How do you ask a church for birth/death/marriage records?

Question

I'm doing geneological research on my ancestors, but I'm not sure it's okay to call up a church and ask, "When did so-and-so die?" or "Can you give me all the information you have on so-and-so?"

I'm sure there are procedures for these kinds of requests; I imagine they get them all the time.

I'm particularly interested in the Catholic Church, since almost all my ancestors were Catholic. From the US, Canada, Scotland and Greece.

Answer 1

You're right, Catholic Churches get record requests all the time, and not just for genealogical purposes; people are always needing copies of their baptism and marriage records for various reasons.  The church secretaries are very accustomed to handling these requests, so don't be nervous about asking!

Simply call the church and say, "I'd like to order a baptism record for my ancestor, who I believe was baptized there around [give an approximate date].  Can you tell me how I can go about doing that?"  

If the church still has those records on site, they'll usually ask you to send them a written request.  They may ask for a research or copy fee, but if not, it's customary to send a "donation" ($10-20) along with your request.  If it's a small parish, the secretary may look up the info for you over the phone; but that's usually the exception rather than the rule.

If it's an older parish, they may have sent some of their earlier records to their Archdiocese Archives.  The church secretary should be able to give you their number, and the archives librarian will let you know how to proceed.  Some archives have a research room where you can view the records on microfilm, which is great if you have a lot of records to look up, or just want to browse the registers for other relatives.

The LDS (Mormon) Family History Library in Salt Lake City also has microfilm for thousands of Catholic Churches from all over the world.  You can borrow the microfilm through any local Mormon church and view the records there in their family history center.

To find out if the LDS library has records for a particular church, you can search their library catalog online at http://www.familysearch.org/

Click the Library tab on the top of the page; then Family History Library Catalog.  Next click Place Search, and enter the location of the church: (County and State, if it's in the U.S.).  You'll find a link for church records in that location, and you can see if your church is listed.

Good luck and happy hunting!

Answer 2

You can indeed call up a church and ask for records. Some churches are more organized about this than others. However, if you have some clue as to which year or even decade you are looking for it would help immensely. What you do is call up the church and ask them what you need to do to get the records for so and so, and they will tell you. A donation for their time is a nice idea, since they are spending time to help you. It is not always possible. The church I am serving had a fire and lost its records, so when people call me asking me for their confirmation dates, or baptism or marriage or anything else, I have to tell them I cannot help. Marriage licenses can be found in the county offices, depending on how long ago you're looking.

Also, you might check in with the Mormons, even though your people were Catholic, because they have enormous geneological records.

Answer 3

Well I know that from US churches you could call them and talk to the secretaries in the office or the priest that is residing there currently, I am catholic and that's what I did to get some records of my family. As for the other countries I have no idea.

Answer 4

If you're looking for a number of people from the same parish, it's really best if you send them a letter. The parish staffs are usually great about looking things up, but they don't have an index in the book that says, "Suchodolski, John pg 44". They have to literally look each one up. The records are in a ledger of sorts and are in order by date and separated by which sacrament is involved. There's one book for baptisms, another for marriages, a third for ordinations and a fourth for deaths. They won't usually look up confirmations because that could have 200 kids on one day and it's tedious.

The way you usually make the request is to list the name of the person and the approximate date of the sacrament (so they're not looking through 40 years of records). So if you want the records on a whole family, list each one separately and put the date of birth, date of marriage and date of death for each.

Some churches just copy the entry. Others insist on typing up a certificate for each person. Some will just type up a letter for you with what they find.

It's unlikely that your Greek ancestors were Catholic back in Greece. But the Greek Orthodox Church will also give you sacramental records. I'm Orthodox and the one thing I can suggest for those records is that you find someone to write the letter for you before requesting it. They have a completely different alphabet and most church secretaries in Greece aren't well-versed in English. They'll also return the records in Greek (and they had a different calendar so you'll have to translate the dates). If you have someone to translate the records for you, they'll make a lot more sense.

If your family was French-Canadian and Catholic, most of those records from 1620-1799 are already online through the PRDH at the Universite de Montreal. It requires a subscription, but it's really inexpensive. I can do a whole family for under $30 because they list family sheets and basic entries are free.

Scotland and the US will be very straight forward. One other suggestion is that when you get back into the 1800s, it's possible that the local library near the church will have the records. Increasingly, the churches are finding it easier to put older records on film and let the library keep them. If you're in SE Michigan, the Burton Collection at the Detroit Public Library has everything from the 1600s to the mid-1800s. Allen County Library in Ft Wayne has several from that era. If the parish you need records from is closed, the records would have been forwarded to the archives for the diocese. In the case of a large archdiocese like Chicago, the archives are open to the public by appointment. They're also happy to look up records and send you a copy.

The one thing to remember is that churches are running on a shoestring. So it's a good idea to send a large envelope and money for postage. The tradition is that you send $10 for a mass in honor of the family that you're researching. It's a nice way of compensating the church for all of the secretary's time.

The one caveat is don't send a vague letter with something like "I'd like the records on everyone named Kowalski." That letter will mysteriously fall way to the bottom of the wish list and will often go unanswered. Specific requests on specific people get answered most quickly.

Answer 5

My experience has been that most churches are willing to help you in your family history research.  Calling them or going to them and explaining your request should be sufficient.

You might also check various genealogical websites, often times these records have been microfilmed and are available.  A good source for records is http://www.familysearch.org/

Answer 6

I find it's much better to write than to call. Also, be sure to indicate that the people you are asking about are your relatives.