Civil Registration
Beginning in 1859, the Mexican government began requiring births, marriages and deaths to be recorded by civil authorities on a municipio level. This, however, was not generally enforced until around 1867. Although these records are a great source of genealogical information, there were still many vital events that went unrecorded. For this reason, church registers must be used along side the civil records. The following information may be expected in civil registers:
Births (Nacimientos)
The birth records will list the name of the child, the date, place and time of the birth, the address of the family, the parents’ names and often grandparents. Ages and occupations for the parents, as well as the number of the children borne by the mother will be listed.
Marriages (Matrimonios, Casamientos)
Marriage records contained very little information in the early days of civil registration. However, as time progressed, more information was added. Typically the names, ages and residences of the bride and groom are listed along with the date and place of the marriage. Later records often list parents’ names and other pieces of information.
Deaths (Defunciones)
Death records can be very helpful because the earlier records may record people whose births and marriages pre-dated the civil registration era. Death records list the name of the decedent and the date and place of death. You may also find ages, parents’ names, occupations, spouse’s name and burial information.
