Catholic records are a key part of researching Connecticut families who arrived from Quebec, Ireland, Italy, Poland and more. For some families, Church records will be the most detailed records of their time in the US, as they may not have trusted civil government, did not own land, and would have limited assets to leave as probate. However, Connecticut’s Catholic records are not centrally held: to access the records, you need to know the parish.
By 1910, most Catholic families were complying with vital records requirements, even if they were still married in the Catholic Church. These records will list the name of the priest – and can help identify the correct parish. (So will the ancestor’s baptismal certificate you have floating in your family records.) All you need is a reference called The Catholic Directory.
Issued in various forms by various publishers over the years, the different editions of the Catholic Directory have something in common: they tell which clergy were assigned to which churches that year. While older versions listed only the priest, modern versions include all staff. For the late 19th and early 20th century editions, check out Google Books.
Connecticut Roots by Charter Oak Genealogy 