Maryland Church Records

Historical Background
Although Maryland was established as a refuge for Roman Catholics from England (under the Act of Toleration, 1649 to 1654), most early settlers were Protestant. Members of the Society of Friends (Quakers) were in the Chesapeake Bay area as early as 1657. The Anglican/Episcopal Church was established as the official church in 1692 and continued as such until 1776.

The 1759 Maryland land tax return reveals the proportions of land, county-by-county, owned by Catholics in contrast to land owned by Protestants. The highest percentages of Catholic landholdings were in Charles, Prince George's, and St. Mary's counties. The lowest percentages of Catholic landholdings were in Calvert, Cecil, Somerset, Talbot, and Worcester counties. Most land in those counties was owned by Protestants.

During the 19th century, Methodism was the dominant Protestant religion in Maryland. Other large groups in Maryland were the Roman Catholic, Protestant Episcopal/Anglican, 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.

FamilySearch Historical Records Indexes

 * 1668-1995 -, index. Incomplete.
 * 1650-1995 - - free, courtesy: FamilySearch. Index, incomplete. Description.
 * 1877-1992 - - free, courtesy: FamilySearch. Index, incomplete. Description.
 * 1666-1970 - - free, courtesy: FamilySearch. Description.

Ancestry.com Indexes

 * Maryland Records Colonial, Revolutionary, County, and Church from Original Sources Vol. I, ($), index. Vol. II, ($), index, incomplete.
 * 1662-1911 - Maryland, Births and Christenings Index, 1662-1911, ($), index, incomplete.
 * 1634-1777 - Maryland Marriages, 1634-1777 ($)
 * 1655-1850 - Maryland Marriages, 1655-1850 ($)
 * 1667-1899 - Maryland Marriages, 1667-1899 ($)
 * 1778-1800 - Maryland Marriages, 1778-1800 ($)
 * 1801-1820 - Maryland Marriages, 1801-1820 ($)

Catholic

 * Catholic Families of Southern Maryland, ($), index/images
 * 1753-1851 - Maryland, Catholic Families, 1753-1851 ($) index and images
 * 1819-1851 - Western Maryland Catholics, 1819-1851, ($), index/images

Dutch Reformed

 * 1639-1989 - U.S., Dutch Reformed Church Records in Selected States, 1639-1989, index and images, incomplete.($)
 * 1701-1995 - U.S., Selected States Dutch Reformed Church Membership Records, 1701-1995, index and images, incomplete.($)

Episcopal

 * 1771-1848 - Church records, 1771-1848. Episcopal Church. Diocese of Maryland, images.

Lutheran

 * Maryland and South Carolina Lutheran Newspapers, Marriages and Deaths, ($), index/images

Presbyterian

 * 1701-1970 - U.S., Presbyterian Church Records, 1701-1970, index and images, incomplete.($)
 * Eighty years : embracing a history of Presbyterianism in Baltimore, with an appendix, ($), index/images

Quaker (Society of Friends)

 * 1655-1693 - Early Maryland Quaker records : 1655-1693
 * 1681-1935 - U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935

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 records of United States, Maryland.
 * b. Click on Places within United States, Maryland 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, Maryland [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.

-

Consult available finding aids.
These aids generally provide lists of records that are known to exist and information on their location.
 * Kanley, Edna A., comp. Directory of Maryland Church Records. One volume in two parts. Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1987. . This book gives the names and addresses of about 2,600 Maryland churches and often mentions the years that the church operated, the years that records exist, and the location of the original records or copies. WorldCat
 * Maryland church records by county

To learn about the ministers and priests who served in Maryland, see:


 * Kanely, Edna Agatha. Directory of Ministers and the Maryland Churches They Served, 1634-1990, 2 vols. Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1991. . This book lists several thousand ministers and priests, giving birth and death dates, denomination served, and location and dates served. The source of the information is also given. WorldCat

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.

Maryland Historical Society
The Maryland Historical Society has about 200 indexed transcripts of church records and some original records for various denominations. The Society is the repository for the Protestant Episcopal Diocese of Maryland and has about 70,000 items from 1676 to 1900. The Society also has the Norris Harris Church Register File. This is a card index to many of the births, baptisms, marriages, deaths, and other information in the church registers of the collection.

Maryland Historical Society Research Services/Library 201 West Monument Street Baltimore, MD 21201-4674 Phone: 410-685-3750 Fax: 410-385-2105 E-mail: [mailto:webcomments@mdhs.org webcomments@mdhs.org]
 * Catalog search with Keyword "Church Records"

Maryland State Archives
Maryland State Archives 350 Rowe Boulevard Annapolis, MD 21401 Website: www.msa.md.gov E-mail: [mailto:archives@mdsa.net archives@mdsa.net]
 * Services

Start with the online guide Guide to Maryland Religious Institutions: Featuring the Collections of the Maryland State Archives. Many original records they hold have been digitized and are viewable on their website.

Protestant Episcopal. An almost complete set of older parish records from the Protestant Episcopal Diocese of Washington (southern and western shore) and from the Diocese of Easton (eastern shore). The archives has some original records from the Diocese of Maryland and microfilm copies of parish records for most of Maryland.

Roman Catholic. A large number of microfilmed records from the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Friends (Quaker). Microfilm copies of the older records of nearly all Friends monthly meetings and some of the original records. This includes the records of the Baltimore Yearly Meeting in Homewood; Philadelphia Yearly Meetings of the Eastern Shore; and meetings under the now defunct Virginia Yearly Meeting. These are described and listed in:


 * Jacobsen, Phebe R. Quaker Records in Maryland. Annapolis, Md.: Hall of Records Commission, 1966. 975.2 B4ma no. 14 Page 9 contains a map showing the general location of some Maryland monthly meetings.

Other Protestants. The Baltimore and Peninsula Conferences of the United Methodist Church, and records from some Baptist, Lutheran, Evangelical, and Presbyterian churches. Many of these records are indexed.

Some denominations have collected their records into denominational repositories, others have not. The following addresses may be helpful in locating church records.

Church of England (Anglican, Protestant Episcopal)
Episcopal Diocese of Maryland Archives 4 East University Parkway Baltimore, MD 21218 Telephone: 410-467-1399 E-mail: archives@episcopalmaryland.org

Some Protestant Episcopal records are described in:


 * Inventory of the Church Archives of Maryland: Protestant Episcopal Diocese of Maryland. Baltimore, Md.: Historical Records Survey, 1940..

If your ancestor was a minister in Colonial Maryland, see:


 * Frederick Lewis Weis's The Colonial Clergy of Maryland, Delaware, and Georgia, is an alphabetical listing of the clergy in Delaware from 1638-1776, and includes names, dates, and places. A copy of the book is located in the . For a copy nearest you, check WorldCat.

For a history of the Anglican church and background information on the original thirty Anglican parishes, see:


 * Middleton, Canon Arthur Pierce. Anglican Maryland, 1692-1792. Virginia Beach, Va.: The Donning Company/Publishers, 1992..

Methodist
United Methodist Historical Society of the Balitimore-Washington Conference Lovely Lane Museum Library 2200 St. Paul Street Baltimore, MD 21218-5897 Telephone: 410-889-4458 Fax: 410-889-1501
 * Only has records of local churches and charges which have been discontinued. Note that records churches which have merged into continuing local churches are kept by the continuing local church.

Roman Catholic
From 1718 to 1776 Catholics and Quakers were disenfranchised, and few of their pre-Revolutionary records exist. Surviving records of Jesuit Fathers are deposited at the Archives of the Georgetown University Library. University Archivist, Lynn Conway, assists with this collection. Contact: [mailto:conwayl@georgetown.edu conwayl@georgetown.edu]

Sacramental Records
Sacramental records include:


 * Baptism: dates of birth and baptism; name of child; names of parents, sponsors (godparents), and the name of priest.
 * Marriage: date of marriage; name of persons being married and where they are from; parents names; witnesses; and name of officiating priest.
 * First Communion and Confirmation: date of first communion or confirmation; name of child and officiating cleric.

Sacramental records in the Archdiocese of Baltimore are not public records. Records that are 70 years old or less are sealed to the public. No restrictions apply to records of First Communion, Confrimation, Marriage, Death, Interment or Burial.

Archdiocese of Washington, DC
The Archdiocese of Washington includes Washington, DC and five Maryland counties: Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, Prince George's and St. Mary's.

The Archdiocese of Washington was separated from the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 1939 and its records do not begin until that time. In 1939 it only included the District of Columbia. The five Maryland counties were added in 1948. Sacramental records are housed in the parish where the event took place and are not open to the public. A Sacramental Request Form should be filled out and sent to the parish. Parish addresses can be found at the Archdiocese of Washington website.

Diocese of Wilmington
Maryland’s Eastern Shore counties of Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's, Somerset, Talbot, Wicomico, and Worcester are in the Archdiocese of Wilmington, Delaware.

The Diocese of Wilmington was established in March of 1868. It included the nine Eastern Shore Maryland counties at its creation. The archive is located at 8 Old Church Road, Greenville, DE 19807. The mailing address is: PO Box 2030, Wilmington DE 19899. It is open on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The facility has one microfilm reader.

Archdiocese of Baltimore
The Archdiocese of Baltimore, established November 6, 1789, originally encompassed all of the thirteen colonies. It currently comprises Baltimore City and the counties of Allegany, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Harford, Howard, and Washington.

The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary and University house the archived records for the Archdiocese of Baltimore, as well as, St. Mary's Seminary and University, and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States. Efforts to microfilm the sacramental registers of the parishes that comprise the Archdiocese of Baltimore have been undertaken twice in the past fifty-five years. The first attempt was made in 1954 at the request of the Archbishop Francis P. Keough. The Maryland State Archives made a second attempt beginning in 1977. A majority of the parishes participated in the first microfilming project. Less than half participated in the second. Microfilm copies of the registers microfilmed by the Maryland State Archives are available for researchers to work with at the Maryland State Archives, the Maryland Historical Society, and the Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary and University. The sacramental registers microfilmed by the archdiocese are available for researchers to work with only at the Associated Archives at St. Mary's Seminary and University. Click here to see a list of the parishes that had their registers microfilmed.

The archdiocese has a website to locate existing parishes. A number of parishes have closed. Click here for a listing of those parishes and where the records have been moved to.

Archives of Archdiocese of Baltimore 5400 Roland Avenue Baltimore, MD 22120 Telephone: 410-864-4074 Fax: 410-864-3690 Email: [mailto:archives@stmarys.edu archives@stmarys.edu]

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 Maryland 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.