Ostprignitz-Ruppin, Germany, Deaths, 1874-1971

About this collection

This collection contains death records from the modern administrative district of Ostprignitz-Ruppin and covers the years 1874 up to and including 1971. The district of Ostprignitz-Ruppin is located in the northwestern portion of the state of Brandenburg, Germany, and was created as part of the Brandenburg district reform of 1993. Recreational tourism figures significantly in its economy. During the time period of this collection, until 1947, the area fell within the Prussian Province of Brandenburg. The district entails 72 communities including the cities of Kyritz, Lindow, Neuruppin, Neustadt (Dosse), Rheinsberg and Wittstock/Dosse. The time periods covered for each cummunity vary, many end in the 1950s and 1960s.

Beginning on October 1, 1874, local registry offices were made responsible for creating birth, marriage and death records in the former Prussian provinces. The collected records are arranged chronologically and usually in bound yearbook form which are collectively referred to as "civil registers." For most of the communities included in the collection, corresponding alphabetical directories of names were also created. While churches continued to keep traditional records, the State also mandated that the personal or marital status of the entire population be recorded.

What you can find in the records

Death records were created using preprinted forms that were filled in by hand by the registrar. In each record the date of death usually differs from the date it was registered. Depending on the individual form or on the formulations used by the registrar, you may find:

• Sequential or Certificate Number
• Informant: Given Names, Last Name, Maiden Name, Occupation, Residence/Address, Denomination
• Deceased: Occupation, Given Names, Last Name, Maiden Name, Age, Denomination, Residence/Address, Place/Date of Birth, Spouse/Parents, Place/Date of Death, Time of Death
• Beginning in 1938, the records may also cross reference to corresponding birth and/or marriage registers
• From 1938 to 1957, the Cause of Death is often included
• Signatures

More about using this collection

Each record comprises one page. Additional events from the life of the deceased were sometimes recorded later on in the margins. These notes, sometimes referred to as "narration," can contain very useful information but they have not been indexed. As a result, information from the notes will not found via the search form. The “Informant” was usually a relative of the deceased.

These records also document casualties (Kriegssterbefälle) from the Second World War. Occasionally, records for some of the dead were also later made available by the "German Office for the Notification of Next-of-Kin of Members of the Former German Armed Forces who were Killed in Action" (WASt) in Berlin.

Under "Browse this collection,” select the Civil Registration Office and Year Range for the desired records.