Baptismal Registers for Brown and Black People were created by priests or scribes in order to record the event of baptism from free and enslaved people of African, Asian, or Indigenous descent. They are primarily written in Castillian Spanish with occasional insertions of Latin phrases or words. These records contain information on godparentage, social relationships, free or enslaved status, parentage, and, often, African ethnic origins. These documents were generated to provide legal proof of membership in the Church, and often were used to prove social class contingent on legitmate birth.
These books have been in the Church of Espiritu Santo since their creation. They fall under the jurisdiction of the Archibihopric of Havana. These books are not arranged in any systematic manner. Since this is still an active archive, those volumes most often consulted are generally kept in the front of the large wooden cabinet. They are generally kept under lock.
