Help on search

Our database has a search engine where you can find information on marriages.

Try Simple search first to find matches to any surname specified. Exact matches (for the groom, bride or their mothers) are listed in chronological order. Then, couples with similar names follow until 300 records in total are reached (with the threshold bar you can tune the maximum similarity level to include). No wildcard (like ? or * ) charactes are allowed but notice that the search engine has a similarity match procedure.

You should use the Advanced search if the number of exact matches would exceed 250, or if you want to apply additional criteria. You start your query by providing the last names for either spouse or both, or selecting their first names. If you need a first name which is not available in the pulldown, use the "none of the above", the last item on the list. If you prefer to search for a name both among men and women (as well as their respective mothers), select the "Any spouse" mode.

Check the box to include the spouses' mothers into the surname search if needed. Another box lets you apply an enhanced accuracy match procedure which needs longer time and more memory to run, so it is only allowed with search criteria narrowed down (at least one first name specified, or both surnames, or one of the regions - see below). Checking the last box allows you to find persons whose surname was not recorded at their marriage (until ca. 1820 many families still did not have fixed surnames over here and in many records only first names appear). If this option is on, entries with first names and no surnames are matched with the first name you specify, no matter what surname you provided.

You can then pull down a separate section with additional criteria, such as narrowing down the time frame for the wedding you look for, as well as the sub-region within the Poznan area (the sub-regions are defined by groups of districts according to the 1890 scheme, see map). Also, the search can be limited to the Catholic, or Lutheran, or Civil Registration records (by default all three types of records are searched). The results are split into exact matches (up to 250) and approximate matches following them.

Click on the town name listed in any of the results to get the information about the respective parish, the availability of its records and other facts. The "Original record" note tells you in what archive (National or Diocesan) the respective record is kept.

Adding comments to individual records is possible, this will allow you to write a note attached to any of the results. The comment will be read by other researchers who find the same couple in their search results. You can extend the information on the respective couple, leave your contact information or tell others about your research. This option has already helped numerous genealogists to identify their cousins in Poland or abroad.

If you have already donated to the Project or supported it in another way, Lukasz Bielecki, the Coordinator will be more than happy to send you digital pictures or scans of the records you found in our database - if available, or help you obtain them from the archive where they are stored. Lukasz can also provide further genealogical research in Polish archives, or other type of assistance for you within his Discovering Roots service.

Otherwise, you can write the respective archives for a copy or certificate. Please note that it often takes long (weeks or even months) for the archives to handle requests they are receiving. Also, their response will be usually in Polish.