Introduction

The birth, marriage, and death records of the church in Jastrząbka Stara, Poland have been indexed.  These indices are based on microfilmed copies of Roman Catholic parish records made by the Genealogical Society in Salt Lake City, Utah. The records were filmed in 1973¹ and in 1995² in the Tarnów Diocesan Archives. The manuscripts covered the years from 1785 to 1934. Birth records from about 1870-1890 were not on either film but are included in the index. How is that possible? My trip to Poland in 2001 included a visit to the Tarnów Diocesan Archive where I was able to work with manuscript copies from that time period. Unfortunately the parish priest was not receptive to a visit at that time to find out if the originals still exist. While there were church records dating as far back as 1645 as recently as about 1882³, the existence or condition of these records at the present time is not known. 

The greater portion of the birth index is based on the 1973 film of manuscript copies of parish records. The 1995 film appears to contain original parish registers and would presumably be more accurate than the copies. The 1995 film was used only to include years missing from the 1973 film. That is to say the records from the two sources were not compared for accuracy.

The greater portion of the marriage index is based on the 1973 film with the 1995 film used only to fill in for the missing years.  Again,  the records from the two sources were not compared for accuracy.

The manuscripts for the death records covered the years from 1784 to 1902. The greater portion of the death index is based on the 1995 film.  Death records from 1784-1814 are from the 1973 film because the 1995 film only begins at 1814. The 1973 film was used only to include years missing from the 1995 film.

This index is intended as a finding aid and is not to be used as a primary source of genealogical data. Rather than having to read the microfilm line by line, the index helps locate persons more rapidly. The index was prepared as a finding aid for my own research but other researchers may find it useful. Approximations of illegible surnames were made.  It is the researcher's responsibility to go to the filmed records for corroboration.

Additional History

James Kolak, a descendant of Jastrząbka Stara villagers, visited the church and photographed a history of the parish that was posted there in Polish. According to that history, in 1563, a wooden church was built which became the first pastoral outpost independent of Zasów. Zasów is a nearby village having its own church. In 1581, parish status was approved for the church in Jastrząbka Stara. In 1790, a fire destroyed the wooden church. A stone church was built the next year. The church was consecrated under the patronage of Ss. Peter and Paul on 29 June 1825. The church was expanded in 1928-1931. As a result of wartime hostilities, the church was destroyed in 1944-1945. The church was rebuilt in 1946-1947. A tower was built in 1966. The church has five altars, pulpit, baptismal font and three bells.⁴

Some General Notes

Footnotes

1 Microfilm # 948,598

2 Microfilm #1981483

3 Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowianskich, volume III, edited by Philip Sulimierski, Warsaw, 1882.

4 Church history based on a history posted in the church and photographed by James Kolak in 1993.

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