Costa Rica Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records/Known Issues

Question 1
Question 1: I find that the Event Place is wrong in many indexed records. How can I determine the correct event place? Answer 1: By viewing the document associated with an indexed record, you will see a set of codes corresponding to Location, Volume, Page, and Entry Number (i.e., 3 250 250 0499). The first digit indicates the location of the event as follows:


 * 1 for San Jose,
 * 2 for Alajuela,
 * 3 for Carthage,
 * 4 for Heredia,
 * 5 for Puntarenas,
 * 6 for Guanacaste,
 * 7 for Limón,
 * 8 for naturalized, and
 * 9 for late enrollees.

For many birth records (possibly others as well), here is what's given in the index (left side) with the corresponding correct province (right side):
 * Alajuela = San José
 * Cartago/Carthage = Alajuela
 * Guanacaste = Cartago/Carthage
 * Heredia = Heredia
 * Limón = Guanacaste
 * Puntarenas = Puntarenas
 * San José = Limón
 * The problem appears to be that the index maps province codes to province names in alphabetical order rather than by Costa Rica's actual numbering system.

Question 2
Question 2: I find indexed records with the incorrect birth year or no birth year listed. What is the correct birth year? Answer 2: To verify the correct birth year, be sure to view the image associated with the indexed record. You can also look at the associated Film Notes in the Catalog by searching using the Film Number.

Question 3
Question 3: I find that all the record indexed from Film 1104918 are birth records, but the images are for death indexes. What is the correct record type? Answer 3: All the indexed records indexed from the following films are death registration records, not birth records:


 * Film 1104962 indice de Defunciones 1896-1899
 * Film 1104912 Indice de Defunciones 1912-1915
 * Film 1104915 Indice de Defunciones 1920-1921
 * Film 1104918 Indice de Defunciones 1926-1927
 * Film 1104919 Indice de Defunciones 1928-1929
 * Film 1106388 Indice de Defunciones 1952-1955
 * Film 1106389 Indice de Defunciones 1956-1959
 * Film 1106391 Indice de Defunciones 1964-1967

Be sure to check the Record Type and Years listed in the browse path when viewing the image to validate the indexed record type. You can also look at the associated Film Notes in the Catalog by searching using the Film Number.


 * Go to the Costa Rica Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records article
 * Go to the Costa Rica, Civil Registration, 1860-1975 collection at FamilySearch.org