Church Records - Genealogy 

Locating church records can be challenging. If a church is still in existence, records should be in the custody of that particular church. However, some records may have been published or microfilmed and may be available in a historical society or in a LDS (Latter-Day Saint) Family History Library. Original records of parishes that are no longer in existence may have been donated to a local historical society or to a specific denominational archive. The following offer some basic starting points.

Archives of the Reformed Church in America

https://www.rca.org/archives  

The Sage Library in New Brunswick contains records of the RCA.

Baptist Historical Collections

http://www.sbhla.org/links.htm 

A directory of Baptist historical collections. Some NJ Baptist church records are housed in the Samuel Colgate Historical Library.

Catholic Church Research Guide

http://www.cyndislist.com/catholic.htm

Links to libraries, records, mailing lists, and more.

Directory for Local and Regional United Methodist Archives

http://www.gcah.org/research/local-church-records

A directory of where you might be able to find local Methodist Church Records.

Friends Historical Library

http://www.swarthmore.edu/fhl.xml 

Located in Swarthmore, PA, the repository contains Quaker meeting records, family papers, and organizational records. Many finding aids are available online.

Locating Church Records

http://www.genealogy.com/5_grnwd.html 

A guide to tracking down church records. Also lists some locations where records may be available.

Lutheran Archives Center at Philadelphia

https://hsp.org/history-affiliates/affiliates-membership/lutheran-archive-center-at-philadelphia

The Northeast Regional Archives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Contains some Lutheran parish registers. Researchers may want to inquire whether the repository contains records of a specific congregation.

National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections

http://www.loc.gov/coll/nucmc/oclcsearch.html 

Researchers may want to check here to see if a particular church's records have been deposited at a library or archives.

Presbyterian Church in America Historical Center

http://www.pcahistory.org 

Check the Congregation Directory to see where records may be located.

Princeton Theological Seminary

https://library.ptsem.edu/special-collections-overview

"Major collections include the Seminary archives, rare books and pamphlets, personal papers, records of organizations, research collections, and non-textual materials related to the history of the Presbyterian and Reformed traditions and ecumenical Christianity."

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