Vilna Gubernia Church Records

Introduction
One of the predominant faiths in the Vilna Gubernia was that of Roman Catholic, although there were also groups of Evangelical Lutherans and Reformed Protestants, Russian Orthodox, Jews, and Old Believer Orthodox. These churches acted as both religious and civil agents in recording vital events. Transcripts of metrical (church) records were sent to the ecclesiastical court or provincial administration, and Jewish records were filed with the local town council. Years of record coverage vary depending upon religion and location. See below for some general guidelines: Metrical records may be stored in the State Historical Archive in Vilnius or the Central State Historical Archives of Belarus (Minsk or Grodno branches). Some of these records are available online as digital images or indexed records. Others may only be accessible via an archive. Find your ancestor's religion below to learn more about how to find metrical records.
 * Roman Catholic records began as early as 1613, with transcripts beginning in 1826
 * Russian Orthodox records began in 1722
 * Greek Catholic records began in 1796
 * Evangelicals/Protestant records began as early as 1641 with transcripts beginning in 1833
 * Jews were required to keep records beginning in 1835. Prior to this point, you may find them recorded in the church books of other religious denominations. For more information about Jewish records see Vilna Religious Records.
 * Old Believers records began in 1874

Digital Copies of Roman Catholic Church Records through FamilySearch
Digital images of Roman Catholic metrical records for several uyezdi of the former Vilna gubernia are available online. Records may be available for your ancestor's parish, or they may be included in an uyezd wide collection of metrical records. You should check both places for records. Follow the instructions below for more information.

How to Locate Parish Records

 * 1) Go to https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog
 * 2) In the Place box, type in the name of the parish. Or click here and follow the instructions below to use the places within feature.
 * 3) Click on Places within Russia, Vil'na.
 * 4) From the list that appears, select the uyezd that your ancestor lived in.
 * 5) Next, click on Places within Russia, Vil'na, [Uyezd].
 * 6) Browse the list to locate the name of your ancestor's parish.
 * 7) Once you have located your parish, look for the heading entitled Church Records. Click on that. Then, look for titles that include "Metrical books" and have the Roman Catholic Church listed as the author.
 * 8) Once you have located your desired record, click on it.
 * 9) This will take you to the catalog entry page for your desired record. Scroll down to the Film/Digital Notes section. Locate the type of record and time frame you are in need of.
 * 10) The final Format column will let you know how the record can be accessed. A digital camera indicates the records are available online, while a digital camera with a key indicates the record is available, but with additional viewing restrictions. You may be able to view the record at a Family History Center. Click here to locate a Family History Center near you. Finally, a microfilm icon indicates the record is only accessible at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. View the Family History Library website for more information about the record look-up service. Be sure to take note of item numbers found in the Film section. Occasionally, microfilms were divided into separate items to conserve space. Look for black "title" cards with a large number on them that indicate the beginning and end of an item. This will help you find the location of the proper records on the film.

How to Locate Uyezd Records
Uyezd, or district level metrical records are available through FamilySearch for the Lida and Vilna uyezds. These records are typically organized by uyezd, year and record type, and then within the film, by parish.

Digital Copies of Roman Catholic Church Records through ePaveldas
ePaveldas Lithuanian Cultural Heritage Collection is a digital repository containing almost 4,000 Roman Catholic metrical books, with many for areas within the former Vilna gubernia.

To learn how to use the records available at ePaveldas, see the Online Catholic Church Records: ePaveldas "How to" Guide.

Indexed Roman Catholic Church Records through Geneteka
Geneteka contains over 30 million indexes from many regions of Poland. Although it is a Polish website, and focuses on indexing Polish records, it contains indexes for areas that were part of the former Vilna Gubernia. To learn how to use the site, see the Geneteka Indexed Records and Geneteka: Accessing Records "How to" Guides. For records specific to Vilna gubernia, search by parish, or choose Lithuania (Litwa) or Belarus (Białoruś).