A church directory lists church officials, dioceses, and parishes. There are many genealogical uses for church directories:

• They list all of the parishes in a diocese so you can determine if your ancestor’s village had a parish church. Many directories list all villages belonging to a parish.
  
• They sometimes provide the earliest dates for which the church records of each parish exist.
  
• They may include historical information about each parish.
  
• They usually group parishes by clerical district so you can easily determine all neighboring parishes.
  
• They provide the complete address and telephone numbers of parishes, the address of the diocese headquarters, and often the address of the archives of the diocese where additional records may be kept.
  

A church directory that lists all Italian dioceses is:

Annuario delle Diocesi d’Italia, 1951 (Yearbook of the dioceses of Italy, 1951). Torino: Marietta, 1961. (FHL films 780555–780556; computer number 31291.) The yearbook’s index lists all of the towns in alphabetical order, names the Catholic parishes of each town, and indicates to which diocese the town belongs. When you find an index entry, you can use the yearbook to find more information about the town and parish. Information provided includes parish population; date of creation; the name of the parish priest; and number of births, marriages, and deaths for that year. It also includes information regarding affiliated organizations, such as convents, monasteries, orphanages, hospitals, and so forth. Since this directory was published in 1951, some information, such as a priest’s name, will be out of date. The addresses and histories are still valid.

To find other church directories, search the Family History Library Catalog under:

ITALY- CHURCH DIRECTORIES

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