Bremen, German Empire Civil Registration

Definition
Civil registration records are records of births, marriages, and deaths kept by the government. German terms for these records include Standesamtsregister, Zivilstandsregister, or Personenstandsregister. They are an excellent source for information on names and dates and places of births, marriages, and deaths. These records are kept by the civil registrar [German: Standesbeamte] at the civil registry office (Standesamt). Because they cover about 98% of the population and often provide more information than church records, civil registration records are important sources for German genealogical research. Study these links to learn what information can be found in them:
 * Births (Geburtsregister)
 * Marriages (Heiraten, Ehen, or Trauungen)
 * Deaths (Sterberegister or Totenregister)

For a comprehensive understanding of civil registration, study the article Germany Civil Registration.

Accessing Records
Civil registration records were kept at the local civil registration office (Standesamt). To find the records, you need to first determine the town where your ancestor lived, then determine the location of the civil registration office for that town. The civil registration office may have been located in the same town or, for smaller towns and villages, the civil records may have been kept in a larger nearby town. Use gazetteers to help identify the place where your ancestor lived and the civil registration office that served it (see Germany Gazetteers). Large cities often have many civil registration districts. City directories can sometimes help identify which civil registration district a person lived in.

Online Databases

 * Standesamt records, 1876 to privacy limit, ($)
 * Bremen, German Deaths of Sailors and Ship Passengers, (Seemansamt Bremen, Sterberegister), ($). 1834-1875. Index and images. In German. Incomplete.
 * Bremen, Germany Births on Ships (Seemannsamt Bremen, Geburtsregister), 1867-1911. Also available at Ancestry.com, ($). Also available on MyHeritage.com. Index and images.
 * Deaths in Bremen (Leichenbucheinträge der Stadtgemeinde Bremen), 1811-1965. Index., ($)

Family History Library
Civil registration records from most of Bremen are available on microfilm.


 * a. Click on the Places within Germany, Bremen drop-down menu] and select your town.
 * b. Click on the "Civil registration" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * c. Choose the correct record type and time period for your ancestor. "Geburten" are births. Heiraten are marriages.  "Verstorbene" are deaths.
 * d. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm 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 microfilm.

Standesamt Addresses

 * Standesamt Bremen-Mitte (Registry Office of central Bremen) Hollerallee 79 D-28209 Bremen Email: mailto:standesamtmitte@stadtamt.bremen.de Web: http://www.stadtamt.bremen.de/sixcms/detail.php?gsid=bremen116.c.1624.de


 * Standesamt Bremen-Nord (Registry Office of north Bremen) Weserstrasse 75 D-28757 Bremen Email: mailto:StandesamtBremen-Nord@Stadtamt.Bremen.de Web: http://www.stadtamt.bremen.de/sixcms/detail.php?gsid=bremen116.c.1625.de


 * Staatsarchiv Bremen (State Archive of Bremen) Am Staatsarchiv 1 D-28203 Bremen Email: mailto:office@staatsarchiv.bremen.de Web: http://www.staatsarchiv.bremen.de/


 * Standesamt Bremerhaven (Registry Office of Bremerhaven) Stadthaus 5 Postfach 210360 D-27524 Bremerhaven Email: mailto:standesamt@magistrat.bremerhaven.de standesamt@magistrat.bremerhaven.de Web: http://www.bremerhaven.de/buergerservice/aemter-einrichtungen/stadtverwaltung/standesamt/

How to write a letter: Detailed instruction for what to include in the letter, plus German translations of the questions and sentences most frequently used are in the German Letter Writing Guide.'''

State Archives
Duplicate registers from some towns are kept in state archives. The advice from these state archives is to use the Standesamt-Nord and Standesamt-Mitte records from the local offices first. State Archives Bremen Postal address: Staatsarchiv Bremen Am Staatsarchiv 1 28203 Bremen Germany Phone: 0421 / 361-6221 Fax: 0421 / 361-10247 E-mail: office@staatsarchiv.bremen.de Website:http://www.staatsarchiv.bremen.de/detail.php?gsid=bremen99.c.1580.de
 * The support is provided by the user advice in cooperation with the society for family research Bremen eV "Die Maus".

Reading the Records

 * It's easier than you think! You do not have to be fluent in French and German to use these records, as there is only a limited vocabulary used in them. By learning a few key phrases, you will be able to read them adequately.  Here are some resources for learning to read German records.
 * German Genealogical Word List
 * German Handwriting


 * These video webinars will teach you to read German handwriting:
 * Old German Script Part 1
 * Old German Script Part 2
 * Old German Script (German Church and Civil Records) Part 3


 * Also online interactive slideshow lessons are available to help you learn to read these records:
 * . In this lesson, you will explore several types of German genealogical records, including birth, baptismal, marriage, and death records.
 * German Script Tutorial
 * . In this lesson, you will explore several types of German genealogical records, including birth, baptismal, marriage, and death records.
 * German Script Tutorial

This converter will show you how any phrase or name might look in German script:
 * Kurrentschrift Converter (enter German genealogical word, click on "convert", view your word in Kurrentschrift (Gothic handwriting)

Latin Records
Records of the Catholic church will usually be written in Latin:
 * Latin Genealogical Word List

Search Strategy

 * Search for the relative or ancestor you selected. When you find his birth record, search for the births of his brothers and sisters.
 * Next, search for the marriage of his parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
 * You can estimate the ages of the parents and determine a birth year to search for their birth records.
 * Search the death registers for all known family members.
 * Repeat this process for both the father and the mother, starting with their birth records, then their siblings' births, then their parents' marriages, and so on.
 * If earlier generations (parents, grandparents, etc.) do not appear in the records, search neighboring parishes.


 * German Research Troubleshooting Strategies