One resource that has appeared online on FamilySearch is the 1941 census – though officially it wasn’t called a “census”, but rather a “register of residents”, though in practice it functions as a census. It was taken not long after
A Needle In A Haystack: RÄ«ga Census Records
Census records are typically heralded as the Holy Grail of genealogical documents: Family groups, relationships, ages, occupations, and more, easily accessible (as long as there is a search function, or if you know precisely where they lived) right at your
C is for Census
Time for the letter C in the Family History Through the Alphabet challenge! C is for Census Census records are key genealogical records in most countries. Latvia is no exception. However, accessing and interpreting Latvian records can be a bit
Records after 1905
In my last post, a reader requested that I talk about records after 1905. So here we go! There are lots of different types of records available for the post-1905 period – however, as of right now, none of them
Sorting Out Ethnicity
So you have established that your ancestors lived on Latvian territory. But what were their ethnic origins? Latvia has been a multi-ethnic territory for centuries, so the distinctions between ethnic groups might not always be so clear in the old
Mysteries Revealed – And Created
So today was my second day, and first full day, at the Latvian State Historical Archives. I was able to view the passports I mentioned in my previous post, belonging to Pēteris Celmiņš and Anna Celmiņa (born Liepa), and confirmed
Deciphering Handwriting
While looking at the 1895 Census images last week, I found a record that I believe belongs to one of my great-grandfathers, Brencis Līcītis. The Brencis Līcītis listed here is around the right age. Brencis is a fairly uncommon first
Working With The 1895 Census
I have had a bit of time now to look at some of the Latvian records for the 1895 All-Russia Census, though I am still on holiday. Just can’t keep away from the genealogy! The form format is predictable, even
1895 Census – Live!
I’m currently traveling, so I hadn’t checked in at LVVA’s “Raduraksti” for a week or so. Today I visited the site, and discovered that the records for the Latvian parishes of the 1895 All-Russia Census are live and available for