Registered Emigration from South Bohemia, 1850-1900 The Czech lands were part of the Hapsburg Empire from the 16th century until 1918. Until 1848, the rural Czech peasants were serfs of the nobility. As serfs, they did not have freedom of movement but were largely restricted to the manor or the parish they were part of. If somebody wanted to move to, or marry somebody of another manor or parish, special permission had to be asked. Birth record People who wanted to emigrate had to ask for passports in the new District Offices. When requesting a passport, people had to submit several documents including a copy of the birth record (krestni list), marriage (oddaci list), evidence of residence and occupation (domovsky list), supporting documents, and references. Applicants had to sign that they would waive their residence right to live in the village. If not, the village could be held liable for paying for return costs if emigration was refused. Preliminary results show evidence of 339 requests for passports. This concerned requests for a passport for a single person or passports for entire families; in those 339 requests the emigration of 825 persons was covered. A copy of the birth record was required for the passport application. Often, when receiving a request for a copy, the parish priest would make an entry in the concerned record in the Registers of Birth stating that a copy was provided. Sometimes the remark also mentions that the copy was needed for emigration to America. Many people immigrated also illegally. Applications for boys or young men could be rejected because that person still had to fulfill his military service in the Imperial Army. In the 19-century, obligatory military service could be 10 years in the army with an additional 2-3 years as standing reserve, or longer. We have one application concerning a 6-year old boy that was rejected because "he had not yet fulfilled his military obligations". For many young men, illegal emigration was a way to avoid the military service. The German and American Authorities were not interested in passports, only in some form of proof of identity, and a copy of the birth record was sufficient proof.