Genealogy

A sacramental record is a record of baptism, first communion, confirmation, marriage or death. First and foremost these records are created with the presumption of privacy and to document a sacred rite of the Catholic Church. They are not created with the intention of being a resource for modern day genealogists.

The registers themselves are not open for examination. Requests for these records must be made in writing. If the requested record can be located one will be provided with an accurate transcription by the Archives staff. Fees are charged beginning at $20.00. In order to locate a specific record certain information is necessary such as the name of the person, date of the sacrament and the name of the church or city where the sacrament was administered.

Sacramental records created by pioneer priests (1848 - 1900), early sacramental registers of St. James, Vancouver (1838 - 1900), as well as other 19th and early 20th century parish and institutional registers are located at the Archives. These records are of particular interest to those wishing to to trace family histories or reclaim lost heritage. The records of St. James, Vancouver have been published in "Catholic Church Records of the Pacific Northwest, Vancouver and the Stellamaris Mission."

Baptismal Records: Name at time of baptism, date of birth, parents' names sometimes including mother's maiden names, sponsors' names, sometimes place of birth, sometimes name of tribe if the person is Native American, name of priest. The record will not provide the names of any children the person may have had. Nor will there be any biographical information on the parents. There is no record of regular church attendance or education.

First Communion Records: The name of the person who received the sacrament and the name of the priest. Not all parishes maintain a first communion register.

Confirmation Records: Name of the person, sponsor and bishop.

Marriage Records: Groom's name, bride's maiden name, witnesses, date of marriage and priest. Offspring of the married couple are not listed in the record.

Death Records: Name of person, date of death and place of internment.

There is no central index or database for sacramental records. The records are arranged by city and church. In order to locate a specific record it is necessary to have an approximate date and the name or location of the church. This is especially crucial information when requesting records from churches in Seattle. If you do not know the name of the church an address will help determine which church. Past addresses can be obtained from sources such as old city directories which can usually be found at your local public library.

If we are unable to locate the names of your ancestors within our sacramental records, there are many other local and online organizations with genealogical resources that may be useful for your research. Here are just a few of them.

Associated Catholic Cemeteries, Seattle
Provides a search engine of the names and burial locations of more than 76,000 people interred at the four Associated Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Seattle (Calvary, Gethsemane, Holyrood, and St. Patrick).

King County Archives
Maintains many records that can be useful to family history researchers. This includes records that are not traditionally thought of as genealogical in nature, but which can provide information about the lives of your ancestors in King County.

King County Library System
Provides online access to several useful genealogy databases, including World Vital Records and America’s Obituaries and Death Notices.

National Archives and Records Administration, Pacific Alaska Region (Seattle)
Houses extensive microfilm holdings of value for genealogy research, including Federal population censuses for all States, 1790-1930 (with indexes for 1880, 1900, 1910, and 1920); military service records; pension and bounty land warrant applications; some passenger arrival and naturalization records; records relating to the "Five Civilized Tribes" (the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chicksaw, Creek and Seminole tribes of Oklahoma).

Pierce County Cemetery Records
Online directory of locations, contact information, and interment indexes of thirteen cemeteries in Pierce County.

Seattle Public Library

• Genealogy Collection
  Houses more than 40,000 items dealing primarily with records and families of North America - including those from the original 13 colonies, the Old Northwest Territory and from states referred to as Gateways to the West.
• Genealogy: The Search for Your Family’s History. Getting Started at the Seattle Public Library
  Ask a librarian for this excellent how-to pamphlet for new genealogists, which also includes information on researching your Hispanic, African American, Asian American, or Native American ancestry.
• Special Classes in Genealogy
  SPL offers a number of valuable classes for genealogists, including Beginning Your Family History and Genealogy: Databases and the Internet.

StateGenSites
One of the most popular directories for U.S. genealogy, with many resources available for Washington State.

Tacoma Public Library
The Tacoma Public Library's genealogy collection is housed in the Main Library's Northwest Room / Special Collections.

Washington Secretary of State’s Office
In addition to historical records indexed and/or digitized at the Digital Archives, the Washington State Archives and Washington State Library have a variety of resources to aid in your genealogy research.