What and where was Pommern?
Pommern, or Pomerania, was a Prussian province on the Baltic coast. After World War II most of it became part of Poland, and a smaller western portion remains in Germany. Many Pomeranian families emigrated in the 19th century, and large numbers settled in the American Midwest, so records for the region come up often in U.S. family research. Place names changed after 1945, so a village known to your family by a German name now usually has a Polish one. Our Polish genealogy research guide explains how to work with the Polish archives that hold these records.
When did birth records begin?
Churches kept baptism registers, mainly Lutheran (Evangelical) in this region, for centuries, with the exact starting date depending on the parish. Prussian civil registration through the Standesamt began on October 1, 1874. After that date a civil birth entry normally exists alongside the church entry. If your ancestor was born before 1874, church books are the main source.
Start with the village
Birth records are organized by locality, so you need the specific village, not just “Pomerania.” Look at:
- passenger lists and naturalization papers
- U.S. death certificates and church records of immigrant congregations
- family letters and Bibles
- emigration records, when they survive
Once you have the name, use a gazetteer such as Meyer’s Orts- und Verkehrs-Lexikon or an online tool like Kartenmeister to find the parish, the Standesamt district, and the modern Polish name. Villages often shared a parish with neighbors.
Church books
Church books are the key source before 1874. Collections on FamilySearch and Ancestry include some Pomeranian church records, and some books have been digitized from the State Archive in Szczecin by volunteer groups. The site My Pomerania, for example, shares scanned church books and other records for certain areas, including emigration books and land records, and hosts user-submitted family trees. Availability varies widely, so check what exists for your village rather than assuming.
A baptism entry usually lists the child’s name, parents, dates and godparents. Godparents often point to other relatives.
Civil registers after 1874
Civil registers from the Standesamt offices are held mainly by Polish State Archives, for Pomerania chiefly the archive in Szczecin and its branches, with some material elsewhere. Some are indexed or digitized on Polish archive portals such as Szukajwarchiwach. For recent births, Polish privacy rules apply; birth records have generally been treated as private for about 100 years, but confirm current rules with the archive.
When records are missing
Pomeranian records suffered losses in the 20th century, and some villages’ church books no longer exist. If this is your situation:
- look for church duplicates, which were sometimes filed separately
- try neighboring parishes
- use marriage and death records of siblings and relatives
- check land records, emigration records and military records
- consult village family books (Ortsfamilienbuch-style compilations) and the Pommerscher Greif genealogical society
How do you tell if you are of German descent?
Surname, family tradition and religion can suggest German or Pomeranian ancestry, but none is conclusive. Documents like a U.S. census entry giving “Germany” or “Prussia,” a church that held services in German, or immigration papers naming a Pomeranian town are stronger evidence. DNA ethnicity estimates can also hint at it, but they are estimates and should be checked against records; see how far back DNA can trace ancestry.
Requesting records from archives
Write to the relevant Polish State Archive with the village’s German and Polish names, approximate year, parents’ names and religion. English or German is often accepted, though a short Polish message may help. Fees and procedures change, so check the archive’s website.
Related guides
Neighboring provinces have similar systems. See our guide to Posen birth records for a fuller walkthrough of the pre- and post-1874 system, and our guides to Bohemian birth records and Galicia Austria birth records.
FAQ
How do I look up German birth records?
Find the village and religion, search online church and civil collections, then write to the holding archive if needed.
How can I find birth records online?
FamilySearch, Ancestry, Polish archive portals and volunteer sites such as My Pomerania each hold part of the picture.
When did Germany start keeping birth records?
Churches did so much earlier; Prussian civil registration began October 1, 1874.