderabad
Imphal Imphal
Indore Bhopal
Itanagar Guwahati
Jabalpur Bhopal
Jagdalpur Raipur
Jaipur Agra
Jalpaiguri Calcutta
Jammu-Srinagar Delhi
Jamshedpur Ranchi
Jashpur Raipur
Jhabua Bhopal
Jhansi Agra
Jowai Shillong
Jullundur Delhi
Kannur Verapoly
Karwar Bangalore
Khammam Hyderabad
Khandwa Bhopal
Khunti Ranchi
Kohima Imphal
Kottapuram Verapoly
Kottar Madurai
Krishnagar Calcutta
Kumbakonam Pundicherry and Cuddalore
Kurnool Hyderabad
Kuzhithurai Madurai
Lucknow Agra
Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor) Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor)
Madurai Madurai
Mangalore Bangalore
Meerut Agra
Miao Guwahati
Muzaffarpur Patna
Mysore Bangalore
Nagpur Nagpur
Nalgonda Hyderabad
Nashik Bombay
Nellore Visakhapatnam
Neyyattinkara Trivandrum
Nongstoin Shillong
Ootacamund Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor)
Palayamkottai Madurai
Patna Patna
Pondicherry and Cuddalore Pondicherry and Cuddalore
Poona Bombay
Port Blair Ranchi
Purnea Patna
Quilon Trivandrum
Raiganj Calcutta
Raipur Raipur
Rajkot Gandhinagar
Ranchi Ranchi
Rayagada Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Rourkela Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Sagar Bhopal
Salem Pondicherry and Cuddalore
Sambalpur Cuttack-Bhubaneswar
Satna Bhopal
Shillong Shillong
Shimoga Bangalore
Simdega Ranchi
Simla and Chandigarh Delhi
Sindhudurg Goa e Damão
Sivagangai Madurai
Srikakulam Visakhapatnam
Sultanpet Verapoly
Tanjore Pondicherry and Cuddalore
Tezpur Guwahati
Tiruchirapalli Madurai
Trivandrum Trivandrum
Tura Shillong
Tuticorin Madurai
Udaipur Agra
Udupi Bangalore
Ujjain Bhopal
Varanasi Agra
Vasai Bombay
Vellore Madras and Mylapore (Meliapor)
Verapoly Verapoly
Vijayawada Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam
Warangal Hyderabad

Church of North India (Anglican)[edit | edit source]

The Church of North India was established in 1970 by the merger of the Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon (Anglican); the United Church of Northern India (Congregationalist and Presbyterian); the Baptist Churches of Northern India (British Baptists); the Methodist Church (British and Australian Conferences); and the Disciples of Christ. The Church of the Brethren in India, which was a part of the merger withdrew in 2006.[1] The Church includes all of the states and Union Territories of India with the exception of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, and is divided into seven diocese: Calcutta, Mumbai, Chotanagpur, Lucknow, Nagpur, North East India, and Nasik.

The Diocese of Mumbai covers the entire state of Gujarat, as well as parts of the states of Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan.[2][3] During the Bombay Presidency (1843 to 1936), it also included Anglican churches in what is now Yemen. The seat of the bishop is located at St. Thomas Cathedral, Mumbai.

States where the Church of North India has parishes
Church Also Known As Location Established
All Saints Church Bijapur
All Saints Church Dharwar 1888
All Saints Church Kirkee 1869
All Saints Church Lonavala 1903
All Saints Church Malabar Hill, Mumbai 1891
All Saints Church Kolhapur
Anscesion Church Deshpandenagar, Hubli 1905
Ascension Church Hubli 1905
Christ Church Ahmedabad
Christ Church Byculla 1837
Christ Church Deesa
Christ Church Karwar
Christ Church Lusadia Village 1904
Christ Church Mahableshwar 1842
Christ Church Rajkot 1842
Christ Church Surat 1820
Christ Church Ahmednagar
Christ Church Steamer Point Aden (Yemen)
Church Mission House Mumbai
Church of Good Sheperd Ranibennur
Church of Holy Angels Rasta Peth, Pune 1883
Church of Holy Name Hubli, Dharwar
Church of Holy Name Guruwar Peth, Pune 1883
Church of Sholapur Epiphany Church Sholapur
Church of St Mary the Virgin Castel Rock 1926
Church of the Good Sheperd Dharwar 1888
Church of the Resurrection Betgari, Dharwar
Emmanuel Church Mumbai 1869
Garrison Church Ghorpadi, Pune 1866
Holy Cross Church Mumbai 1898
Holy Home University Settlement Thane
Holy Nativity Church Matunga 1925
Holy Redeemer Church Dadar 1925
Holy Trinity Church Purandar 1865
Kadoli Church Karoda, Kolhapur 1906
Resurrection Church Gadag 1895
Seaman’s Institute Bombay Prince of Wales Seamen's Club Ballard Estate, Mumbai
St Andrew’s Church Agripada, Mumbai 1916
St Andrew’s Church Bhileda, Vijaynagar
St Andrew’s Church Keshavpur, Hubli
St Christopher Church Goa 1837
St Christopher Church Kalyan 1837
St Crispin's Church Pune 1907
St Francis Church Panvel 1992
St George’s Church Ahmedabad 1882
St Georges Church Kaira 1824
St James Church Baroda (Vadodara) 1818
St James Church Thane 1825
St John the Evangelist Church The Afghan Church Colaba 1824
St John’s Church Army United Church Colaba, Mumbai
St Mary’s Church Belgaum 1869
St Mary’s Church Parel 1884
St Mary's Church Kirkee 1915
St Mary's Church Pune 1821
St Mathew’s Church Pune 1893
St Matthias Church Broach (Bharuch)
St Paul’s Church Pune 1867
St Peter’s Church Pachgani Satara
St Saviour’s Church Mount Abu 1834
St Stephen’s Church Bandra 1853
St Thomas Church Satara 1847
St. James' Church Mount Abu (Rajasthan)
St. Mary's Church Aden Crater (Yemen)
St. Thomas Cathedral Mumbai 1676
Umerkhadi Church Mandvi, Mumbai

Church of South India[edit | edit source]

The Church of South India was created as a successor to the Church of England after India's independence in 1947. It is a union of the Anglican Church in India, Pakistan, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka; the South Indian Methodist Church; and the South Indian United Church. The South Indian United Church was formed by a merger of Congregationalist, Dutch Reformed, and Presbyterian churches in 1908.

The Church of South India is comprised of 24 dioceses in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telegana, and the distrcts of Jaffna and Kilinochchi in Sri Lanka. The Madras Diocese is one of eight diocese in the state of Tamil Nadu.

Diocese[edit | edit source]

States where the Church of South India has parishes
Diocese State / Country
Krishna Godavari Andhra Pradesh
Nandyal Andhra Pradesh
Rayalaseema Andhra Pradesh
Karnataka Central Karnataka
Karnataka Northern Karnataka
Karnataka Southern Karnataka
Cochin Kerala
East Kerala Kerala
Kollam-Kottarakkara Kerala
Madhya Kerala Kerala
Malabar Kerala
South Kerala Kerala
Coimbatore Tamil Nadu
Kanyakumari Tamil Nadu
Madras Tamil Nadu
Madurai Ramnad Tamil Nadu
Thoothukudi-Nazareth Tamil Nadu
Tirunelveli Tamil Nadu
Trichy-Tanjore Tamil Nadu
Vellore Tamil Nadu
Dornakal Telengana
Karimnagar Telengana
Medak Telengana
Jaffna Sri Lanka

Lutheran Church[edit | edit source]

Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog[edit | edit source]

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 FamilySearch Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:

a. Click on the records of India.
b. Click on Places within India 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. FHL icons.png. 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.

External Links[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Wikipedia, Church of North India. Accessed 30 August 2022.
  2. ↑ The Bombay Diocesan Trust Association Pvt Ltd. Churches. Accessed 7 April 2020.
  3. ↑ The Bombay Diocesan Trust Association Pvt Ltd. Properties. Accessed 7 April 2020.

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