In the past, I posted about finding the Vega Baja municipality census of 1841. This was an important find because Vega Baja does not have church records online, so research halts at 1885 when the Civil Registry began. Though I have been able to identify ancestors born before 1885 and who died after this year, I have not been able to find more about their formative years in Vega Baja given the lack of records. However, taking a deeper look in FamilySearch allowed me to identify other records helpful to my research.
A lot of times, when using the FamilySearch page we go straight into the search feature or catalog area and look for documents there. However, under the “images” we can sometimes find other records which have been added to the online collection, but not fully catalogued under the city we are looking for. Today I want to continue my focus on Vega Baja because for so long I was unable to find anymore information on my ancestors from there besides what was available in the civil records.
By typing in “Vega Baja, Puerto Rico,” into the place name, I was able to locate a bunch of records!
Below you can see the difference of searching for Vega Baja under “Images” versus under the “Catalog” feature. Under the catalog, under the Civil Registry appears! Granted, under the “Images” search some of those documents do include the births, marriages, and deaths from the Civil Record; however, it is important to note that a lot of records including other important records that we can use in their genealogical searches such as the local census records.
By changing the “Life Event” on the right side of the screen, you can see that there are a bunch of census records pre-1885. You can see that there is a range of number of images for each census so it will be important to click and see what the actual record is. For example, the 1873-1874 “municipal census” seems to be contracts between free laborers after the end of slavery on the island in 1872. So while it does have important information regarding residents of Vega Baja, it is not a census in its true sense. It might be worth keeping a separate note of what Image Group Number includes what documents for future research. This also helps to avoid checking the same documents over and over.
Padrón General de Habitantes
Vega Baja, 1858
I decided to check out the Vega Baja 1858 census since I saw that it did have census-like entries and included 199 images. Having had some luck with the 1841 census, I was hoping to find my Calderón, Nazario, Meléndez, or Morán ancestors on this census, particularly in the areas of Pugnado Afuera and Algarrobo where they lived in 1841. Looking that area of Vega Baja and search page-by-page allowed me to identify some person of interest.
Juan Calderón
Born circa 1794-1795
The first person I found was Juan Calderón, 64 years, widower, white, and a propietario (land owner), who was unable to read or write. After him were listed the following individuals (the original image was very light so I had to play with it to make the names a bit more visible).
- Francisco Calderón Nazario, 28 years old, single
- Luis Calderón Nazario, 25 years old, single
- Andrés Calderón Nazario, 20 years old, single
- Regino Calderón Nazario, 12 years old, single
- Tomás Calderón Nazario, 10 years old, single
- Flora Calderón Nazario, 16 years old, single
These are likely all of Juan Calderón’s children. We know this because in 1841 Juan appeared with Francisco and Andrés as his children. This census also helped to confirm that the child I originally thought was named Félix was actually named Luis. Félix was born about 1835 and Luis about 1833 which is in the right age for them to be the same individual. Typically, one could argue these are two different children; however, in Puerto Rican genealogy one must keep a wider than normal range for ages given the lack of education and therefore over/under estimation of ages.
Flora Calderón Nazario, born about 1842 was my fourth great-grandmother. This document gives us a closer range for her age, given that her death record listed as 40 years old in 1904 which was incorrect.
Lastly, we now know that Concepción Nazario (Juan’s wife) likely died sometime between 1841 and 1858 which is super helpful in closing the gap of years needed to be searched for a death record once I, hopefully, gain access to Vega Baja church records. We could argue that she actually died sometime between 1848 and 1858 since the youngest child Tomás was 10 years in 1858.
It is possible that María del Carmen Calderón Nazario, María de la Cruz Calderón Nazario, and María del Rosario either passed or married and moved out into their own homes in between 1841 and 1858. Based on the 1858 census, we have an idea of what likely happened to Carmen and Rosario!
Basilio Morán Colón
Born circa 1828
Another important find was Basilio Morán Colón, 30 years old, married, white, and a jornalero (day laborer), who was unable to read and write. Listed after Basilio were Rosario Calderón Nazario, 25 years old, married, white, and Jesús (2 years old), and Agustín Morán Calderón (menos – likely to mean under one year old). There was also a Pedro Morán Colón, 30 years old married to Carmen Calderón Nazario, 25 years old. These women were likely Juan Calderón’s daughters who appeared in 1841 with him and his wife.
What’s interesting and confusing is that this Basilio was likely my fourth great-grandfather. In some records he appears married to Rosario and in others to Flora. So originally I was confused about this and thought both women were likely one and the same. However, this census record shows that these women were two separate women who were likely sisters. Which then brings forth the question – could Basilio have married Rosario who then died and he had a second relationship with Flora? This would explain why both names appear in relation to Basilio.
It is also possible that Basilio and Pedro were brothers, despite them having the same age. We see that Rosario and Carmen were also listed both as 25 years old though based on the 1841 census there was a six year difference between them. *Enter point again about age discrepancies in Puerto Rican genealogy!*
I was able to find a Pedro Morán and Basilio Morán in the 1841 census but this will require another post because I have more research to do now that I have more information on my Calderón Nazario and Morán family!
I am still searching for my Meléndez family which I haven’t found on a Vega Baja census yet!
Conclusion
This 1858 census, which I had no idea existed online, was able to provide me more information about various individuals in my tree family for whom I had no information given the lack of online church records. Though not groundbreaking, the census was able to provide with some importantes names and dates for my family tree.
Sometimes genealogical finds are just drops of water in a bucket that eventually fills up to answer your genealogical question! Hopefully these census records are just as important for you on your genealogical journey as they were for me! Happy Hunting!
Good read, Luis. Thanks for sharing how you went about finding this information. It inspires me to do more to break through several brick walls.