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Home | Archives & Records | Record Holdings | Sacramental Record Guidelines Email, Print, Bookmark and Share
 

Sacramental Record Guidelines

Requesting Sacramental Records

Records are released with proper identification to the following:
  • Individuals who received the sacrament
  • Requesting church institutions
  • Parents of minor children in question
  • Genealogists searching for records dated 90 years prior to January 1 of the current year

Archives Sacramental Records Inventory

View a summary list of the sacramental registers of Catholic parishes, hospitals and schools of Western Washington now in the holdings of the Archives of the Archdiocese of Seattle. If the location and date you are searching for is not listed in this inventory, please see the next section Requesting Your Own (or Your Child's) Records.

Requesting Your Own (or Your Child's) Records

  • If you are requesting a sacramental record for yourself or your child (under the age of 18), please contact the parish where the sacrament was celebrated using our Parish Finder.
  • If you have already contacted the parish and they have forwarded you to the Archdiocesan Archives, please download, complete, and return the Records Request Form together with a photocopy of a valid form of photo ID.
  • If the sacrament was received in Central or Eastern Washington, refer to the contact information on the Diocese of Yakima or the Diocese of Spokane websites.
  • If the sacrament was received on a military base or in a military chapel, please contact the Archdiocese for the Military Services.
  • If you are unsure where/when you celebrated a sacrament, please call 206-382-4352 or email archives@seattlearch.org for assistance.

Genealogical Requests

Submit the online Sacramental Records Request Form.

Keep in mind that only records created 90 years prior to January 1 of the current year are available for genealogical and other research, provided the subjects of the inquiry are deceased.

See our Sacramental Records Policy for more information.

Sacramental data is given through certificates only. Due to privacy and preservation issues, we do not allow direct access to sacramental records or photocopying specific pages from the registers.
 
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