Mexico, Colima, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Registros Parroquiales de la Iglesia Católica en el Estado de Colima, México.

Collection Time Period
This collection of the Catholic Church records of the State of Colima, Mexico covers the years of 1707-1969.

Record History
In 1797, the parishes of the then province of Colima, were part of the Bishopric of Guadalajara. In December of 1881, the Diocese of Colima was established, with 13 parishes, namely Almoloyán, Colima, Cuautitlán, Ejutla, Jilotlán, Pihuamo, Purificación, Tecalitlán, Tecomán, Tomatlán, Tonila, Tuxcacuesco, and Zapotitlán, covering a total of about 141,742 inhabitants.

Parishes are local congregations that may include smaller villages within their boundaries. Only authorized clergymen perform the baptisms, marriages, deaths, and other ordinances in their parish jurisdiction. Each one creates records in their own style following a common format. The registers are kept in the parish archive and a copy is sent later to the Diocese Archive. The collection at the Family History Library was acquired directly from each of the individual parishes. This collection covers the Catholic parishes in the state of Colima, in which the majority of the population was Roman Catholic. It wasn’t until the late 19th century that other religious groups began to organize in Mexico. These records cover the Church parishes of the localities of Villa de Alvarez, Cuauhtémoc, Manzanillo, Colima, Tecomán, Coquimatlán, Comala, Minatitlán, Ixtlahuacán, Suchitlán, and Almoloyán.

Why the Record Was Created
Catholic Church parish registers were created to record the church sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and marriage, as well as to record deaths, burials, and other items of interest to the Church.

Record Reliability
Catholic Church parish registers are the primary source for baptisms, death, and marriage records in Mexico prior to 1859. After 1859, parish records can be used as another source verifying information found in civil registers.

Record Description
Separate books were kept for baptisms, confirmations, marriage information documents, marriages, and burials. However, in some parishes with a small population the records were kept all in one book. The entries were normally made in chronological order. Confirmations may be found included with baptisms or marriages. Similarly, marriage information documents may have been included with marriages. Some records, especially the earlier ones, have watermark or other damage.

Record Content
Some key genealogical information found in the Colima Catholic Church parish registers are:


 * Date of baptism, which sometimes includes the date of birth also, confirmation, marriage, death, and/or burial
 * Event place, which could be the parish, city, or sometimes the place of birth in baptisms
 * Names of principal, parents, grandparents, spouses, godparents, witnesses, and other relatives
 * Age of principal or couple in the case of marriages
 * Gender of principal in baptisms
 * Place of origin and residence of principals and sometimes of parents or others
 * Legitimacy of principals
 * Social class or race in entries prior to 1820
 * Civil status of principals and sometimes of parents or others
 * Cause of death

How to Use the Record
In most cases, Mexican Catholic parish registers are the only records to identify individuals, parents, and spouses before the civil registration was created in 1859. After this date, civil authorities began registering vital statistics, which by law includes people of all religions. The information in civil sources confirms and supplements the information in church records. For instance, the parish registers may list the godparents while the civil records may list the grandparents. It is recommended to search both the parish and civil records after 1860.

Related Websites
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Related Wiki Articles

 * Mexico Church Records
 * Mexico Church History

Sources of This Collection
"Mexico, Colima Catholic Church Records," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org); from Diocese of Colima, Colima, Colima, Mexico. Registros parroquiales, 1707-1969. Original records also housed at local parish archives throughout the State of Colima, Mexico. FHL 444 microfilm reels. Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah. USA.

Digital copies of originals housed in different local Catholic Church parish archives throughout the State of Colima, Mexico.

The suggested format for citing FamilySearch Historical Collections is found in the following article: Help:How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections.

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. 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.

Instructions for citing your own sources can be found at: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th census, 1900, digital images, From FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: September 29, 2006), Arizona Territory, Maricopa, Township 1, East Gila, Salt River Base and Meridian; sheet 9B, line 71.
 * Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1886-1933, digital images, from FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: April 22, 2010), Baptism of Adolfo Fernandez Jimenez, 1 Feb. 1910, San Pedro Apóstol, Cuahimalpa, Distrito Federal, Mexico, film number 0227023.