Kegnæs Parish, Sønderborg, Denmark Genealogy

Denmark &gt; Sønderborg &gt; Kegnæs

History
Kegnæs parish covers the entire half island of Kegnæs at the southern most border of Denmark. The island was sparsely populated during the middle ages. In the late 1500s, Duke Hans the Younger of Sønderborg, established the farm Hjortholm, and began to exploit the island. To work his land, the duke brought in men and women who were indebted to him. They were some of the first residents of the island since the middle ages. When the island proved to be rich in resources the population began to grow. With the growing population, a new parish needed to be established. Before the new parish was established, the half island was under the jurisdiction of Hørup parish. The inhabitants would attend church in Hørup, on the neighboring island of Als, and the Hørup priest would visit Kegnæs island three times every year. On Saint Hans Day 1615, the cornerstone of the first Kegnæs church was laid, and Kegnæs parish was created. The church was called Sankt Johannes Kirke (Saint John’s Church) or Kegnæs Kirke. In 1773, the church, along with all of the church books and records, burnt to the ground. The story goes that: “The 14th December 1773, Pastor Byberg had reprimanded his servant girl, Maria Cathrina Rasmussen, who had done something wrong. The girl. . . the following night set fire to the priest's farm, which burnt completely to the ground. . .” taking the church books and the pastor's archive with it. Due to the fire, the earliest records for the parish begin in 1773.

Place Names
To see what kind of place it is you will need a Danish Gazetteer.


 * '''Surrounding Parishes

Lysabild, Tandslet, Hørup, Ulkebøl, Broager

Collections
(write information about the different collections, or tips on using them)


 * Census Records


 * Church Records


 * Court Records


 * Military Records


 * Probate Records

Related Sources

 * Digital


 * Printed