Lauerz Parish, Schwyz, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Lauerz Parish, Schwyz, Switzerland, ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, parish census, civil census, family history, area history, and military records.



Geography
As of 2006, Lauerz has an area of 9.2 km2 (3.6 sq mi). The village of Lauerz is located on the south shore of Lake Lauerz (Lauerzersee). The municipality includes the village of Lauerz and a number of scattered farmhouses between the northern slope of the Rigi mountain and the lake. Also within the municipality, is a section of the lake, together with both of its islands, Schwanau and Roggenburg.

The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 44.7% - agricultural purposes
 * 35.7% - forested
 * 4.1% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 15.5% - non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains)

History
The first mention of Lauerz was in 1306 as Lowertz.

The population history of Lauerz is: 1850 - 474 inhabitants 1900 - 436 inhabitants 1950 - 549 inhabitants 2000 - 874 inhabitants

The territory around Lauerz belonged to counts of Lenzburg, then passed to the Kibourgs and the Habsburgs. The chapel of St. Theodul is mentioned in 1480 as a branch of the parish of Schwyz, was rebuilt in 1508-1509 after a fire. The Chapel of Lauerz (1520) was built into a parish after 1600; the parish church of Saint-Nicolas was refurbished in 1675. The village was very badly affected by the tsunami that followed the landslide at Goldau in September 1806, resulting in the deaths of 115 people in Lauerz alone.

Surrounding parishes
Arth Gersau Ingenbohl Steinen Steinerberg Schwyz

Church Records
The parish of Lauerz was established in 1600. Before 1600, Lauerz belonged to the parish of Schwyz. Records are available from 1788 for baptisms, 1815 for marriages, and 1731 for burials.

Digital copies of the church records can be accessed onsite at the Schwyz State Archives. The archive has an online inventory of the records for Lauerz.

Civil Registration
Civil registration began in 1876. Lauerz belongs to the Innerschwyz civil registration district. Records are only available in Switzerland. For further information, contact the civil registry office at:

Zivilstandsamt Innerschwyz Herrengasse 17 CH - 6431 Schwyz

Tel: +41 41 819 07 14

email: [mailto:zivilstandsamt@gemeindeschwyz.ch zivilstandsamt@gemeindeschwyz.ch]

Duplicate civil registration registers are located at the Schwyz State Archives. Additionally, the archive has a partial inventory of its holdings. The following records are viewable in person:


 * Births before 1900
 * Marriages before 1930
 * Deaths before 1960

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Lauerz prior to 1875:

Related sources
The town's website (in German) can be found here.

Libraries and archives
State Archives of Schwyz

Societies
Zentralschweizerische Gesellschaft für Familienforschung

Historischer Verein des Kantons Schwyz