The First Vital Records

During the first two years of the colony - 1889 and 1890 - there were no vital records recorded in Moises Ville. We don't know who died, nor who was born or married. There are no records about the important events, as the offical inauguration of the colony and the decision about its name. These facts were told many years later by surviving colonists.

Starting from 1891 Moises Ville began to keep a registration of births, marriages and deceased. The responsiblity was of one of the colonists, Mr. Pinjas Glasberg, who wrote the vital records in Yiddish in an old accounting book brought from Russia. Glasberg carried out that activity until 1899, when the office of Moises Ville's Civil Registration was open. Glasberg’s registrations were recognized as official by the government of the province. According to one of our historians, we found this curious fact that "an official copy in Spanish was made from the original written in Yiddish on a book with printed titles in Russian" (Noe Cociovich).

We have a copy of that book, we need support to translate it.

Pinjas Glasberg

1829-1904

Aaron Goldman Museum collection

The Creation of Moises Ville's Registry Office

A search in the Historical File of Santa Fe Province shows the first activity in Moises Ville to pursue the opening of a Register Office:

County File

Historical File- Consult for TOWN: MOISES VILLE

IDENTIFICATION OF THE VOLUME	IDENTIFICACION OF THE FILE
2 - MINISTRY OF COUNTRY PROPERTY	Expd: 062 0 Extr: 0000 Sec: 0001
2 - SECTION JUSTICE	Begun year:
BOOK: 2	Type: EXPEDIENTES VS
From: 1899 Up to 1899
TEXT:
MOISES VILLE. REPRESENTATIVES. REQUEST THE INSTALLATION OF A REGISTER OFFICE.

IDENTIFICATION OF THE VOLUME	IDENTIFICACION OF THE FILE
2 - MINISTRY OF COUNTRY PROPERTY	Expd: 031 0 Extr: 0000 Sec: 0001
2 - SECTION JUSTICE	Begun Year:
BOOK: 7	Type: EXPEDIENTES VS
From: 1899 Up to 1899
TEXT:
IN CHARGE OF THE REG. CIVIL. MOISES VILLE. DPTO. SAN CRISTOBAL. PRESENTS AS BONDSMAN TO MIGUEL COHAN.

The Moises Ville's Register Office was opened July 1899, after the request by a group of neighbors headed by Mr. Abraham Gutman, first mayor, and Miguel Cohen, administrator of the Jewish Colonization Association (J.C.A.).

The records in the Register

The first one in charge of the office was Mr. Valentín Gallegos, who had some problems at the beginning of his administration in correctly spelling some of the family names whose sound he had never heard. As time went on, he learned to register them correctly. On September 1900, Mr. Enrique F. Lovera took charge of the office, he had even more problems than his predecessor with the names and family names and it took him much longer to overcome this problem...

On July 1903 he was replaced by Mr. B. Romulo Fonda who was seemed to have been instructed from the beginnings and didn't have problems with the “strange names”. Starting in 1909 several clerks followed one to another, such as Teófilo Obregón, Bernardo Doyharzábal, Wenceslao Trigo, and Hemisferio Frutos. In June 1912 Mr. León Baruch took charge of the Register Office and ran it for many years, with some intermediate periods when he was replaced by B. Doyharzabal and Moises B. Kunin.

The first registered birth was on July 11 1899. The baby was Naum Milstein, son of Moises Milstein, Russian, merchant, 24 years old, and of Holta Gras, Russian age 23. The grandparents: Naum Milstein and Sima Waisman, Usher Gras and Zuctel Feldman. Witness: Abraham Gutman, Russian, 47, and Juan Fontana, Swiss, 31.

The first registered death was on the same date, July 11 1899. It was the boy Samuel Rosen, 7 years old, son of Mr. Jacobo Rosen, 41, and of Libe Fingerman, 38. Causes of the death: dragged by a horse.

The first marriage, recorded on July 19 1899, was that of Mr. Marcos A. Bergel, born in Alcazar El Kibir, Morocco, age 26, merchant resident of Santa Fe, son of Abraham Bergel and Mercedes Levy; and of Ms. María Gutman, Russian born in Pleschenitsi, Minsk, 21, occupation “characteristic of her gender", daughter of Abraham Gutman and Esther Lifchitz.

As it can be seen, the records of the Civil Register contain very important genealogical information. In the recording of births - parents' and grandparents’ names of a recently born child, birthplaces, age and the parents' profession. In the case of marriages – the names of the couple, their ages and of their parents, professions and birthplaces. Sometimes in deaths, cause of death especially in the case of young people.

The first marriage record (manuscript in bold):

MODEL B

Record number one.

In Moises Ville,--- San Cristobal department, Santa Fe province, on date nineteen--- July of the year thousand eight hundred ninety nine----. In front of me Valentín Gallegos, in charge of the Register Office, there appeared Mr. Marcos A. Bergel----of twenty six----- years old, Moroccan ------ nationality, born in Alcazar El Kibir (Morocco)--------living in Santa Fe------of occupation merchant--son of Mr. Abraham Bergel----- age forty five------years old, nationality Moroccan ----- living in Alcazar El Kibir ----- and of occupation merchant------and of Mrs. Mercedes Levy----- of thirty eight----- years old, nationality Moroccan ----living in Alcazar El Kibir ------and occupation characteristic of her gender------and Mrs. María Gutman----- of twenty-one-------years old, nationality Russian ----born in Pleschenitz Gub, Minsk (Russia)----- living in Moises Ville------and occupation characteristic of her gender----- daughter of Mr. Abraham Gutman-----of nationality Russian ------ occupation farmer----- and living in this colony----and of Mrs. Esther Lifschitz----------- of nationality Russian ------ occupation characteristic of her gender--------and living in this colony--------------------------------.

Both of them that appeared manifested that it was their will to marry, to be taken for husband and woman and that there was no impediment for the celebration of their wedlock. The minor’s father who was present, said that he gave freely and spontaneously his consent for his daughter's marriage signing this record in test of it----------------------------------.

The witness Mr. Salomón Alexenicer------of forty seven----years old, of nationality Russian --------and Mr. Boris Kunin------of thirty six----years old, of Russian nationality----both of this neighborhood and able for this act, they declared about the identity of the future married, and that for their knowledge that they had of them they believed them able to get married.

In this stage and being that no opposition has been deduced, that accusation has not been made and that in opinion of the public official that subscribes, the ability of the contracting parties has been proven to marry, previous reading of the Articles 50, 51 and 53 of the National Law of Marriage I interrogated Mr. Marcos A. Bergel------if he wanted as a wife and woman María Gutman----- and if he was granted as husband and having answered that affirmatively, I asked Miss María Gutman----- if she wanted as a husband Mr. Marcos A. Bergel----- and if she was granted as his wife and woman, and having also answered that affirmatively, I the undersigned, in charge of the Register Office, on behalf of the Law and in exercise of the Ministry that allows me, I declare that Mr. Marcos A. Bergel--- and Mrs. María Gutman----they are united in legitimate marriage. Finishing the act and once read the present record to the interested ones they manifested their conformity and they signed it with the witness that I certify.

The following signatures: Marcos A. Bergel, A. Gutman, María Gutman, S. Alexinicer, Boris Kunin, Valentín Gallegos.

The File of the Civil Registration

There are two offices of the File of the Civil Registration of Santa Fe province that contain Moises Ville's registrations: one in the provincial capital, Santa Fe, and the other one in the main office of the Department (county), at San Cristobal. The access to the file is restricted and only descendants of one registered can request copies

Copyright © 2008 Mario N. Jeifetz.