Germany, Hesse, Darmstadt City Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Deutschland, Hessen, Darmstadt Stadt Urkunden

Collection Time Period
This collection of city records includes: Town records for 1716-1884; Emigration and immigration records for 1805-1940; Naturalization/Citizenship for 1821-1938; and Population registers for 1627-1939.

Record Description
Records in this collection include population registers, certificates of citizenship, recordings of citizens and residents, and emigration records. The information is handwritten horizontally in two pages of columns in a ledger-type format.

Record Content
The key genealogical facts found on most citizenship/naturalization records include:




 * Name of applicant
 * Age of applicant
 * Occupation of applicant
 * Reasons for citizenship application
 * Date and place of issue

The key genealogical facts found on most citizenship application status records may include the following information:




 * Name of applicant
 * Place of origin
 * Status of application
 * Date and place of issue

The key genealogical facts found on most manumission records may include the following information:




 * Name of subject
 * Place of origin
 * Manumission request status

How to Use the Record
Next to parish and civil registers, this collection of city records provides good family information, which can be used to research the family in other vital records. To use these records, you must know how to read German Gothic script. You also need to know at least the name of your ancestor, an event date, and the approximate place of residence.

Record History
To keep a record of the population, the city called heads of households to assemble at the local civil office, almost yearly, to provide their personal information, which was counted as a basic unit. This listing is called “volkszahlung” (local population census).

The city also kept a similar register listing all the citizens who moved to other localities. This register was called “abmeldungen” (relocation list). If the record was from a citizenship roll, it was called a cancellation list.

Although the heads of households were admonished to comply, these procedures were not enforced. Therefore, these records may not cover the entire population.

The original records are preserved at the German State Archives in Darmstadt. The Family History Library has copies on microfilm.

Why the Record Was Created
These records were created mainly to have a record of people leaving town and to count the number of residents.

Record Reliability
This census collection is a reliable source of information for genealogical purposes; however, the accuracy of the information is dependent upon the knowledge of the informant and the way it was recorded by the civil officer.

Related Websites

 * Germany, Hessen, Darmstadt City Records
 * Germany Genweb Project

Related Wiki Articles

 * Germany
 * Germany Emigration and Immigration
 * Germany Naturalization and Citizenship
 * Germany Court Records
 * Hessen, Germany

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.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the wiki article Help:How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * “Delaware Marriage Records,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 4 March 2011), entry for William Anderson and Elizabeth Baynard Henry, married 23 November 1913; citing marriage certificate no. 859; FHL microfilm 2,025,063; Delaware Bureau of Archives and Records Management, Dover.
 * “El Salvador Civil Registration,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 21 March 2011), entry for Jose Maria Antonio del Carmen, born 9 April 1880; citing La Libertad, San Juan Opico, Nacimientos 1879-1893, image 50; Ministerio Archivo Civil de la Alcaldia Municipal de San Salvador.

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the data and images published on FamilySearch.org Historical Records. It may include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.

Darmstadt City Records. Stadtarchiv Darmstadt, Germany.

Information about creating source citations for FamilySearch Historical Collections is listed in the wiki article Help:How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections.