Record Atlas
7 eras · 1800–2026 · 6 places

Western Transvaal along the Vaal

Schweizer-Reneke, Wolmaransstad, Christiana, Delareyville, Sannieshof, Itsoseng. Which empire held this ground in which years — and, the part that matters, which archive that means.

Whose archive this ground was

YearsWho held itWhose archive that means
1800–1852 Before registers. no registers survive

Before registers.

1852–1877 South African Republic eGGSA — Genealogical Society of South Africa · FamilySearch

The Sand River Convention of 17 January 1852 recognised Boer independence north of the Vaal River; the Vaal is the southern edge of this ground.

1877–1881 British annexation of the Transvaal NAAIRS — National Archives of South Africa · eGGSA — Genealogical Society of South Africa · FamilySearch

Britain annexed the republic in 1877; the Boers revolted in the First Boer War of 1880-81, and the Pretoria Convention followed.

1881–1902 South African Republic NAAIRS — National Archives of South Africa · eGGSA — Genealogical Society of South Africa · FamilySearch

The London Convention of 1884 restored full independence. Britain occupied the republic during the Second Boer War of 1899-1902.

1902–1910 Transvaal Colony NAAIRS — National Archives of South Africa · eGGSA — Genealogical Society of South Africa · FamilySearch

The Treaty of Vereeniging of 31 May 1902 ended the republic, which became the Transvaal Colony. Civil registration of births and deaths in the Transvaal is listed from 1901 and of marriages from 1870 (approximate dates).

1910–1994 Union and Republic of South Africa - Transvaal Province NAAIRS — National Archives of South Africa · eGGSA — Genealogical Society of South Africa · FamilySearch

The Transvaal became a province of the Union of South Africa in 1910.

1994–2026 North West Province NAAIRS — National Archives of South Africa

The old republic's territory now comprises most of Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West provinces; the Vaal towns here are in North West.

The rings are approximate — deliberately. They exist to shade which filing system a place fell under, not to adjudicate a border. A place near a ring's edge should be checked against both neighbours.

See the whole span, 1800–2026, on the map →

The map takes a range, and a range that crosses one of the rows above is where records get lost: the family never moved, and the archive on the far side of the handover will tell you it holds nothing.

6 places on this ground

33 FamilySearch collections reach this ground

Ranked with the regional ones first — a collection for a province is usually a better lead than a national index, though the national index is often where a name is actually written down. A free account opens the images.

All record regions · The map