Solothurn Canton, Switzerland Genealogy

Guide to Solothurn canton ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.

Getting Started
If you are new to Swiss research, you should watch this introductory course. Then study the articles on church records and civil registration, as almost all of your research will be in those two record groups.
 * Introduction to Swiss Research
 * Switzerland Civil Registration
 * Switzerland Church Records

History
In 1481,Solothurn obtained full membership in the Swiss Confederation. The medieval cooperative election of the mayor and councillors led to the creation of a nearly hereditary oligarchy by the 15th Century. By the second half of the 16th Century, the political voice of citizens was nearly totally suppressed. By the second half of the 17th Century, the government was run by a small group of patricians and the oligarchs were weakened in the 18th Century, when in 1718-21 the city council managed to regain some powers. Following the French invasion of Solothurn on 2 March 1798, a French General set up a provisional government on the following day. The new government met in April to set up the new constitution. Solothurn is a German speaking canton. e

Civil Registration
Civil registration began in Solothurn Canton in 1836. To understand the records available, read the Wiki article, Switzerland Civil Registration.
 * Addresses for Civil Registration (Zivilstandesamt) Offices (.pdf)
 * You will be able to write your request in German with the help of the German Letter Writing Guide.

Compiled Genealogies

 * Solothurn, Personal Pages on Family Surnames

Online Church Records
For information on the coverage, content, and locating of church records, read Switzerland Church Records. Ancestry.com, MyHeritage, and FindMyPast collections can be view free of charge at a Family History Center near you. Very few Solothurn families are noted in the national databases as noted on family history websites. Julius Billeter did complete a few surname projects in Solothurn. Pre 1848 there was little if any cooperation between Solothurn and Bern due to religion. The southern most part of Solothurn, Bucheggberg district was was aligned with Bern and the Swiss Reformed or protestant faith. The rest of Solothurn were Roman Catholic, you will find the occasional convert from the Swiss Reform religion mentioned in the church books. Solothurn church books are now online.

FamilySearch Microfilmed/Digitized Records
The previously filmed parish registers of Solothurn have now been digitized and are available online. Some parishes are noted in the wiki; otherwise, you must use the family history catalog to locate the church records.

Instructions:
 * 1) Click on Switzerland, Solothurn FamilySearch Catalog.
 * 2) Open the list "Places within Switzerland, Solothurn". Select your town.
 * 3) A list of record categories will open up. Click on "Church records".
 * 4) A list of available records will appear. Click on the record title you are interested in searching.
 * 5) Scroll down to the list of microfilm numbers. 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.

Writing for Church Records

 * You will be able to write your request in German with the help of the German Letter Writing Guide.

Reading the Records

 * German Genealogical Word List
 * Swiss Dialect Genealogical Word List
 * Reading German Handwritten Records
 * Lesson 1: Kurrent Letters
 * Lesson 2: Making Words in Kurrent
 * Lesson 3: Reading Kurrent Documents
 * Old German Script
 * Part 1
 * Part 2
 * Part 3 (German Church and Civil Records)

Search Strategy
This search strategy will help you determine what to write for. Limit tour requests to just one of these steps at a time. Once you have established that the parish is cooperative and perhaps more willing to do more extensive research (for a fee), you might be able to ask them for more at a time.
 * 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.