Venezuela, Archdiocese of Ciudad Bolivar, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
This collection will include Catholic Church records from 1930-2014 created by parishes in the Archdiocese of Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela. These records include: baptisms, confirmations, marriages, prenuptial investigations, deaths, and indexes.

Reading These Records
These records are written in Spanish. For help reading them see: FamilySearch Learning Center videos: If you speak Spanish, the following free online lesson may be helpful to learn how to use the information in these records:
 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * BYU Spanish Script Tutorial
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 1
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 2
 * Registros Civiles y Parroquiales – Spanish

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Baptism
 * Name, age, and gender
 * Birth date and place
 * Date and place of baptism
 * Names of parents
 * Names of witnesses

Confirmation
 * Name, age, and gender
 * Date and place of confirmation
 * Names of parents
 * Names of godparents

Marriage
 * Names and ages of groom and bride
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Birthplaces of groom and bride
 * Names of bride and groom’s parents
 * Who performed the marriage
 * Names of witnesses

Death records
 * Deceased’s name, gender, and age
 * Date and place of death
 * Marital status/name of spouse
 * Birthplace
 * Names of parents

Inventory
Records from the following places are included in this collection. Click the link in the Parish column to see the FamilySearch Catalog record and description of the the records.

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * Name of the person
 * Approximate date of the event

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Check the image the index was taken from to see if there is additional information
 * Make sure to fully transcribe and cite the record entry for future reference
 * Use the information to find more. For instance, use the age listed in the record to estimate a year of birth, if that is yet undetermined
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each spouse to find a couple's birth records and parents' names
 * Compile the marriage entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual

What If I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For?

 * Check for variants of given names, surnames, and place names. Transcription errors could occur in any handwritten record; also, it was not uncommon for an individual be listed under a nickname or an abbreviation of their name. Click here for a list of Spanish name abbreviations
 * Venezuela Civil Registration are also a good substitute when baptism, marriage, and burial records can’t be found or are unavailable

Research Helps
The following articles will help you research your family in Venezuela.
 * Venezuela Record Finder
 * Venezuela Research Tips and Strategies

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.