8.5 million historical records for German ancestors added to MyHeritage website

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23 December 2019
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MyHeritage has published two historical record collections from Germany: the Hesse Birth Index (1874–1911) and Hesse Marriage Index (1849–1931).

These collections, totaling 8.5 million historical records, are now indexed and searchable on MyHeritage.

In a shift from traditional church recordkeeping, in the mid-19th century, the German Empire began requiring the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths for the entire population.

These new collections are rich in detail, often providing biographical information that is far more comprehensive than that covered by church records. This makes them an excellent resource for German genealogical research.

Germany - Hesse birth index (1874-1911)

The collection includes birth records from several communities that are within the state of today’s Hesse, Germany. When the information is available a record will include the child’s given name, the date of a birth, and sex. Information about the mother includes given name, maiden name, last name, address and spouse.

Information is also provided about the informant. An informant was often the father of the child or a midwife. Explore here.

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Germany - Hesse marriage index (1849-1931)

This collection includes marriage records from several communities that are within the state of today's Hesse, Germany. Marriages were usually recorded where the bride lived. When the information is available a record will include the groom's given name and surname, age or birthdate, birthplace, residence, occupation, marriage date and information about the groom’s parents.

A record will also include the bride's given name and surname or maiden name, age or birthdate, birthplace, residence, occupation and information about the bride’s parents. Explore here.

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