East Prussia (Ostpreußen) Civil Registration

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East Prussia (Ostpreussen)
German Empire Genealogy
Wiki Topics
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Getting Started
Major East Prussia (Ostpreussen) Record Types
Reading the Records
Additional East Prussia (Ostpreussen)
Record Types
East Prussia (Ostpreussen) Background
Ethnicity
Local Research Resources
Germany Record Types
Germany Background
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Civil registration records are records of births, marriages, and deaths kept by the government. In East Prussia (Ostpreussen), they were started 1 October 1874. German terms for these records include Standesamtsregister, Zivilstandsregister, or Personenstandsregister. They are an excellent source for information on names and dates and places of births, marriages, and deaths. These records are kept by the civil registrar (Standesbeamte) at the civil registry office (Standesamt). Study these links to learn what information can be found in them:


For a comprehensive understanding of civil registration, study the article Germany Civil Registration.

Determining the Location of the Standesamt[edit | edit source]

The gazetteer Kartenmeister most efficiently tells you Standesamt (civil registrar) information as of 1905:

See the Prussian Standesamts-lexikon for civil registration offices as of 1884.

In this region, part of Germany which was lost to other countries after World War II, many records, both church/parish registers and civil registration records, were damaged, destroyed, or misplaced.

1. Online Records[edit | edit source]

Inventory[edit | edit source]

  • Genealogy.net; Ostpreußen/Genealogische Quellen Inventory created from various sources. For civil registration, select the county and then “Standesamtbestände”. Find the parish on the list to see the inventory information as well as holdings in FHL, EZA Berlin, DZfG Leipzig, and other repositories outside Germany.

Ancestry.com ($)[edit | edit source]

Ancestry.com, FindMyPast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local Family History Center.

Deaths of German Citizens Abroad[edit | edit source]

2. Digital Copies of Civil Registration From FamilySearch[edit | edit source]

Try to find records in the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Many microfilms have been digitized for online viewing. Gradually, everything will be digitized, so check back occasionally. Some have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at the Family History Centers near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:

Locating Records at the Family History Library[edit | edit source]

If the locality and time period you need are not included in the online records, the next step is to check for them in the microfilm collection of the Family History Library. These microfilms may be ordered for viewing at Family History Centers around the world. To find a microfilm:

a. Click on the Places within Germany, Preussen, Ostpreussen drop-down menu and select your town.
b. Click on the "Civil registration" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
c. Choose the correct record type and time period for your ancestor. "Geburten" are births. Heiraten are marriages. "Verstorbene" are deaths.
d. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm 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 microfilm.

3. Archives[edit | edit source]

Several different archives have civil registration records. In fact they are "all over the place", literally. There are several "finding aids" that help with locating them.

1. Online Finding Aids and Databases[edit | edit source]

2. Civil Registration information in Berlin and Poland[edit | edit source]

Standesamt I Berlin officially holds the civil registration information for the former areas of Germany.

Standesamt I Berlin
Rückerstrasse 9
10119 Berlin
Germany


3. East Prussia/Genealogical Sources[edit | edit source]

GenWiki details existing Standesamt records and which archives they might be found in.

A typical chart for a locality looks like this: Screen Shot 2017-04-09 at 9.33.10 PM.png



These links will take you directly to a particular district (Kreis):

4. Holding Lists Provided by Archives[edit | edit source]

You can also consult holding lists and use search engines to search which records might be held at each archive. Brief inquiries by email about whether a record group for your locality and time period is available at that archive are generally honored..


DZfG Leipzig[edit | edit source]

German Central Office for Genealogy
Saxon State
Archives State Archives Leipzig
Schongauerstraße 1
04328 Leipzig
Germany

Email: poststelle-l@sta.smi.sachsen.de
Telephone: 0341 / 255-5500

GStA Berlin[edit | edit source]

Secret State Archives Prussian
Geheimes Staatsarchiv Preußischer Kulturbesitz
Cultural Heritage Archivstraße 12-14
14195 Berlin
Germany

Email: gsta.pk@gsta.spk-berlin.de
Phone: 030/266 44 75 00
Fax. 030/266 44 31 26


Poland[edit | edit source]

State Archives of Olsztyn (formerly Allenstein
Archiwum Panstwowe w Olsztynie
ul.Partyzantow 18
PL-10-521 Olsztyn
Poland
In the state archive Olsztyn (Olsztyn), the records are available digitized over the Internet.


State Archives Lyck
Archiwum Państwowe w Suwalkach
Oddzial w Elku
ul. Kapielowa
PL-19-300 Elk
Poland
Birth, marriages and death certificates of the Milken militia from 1874 to 1902.

Lithuanian Area Archives[edit | edit source]

A few of the civil registration records for the area of East Prussia now in Lithuania are found in the following archives:

Lithuanian Historical State Archives in Vilnius[edit | edit source]

Lietuvos valstybės istorijos archyvas
Gerosios Vilties g. 10
LT-03134 Vilnius
Lithuania

Phone: +370 /85/213 7482
Fax: 00370/5 278 43 69

Standesamte records:


Writing a Letter to Archives[edit | edit source]

How to write a letter: Detailed instruction for what to include in the letter, plus Polish translations of the questions and sentences most frequently used are in the Poland Letter Writing Guide.
In some cases, the records are held in archives in Germany. For letters in German, including addressing the letter, plus German translations of the questions and sentences most frequently needed, use the the German Letter Writing Guide.
Because part of East Prussia is now in Russia, this article may help: Russian Letter Writing Guide

5. Societies[edit | edit source]

Societies are also active in collecting, transcribing, and indexing records.

Association for Family Research in East and West Prussia e. V. (VFFOW)[edit | edit source]

"VFFOW is an independent, non-partisan and independent association. The intention and the goal of the association and in its interest is, in a trusting and friendly relationship with institutions and persons who today have their homeland in the research area of ​​the association, to jointly pursue family research and regional historical research."


Ahnenforschung im Kreis Sensburg und Masuren[edit | edit source]

"The research group Sensburg, within the AGoFF eV - Research Center East and West Prussia , is dedicated to genealogical research and the demographic history in the former city and district of Sensburg in the borders of 1945."

6. Compiled and Published Secondary Sources[edit | edit source]

Caution sign.png

Compiled genealogies and published genealogies are secondary sources, not original or primary sources.

As such, they are subject to human error through translation or transcription errors, mistaken interpretations, and opinion decisions of another researcher.

You should make every effort to base your research on the actual, original records or their digitized images.

Town Genealogies (Ortssippenbuch or Ortsfamilienbuch)[edit | edit source]

See the class Online Ortsfamilienbücher at Genealogy.net and the Wiki article, Germany Town Genealogies and Parish Register Inventories on the Internet. Published town genealogies, Ortssippenbuch (town lineage book) or Ortsfamilienbuch (town family book), generally include birth, marriage, and death data for all persons found in the local records during a specified time period, compiled into families based on the opinion of the author. If one is available, it should only be used as an index or guide to finding the original records. They usually contain errors. Always verify their information in original records.

Finding an OFB[edit | edit source]

Reading the Records[edit | edit source]

German Records[edit | edit source]

  • It's easier than you think! You do not have to be fluent in French and German to use these records, as there is only a limited vocabulary used in them. By learning a few key phrases, you will be able to read them adequately. Here are some resources for learning to read German records.
German Genealogical Word List
  • These video webinars will teach you to read German handwriting:

Latin Records[edit | edit source]

Records of the Catholic church will usually be written in Latin:

Polish[edit | edit source]

Because part of East Prussia is now in Poland, these articles will help:

Russian[edit | edit source]

Because part of East Prussia is now in Russia, these articles will help:

Search Strategy[edit | edit source]

  • Search for the relative or ancestor you selected. When you find their birth record, search for the births of their brothers and sisters.
  • Next, search for the marriage of their parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
  • Search the death registers for all known family members.
  • The marriage certificate will show the birth date, birth place, and parents of the bride and the groom.
  • Repeat this process for both the father and the mother, starting with their birth records, then their siblings' births, then their parents' marriages, and so on.
  • If earlier generations (parents, grandparents, etc.) do not appear in the records, search neighboring parishes.


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