Unterkulm Parish, Aargau, Switzerland Genealogy

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



Geography
The former municipality of Unterkulm is in the Kulm district and the Aargau canton. It is located in the mid-Wynental. The municipality includes the Wannenhof, Zinsental and Kabishof hamlets.

Unterkulm (as of 2009) has an area of 8.89 km² (3.43 square miles). The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 46.7% - agricultural purposes
 * 39.3% - forested
 * 14.2% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 0.2% - rivers or lakes

History
In 1045, Unterkulm was first mentioned by the name of Chulenbare. In 1303 as ze Nideren-Kulme. Unterkulm is in the Kulm district and the Aargau canton.

The population history of Unterkulm is: 1764 - 811 inhabitants 1850 - 1,730 inhabitants 1888 - 1,424 inhabitants 1900 - 1,448 inhabitants 1950 - 2,164 inhabitants 1990 - 2,565 inhabitants 2000 - 2,690 inhabitants 2020 - 3,343 inhabitants

Per the 2000 census:
 * 16.5% were Roman Catholic
 * 53.5% were Swiss Reformed Church
 * 0.07% were Christian Catholic Church

In 1045, the Saint Martin of Tours church was built. In 1528, the Protestant Reformation was introduced to the Kulm parish. The Kulm parish includes Dürrenäsch, Oberkulm, Teufenthal, and Unterkulm.

Church Records
The parish of Kulm, located in the municipality of Unterkulm, was first mentioned in 1045. It became Reformed in 1528. It includes the municipalities of Oberkulm as well as Teufenthal (until 1979). Dürrenäsch belonged to Kulm until 1616, when it was transferred to Leutwil; part of Zetzwil belonged to Kulm until 1636, when it was transferred to Gontenschwil.

Original church records are located onsite at the Unterkulm municipal archive. Microfilm copies of the following church records are available onsite at the Aargau State Archives:
 * Baptisms 1560-1602
 * Baptisms 1658-1712
 * Baptisms 1712-1752
 * Baptisms 1752-1779
 * Baptisms 1779-1794
 * Baptisms 1715-1816; baptisms non-resident citizens 1817-1844
 * Baptisms 1817-1831
 * Baptisms 1831-1844
 * Baptisms 1845-1875
 * Baptisms non-resident citizens 1845-1875


 * Marriages, burials 1666-1742
 * Marriages, burials 1743-1752
 * Marriages 1752-1816
 * Marriages 1817-1852
 * Marriages 1853-1875
 * Marriage banns 1815-1852
 * Marriages non-resident citizens 1817-1875


 * Burials 1752-1811
 * Burials 1812-1816; burials non-resident citizens 1817-1873
 * Burials 1817-1843
 * Burials 1843-1875


 * Family book 1798-1804

The following church records are only available onsite at the Unterkulm municipal archive:
 * Confirmations 1780-1853
 * Confirmations 1853-1885
 * Family book Oberkulm, Unterkulm, and Teufenthal 1844-1851

Post-1875 church records are found onsite at the Teufenthal parish church office.

Census
(See here for information regarding Aargau census records.)

The following censuses are available from FamilySearch for Unterkulm:
 * 1837 (images 636-652)
 * 1850: Form A (images 740-781)
 * 1850: Form B (image 782)

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

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

Libraries and archives
State Archives of Aargau

Societies
Genealogical-Heraldic Society of Bern (GHGB)