Eastern Cape Province, South Africa Genealogy

Guide to Province of Eastern Cape family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

History
The Eastern Cape as a South African Province came into existence in 1994 and incorporated areas from the former Xhosa homelands of the Transkei and Ciskei, together with what was previously part of the Cape Province. The province is also the home of the Mpondo clan, which primitively descended from the Xhosa clan. Mpondo people are more closely related to Xhosa, as they use Xhosa as their main home language.

Localities
List of cities and towns in the Eastern Cape at Wikipedia

Cemeteries
Adelaide Main Cemetery

South Africa-Eastern Cape Cemeteries

Find A Grave cemeteries in Eastern Cape, South Africa

Dutch Reformed Church (NGK)
The following list contains the names of the parishes located in the Eastern Cape through 1900, and includes the names of the mother parish.

Church of the Province of South Africa

 * 1801-2004 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images

Dutch Reformed Church (NHK)

 * 1660-1970 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1690-2011 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images

Civil Registration
Births, marriages, and deaths began to be registered in 1895.
 * 1840-1972 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images

Newspapers
The Cory Library at Rhodes University in Grahamstown has original and microfilm copies of many newspapers, including the Grahamstown Journal (1831-1920) and Grocott's Mail (1872-current). Their website can be accessed href="http://www.ru.ac.za/corylibrary/"

Probate Records
See South Africa Cape Province Probate Records for a description of what probates are and where they are located.

Online Records
 * 1834-1989 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1871-1937 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images

Slave Records

 * 1762-1838 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Vital Records

 * 1895-1972 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  index & images
 * 1955-1966 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images