NEPGS Reaches Milestone in Catholic Records Project

The Northeast Pennsylvania Genealogical Society (NEPGS) has reached a milestone when it digitized records from the 200th church in its exciting Diocese of Scranton church project. They have put together a list that shows which churches have completed records in the project.

The Northeast Pennsylvania Genealogical Society has many available resources which can aid you in your genealogical quest. The resources include books, newspapers, magazines, manuscripts, city records, church records, cemetery records, and family histories. They also have a wide range of material on various topics related to genealogy and local history.

Tom Mooney has an interesting article about the Diocese of Scranton project. Here are some facts from the article:

NEPGS has reached the 200-church mark of its project to scan all church records going back to the earliest days of the individual churches. It is no longer necessary for a researcher to visit or contact individual churches for pre-1948 information.

Genealogists can visit the NEPGS research library in Hanover Township and view the comprehensive list of churches and the records on site. The list includes both active and inactive churches. (In addition, there is also a list of completed churches that is viewable online.)

The NEPGS is protecting privacy by not putting the records online. (The list of churches does not include access to actual records.) NEPGS is also blocking the viewing of records of the past 70 years (currently since 1948). All of the viewing must be done at the research library. Researchers will still need to contact individual churches in order to gain access to post-1948 records.

NEPGS scans each individual church record. Each church gets its original records back. Each church also gets a copy of the computer (digital) version of all of its records.

Members of NEPGS will have free access to the church records and other materials at the society’s headquarters, in the caretaker building on the grounds of the Hanover Green Cemetery in Hanover Township. Non-members are charged $10 a day.

It is the goal of NEPGS, and the Diocese of Scranton, to have the Diocese of Scranton church project completed by 2018. That year will be the 150th anniversary of the Diocese of Scranton. The project began in May of 2016, and reached a milestone in January of 2017 with 100 parishes completed.

Related Articles at FamilyTree.com:

* MyHeritage Added 33 Million Finland Church Records

* NEHGS is Working to Create a Database of Catholic Records

* Catholic Archives Excellent Resources for Genealogists

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