Netherlands, Noord-Brabant Province Population Registers - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Record
Nederland, Noord-Brabant Provincie bevolkingsregisters

Record Description
This Collection will include records from 1820 to 1930.

The population register was introduced in 1850 to keep track of families as they moved from one residence to another, although some localities began recording moves as early as 1820. It contained much the same information as the earlier censuses but added changes of address, occupations, birth, death, and marriage dates, and immigration information. With all the changes, pages could get messy, so it was necessary to close some of the registers and start new ones.

The 1850 register entries were based on information gathered from the census taken November 19, 1849. From 1850 to 1920, the records were kept in bound registers that were sorted by addresses. Around 1920, the bound registers were phased out and replaced by a loose-leaf system known as family cards (gezinskaarten). These cards were organized by family name and were used until 1940 when a new system came into effect. As individuals died, their cards or printouts were sent to the Central Offices for Statistics.

Because of all the copying and changing, the population registers contain a lot of errors; however, they do contain a lot of information not easily found elsewhere. Information found in these registers should always be checked against vital or church records

Record Content
Population registers may include the following information:


 * Name of each member of the household
 * Birth dates and places
 * Occupation
 * Relationship to the head of the household
 * Marital/civil status
 * Religion
 * Arrival date and where he or she moved from
 * Removal date and where he or she moved to
 * Death dates and causes of death

How to Use the Record
This section includes tips and information on how to search the collection.

As you are searching, it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name, surname, place of 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.

Search the Collection
To browse by image: ⇒Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒Select the "Municipality" ⇒Select the "Volume Number" which takes you to the images.

Search the collection by image, comparing the information you find with what you already know about your ancestors to determine the correct individual or family. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

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.
 * 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.
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives.

General Information about These Records
Population registers are an important source of genealogical information. They may contain complete families, addresses, dates, occupations, and other important remarks listed by the magistrates. To find a family in this collection, it is usually necessary to know the place where the family lived and the family surname.

Related Web Sites

 * Zoekakten - This website is in Dutch. It narrows down this collection by different regions and records.
 * Regionaalarchiefwestbrabant
 * WieWasWie is a compilation of indexed civil records from the Netherlands, including some from Dutch colonies, mostly dating from 1811 until the mid-1900s. For a guide to the site, see the wiki article.

Related Wiki Articles

 * The Netherlands
 * Noord-Brabant Population Registers
 * Population Registers

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually. Collection Citation

Image Citation: