Conception and the stage of digitization

The aim of digitization is on the first place the protection of archivalia against the possible damage or destruction caused by the extensive manipulation and in the same time the easy access to the archival funds. That is why its focus concentrates on the archivalia widely searched by the researchers or those, by which such interest is assumed.

Since 2007 in the State Regional Archives Litomerice runs with the cooperation with Familysearch International digitization of the following material:

• Vital records
• Land registers (in the wide sense, as defined during the wholestate record in the 1960s. See ČECHOVÁ, G. - HLADÍK, Č. – HOLL, I. - RADIMSKÝ, J. - Volf, M, Soupis starých pozemkových knih, AČ 11, 1961, s. 6 – 16.)
• Subject registers
• Urbaria
• Census operates
• People evidence up to 1918, or 1945 (1948) (evidence of people with the stable or temporary residence including foreighners, books of domicile, cemetary books and so on).

The amount of archivalia chosen on particular departments to digitization differs with regard to the amount of the preserved material. In general we can say, that the less material was preserved, the sooner it shall be prepared to digitization, digitized and published. Important role however plays the physical condition of the archivalia, that may require an intervention of the professional restorer, which makes the whole process much slower.

With regard to these circumstances we are not able to give any closer information about the time of publishing and we ask the researchers to respect this fact. The recieved digitized materials will be published continualy as soon as possible.

Furter the Archive intends to digitize also those archivalia, that can not be presented to the researchers due to technical or safety reasons. These are above all the oldest and most precious charts and manuscripts.

Characteristics of the database

ARCHIVAL FUNDS

Database shall give You the overview of the basic evidence of archivalia.
(The archival fund is a collection of archivalia, that came into existence by choise out of documents, that were created by one physical or artificial person, organizational unit of state or the territorial authority.)

ARCHIVAL AIDS

Database shall give You the basic overview of the archival evidence, with the possibility of browsing through the contents.
(The archival aid is cerated during the processing of the fund and serves for orientation in the fund as for contents and time scale. It is created for the researchers in both physical and digital form. Archival aids are – inventories, cathalogues and manipulative lists.)

INVENTORY ENTRIES

The database gives You the opportunity to brows through all the electronic versions of the archival aids.

PHOTOARCHIVE

Database serves for publishing of the records from the photography collections.

Publishing of the textual records (photography description) or their scans abides by the rules for personal data protection.

VITAL RECORDS

Database serves for a presentation of the vital records.

Continual digitization of the fund "Collection of Northbohemian region vital records", which is deposited in the State Regional Archives Litomerice runs since November 2007, in cooperation with Family Search International.

State Regional Archives Litomerice collects the vital records from the corresponding municipalities every other year, when after their processing starts the digitization. Than is the new addition published on the web pages of our archives. Because of the limited personal capacities of the office, it is not in our powers to set a precise date of publication.

Because of the possibility to study on-line, we want to point out, that in accordance with § 34 ARTICLE 3 ACT 499/2004 COLL. SINCE THE 1ST JANUARY 2015 THE ORIGINALS OF THESE VITAL RECORDS ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE ATTENDACE RESEARCH IN THE STUDY ROOM.

Also we would like to thank to all the users for their help with the revision of the published vital records and information they send us in this matter.

Attachments

• Alphabetical list of localities, Czech-German
• Alphabetical list of localities, German-Czech
• Alphabetic list of all the originators with more data
• Alphabetic list of catholic originators with more data
• Alphabetic list of non-catholic originators with more data
• Alphabetic list of secular originators with more data
• Alphabetic list of the originators signatures
• Introduction of the inventory to the fund „Collection of vital records in the Nortbohemian Region

MAPS AND PLANS

Database serves to publishing of maps and plans.

Within the database the national cultural herritage was published

• Klaudians Map of Bohemia

CHARTERS

Database serves to publishing of charters.

Within the database the national cultural herritage was published

• The so called Founding charter of the Litomerice Chapter

CHRONICLES

Database serves to publishing of chronicles.

The State Regional Archives Litomerice started on its own with digitization of the following types of chronicles arisen before 1945.

• Church
• Municipak
• Enterprise and firm
• Private
• Societies and interest organization
• School
• Other

ADRESS BOOKS

Database serves to publishing of address books.

With regard to the copyright only the addresses were digitized, not the literary and caledar parts of the books. These parts are not to be found in the database. Closer information about what was and was not digitized can be found in the notes by each entry.

The Archive has no other address books to be digitized. The database is complete and will not be widened.

CENSUS

Database serves to publishing of the census operates.

In 2011-2012 the State Regional Archives Litomerice in cooperation with Familysearch International digitized census operates of 1921. Digitalized archivalia are with regard to the valid legislation presented in the study rooms of the State Regional Archives Litomerice.

Counts before 1921 are preserved only sporadically. Its digitization started in the spring 2016. Publishing of the operates older than one hundred years is gradual.

Counts after 1921 are not deposited in the State Regional Archives.

LAND REGISTERS, URBARIA AND SUBJECT REGISTERS

The database serves to publish the land registers, urbaria and subject registers.

The digitization of such type of material runs since the autumn of 2014 in cooperation with the Familysearch International. Within the database we plan to publish the following types of archivalia:p>

• Land registers
• Urbaria
• Subject registers

Originals of the digitized land registers, urbaria and subject registers are deposited in the State Regional Archives Litomerice and on its Decin branch in the archival funds of the mannors, family archives and several collections and also in the State District Archives of the Usti and Liberec Regions and in the archival funds of the municipalities. These are the office books written before 1850 with some overlaps untill the 1880s.

Considering the amount of the digitized material, it was not possible to write down all the particular localities mentioned . The thorough list is chiefly stated by the land (grounds) registers. In other cases of the so called documentation books (books of deeds, testaments, wedding contracts etc.) and in the dominical-land books only the name of the mannor is given.

REGISTERS

Database serves to publishing of the inhabitants registers, that were primarily made not for the law protection, but simply had the character of the summary.

Since the spring 2016 the State Regional Archives Litomerice cooperates with Familysearch International on the digitization of such summaries deposited in the particular State District Archives. Thanks to this digitization, if preserved, following types of materials older than 1918, or 1945 (1948) are photograhed::

• Applications and cancelations to the police
• Applications and cancelations others
• Option contracts
• Peoples registers (Manschaftsbücher, conscriptions, lists of the burghers, inhabitants registers)
• Evidence of the domestic law (lists of the issued domestic certificates, registers of the domestic members including the foreigners)
• Cemetary registers (cemetary books and card indexes)
• Cremation books

BUSINESS AND TRADE REGISTERS

The database serves to publish the bussiness and trade registers kept in record by the regional courts and by district offices or landrats. The originals of the bussiness and trade registers are kept on the particular branches of the State Regional Archives Litomerice in relevant archival funds. Those are the office books written before 1948.

Digitization of such type of material goes by our own efforts. Within the database, we intend to publish the following types of archivalia:

• Business registers
• Trade registers

Localities mentioned in the books were up till now filled only in some of the volumes. Therefore it is not possible to rely on the button „Choose place“ in the file „Specific choise“, when searching for the particular books.

MANUSCRIPTS

The Database serves to publish the manuscripts.

Digitization of such type of material goes by our own efforts.

Within the database two archival cultural treasures were published:

• Die Leitmeritz-Wittingauer Bibel, Band 1
• Die Leitmeritz-Wittingauer Bibel, Band 2

Explanation of the terms

What is the ARCHIVAL FUND?

The archival fund is a collection of archivalia, that came into existence by choise out of documents, that were created by one physical or artificial person, organizational unit of state or the territorial authority.

What is the ARCHIVALIA?

By the word Archivalia we mean such document, that was chosen because of its time of origin, subject matter, origin, external features and lasting value given by the political, economical, legal, historical, cultural, science or informational importance in the public interest to the lasting preservation and was taken to registers of archivalia; by archivalia we also mean seals, stamps or other physical subjects connected with the archival fund or archival collection into which these were chosen because of their lasting value given by the political, economical, legal, historical, cultural, science or informational importance.

What are the accessible archivalia?

Archivalia accesible to study, if possible due to their physical condition and stage of processing. As proccessed are seen those archivalia provided by at least basic inventory list. Higher degree of processing is the inventorying. As inventorized are concerned archivalia provided by partial inventory, inventory, compound and group inventory (type of archival aid made since 1998), cathalogue, register, topic cathalogue, list of documents and topic register.

What are the non-accessible archivalia?

Archival funds and collections to which no kind of archival aid was made are seen as unprocessed and in general non-accessible. The Archive in which these are deposited decides, if there is some chance to make them accessible for study.

What is the ARCHIVAL AID?

The archival aid is made trhough the processing of the fund and serves for evidence and orientation in the subject matter of the documents and in their time scale. It is made in both physical and electronic version. The basic types of the archival aids in Vademecum are:

Temporary inventory register:

• basic list of all the register units of the archvial collection or of its parts, which was made for general overview of the archival material and orienation in it.

Inventory

• basic list of all the inventory units in the closed archival collection or fund made for general overview of the archival material and orienation in it, its placing, time scale and the amount of archivalia. It always contains the prologue with information about the development of the funds originator, development and history of the archivla fund or collection and about the principles of its processing and also a brief note about the subject matter.

Cathalogue

• the archival aid to a fund, collection or its parts, that gives very specifc information about the subject matter and form of the archivalia.

Register

• alphabetical list of names (personal, geographical or title) and item indicator serving to precise orientation in the contents of the archival fund, collection or its parts.

Who is the ORIGINATOR?

The originator is a physical or artificial person organizational unit of state or the territorial authority out of which doing the particular document (archivalia) emerged.

Frequently asked questions

Where shall I seek help, or send notes to the archival portal Vademecum?

If You are not sure whom to write, let us know to vademecum@soalitomerice.cz

Where shall I seek clue to work with the archival portal Vademecum?

The clue is under the icon with question mark in the upper part of the screen.

Can I order some material to study room through the archival portal Vademecum?

Yes. Material into study rooms of the particular departments may be ordered through the function „basket“. But You can do so only with material, which was not published in the digital form on the archival portal Vademecum.

How do I get to know into which district belongs the locality I need?

In case You are not sure, please use the Lexicon of North-Bohemian localities (Lexikon obcí severních a severozápadních Čech) placed on our web pages. In case You will not find the locality (it can happen with the city district, secluded places or localities out of the lexicon range) use e.g. Description of the Bohemian Kingdom of 1848 by Palacký (Palackého Popis Království českého z roku 1848).

Is there any overview of scanned and published archivalia?

We were thinking about this possibility, but it turned out, that making such a register and its constant updating would be too time consuming.

Why can I not find the census operates of 1921 or chronicles and registers of people after 1918 online, when these were there not long time ago?

In accordance with the „General Data Protection Regulation“ of the European Parliament and EU Council 2016/679 of 27th April 2016 the State Regional Archives Litomerice had to draw off from its portal Vademecum digitized version of the following agenda:

The above mentioned digitized materials will be since now available only in the study rooms of the State Regional Archives Litomerice. To study please contact the study room service in advance and make an appointment to make an agreement on conditions under which these documents can be studied.

In the scanned archivalia, there is a page, or more pages missing. What should I do?

Send us permalink to the particular archivalia, give us page, or pages, that are missing and if possible, than also number of the particular scans, we will rectify the mistake as soon as possible.

How long will it take to rectify the mistake?

The time depends on many factors and it may last even a few weeks. Please, be patient.

If I am not able to read the document, may I ask somebody from the archive to help me?

It is not a task of the archivists to give any such service as reading or translating the archivalia, seeking information in it and so on. In such case we recomend to look for a help of some professional genealogist.