Turin, Piedmont, Italy Genealogy (2024)

Guide to Turin Province ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.

Most of your genealogical research for Turin (Torino), Piedmont will be in two main record types: civil registration (registri dello stato civile) and church records (registri ecclesiastici). This article will teach you methods for locating and searching these two record groups.

Turin Province (Wikipedia)

City of Turin[edit | edit source]

The Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the Po River, in the center of modern Piedmont.
Turin, like the rest of Piedmont, was annexed by the French Empire in 1802. The city thus became the seat of the prefecture of Pô department until the fall of Napoleon in 1814, when the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia was restored with Turin as its capital. In the following decades, the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia led the struggle towards the unification of Italy.
In 1861, Turin became the capital of the newly proclaimed united Kingdom of Italy until 1865, when the capital was moved to Florence, and then to Rome after the 1870 conquest of the Papal States.
Turin was not captured by the Allies until the end of Spring Offensive of 1945 when it was already freed by the Italian Partisans, that had begun revolting against the Germans on 25 April 1945.

Turin (Wikipedia)

Agliè, Airasca, Ala di Stura, Albiano d'Ivrea, Alice Superiore, Almese, Alpette, Alpignano, Andezeno, Andrate, Angrogna, Arignano, Avigliana, Azeglio, Bairo, Balangero, Baldissero Canavese, Baldissero Torinese, Balme, Banchette, Barbania, Bardonecchia, Barone Canavese, Beinasco, Bibiana, Bobbio Pellice, Bollengo, Borgaro Torinese, Borgiallo, Borgofranco d'Ivrea, Borgomasino, Borgone Susa, Bosconero, Brandizzo, Bricherasio, Brosso, Brozolo, Bruino, Brusasco, Bruzolo, Buriasco, Burolo, Busano, Bussoleno, Buttigliera Alta, Cafasse, Caluso, Cambiano, Campiglione Fenile, Candia Canavese, Candiolo, Canischio, Cantalupa, Cantoira, Caprie, Caravino, Carema, Carignano, Carmagnola, Casalborgone, Cascinette d'Ivrea, Caselette, Caselle Torinese, Castagneto Po, Castagnole Piemonte, Castellamonte, Castelnuovo Nigra, Castiglione Torinese, Cavagnolo, Cavour, Cercenasco, Ceres, Ceresole Reale, Cesana Torinese, Chialamberto, Chianocco, Chiaverano, Chieri, Chiesanuova, Chiomonte, Chiusa di San Michele, Chivasso, Ciconio, Cintano, Cinzano, Ciriè, Claviere, Coassolo Torinese, Coazze, Collegno, Colleretto Castelnuovo, Colleretto Giacosa, Condove, Corio, Cossano Canavese, Cuceglio, Cumiana, Cuorgnè, Druento, Exilles, Favria, Feletto, Fenestrelle, Fiano, Fiorano Canavese, Foglizzo, Forno Canavese, Frassinetto, Front, Frossasco, Garzigliana, Gassino Torinese, Germagnano, Giaglione, Giaveno, Givoletto, Gravere, Groscavallo, Grosso, Grugliasco, Ingria, Inverso Pinasca, Isolabella, Issiglio, Ivrea, La Cassa, La Loggia, Lanzo Torinese, Lauriano, Leini, Lemie, Lessolo, Levone, Locana, Lombardore, Lombriasco, Loranzè, Lugnacco, Luserna San Giovanni, Lusernetta, Lusigliè, Macello, Maglione, Mappano, Marentino, Massello, Mathi, Mattie, Mazzè, Meana di Susa, Mercenasco, Meugliano, Mezzenile, Mombello di Torino, Mompantero, Monastero di Lanzo, Moncalieri, Moncenisio, Montaldo Torinese, Montalenghe, Montalto Dora, Montanaro, Monteu da Po, Moriondo Torinese, Nichelino, Noasca, Nole, Nomaglio, None, Novalesa, Oglianico, Orbassano, Orio Canavese, Osasco, Osasio, Oulx, Ozegna, Palazzo Canavese, Pancalieri, Parella, Pavarolo, Pavone Canavese, Pecco, Pecetto Torinese, Perosa Argentina, Perosa Canavese, Perrero, Pertusio, Pessinetto, Pianezza, Pinasca, Pinerolo, Pino Torinese, Piobesi Torinese, Piossasco, Piscina, Piverone, Poirino, Pomaretto, Pont-Canavese, Porte, Pragelato, Prali, Pralormo, Pramollo, Prarostino, Prascorsano, Pratiglione, Quagliuzzo, Quassolo, Quincinetto, Reano, Ribordone, Riva presso Chieri, Rivalba, Rivalta di Torino, Rivara, Rivarolo Canavese, Rivarossa, Rivoli, Robassomero, Rocca Canavese, Roletto, Romano Canavese, Ronco Canavese, Rondissone, Rorà, Rosta, Roure, Rubiana, Rueglio, Salassa, Salbertrand, Salerano Canavese, Salza di Pinerolo, Samone, San Benigno Canavese, San Carlo Canavese, San Colombano Belmonte, San Didero, San Francesco al Campo, San Germano Chisone, San Gillio, San Giorgio Canavese, San Giorio di Susa, San Giusto Canavese, San Martino Canavese, San Maurizio Canavese, San Mauro Torinese, San Pietro Val Lemina, San Ponso, San Raffaele Cimena, San Sebastiano da Po, San Secondo di Pinerolo, Sangano, Sant'Ambrogio di Torino, Sant'Antonino di Susa, Santena, Sauze d'Oulx, Sauze di Cesana, Scalenghe, Scarmagno, Sciolze, Sestriere, Settimo Rottaro, Settimo Torinese, Settimo Vittone, Sparone, Strambinello, Strambino, Susa, Tavagnasco, Torino, Torrazza Piemonte, Torre Canavese, Torre Pellice, Trana, Trausella, Traversella, Traves, Trofarello, Usseaux, Usseglio, Vaie, Val della Torre, Valgioie, Vallo Torinese, Valperga, Valprato Soana, Varisella, Vauda Canavese, Venaria Reale, Venaus, Verolengo, Verrua Savoia, Vestignè, Vialfrè, Viù, Vico Canavese, Vidracco, Vigone, Villafranca Piemonte, Villanova Canavese, Villar Dora, Villar Focchiardo, Villar Pellice, Villar Perosa, Villarbasse, Villareggia, Villastellone, Vinovo, Virle Piemonte, Vische, Vistrorio, Volpiano, Volvera.

Civil Registration (registri dello stato civile)[edit | edit source]

1. Antenati (Ancestors Portal)[edit | edit source]

The State Archives hold many private and public sources that are essential to the genealogical research and the history of some families and persons. The main sources are:

• The Civil Registry, together with the attached 1-year and 10-year origin indexes
• Military service and army archives.
• Notary public archives.
• Family and personal archives.
• Nominal sources and sources for emigration.

Antenati is a direct portal to the state archives that have been digitized and indexed. Completion varies and works are in progress, so check back if necessary. A colored flag at the top left of the page indicates degree of completion. Antenati is a direct portal to the state archives that have been digitized and indexed. Completion varies and works are in progress, so check back if necessary A colored flag at the top left of the page indicates degree of completion.

• Find Your Italian Ancestors Online Through Portale degli Antenati Tutorial. Class Handout
• Browse the Archives
• Antenati Search Engines for all of Italy, by browsable registries or indexes (incomplete)
• FAQ

2. Online Digital Records for Civil Registration[edit | edit source]

For some localities, digital copies of civil registration can be searched online:

• 1802-1816 Italy, Torino, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1802-1816 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
• 1866-1899 Italy, Torino, Torino, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1866-1899 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; free, index, incomplete.
• 1802-1813 Italy, Torino, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1802-1813 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; free, browsable images, incomplete. Records will eventually be indexed online.
• 1865-1937 Italy, Torino, Ivrea, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1865-1937 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; free, browsable images, incomplete. Records will eventually be indexed online.
• 1750-1865 Italy, Torino, Torino, Civil Registration (Comune), 1750-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; free, browsable images, incomplete. Records will eventually be indexed online.

"Nati" are births. "Matrimoni" and "allegati" are marriages. "Morti" are deaths. "Indici decennali" is the 10-year index.

3. Microfilm or Digital Copies of Civil Registration Records in the FamilySearch Catalog[edit | edit source]

a. Click on this link to see a list of records for Italy, Turin (Torino) .

b. Click on "Places within Italy, Turin (Torino) " and a list of towns and cities will open.

c. Click on the town or city you wish to search.

d. Click on "Civil Registration" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.

e. Choose the correct event and time period for your ancestor.

f. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. . The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm.

4. Writing for Civil Registration Certificates[edit | edit source]

If the records are not online or microfilmed, civil registration records in Italy can be obtained by writing to the local civil registry. Recent records are covered by privacy laws, so they are not released for microfilm or online. But relatives are allowed to request them for genealogy. Civil officials will generally answer correspondence in Italian. Your request may be forwarded if the records have been sent to the tribunale or the provincia.

Sindaco

Comune di (name of the locality)

(Street address, if known)

(postal code) (city) (Province abbreviation:TO)

Italy

• Find the Italian postal code here.
  

Address for provincial office:

UFFICIO ANAGRAFE E STATO CIVILE

192/194, Via Stradella

10147 Torino (TO)

Italy

After you have determined what office has jurisdiction over the records you need, write a brief request to the proper office. Write your request in Italian whenever possible. For writing your letter in Italian, use the translated questions and phrases in this Italy Letter Writing Guide. Send the following:

• Cashier’s check or international money order (in local currency) for the search fee. See How To Send Return Postage and Money.
• Full name and the sex of the person sought.
• Names of the parents, if known.
• Approximate date and place of the event.
• Your relationship to the person.
• Reason for the request (family history or medical).
• Request for a complete extract of the record

Church Records (registri ecclesiastici)[edit | edit source]

1. Digital Online and Microfilm Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog[edit | edit source]

There are some microfilmed records available. Currently, they are being digitized, and plans are to complete that project by 2020. Check back occasionally to see if your records have become available. In the meantime, some of them might be available at a FamilySearch Center near you. To find a microfilm:

a. Click on this link to see a list of records for Italy, Turin (Torino) .

b. Click on "Places within Italy, Turin (Torino) " and a list of towns and cities will open.

c. Click on the town or city you wish to search.

d. Click on "Church Records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.

e. Choose the correct event and time period for your ancestor. "Battesimi" are infant baptisms, which are used for birth information. "Matrimoni" are marriages. "Morti" are deaths.

f. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. . Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm.

2. Writing to a Catholic Priest for Church Records[edit | edit source]

Baptism, marriage, and death records may be searched by contacting or visiting local parish or diocese archives in Italy.This method is not always reliable. Officials might or might not respond.

Write a brief request in Italian to the proper church using this address as guide replacing the information in parentheses:

Reverendo Parroco

(Street address, if known: consult The Catholic Directory)

(Postal code) (City) (Province abbreviation:TO)

ITALY

• Find the Italian postal code here.

Write your request in Italian whenever possible. For writing your letter in Italian, use the translated questions and phrases in this Italy Letter Writing Guide. When requesting information, send the following:

• Cashier’s check or international money order (in local currency) for the search fee. See How To Send Return Postage and Money.
• Full name and the sex of the person sought.
• Names of the parents, if known.
• Approximate date and place of the event.
• Your relationship to the person.
• Reason for the request (family history or medical).
• Request for a complete extract of the record

Civil Registration (registri dello stato civile)[edit | edit source]

• Civil registration records (registri dello stato civile) are government records of births, marriages, and deaths.

• Dates: In southern Italy, registering births, marriages, and deaths began in 1809 (1820 in Sicily). In central and northern Italy, civil registration began in 1866 (1871 in Veneto). After this date, virtually all individuals who lived in Italy were recorded.

• Contents: For detailed descriptions of the information you might find in each record, see Information recorded in civil registers.
  

• Language: The records were almost always kept in Italian, except for records kept during the rule of foreign powers such as France and Austria. In the northern regions, many records are in French and German. Some church records were transcribed into civil registration records in Latin.

• Accessing the records: Civil registration records were and are kept at the local registrar’s office (anagrafe) in each town or city. A copy of each record is sent to the tribunale (district court).
  

• Determining the locality: You must determine the town where your ancestor lived before you can find the records. Your ancestor may have lived in a village that belonged to a nearby larger town. Large cities may have many civil registration districts. You may need to use maps, gazetteers, and other geographic references to identify the place where your ancestor lived and the civil registration office that served that place. See Italy Maps and Italy Gazetteers for information on how to find civil registration offices.
  

• State of the Family (Stato di famiglia): A civil record unique to Italy is the stato di famiglia, or state of the family certificate. The comune keeps a record of each family and updates each change, including births, marriages, deaths, and emigration. All individuals in a household are included. Some households include more than one family. Historical states of the family (stato di famiglia storico) are kept at the provincial archive (ufficio dello stato civile). These records document past generations of families. Not all areas have kept this record, but where they exist, they are a valuable research tool.

• To learn more about Italian Civil Registration, read Italy Civil Registration.

Church Records (registri ecclesiastici)[edit | edit source]

• Church records (registri ecclesiastici) are vital records kept by priests and are often called parish registers or church books. They include records of christenings (baptisms), marriages, and deaths (burials). In addition, church records may include confirmations, first communions, and church census records. The Roman Catholic Church is traditionally recognized as the state church because most Italians are Roman Catholic. Nearly every person who lived in Italy was recorded in a church record during the last 200 to 300 years.
  

• Church records are crucial for research before the civil government started keeping vital records, which began about 1809 to 1820, and in some provinces, 1866 or 1871. After that, church records continued to be kept but often contain less information. It can be helpful to search both types of records, particularly if your ancestors' information seems to be missing from one or the other. Of course, in some cases you will find only church records online for a locality, which are therefore more accessible than writing for civil registration. However, they usually contain fewer details.

• To learn more about church records, see Italy Church Records.

Reading the Records[edit | edit source]

• You do not have to be fluent in Italian to read your documents. Genealogical records usually contain a limited vocabulary. Use this Italian Genealogical Word List to translate the important points in the document. If you find that the records are written in German, French, or Latin, click on that language link in this sentence.

• Online resources are available to help you learn to read these records:

• Italian Script Tutorial
• Italian Birth Document Translation
• Italian Marriage Document Translations
• Italian Civil Death Document Translation

OtherRecords[edit | edit source]

• 1790-1886 Italy, Torino, Torino, Military Conscriptions (Comune), 1790-1886 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; free, browsable images, incomplete.