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CollectionsChurch burial records

COLLECTION 004 · SGC-CH-004

Church burial & death records

New Haven & West Haven, Connecticut

Follow a name through church registers, annual death lists and historical inscriptions. Read the surviving text, open the original pages and find the next volume to request.

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PARISHES & PEOPLEThe church
record roomRegisters · Death lists · Inscriptions
CENTER CHURCH ORGANIZED1639
PRESENT CENTER CHURCH BUILDING1812–1814

This collection covers several congregations and has no single opening date. These dates refer to Center Church on the Green; register dates are identified separately.

633church reference rows
1,441searchable source pages
9volumes with full OCR text
14register catalog leads
Coverage · September 8, 2026. Includes the supplied 605-row Catholic table, 27 newly transcribed Center Church deaths and one death-list correction. Full OCR text and selected scans are included; complete volume scans are linked to their repositories. West Haven’s death and funeral register scans have not been obtained. This is a growing research collection, with incomplete coverage of both cities.
Read the full history

EXECUTIVE HISTORY

Church records connect people, places and generations.

This collection brings together several congregations, so it has no single institutional opening date. Center Church traces its organization to 1639. Its present meeting house was built in 1812–1814 over part of the old town burial ground, preserving graves beneath the sanctuary. Center Church history.

The New Haven and West Haven sources include early Catholic burials, printed church death lists, historical gravestone inscriptions and catalogs of surviving manuscript registers. They were created for different purposes: a death list may identify a congregation member without naming a cemetery, while a gravestone transcription may describe a monument that was later moved.

For West Haven, the First Congregational Church catalog identifies death and funeral subseries beginning in 1774 and 1863, alongside a volume of deaths for 1881. Those are record-series dates, not the congregation’s founding date. The collection retains their access leads while manuscript scans are still being sought. Read the register catalog.

THE ILLUSTRATED ARCHIVE

The places behind the parish records

Center Church, documented in 1967

June 1967

Center Church, documented in 1967

The congregation was organized in 1639. Its fourth meeting house, built in 1812–1814, enclosed part of the town burial ground beneath the sanctuary. This later architectural photograph provides context for the Center Church records in the archive.

Robert Fulton III, Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress. Public domain. · Reuse termsRead the source
An older burial ground beneath the sanctuary

12 October 2025

An older burial ground beneath the sanctuary

When Center Church was built in 1812–1814, the graves beneath its footprint remained in place. The church reports 137 surviving gravestones. The brick floor visible in this modern photograph replaced a concrete floor in 1990 as part of efforts to manage moisture around the stones.

Marty Aligata / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized for display. · Reuse termsRead the source
The third sanctuary on West Haven Green

13 October 2013

The third sanctuary on West Haven Green

First Church began in 1719 after local farmers petitioned for a place to worship closer to home. Their original meeting house was replaced in 1851; after that building burned in 1857, the congregation built the present sanctuary in 1859. This photograph shows the later building, not the sanctuary used when the earliest church records were created.

Paperchaser 29 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized for display. · Reuse termsRead the source
From a congregation’s list to a person’s history

Church records were created for particular communities and purposes. A funeral entry, a death list and a monument transcription may refer to the same person while recording different events. Their dates and terms need to be read in that context. A death among congregation members does not automatically establish burial in a particular cemetery, and a moved inscription may no longer occupy its original location.

Center Church’s 1639 organization and the 1812–1814 construction of its present meeting house illustrate the difference between a congregation and a building. Graves beneath the sanctuary preserve an earlier burial landscape within a later structure. Photographs of the crypt, exterior or inscriptions can help explain that layered history, provided each image’s subject and date remain explicit.

The West Haven register leads identify death and funeral subseries with their own date ranges. They are a route toward original manuscript evidence, not a claim that every page has already been copied. The archive’s searchable text makes scattered references easier to discover, but OCR can misread names and numbers. Returning to the scan is part of the historical method: discovery produces a candidate match, and comparison of original records determines whether it belongs to the person being researched.

Center Church’s printed 1869 death list, beginning at the bottom of page 22

NEW TRANSCRIPTIONS · 1869–1870

Center Church annual death lists

27 dated deaths and an earlier correction, with original page images.

Read a record

WEST HAVEN · LOCATED HOLDINGS

Three death and funeral subseries

First Congregational Church’s catalog identifies these volumes:

  • Volume 8: deaths, 1774–1843
  • Volume 10: funerals, 1863–1916
  • Volume 11: deaths, 1881

Film 6269 · Digital image group 8615152
Originals: Connecticut State Library

Read the catalog and access notes

THE SEARCHABLE CATALOG

Find a person or a source

Search the complete OCR text of nine downloaded historical volumes and one supplemental grave-reference page. Results are pages, not verified individual burials. OCR can misread names, dates and columns; use the original scan to confirm a match.

549 matching pagesPage 17 of 28

New Haven · CH-P004-0125

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 125

…bsented themselves from our services for some time past, we have been during this period a united and prosperous Church, — have had no difficulties to harmo- nize, no grievances to complain of. The vote of sixty-one members ratifying the action of the Standing Committee in…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0126

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 126

…nown that they were not a majority, and might have known it had they used the proper means, and thus have saved themselves this exposure. Tlius the petitioners, members of this Church, were not what they claimed to be, a majority of the brethren, much less of the memb…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0128

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 128

… the year, a meeting of the Church was held to consider the question of a more permanent settlement of Mr. Car- roll in the work of the ministry there. An arrangement was made, purporting to be between the Clnirch and Society as one party, and Mr. Carroll as the ot…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0129

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 129

…he title and authority of " Pastor of the South Church " sub- scribing official papers in that character, being habitually spoken of among the members of tlie Church, and in Church meetings, by that official title, and being announced frequently to the public as Pastor…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0133

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 133

…v respectfully, GEORGE S. MINOR." "We have before us the requests of several other persons who applied for general letters of dismission about the same time with the above. The following is a copy of Deacon Minor's application. "New H.wex, July 22, 1863. " To tlie South…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0134

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 134

…nt of Yale College, (see 4 vol. Theo. p. 320,) where the fact is stated that " Persons are not unfrequently dismissed from particular Churches in good standing and with full recommendation of their Christ- ian character. Tliese persons are certainly not members of any pa…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0135

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 135

…gs of the Committee, including their suppression of the memorial." Only one of the persons alluded to, (Geo. S. Minor,) was present at the annual meeting, and as lie was not recognized by the custom and rule of the Church as a member, of course he could not be allow…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0136

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 136

…ecticut, or with any evangehcal denomination." ^\Tiy did the complainants have no proper evidence that Mr. Carroll was a minister in regular communion with any evangelical denomination 1 Simply because the complain- ants, for reasons l)est known to themselves, never asked him…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0138

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 138

… petitioners. "5. He has by his private and public influence brought certain young persons of the congregation into open sympathy with the existing rebellion." Who these " certain young persons of the congregation " are, as a Church we do not know ; and if there be an…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0139

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 139

…t has been said above on the same topics. "Second. Mr. Carroll is not, in the proper use of language, pastor of the South Congregational Church in New Haven, nor is he ' Acting Pastor,' as that term is defined by the General Association of Con- necticut. Any assumptio…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0142

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 142

…e been uniformly so large, in our history of eleven years, except during a short period under the minis- try of Uev. Dr. Stiles; while the additions to our Church membership have been 43 — a larger number than in any year of the previous nine years. Comparing this acc…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0143

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 143

…RSFALL, Clerk of the Meeting. The above documents were published in the New Haven papers, — the former near the close of 1863, and the latter on the 2d of January, 1864. They were followed by others, which are here subjoined : REJOINDER To THE "Reply of the South Church.…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0144

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 144

…0 ; six or more had been dismissed and imited with other Churches within the same period, leaving the number of male mem- bers at 44, — and they know that 26, including the memo- rialists, sympathized with them. If then, the official returns to the Association were correc…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0145

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 145

…ply the petitioners would state that Rev. Mr. Carroll is settled for an indefinite period, and in order to dismiss him it is required that four months notice be given, and this was their object in requesting the meeting. It was nearly four months before the "annual me…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0147

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 147

… business meetings, and of prayer and exhortation in prayer meetings. The right of perform- ing these actions is granted by the covenant as well as the right to vote, and has never been denied by the Church. We hardly think the Committee would be prepared to fol- low o…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0148

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 148

…e other ; for men of all the late acknowledged parties, and religionists of every persuasion, are found UNITED ON THIS PLATFORM. Neither do I know or believe that this concession to the feelings of our members would give offense to any one, or produce any division amo…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0149

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 149

…IL. 139 It was also stated that he had declared in effect, that were it not for personal considerations, he would go south of Mason and Dixon's line and share the fortune of the rebellion, with which cause he was one at heart. Has Mr. Carroll forgotten the language …

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0150

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 150

…it deem themselves slighted if their production was wholly passed over in silence, permit a member of said Church, not belonging to the Standing Committee, to oifer a few words by way of comment. He will be best under- stood liy quoting brief extracts from the " R(*jo…

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0151

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 151

… responsible for " the finding and action of the Council ;" and they wi.l not be permitted to escape from that responsibility by throwing the whole burden upon the shoulders of men who have as much as they can carry, with all the help the petitioners can give them. …

Membership and death references · OCR text

New Haven · CH-P004-0153

South Congregational Church history and catalogue, 1852–1865 · scan page 153

…ix members sympathize with the peti- tioners who cannot be induced to sign their paper. 4th, In order to make these assumptions available to their purpose, they are obliged further to assume that only male members have a right to vote ; which is contrary to the fact, …

Membership and death references · OCR text

READING THE EVIDENCE

Keep the churches and record types distinct.

Christ’s Church / St. John’s: the supplied table concerns New Haven’s early Catholic congregation. It is distinct from the Episcopal Christ Church parishes in New Haven and West Haven. Memorial transfers to Saint Bernard do not by themselves establish reinterment.

Death, membership and burial: a church death list records a member’s death; a membership catalogue may contain admissions, removals and death annotations. Neither necessarily identifies the grave. Dexter’s inscription volumes describe historical stones, including some moved from the Green. Typographic distinctions and original locations require the scans.

Work still needed: West Haven’s First Congregational register images; Episcopal Christ Church and Trinity burial subseries; other Catholic, Protestant and independent parish registers; later and undigitized volumes. No complete census of every congregation’s surviving records has been established. Sign-in, reading-room access or permission may be required by a custodian.

Using the download: extract the ZIP and open START_HERE.html to search without an account or an internet connection. It includes the supplied PDF, selected historical pages, all acquired OCR text, source notes, JSON data and a searchable SQLite database. Repository links need internet access.

Download the collectionRead selected scans PDFResearch guide