Rhode Island Church Records

Before 1900 the largest religious groups in Rhode Island were the Baptist, Congregational, Methodist, Protestant Episcopal, and Roman Catholic. Many of the early settlers were members of the Society of Friends.

Some records of the Baptist, Congregational, Episcopal, Methodist, and Society of Friends churches are published in volumes 7 to 11 of James Arnold, The Vital Records of Rhode Island (see Rhode Island Vital Records). A list of churches and the types of records available in 1941 is Guide to the Church Vital Statistics in the State of Rhode Island (Providence: Historical Records Survey, 1941; FHL book 974.5 V2h; film 982351 item 2; fiche 6046673).

The Family History Library has an extensive collection of church records for many denominations in Rhode Island. Many denominations have collected their records into central repositories. You can write to the following addresses to learn where their records are located:

Baptist
American Baptist-Samuel Colgate Historical Society 1106 S. Goodman Street Rochester, NY 14620-2532 Telephone: 716-473-1740 Fax: 716-473-1740 Internet: http:// www.baptisthistory.us/collections.php

An inventory of their holdings is in American Baptist Historical Society, The Records of American Baptists in Rhode Island and Related Organizations (Rochester, New York: American Baptist Historical Society, 1981; FHL book 974.5 Al No. 12; fiche 6093151). Another useful guide is Inventory of Church Archives in Rhode Island: Baptist Bodies (Providence: Historical Records Survey, 1939; FHL book 974.5 K23n; film 982350 item 2).

Congregational
The Congregational Library 14 Beacon Street Boston, MA 02108-3704 Telephone: 617-523-0470 Fax: 617-523-0491 Internet: http://www.14beacon.org/

Episcopal
Diocese of Connecticut 135 Asylum Avenue Hartford, CT 06105-2295 Telephone: 860-233-4481 Fax: 860-523-1410 Internet: http://www.ctdiocese.org/index.cfm

Methodist
Boston University Theological School Library 745 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, MA 02215 Telephone: 617-353-3034 Fax: 617-353-3061 Internet: http://www.bu.edu/sth/library/

United Methodist Archives Center Drew University Library P.O. Box 127 Madison, NJ 07940 Telephone: 201-408-3189 Fax: 201-408-3909 Internet: http://depts.drew.edu/lib/methodist/

Roman Catholic
Diocese of Providence The Chancery Office 34 Fenner Street Providence, RI 02903-3695 Telephone: 401-278-4500 Fax: 401-278-4548 Internet: http://www.dioceseofprovidence.org/

A helpful history of the Roman Catholic Church is Thomas F. Cullen, The Catholic Church in Rhode Island(North Providence, Rhode Island: Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, 1936; FHL book 974.5 K2c; film 1598368 item 12).

Society of Friends
Archives of the New England Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends Internet: http://www.neym.org/


 * Rhode Island Historical Society 121 Hope Street Providence, RI 02906 Telephone: 401-331-8575 Fax: 401-751-7930 Internet: http://www.rihs.org/