MyHeritage Releases Two Record Collections from Austria and Eastern Europe

We are pleased to announce the addition of 10.7 million Austrian Roman Catholic church records in two new collections that cannot be found on other commercial websites. The first is an index of records from a variety of communities around Austria-Hungary as well as Eastern Europe, covering modern-day Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany. The second focuses on Vienna, the capital of Austria, and some surrounding areas. The collections include vital records — baptism, marriage, and burial records — covering a span of 4 centuries, from the 16th century to the 20th. The collections are invaluable for anyone seeking to learn more about their heritage from Austria and Eastern Europe.

The areas covered by this collection were ruled by the Habsburg Monarchy, which began in 1273, rose to its broadest extent under Charles V in the mid-1500s, and then split into two: a western European region and a central-eastern European region, covering Austria, Hungary, Bohemia, and the surrounding areas. The records in this collection come from the churches in the central-eastern European Habsburg holding, where Roman Catholicism was the prevailing religion.

Here are more details about each of the collections:

Austria-Hungary, Roman Catholic Indexes, 1612–1966 

The 6.8 million records in this collection consist of baptism, marriage, and burial records for the Roman Catholic community in Eastern Europe. Baptism records include the name of the child, the date of baptism, and the location. Marriage records include the name of the bride and groom, the names of the bride’s parents, the names of the groom’s parents, the date of marriage, and location. Burial records include the name of the deceased, the date of burial, and location.

The coverage of this collection includes records from modern-day Austria (including the historical territories of Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Styria, Tyrol, Salzburg, and Carinthia), Hungary, the Czech Republic (Bohemia and Moravia), Poland, and Germany. This collection does not include Vienna.

Search Austria-Hungary, Roman Catholic Indexes, 1612–1966 

Austria, Vienna Catholic Church Records Index, 1585–1918

This collection of 3.8 million records contains an index of Roman Catholic Church baptisms, marriages, and burials from the city of Vienna, Austria and some surrounding areas. Records contain the full name of the individual, the date and place of the event (baptism, marriage, or burial), any comments, and various indicators about the records such as a book and page number. The location of the event normally includes the name of the parish as well as the district within Vienna.

Vienna is divided by district (Bezirk), and each has a name and number. The baptismal records include parishes from the following districts: 1–10, 12–13, 15–16, and 18–21; the marriage records include parishes from all districts of Vienna except for district 20; and the burial records include parishes from districts 1–3, 9–10, and 21. A selection of marriage records pertain to areas outside of Vienna in either Lower Austria, Upper Austria, or military areas.

Search Austria, Vienna Catholic Church Records Index, 1585–1918

Sample Record

The burial record of world-renowned composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart can be found in the Austria, Vienna Catholic Church Records Index, 1585–1918 collection. The record lists the date of burial; his age at death, 36; and his burial location, Sankt Stephan, in Vienna.

Burial Record of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Summary

These two new collections are an important resource for anyone searching for more information on their ancestors from Austria and Eastern Europe.

Searching the collections on MyHeritage is free. To view these records or to save records to your family tree, you’ll need a Data or Complete subscription. If you have a family tree on MyHeritage, our Record Matching technology will notify you automatically if records from these collections match your relatives. 

Enjoy the new collections!