Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Miscellaneous Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Record
México, San Luis Potosí, Varios Tipos de Registros

Record Description
This collection of miscellaneous records covers the years 1570 to 1882.

These are miscellaneous records kept at the Historical Archive of the State of San Luis Potosi (Archivo Histórico del Estado de San Luis Potosí). These records include notary records, military records, censuses, passports, birth records, marriage records, death records, and so on. Records are handwritten for the most part with the text in Spanish.

Records in this collection were created by authorized officials and kept for the most part at a local archive. In time, the information was passed to a major archive for preservation. The archive has approximately one hundred and sixty collections. Some of the most relevant are the following:


 * Mayor Municipality of Charcas (1657-1852), inheritance information, legacies, and various kinds of news from the Municipality of Charcas and the Altiplano.
 * Mayor Municipality of San Luis Potosí (1554-1841). Public notary protocols, trade news, government, etc.
 * Municipality of San Luis Potosí (1593-1992). Council minutes, and trade, finance, and war records.
 * State Cadastre (1886-1981). Legal estate and rural and urban architectural plans of the state.
 * Joint Land Commission (1916-1992). Extensions, allocations, deprivation and general investigation of parcel usufruct. (Usufruct is the legal right to use the fruits or profits of something belonging to someone else.)
 * Civil Registry (1860-1930). Guardianship proceedings, presentations, and records of births, marriages, and deaths.
 * Public Registry of Property and Commerce (1755-1976). Protocols and appendices of scribes and notary publics.
 * General Secretariat of Government (1825-1961). Meat supply, books of brotherhoods, land disputes, elections, and electoral rolls.
 * Supreme Court (1737-1970). Plenary, criminal, civil, and administrative proceedings.

Only some of the above sources may have been acquired for publishing in FamilySearch.

Each type of record was created for a different purpose, but most were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests and the legal interests of their heirs and that of a government entity.

Vital records are the most reliable records for family history research. However, other records may serve as secondary sources, especially when vital records are not available. It could also supplement other information that may help to identify an ancestor.

Record Content
Miscellaneous records may contain the following:


 * Name of the primary persons
 * Names of heirs, parents, spouse, children, or other relatives
 * Names of the executor, administrator, or guardian
 * Names of witnesses
 * Places and dates the documents were written and recorded (which can be used to approximate event dates since a will was usually written near the time of death)
 * Description and value of property or land
 * Places of residence
 * Dates and places of births, marriages, and deaths

Search the Collection
To browse the collection by image: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select "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. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own Keep ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

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

Related Websites

 * San Luis Potosí Maps
 * San Luis Potosí History

Related Wiki Articles

 * Mexico
 * San Luis Potosí
 * Mexico Archives and Libraries
 * Mexico Census

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information (often called citing 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:

Image citation: