Mainz, Germany, Church Index Cards, 1585-1807

The current capital of the Rhine-Palatinate state in Germany, Mainz has a rich and storied history that includes the birth of the movable-type printing press. Located on the Rhine River about 27 miles (37.4 km) WSW of Frankfurt, Germany, the river-port city was at one time an outpost of the Roman Empire. Since the late 18th century, Mainz has been at times under French, Prussian, and German rule and was for a brief spell a democratic free state.

What Are These Records?

These records are cards listing details extracted from Mainz church records. Some cards record a birth, marriage, or death, while others list entire families. Some contain multiple generations (parents and child, for example), and some list godparents. They can provide a wealth of names, dates, and family relationships.

Although these records document events and people going back centuries, the actual cards were created during the Third Reich, as people investigated family lines for Jewish heritage.

These records are in German. The following words, abbreviations, and symbols appear in the records:

Pfarrei = parish

asterisk = birth

cross = death

Tra. = marriage

Name = surname

Vorname = given name

Vater = father

Mutter = mother

Stand or Beruf = occupation

Paten = godfather