UTAH VALLEY FHC 044-001 CUBA Ga~ERAl RESEARCH GUIDE by Dr. lyman De Platt IGHL Research Series, Volume 17 Instituto Geneal6logico e Hist6rico Latino~ericano P.O. Box 2650 Salt lake City, Utah 84110-2650 1989 TABLE OF CctffEtfTS ,. POLlTlCAL HISTORY Christopher Columbus touched the land mass of Cuba during the Political History •• •••• 3 month of November 1492, but it was not until seventeen years later that Diego Velazquez de Cu~llar colonized the island. The Civil Registration • 4 first settlements were begun in 1511. The city of La Habana was establ ished in 1519. Ecclesiastical History • 4 The island was divided into two gobiernos in 1620. These were La Parish Registers · 4 Habana and Santiago de Cuba. Fani Iy Sources • 7 Cuba was under the jurisdiction of the vjceroyalty of Hew Spain initially. In 1762 the English captured La Habana but it was Census Records • 9 restored to Spain the following year. In 1777 Cuba was elevated to a captaincy general within the colonial civil structure of Notarial Records • 9 Latin fRerica. Land Records •• • 10 In IB27 the Spanish government divided the island into civil departments under which it was adninistered until IB78. Military Records It Between 1868 and 187B there was a revolution on the island, but Fanily Histories 12 it finally ended without resolving anything. There was a lot of destruction caused by this revolution, both in lives and records. Other Genealogical Records 13 On June 9, 187B the island was divided into six provinces which Cemetery •• ••••••• 13 were Oriente, Canaguey, Las Villas, Matanzas, La Habana, and Pinar del Rio. In 1893 the island becane one province again, lrnmigration-Enigration~igration 13 with a captain general as the governor, and it was divided into four gobiernos or lieutenancies which were further sub-divided Civil-Criminal Cases •.•••. 14 into thirty one political districts. Once again, in 1895, there began another uprising which resulted in the Spanish-American War Latin American Research Series 15 of 1898. In 1901 Cuba adopted a constitution which relegated it to a protectorate of the United States. It finally declared its independence in 1940. In 1975 the old 1878 provinces were sub-divided as follows: Oriente (Guantanano, Santiago de Cuba, Holguin, Granma, and Las Tunas), Canaguey (Canaguey, Ciego de Avila), Las Villas (Sancti Spiritus, Cienfuegos, Santa Clara, and Villa). The other provinces remained undivided. Within all of these provinces, the areas are divided into municipalities. - 2 - - 3 - The bapti~al transcriptions gi~e the n~e of the child, the date Ci~il Registration of baptism, some birthplaces of parents, n~es of parents, and On July 31, 1889, the Spanish civil code, which was promulgated the source of the reference. The marriage transcriptions give in 1888, was put into operation in Cuba. Since that time ci~il the nanes of the spouses, their parents, former marriage infor­ registration has technically been in effect throughout the mation, the date of marriage and the source reference. Sometimes island. Many areas, hOAever, have suffered severe losses because places of origin are also ~iven. The burial transcriptions are of the civil wars and revolutions waged on the island. mostly for adults and give the death date, to wh~ the deceased was married, s~e birthplaces and nanes of parents and the source Copies of birth, marriage, and death certificates can be obtained reference. Most of the records are recorded by parish, in semi­ by writing to Cuban municipal officials. The cost is i60.00 U.S. alphabetical order (by letter of principal surnane), but for each certificate. Correspondence has to be directed to the occasionally they have been extracted in chronological sequence. Cuban Mission in Washington, D.C. For the Cathedral of Havana and the church of Espiritu Santo (Sancti-Spiritus), c~plete runs of marriage books ha~e been ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY identified in these papers, although all entries were not extracted in the original transcriptions. The Diocese of 8aracoa, formed February II, 1517, was established at Baracoa, but by April 28, 1522, it was changed to a new head­ The follOAing is a list of the parishes for which there are some quarters at Santigo de Cuba. The new diocese was suffragan to tr anscr i pti ons. Seville until 1547 when it passed under the newly-organized Archdiocese of Santo D~ingo. tWiE OF PARISH RECORD TYPE(S) YEARS ClNERED Ql.WfflTY On September 10, 1787, the second diocese of Cuba was established C~aguey: at La Habana. On No~ember 24, 1804, the bishopric of Santiago de Cuba was elevated to the status of an archdiocese. Cathedral Marr i ages 1-9 1668-1874 1500 Wi lis 1620-1850 ca. 3000 Initially in Cuba there were four parishes including the present cathedral parish called San Crist6bal de la Havana, Soledad Marriages 1-8 1703-1852 1200 Remedios" Trinidad and Sancti Spiritus. Guanabacoa became a parish in 1607. Matanzas was founded in 1693, Cienfuegos in Cardenas Marriages 1805-1860 100 1819. Histories of all of the parishes of Cuba are being prepared by the CGS staff. HOAever, most records prior to 1700 Cienfuegos Marriages 1827-1902 100 ha~e ceased to exist for a ~ariety of reasons. Guanabacoa Nixed 1680-1790 100 Parish Registers La Habana: Transcriptions of the working papers of Francisco Xavier de Santa Cruz y Mall~n include some parish register entries of bapti~s, Cal~ario Marriages, v.2 1775-1856 10 marriages, and burials fr~ a number of parishes in Cuba. These papers cane about through the work of a number of indi~iduals Cathedral Bapt isms 1705-1785 1300 (see CGS Revista 1:9-10). (f i1m Marriages 1622-1874 2000 1619-1867 2250 I 1162426) Burials - 4 - - 5 - Guadalupe Harriages 1850-1890 150 lhe records for the Cathedral of Havana contained in the collection are not cOllplete for the early period. lhe first Jesds del Hontf Hi xed 1750-1870 200 book of baptiSlls and marriages (baptisns 1590-1600; lIarriages 1584-1622>, was published by Hidalgufa in Madrid in 1974 in Honserr atf Mixed 1700s-1800s Index alphabetical order. It is available on microfilll 973,150, itell 6 at the FaRily History Library. lhe Santa Cruz collaction Santo Ange I Harr iages 1694-1712 Index contains the foll~ing transcriptions: Marianao Harriages 1871-1886 9 BAP1I St1S Vol. B 1705-1715 Vol. 14 1773-17BI Hatanzas Harrriages 1689-1850 400 Vol. 9 1716-1744 Vol. 15 17B1-17B6 Hi xed 1700-1850 500 Vol. 10 1745-1752 Vol. 16 17B6-1792 Vol. 11 1753-1763 Vol. 17 1792-1795 Relledios Marriages 1684-1751 300 Vol. 12 1764-1770 Vol. 18 1795-IBOO Vol. 13 1771-1772 Santa Clara Marriages 1690-IB80 400 ~RRIAGES Santiago de Cuba Harr i age notfs 1688-1715 400 Vol. 1 1622-164B Vol. 7 1771-1794 8urials 1678-18BO 100 Vol. 2 1649-166B Vol. B 1794-1B12 Vol. 3 1668-1708 Vol. 9 IB12-1B20 Sancti Spiritus Marriages 1-8 1674-1B91 750 Vol. 4 1709-1724 Vol. 10 IB20-1840 Vol. 5 1724-1753 Vol. 11 IB40-1B55 Vol. 6 1754-1771 Vol. 12 1856-1874 foll~ing lhere is a ledger for Sancti-Spiritus the same i alphabetical sequence of the records above, which includes BURIALS genealogical notes on births, lIarriages, burials, and civil, Vol. 1 1619-1649 Vol. 3 1679- ecclesiastical and military positions held, listed by age, year, Vol. 2 1649-1679 plaCf, etc. Volulle nUllbers are not given for the burial records after volulle lhe lIarriage records for Sancti Spiritus are a c~plete run as to 3, but the records are transcripted through 1871. lhese records volulles, even though all the records are not included. lhey are: for the Cathedral of Havana are all contained on microfilll 1,162,426 at the Fanily History Library. Vol. 1 1674-1724 Vol. 9 1814-1829 Vol. 2 1729-1744 Vol. 10 1829-1838 F{flI LYSOURCES Vol. 3 1744-1760 Vol. 11 183B-IB49 Vol. 4 1760-1772 Vol. 12 IB4B-1859 As genealogy is a study of faRily units, it stands to reason that Vol. 5 1772-1783 Vol. 13 IB59-1B72 the hOlle of the nuclear faRily and the hOlIes of children and Vol. 6 17B3-1794 Vol. 14 IB72-18B3 grandchildren of the nuclear couple, should contain the 1I0st Vol. 7 1794-1803 Vol. 15 IB83-1B91 extensive lIaterials available pertaining to the farnily's gene­ Vol. B IB03-1B14 alogy and history. - 7 - - 6 - In Cuba, th~ b~st plac~ to b~gin all g~n~alogical inv~stiga­ If these materials are unavailable in the hone in question, then tions is ~ith th~ old~r family n~nb~rs and r~latives, and if the hones of friends, neighbors, and relatives should be visited, th~se ar~ dec~as~d, at th~ plac~(s) ~here they liv~d if possible. as should local libraries, archives, and museums. Fran this research it is usually possible to get sone names, dates, and family traditions or stories, sane of which nay extend Further information on this area of research can be found in the back as nuch as five generations. Invariably nuch of this i fo11~ing pub1ications: infornation will b~ found in no other place and when it is lost l! l! gone forever. Even though an ancestor nay have been dead Platt, Lyman De. Genealogical Historical Guide 1Q Latin Anerica. for twenty to fifty years, it is still a good policy to go to Detroit, Michigan, 197B. Spanish edition: Una Gula Geneal6gico­ where they lived and find out what still exists in the ninds of Hist6rica d~ Latinoan~rica.