The notarial deeds database processes series of deeds from private and state notaries in Budapest, extending from the establishment of the institution of notary (from 1875) till 1956. This is the largest, almost completely intact, and at the same time – because of the political and economic weight of the capital – the most important ensemble of notarial documents. At that time, the most varied civil law transactions could be recorded in deeds: these included, most importantly, sale and purchase, gift giving, cession, inheritance, marriage contract, adoption, testamentary arrangements, etc. The recording of the data from 1875 to 1914 will soon be finished, moreover, in the case of some notaries the process is in a stage covering the post-1945 period. Most of the database has digitized materials attached, which are freely accessible online to the general public. Use of the notarial institution had no territorial jurisdiction, therefore, many (in 10-15% of the cases) rural or foreign clients asked for the services of notaries in the capital.

The details of the parties making the transactions are featured in the records, as well as those of associated persons (lawyers). Since regular scrapping of these documents have been implemented only on the parts preceding World War I (concerning signature-verification protocols) and document decay has rarely happened, and because of the fact that certain documents and protocols were almost always recorded the customer’s status (occupation) and place of residence, this personal database is extremely rich. In many cases, we can identify and track whole series of legal transactions of some families and people. 430,000 documents can be found in the database which represents roughly one million customers.

The whole database with digitized pictures can be accessed through the Hungarian Cultural Heritage Portal

The cases that are not searchable here can be consulted on the basis of their reference code (eg. HU BFL – VII.221 – 1899 – 0228) in the archival research room. It is worth highlighting the fast pace of the growth affecting both the data and the images, therefore, it would be advisable to return to these websites regularly. About the archival materials affected by the construction of the database and the digitization process you can find detailed information in this table: