Heiden Parish, Appenzell, Switzerland Genealogy

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Geography
Heiden is located in the former district of Vorderland on the Kurzenberg. It has an area of 7.5 square kilometers (2.9 square miles). This area is used thusly:

52.4% agriculture 30.6% forest 16.8% settlement 0.3% non-productive

History
Heiden was first mentioned in 1461 as guot genant Haiden. It belonged to the political parish of Kurzenberg along with Wolfhalden and Lutzenberg until 1650, when a disagreement between Wolfhalden and Heiden led to the establishment of both towns as independent parishes.

In 1667, the population was 1,248; by 1813, the population had increased to 1,776. In 1818, after a few years of pest, the population had dropped to 1,630, but steadily increased to 2,466 in 1850 and 3,745 in 1900.

Surrounding Parishes
Eggersriet (Sankt Gallen) Grub Lutzenberg Oberegg (Appenzell Inner-Rhoden) Rehetobel Reute Thal (Sankt Gallen) Wald Wolfhalden

Church Records
The parish records for Heiden are now available online from the Appenzell State Archives. They are organized by volume. Click here to access these records.

The church parish of Heiden was established in 1652 from the parishes of Grub and Rheineck after a disagreement with Wolfhalden over the location of a new parish resulted in the creation of separate congregations. Prior to 1652, Heiden belonged to the political parish of Kurzenberg, to which Wolfhalden and Lutzenberg also belonged. Records held at the Family History Library include baptisms (Taufen) and marriages (Heiraten) 1652-1875, and deaths (Tote) 1678-1875.

Family books (Familienbuch) are held at the Cantonal Archive in Herisau, Switzerland.

Genealogies
(see here for article describing Swiss compiled genealogies)

The following genealogies have been researched for Heiden families:

Künzler family, by Julius Billeter (FHL Film 1,183,714)Lutz family, by Julius Billeter (FHL Film 127,973; see also FHL Film 193,478) Niederer family, by Julius Billeter (FHL Film 127,965; see also FHL Film 193,480)

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

Zivilstandsamt Vorderland Appenzell Ausserrhoden St. Gallerstrasse 9 Postfach 13 CH - 9038 Rehetobel

Tel: +41 71 878 70 20

email: [mailto:jeannette.eisenhut@rehetobel.ar.ch jeannette.eisenhut@rehetobel.ar.ch]

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

Related Sources
M. Rohner's book about the history and topography of Heiden is available at the Family History Library.

The town's website (in German) is located here.

Societies and Libraries
Cantonal Archive of Appenzell-Ausserrhoden (in German)