Artykuł prezentuje listy gończe jako nowe, ciekawe i bardzo cenne źródło, które może być wykorzystane do badań genealogicznych. Na przykładzie listów gończych publikowanych w informacyjnej i urzędowej prasie poznańskiej, wydawanej od końca XVIII do drugiej połowy XIX w., zaprezentowano bogactwo informacji w nich zawartych. Badacz przeszłości własnej rodziny lub małej ojczyzny może w listach znaleźć wiadomości m.in. o cechach charakteru poszukiwanego, jego stosunkach rodzinnych, charakterze wykonywanej pracy, sposobie ucieczki z więzienia lub aresztu, odzieży, którą nosił, a – co może być szczególnie cenne – o jego wyglądzie.

An ancestor in conflict with law. Arrest warrants from the late 18th and early 19th century as a source in genealogy investigations

The article demonstrates how arrest warrants can be seen as a new, interesting and valuable source, helpful for genealogy investigations. Arrest warrants published in Poznań press (both newspapers and official bulletins) between the late 18th and mid-19th centuries are used to demonstrate how much valuable information can be found therein. In those warrants, family or local community researchers can find information regarding the personality of the wanted person, their family relations, profession, how they escaped prison or custody, what clothes thy wore, and — what might be particularly valuable — their appearance.

Keywords: genealogy, arrest warrants, Greater Poland in the 18th and 19th centuries

The article demonstrates how arrest warrants can be seen as a new, interesting and valuable source, helpful for genealogy investigations. Arrest warrants published in Poznań press (both newspapers and official bulletins) between the late 18th and mid-19th centuries are used to demonstrate how much valuable information can be found therein. In those warrants, family or local community researchers can find information regarding the personality of the wanted person, their family relations, profession, how they escaped prison or custody, what clothes thy wore, and — what might be particularly valuable — their appearance.