Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Registro Civil del Estado de San Luis Potosí, México

Record Description
This collection of civil records for San Luis Potosí covers the years 1859 to 2000.

This is a collection of civil registration records for Mexico. Records, such as birth, marriages, and deaths, are organized by state and then by municipality/city. Earlier records were handwritten in narrative style; later records were handwritten in formatted registers. The text of these records is in Spanish.

Civil records in Mexico cover about 90 to 95 percent of the population. Beginning in 1859, the Mexican government began requiring births, marriages, and deaths to be recorded by civil authorities on a municipality/district level. Although these records are a great source of genealogical information, they are not complete as civil registration wasn't strictly enforced in Mexico until 1867 and people did not always comply. For this reason, church registers must be used alongside the civil records. The civil records of Mexico have been preserved relatively well. Only some of the older registers may have some physical damage; however, they are generally in good condition to extract genealogical information.

The Mexican civil registration was created to record the vital events of birth, marriage, death, and other civil events, which would determine and prove the civil status, existence, and condition of the population.

The civil registration records of Mexico are a reliable source for doing genealogical research.

Record Content
Birth records may contain the following:


 * Child's name and gender
 * Child's date and place of birth
 * Presenter/father's name, age, civil status, origin and residence
 * Parents' names, age, occupation, origin, religion and race
 * Paternal grandparents
 * Maternal grandparents
 * Witnesses' names, their age, civil status, occupation and origin

Marriage records may contain the following:


 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names of the bride and groom and their civil status
 * Names of parents
 * Name of witnesses, their age, civil status, occupation and origin

Death records may contain the following:


 * Name and gender of deceased
 * Civil status and nationality of deceased
 * Date and place of death
 * Cause of death
 * Parents' names and their nationality
 * Sometimes, spouse's name if married
 * Declarant's name, age, nationality and residence
 * Decflarant's relationship to deceased
 * Sometimes, burial information

Search the Collection
To search the collection by index: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

To browse the collection by image: ⇒ Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒ Select the "City or Municipality" ⇒ Select the "Record Type and Years" which takes you to the images.

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

Using the Information
The civil registration records in Mexico are an excellent source for genealogical research after 1867. Important genealogical data can be found in these records, which may also include data of other family members to fill in another generation group.

When searching the index it is helpful to know the following:


 * The place where the event occurred
 * The name and surname of the person
 * The approximate date of the event
 * The name of the parents or spouse

Keep in mind:


 * The information in church records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another.

If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:


 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for a different index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

For Help Reading These Records
These records are in Spanish. For help reading the records, see the following resources:


 * Mexico Language and Languages
 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * BYU Spanish Script Tutorial
 * FamilySearch Learning Center videos:
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 1
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 2
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 3

Surrounding Localities
Unable to find your ancestor? Try looking through records in the surrounding localities. Zacatecas is to the west, Nuevo León to the north, Tamaulipas to the northeast, Veracruz to the east, Hidalgo to the southeast, and Guanajuato to the south.

Related Websites

 * San Luis Potosí Maps
 * San Luis Potosí History

Related Wiki Articles

 * Mexico
 * San Luis Potosí
 * Mexico Civil Registration
 * Mexico Civil Registration Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. 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. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection Citation:  Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image Citation: