WEB SERVICES
Census List Search
The Census List Search is an online service provided by the Society where one can search the contents of indexed census lists, e.g. by searching for personal or geographical names. The service aims to promote and facilitate the use of census lists in genealogical research. Census lists can also be used as an alternate source to church records that have been destroyed. The development of the Census List Search has been supported by Karjalan Kulttuurirahasto, Waldemar von Frenckells stiftelse and Föreningen Konstsamfundet.
Database
The first version was implemented as a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) i.e. it met the minimum requirements of early users. The development of the Census List Search will continue in a user-oriented manner and now version 1.1 (August 1, 2023) is in use. Feedback and ideas for development can be sent to the Society's online service specialist who is in charge of the maintenance and development of the Census List Search. Contact information for all members of the Society can be found here.
As pilot materials, the Census List Search has published about 18,000 records from seven different municipalities. You can find more detailed information about updating the service and indexing the census lists below.
The Census List Search has the following census lists available to search:
- Enontekiö 1915
- Haapavesi 1900
- Inari 1915
- Kittilä 1915
- Kempele 1915
- Kiiminki 1915
- Kuivaniemi 1915
- Kuusamo 1915
- Lumijoki 1900
- Oulunsalo 1915
- Savitaipale 1900 & 1915
- Sodankylä 1915
- Suodenniemi 1915
Inhabitants of the villages of Kyrö and Palojoensuu in Enontekiö in the 1915 census list.
Seach Instructions
The search function of the Census List Search is case-independent, i.e. it does not matter whether the search term is written with an uppercase or lowercase initial. At the beginning and end of the search term you can use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard character which replaces one or more character. So, for example, searching for Huovi* brings up results for Huovila and Huovinen. The search term *nen on the other hand brings back all the surnames ending in -nen. The wildcard character cannot be used when searching for years.
When searching, one needs to remember that first names, patronyms and last names are entered into the Census List Search in the format they were written in in the original sources. Other information, such as place names, are normalized into a modern spelling.
It is possible to search the Census List using more than one search criterion. All search criteria can be found by clicking on the button more search criteria. The button clear deletes all entered search criteria for a new search.
In the search results, all the information about a single person can be opened by clicking on the desired row. Results can be arranged alphabetically or by year in descending or ascending order. By clicking the link in the search result, you can view the digitized page of the census list in the National Archives' Astia service.
Updating Information
Updating the Census List Search is done by voluntary indexing and anyone can participate. In the first phase, the Society looks for volunteers to index the census lists from 1880 to 1920 of Haapavesi, Lumijoki, Savitapale and Vyborg as well as the 1915 census lists of all Finnish municipalities.