Colombia, Valle del Cauca, Miscellaneous Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in the Collection?
This collection contains miscellaneous records that are housed at the Archivo Histórico de Buga. These records include censuses (padrones), will-related records (mortuorias and testamentarías), and voter identification cards (cédulas electorales) from 1549-1955.

These records are written in Spanish; see the section "For Help Reading these Records" for access to translation helps.

Additional records will be published as they become available.

Sample Images
Wills usually contain the following information:


 * Name of the deceased
 * Names of family members
 * Place and date of death

Voter identification records usually contain the following information:


 * Name of the voter
 * Residence of the voter

How Do I Search the Collection?
When searching: As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence, age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Some record sets have indexes; these indexes were created at the end of the year. Copy errors could have been made in the index, so you want to find the actual record to verify the information is correct. Using the index is a helpful way to find the actual record.

See the sections below for tips and uses for searching and finding the record of your ancestor in this collection and using the information in the record.

If you are unable to find a record for your ancestor in this collection, see the corresponding section below.

To search by image: To browse the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the appropriate "Tipo de registro y años" which takes you to the images.

Search the collection by index or image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several entries or images and compare the information about the individuals listed to your ancestors to make this determination.

For Help Reading these Records
These records are in Spanish. For help reading the records see the following guides:


 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * Colombia Language and Languages
 * Reading Spanish handwritten records
 * Script tutorial for Spanish


 * Use the age to calculate a birth date.
 * Use the names of family members and look for their records.
 * Use the place of residence as a starting point and search nearby towns for further records and ancestors.
 * Wills/testamentos are good for learning the death date and place, what family/friends he/she had at the time of death, his/her wealth status at the time of death; for example, if your ancestor gave parcels of owned land to descendants/relatives, then you know to look for land records.
 * Censuses/censos help to also identify family relationships as well as ages and birthplaces which then help us find birth records.

Tips to Keep in Mind
When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

Proof of information given during a census was not required, so it may contain some errors.

Censuses were taken by ordinary civilians who may have misspelled names, so check for variant spellings of the names, especially phonetically.

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For, Now What?
A boundary change could have occurred and the record of your ancestor is now in a neighboring state, or your ancestor immigrated to another country. Search the records of nearby areas or immigration/emigration records Colombia Emigration and Immigration.

Below is a video (in Spanish) about emigration and immigration within and to Colombia: El Transporte en Colombia y las Migraciones

Church records are also a great source for finding information about your ancestor. Colombia, Catholic Church Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image. Collection Citation:

Image Citation