All Souls
Despite being an overwhelmingly Catholic nation, Mexico has had a sometimes fraught relationship with the Church. But Catholic records are some of the longest-taken documents in Mexican genealogy—and, indeed, in the Western hemisphere—dating all the way back to the 1500s in some cases. Understanding the history of Mexico and the Church
during your ancestors’ lifetime will help you determine why certain records might be missing, or kept in unsuspected places. And diving into the baptism, marriage and burial records kept by the Church can take your family line back centuries. Read on for this guide to Catholic records in Mexico, including where to find them and what details they may hold.
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN MEXICO
Catholicism first came to what is now Mexico in February 1519, when Spaniard Hernán Cortés started the exploration and conquest of what was to become La Nueva España (New Spain). As he explored Yucatán, he encountered Jerónimo de Aguilar, a Spanish Franciscan priest
