Nebraska Church Records

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Historical Background
Before 1900, the largest religious groups in Nebraska were the Roman Catholic, Methodist Episcopal, Lutheran, and Presbyterian churches.

Information Found in the Records
To effectively use church records, become familiar with their content. Click on these links to learn about a specific record type:

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.

Indexes

 * 1875-1899 - at FamilySearch — index
 * Index only.
 * Nebraska, Marriage Records, 1855-1908, ($), Index and images

Dutch Reformed

 * 1639-1989 - U.S., Dutch Reformed Church Records in Selected States, 1639-1989, index and images, incomplete.($)
 * 1856-1970 - U.S., Dutch Christian Reformed Church Membership Records, 1856-1970, index and images, incomplete.($)

Presbyterian

 * 1701-1970 - U.S., Presbyterian Church Records, 1701-1970, index and images, incomplete.($)

Lutheran

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

Quaker (Society of Friends)

 * Nebraska Monthly Meeting: Quaker Records, ($), index

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

 * The Family History Library (FHL) has a substantial collection of original church records and transcripts on microfilm for churches in the United States.
 * Online church records can be listed in the FamilySearch Catalog under the state, county, or 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 of United States, Nebraska'''.
 * b. Click on Places within United States, Nebraska and a list of counties will appear.
 * c. Click on your county if it appears.
 * d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * e. Click on Places within United States, Nebraska [COUNTY] 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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Consult available finding aids.
These aids generally provide lists of records that are known to exist and information on their location.

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.

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.

Nebraska State Historical Society
The Nebraska State Historical Library has an extensive collection of Protestant church records. These are listed in the reference leaflet Nebraska Church Records at the Nebraska State Historical Society. Library research services are fee-based. Some materials are available for loan via Interlibrary Loan through your local public library.

Lutheran
Archives of the Nebraska Synod 4980 South 118 Street, Suite D Omaha, NE 68137-2220 Phone: (402) 896-5311 Fax: (402) 896-5354 E-mail: [mailto:nebsynod@aol.com office@nebraskasynod.org]

Early congregations and pioneers are described in Charles F. Sandahl, The Nebraska Conference of the Augustana Synod. (n.p.: Nebraska Conference, 1931); film 1036240 item 3

Abstracts of records relating to German immigrants can be found in:


 * German Immigrants in Nebraska Protestant Church Records.

Odessa3.org - This site contains German-Russian emigrant ancestry in pocket settlements in mid-west states of North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska. Contains transcribed minutes of meetings, membership lists (some with parentage listed), birth, deaths, and marriages.

Methodist
Nebraska Wesleyan University Historical Archives United Methodist Church 5000 St. Paul Avenue Lincoln, NE 68504 Phone: (402) 465-2400 Fax: (402) 465-2189

United Methodist Historical Center Nebraska Conference P.O. Box 4553 Lincoln, NE 68504-0553 Phone: (402) 465-2175

Presbyterian
Presbyterian Historical Society United Presbyterian Church in the U.S. 425 Lombard Street Philadelphia, PA 19147 Phone: (215) 627-1852 Fax: (215) 627-0509

Hall's Index of American Presbyterian Congregations briefly summarizes information published as part of General Assembly minutes, annual denomination yearbooks, and related sources. The index contains the organization and dissolution dates of churches, denomination and location changes, mergers, etc. Search Hall's Index to see if a Presbyterian congregation existed in a town or city, and then search CALVIN, the on-line catalog, to learn what registers, minutes, and other records are available in the Presbyterian Historical Society Archives.

Roman Catholic
Diocese of Grand Island P.O. Box 153 2708 Old Fair Road Grand Isle, NE 68802 Phone: (800) 652-0004

There are no records at the above site.

The diocese includes the counties of: Arthur, Banner, Blaine, Box Butte, Brown, Buffalo, Cherry, Cheyenne, Custer, Dawes, Dawson, Deuel, Garden, Garfield Grant, Greeley, Hall, Hooker, Howard, Keith, Keya Paha, Kimball, Lincoln, Logan, Loup, McPherson, Morrill, Rock, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, Sherman, Sioux, Thomas, Valley and Wheeler.

Diocese of Lincoln P.O. Box 80328 Lincoln, NE 68501-0328 Phone: (402) 488-0921

The diocese includes the counties of: Adams, Butler, Cass, Chase, Clay, Dawson, Dundy, Fillmore, Franklin, Frontier, Furnas, Hamilton, Harlan, Hayes, Hitchcock, Jefferson, Johnson, Kearney, Keith, Lancaster, Lincoln, Nemaha, Nuckolls, Otoe, Pawnee, Perkins, Phelps, Polk, Red Willow, Saline, Richardson, Saunders, Seward, Thayer, Webster and York.

Chancery Office Archdiocese of Omaha 100 North 62 Street Omaha, NE 68132-2795 Phone: (402) 558-3100 Fax: (402) 558-3026

For a helpful history see Henry Weber Casper, History of the Catholic Church in Nebraska, Three Volumes (Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Catholic Life Pub., 1960-66); book 978.2 K2c. A brief History of the Archidiocese of Omaha is available as part of the Catholic Encyclopedia.

The Archdiocese includes the counties of: Antelope, Boone, Boyd, Burt, Cedar, Colfax, Cuming, Dakota, Dixon, Dodge, Douglas, Holt, Knox, Madison, Merrick, Nance, Pierce, Platte, Sarpy, Stanton, Thurston, Washington and Wayne.

Correspond with genealogical or historical societies.
Some church records have been given to historical societies. Also, historical societies may be able to tell you where the records are being held. To find a society near you, consult these lists:
 * Society Hill List of Nebraska Societies

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 organizing 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.