Lutheran Church in Canada

Canada Canada Church Records

Historical Backgruond
Lutherans came to Canada in the 18th and 19th centuries, with sizable numbers of them in Nova Scotia and Waterloo County, Ontario. Missionaries were sent from the United States and pastors emigrated from Germany. There were a great many divisions, not necessarily antipathetic to one another; in 1900 there were about 64 synods or church bodies in Canada and the United States. The bodies often had affiliates in both countries. Various amalgamations have now reduced the number to four major bodies, of which two are significant in Canada: the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Lutheran Church—Canada (Missouri Synod).

Information Recorded in the Records
Different time periods and practices of different record keepers will affect how much information can be found in the records. This outline will show the types of details which might be found (best case scenario):

Baptisms
Children were usually baptized a few days after birth, and therefore, the baptism record proves date of birth.

Marriages
Marriage registers can give:

Burials
Burial registers may give:

Look for online records.
'''Ancestry.com, FindMyPast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local family history center or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.


 * U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Swedish American Church Records, 1800-1947, index and images, incomplete, ($).

Look for digital copies of church records listed in the FamilySearch Catalog.

 * The Family History Library (FHL) has microfilmed and/or digitized records for churches in the Canada.
 * Online church records can be listed in the FamilySearch Catalog under the province or a town.
 * If you find a record that has not yet been digitized, see How do I request that a microfilm be digitized?
 * Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations.
 * To find records:
 * a. Click on the records of Canada.
 * b. Click on Places within Canada and a list of provinces will appear.
 * c. Click on your province.
 * d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * e. Or click on Places within Canada, [PROVINCE] and a list of towns will appear.
 * f. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.
 * g. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * h. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the record 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 records.

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Correspond with or visit the actual churches.
Some records are still held in the local churches. Contact the current minister to find out what records are still available.
 * Make an appointment to look at the records. Or ask the minister of the church to make a copy of the record for you.
 * To find church staff available, you might have to visit on Sunday.
 * Ask for small searches at a time, such as one birth record or a specific marriage. Never ask for "everything on a family or surname".
 * A donation ($25-$40) for their time and effort to help you would be appropriate.
 * If the church has a website, you may be able to e-mail a message.
 * See the Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters.
 * Each denomination page offers an online address directory of local churches for that denomination.
 * Find a Church: Lutheran and Anglican

Addresses Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

 * British Columbia Synod Congregations and Ministries
 * Synod Of Alberta And The Territories Congregations Listing and Map (Alberta, the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut)
 * Saskatchewan Synod Congregations
 * Manitoba/Northwestern Ontario Synod Congregations
 * Eastern Synod (Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes)
 * Synod Headquarters Addresses Contact the Synod headquarters for information on the location of records for closed or merged congregations.

Addresses Lutheran Church—Canada (Missouri Synod)

 * Find a Church

Check the church records collections in archives and libraries.
Some church records have been deposited for preservation in government archives or in libraries. Watch for links to digitized, online records offered by the archives. Some archives provide research services for a fee. For others, if you cannot visit in person, you might hire a researcher. '''Here you will find archive information unique to the state. Many more archives are kept by denomination. For denominational archives, go to  Searching for Church Records by Denomination.

Laurier Archives Wilfrid Laurier University 75 University Avenue West Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3C5 Telephone: (519) 884-0710 Ext.3825 E-mail: libarch@wlu.ca
 * Search Engine

Lutheran Theological Seminary Saskatoon 114 Seminary Crescent Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 0X3 Telephone: (306) 966-7850
 * Online Library Catalog

Concordia Lutheran Seminary 470 Glenridge Avenue St. Catharines, Ontario L2T 4C3 Telephone: (905) 688-2362
 * Online Library Catalog

Concordia Lutheran Seminary 7040 Ada Boulevard Edmonton, Alberta T5B 4E3 Telephone: (780) 474-1468
 * Online Library Catalogue

Look for published books with transcripts of church records.
Many early records, especially from the 1600's and 1700's, have been transcribed and published in books. These books can be digitized and available online. Check these online digital libraries:

Try different keywords in various combinations:the name of the town, the name of the specific church, the denomination, "church records", and "[STATE] church records".


 * Google Books
 * Internet Archive
 * Digital Public Library of America
 * HathiTrust Digital Library
 * FamilySearch Digital Library

Contact local libraries.
Churches sometimes donate their records to local libraries. Call or write to the libraries in the close vicinity of the church your ancestors might have attended and the towns where they resided.


 * Public Libraries in the United States

Consult the PERSI index for records published in journals.

 * PERSI is the Periodical Source Index and is available at FindMyPast.com:PERSI., ($). It can be searched for free at any Family History Center. PERSI is an index to family and local history periodicals from 1847 to the present. Many of these periodicals publish church records. If you locate an index entry for a church, you will then need to find the periodical. Use the WorldCat.org search engine to find a library near you that carries the periodical. Library reference desks can be contacted to request a copy of articles, or you may need to hire a researcher.

Reading the Records
Many of the records will be written in Fraktur (old German) script. These articles will teach how to read the records.
 * Reading German Handwritten Records  Practice exercises to build your skills and confidence.
 * Old German Script Transcriber (alte deutsche Handschriften): See your family names in the script of the era. Type your name or other word into the font generator tool. Click on the 8 different fonts. Save the image to your computer and use it as you work with old Germanic records.
 * Print these handouts for ready reference when reading German Handwriting:
 * Kurrent Letters Handout
 * Numbers Handout
 * Birth Records Handout
 * Marriage Records Handout
 * Death Records Handout
 * Days and Months Handout
 * Common Symbols Handout
 * Common Abbreviations Handout
 * List of Names in Old German Script A comprehensive list of German given names,  written in old script, with possible variations.
 * [[Media:Fraktur_Font_help_-_Wiki.pdf|Fraktur Font]]--Many forms and books are printed in this font.
 * Fraktur Script - [[Media:1-Fraktur-Instruction.pdf|Instruction]], [[Media:2-Fraktur-Assignment.pdf|Activity]], [[Media:3-Fraktur-Answer_Key.pdf|Answer Key]]

Carefully compare any record you find to known facts about the ancestor
You will possibly find many different people with the same name as your ancestor, especially when a family stayed in a locality for several generations, and several children were named after the grandparents or aunts and uncles. Be prepared to find the correct church records by gathering in advance as many of these exact details about the ancestor as possible:
 * name, including middle name and maiden name
 * names of all spouses, including middle and maiden name
 * exact or closely estimated dates of birth, marriage, and death
 * names and approximate birthdates of children
 * all known places of residence
 * occupations
 * military service details

Carefully evaluate the church records you find to make sure you have really found records for your ancestor and not just a "near match". If one or more of the details do not line up, be careful about accepting the entry as your ancestor. There are guiding principles for deciding how to resolve discrepancies between records that are seemingly close. For more instruction in evaluating evidence, read the Wiki article, Evaluate the Evidence.