[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] a lesson on the cataloging of Baptist records in Poland

[Albert Muth]

 No, I am not referring to LDS films, but rather what is available in the
state archives.

My grandfather married his first wife in 1883 in Zezulin, located in the
Lublin area of Poland. With two female infants, he and his wife came to the
Detroit area in the late 1880's. I have never worried about obtaining
records for them as I was familiar with my elderly aunts when I was little
(they were 30 years older than my dad).

Other distant family members were part of the church at Radawczyk, west of
Lublin; some came from an earlier established church in Kicin (NE of
Plonsk).

Records for the Baptist church are showing up in greater numbers in
Pradziad, the online catalog of the Polish State Archives. See
http://baza.archiwa.gov.pl/sezam/pradziad.php?l=en Look for “baptyści” in
the drop-menu you will find.

You will look in vain for Zezulin, Radawczyk, and Kicin. They are not
listed. What is now showing in Pradziad appears in many cases to be
referring to the local *gmina* government, NOT the church town.

For those looking for Kicin records, you should consider Gradzanowo Kościelne,
Młock, Nowe Miasto, or Raciąż.

For Radawczyk, consider Głusk, Jastków, Niedrzwica Duża, or Osowa.

I was pleased to see Baptist records show up also for Żyrardów; I had known
these existed because a distant connection had a researcher looking in them
over 20 years ago.

There is no road map for how to do research on Baptists. The Baptist church
was an illegal religion originally with NO status with regard to civil
registration. And I am talking about the last half of the 19th century,
here!

Do not wait for these records to get filmed. They may never be. You will
need to contact the State Archives directly requesting information. “Nothing
ventured, nothing gained”.

Al Muth
Michigan, USA