Church register puzzle solved: Stendal celebrates the return of a treasure!

Church register puzzle solved: Stendal celebrates the return of a treasure!

The Evangelical municipality in Stendal, Saxony-Anhalt, has received back a historic church register that was stolen 26 years ago. This reports Deutschlandfunk culture. The church register is considered one of the oldest in the Altmark and contains valuable baptism, wedding and death entries that date back to the late 16th century and were continued into the early 18th century.

Particularly noteworthy is the baptismal entry of Johann Joachim Winkelmann, who is considered the founder of classical archeology and modern art studies. This entry was documented on a postcard during the GDR era. The church register was stolen in 1998 during a break-in at the St. Peter's Church parish hall. However, last November, a person came forward and said they would return the book for free.

About the church archives in Stendal

The church register is part of a larger collection of genealogical documents that are stored in the Stendal church district archive. How GenWiki reports, the archive includes a variety of church records covering the various parish archives in the region. These include, among others, the parish archives in Buchholz, Garlipp and Möringen. The holdings date differently and vary, with some archives being completely devoid of church records.

The church administration office is responsible for managing these documents and therefore represents an important resource for genealogical research. The detailed documentation in the church district archive is of great value for research and the processing of local history in the Altmark.

– Submitted by West-East media