Were birth records kept in the early 1800's? I'm looking for a George Schwey born abt 1807 who married a Rose in abt 1835, had several children born 1835-1850 before moving to USA in 1852-53

Yes and they are wonderful. Marriage records give the names of both parents and where they are from as well as occupations. The same with the birth records. They are on microfilm through the LDS Library. Now there are several regions in the Alsace area Haut Rhine and Bas Rhine. I have indexs from Obertenzen Haut Rhine from early 1800s.
Hope this helps. I certainly hit the jackpot when I finally ordered the right film.
Best Wishes In The New Year!

Hello,
It has been a while since you put a post on Ancestry.com. I have been trying to locate any family still alive in Alsace region. My family name is Duchene and Manville was my grandmother's maiden name. Although my father said he was born in Marseilles France 10-29-1909, we could find no record. He said he grew up in Alsace Lorraine region. I am trying to find out if there is any record of Louise Manville marrying Louis Duchene...maybe from 1890 to 1909? Can you direct me in some way in getting this information?

Thank you
Denise Duchene