Portugal, Portalegre, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Image Visibility
Whenever possible, FamilySearch makes images available for all users. However, ultimate rights to view images on our website are granted by the record custodians. The Portugal, Portalegre, Catholic Church Records collection is available to the Family History Library, FamilySearch Centers, and to members of the supporting organization, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The images can be viewed at a FamilySearch Center near you.

Title in the Language of the Record
Registros Paroquiais da Igreja Católica do Distrito de Portalegre, Portugal.

Record Description
This collection will include records from 1859 to 1911. This is a collection of baptisms, marriages, and deaths from parishes in the District of Portalegre. The records published in this collection were handwritten in Portuguese while the parishes were under Portuguese rule.

Parishes in the District of Portalegre are part of the Portalegre-Castelo Branco Diocese. Each parish priest kept the original register in the parish archive and a duplicate copy was later sent to the Diocesan Archive to keep the records centralized and kept at a higher state of preservation. However, this collection of records is housed at the Portalegre District Archive.

Record Content
Baptism records may contain the following information:


 * Date and place of baptism
 * Child's name and gender
 * Child's date and place of birth
 * Father name, occupation and origin
 * Mother's maiden name and origin
 * Names of paternal grandparents
 * Names of maternal grandparents
 * Names of godparents, their civil status and occupation
 * Sometimes, a spouse's name appears in the margin
 * Sometimes, a death date appears in the margin

Marriage records may contain the following information:


 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names of the bride and groom
 * Groom's age, civil status, occupation and origin
 * Names of groom's parents
 * Bride's age, civil status and origin
 * Names of bride's parents
 * Names of witnesses

Death records may contain the following information:


 * Date and place of death
 * Name, age and gender of deceased
 * Marital status, occupation and origin of deceased
 * Parents' names and their origin if deceased is a minor child
 * Name of spouse, if married
 * Sometimes, a note if there is a testament (will)
 * Burial information

Search the Collection
To browse the collection by image: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the “District” ⇒Select the “Municipality” ⇒Select the “Civil Parish” ⇒Select the "Parish" ⇒Select the "Record Type and Years" which takes you to the images.

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

When searching: As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

For Help Reading These Records
These records are in Portuguese. For help reading the records, see the following resources:


 * Portuguese Genealogical Word List
 * Portuguese Letter-writing Guide
 * Learning Center Resources:
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 1
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 2
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 3

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Websites
Maps of Portalegre

Related Wiki Articles

 * Portugal
 * Portalegre
 * Portugal Catholic Church Records

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information (often called citing your sources). This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection citation:

Record citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image citation: