Merishausen Parish, Schaffhausen, Switzerland Genealogy

Guide to Merishausen Parish, Schaffhausen, Switzerland ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.



Geography
The municipality of Merishausen is in the Schaffhausen district and in the Schaffhausen canton. It is located on the border with Germany. It is on the Durach river which follows an important trade route. Merishausen (as of 2006) had an area of 17.5 km² (6.8 square miles). The land use was divided up as follows:
 * 30.3% - agricultural purposes
 * 65.6% - forested
 * 3.9% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 0.2% - unproductive land

History
In 846, Merishausen was first mentioned by the name of Morinishusun. The Merishausen municipality is in the Schaffhausen canton.

The population history of Merishausen is: 1771 - 467 inhabitants 1798 - 674 inhabitants 1850 - 932 inhabitants 1900 - 632 inhabitants 1950 - 539 inhabitants 2000 - 644 inhabitants 2008 - 779 inhabitants

Per the 2000 census:
 * 14.1% were Roman Catholic
 * 74.2% were Swiss Reformed Church

In 846, the Saint Martins Church was first mentioned. In 1838, the village church was built on the site of the Saint Martins Church. In 1560, the tithing barn was built.

Church Records
The parish records for Canton Schaffhausen are found online from the Cantonal Archive of Schaffhausen. They can be accessed here.

Census Records
(see here for article describing the Zürich census records)

The following censuses are available for Merishausen:

Genealogies
(see here for article describing Swiss compiled genealogies)

The following genealogies have been researched for Merishausen families:

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

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

Societies and Libraries
Cantonal Archive of Schaffhausen