The Ancestor Hunt regularly adds and updates new collection links, as well as searches for and fixes broken links.
(This page's most recent update is December 2024)
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Another underutilized genealogy resource is Church Records. We tend to focus our research on civil records but need to be aware that often church records pre-date civil records and are also a great resource. In the BMD Records section of this website, about 15,000 collections of civil records are available online. Yes, that’s a lot, but we must also search church records.
What can we find in church or synagogue records? Here’s just a short list of what nuggets we can find:
- Baptisms and Christenings
- Marriages
- Deaths
- Burials
- Confirmations
- Membership lists
- Church Minutes
- Church Directories
- Transfer Letters
- Bar or Bat Mitzvahs
- Sunday School lists
- Church newsletters
In addition, many folks also documented important events in family bibles, so they need to be searched if the event information has been digitized.
Here are a couple of articles that you might find useful:
- U.S. Church Records Research Guide
- United States Church Records
- A Genealogist’s Guide to Using Catholic Records in Genealogy Research
There is a large number of Free Online Church Record collections; the links for the state are below:
Note: Some links listed take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections’ images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital. To take full advantage make sure that you are logged in to FamilySearch. The results may be different if you are signed in, rather than not.
District of Columbia Church Records
- Alexandria County, District of Columbia, Marriages Bonds, 1801-1822, and Minister’s Returns
- Alexandria, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Records
- Bethany Presbyterian Church, Church History
- Central Presbyterian Church, Church Records, 1868-1918
- Church of the Pilgrims, Church Records, 1902-1987
- Church of the Redeemer, Church History
- Concordia Lutheran Evangelical Church, Church Records, 1833-1944
- District of Columbia Birth Returns, 1874-1897
- District of Columbia Births and Christenings, 1830-1955
- District of Columbia Court and Emancipation Records, 1820-1863
- District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840-1964
- District of Columbia Deaths, 1874-1961
- District of Columbia Marriages, 1811-1950
- District of Columbia Marriages, 1830-1921
- District of Columbia, A Directory of Churches and Religious Organizations, 1939
- Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church Records, 1856-1928
- Protestant Episcopal Church, Diocese of Washington, Inventory of Church Archives
- Revd. Doctr. James Muir in the Presbyterian Church of Alexandria, D.C., Register of Baptisms, Marriages and Funerals
- Union Methodist Episcopal Church, Church Records, 1860-1883
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!