OGRE REGISTRY OFFICE THROUGH THE AGES
The Ogre Civil Registry Office is now housed in the new Ogre Central Library building, gaining a new lease on life with its wide, continuous window overlooking a grove of pines and spruces, as well as a stylized infinity symbol. However, before these changes, the civil registry office had been located elsewhere in the city […]
The Ogre Civil Registry Office is now housed in the new Ogre Central Library building, gaining a new lease on life with its wide, continuous window overlooking a grove of pines and spruces, as well as a stylized infinity symbol. However, before these changes, the civil registry office had been located elsewhere in the city and had experienced different eras and wedding customs.
The year 2021 is significant not only for the new and beautiful home of the Ogre Civil Registry Office but also because the Latvian civil registry system celebrates its centenary.
Civil registry offices in Latvia began operating on February 18, 1921, when Latvian President Jānis Čakste promulgated the law “On the Registration of Civil Status Acts”. Laws from other European countries were taken as a model for the creation of the regulatory framework of the Latvian civil registry system, especially the provisions of the Swiss Civil Code of 1907 on the registration of civil status acts, which stipulated that the state was responsible for this area. Until then, the registration of births, deaths, and marriages was within the competence of the church, not the state.
The Ogre town civil registry office was founded on June 2, 1922, and was located in the Ogre town council building at Rīgas Street 13 (the building has not been preserved). In the newspaper “Valdības Vēstnesis” (Government Gazette), the town council “announces that the department will accept notifications and perform marriages on Wednesdays from 12 PM to 3 PM. With the opening of the civil registry office, the registration of those getting married, born, and deceased for the town of Ogre is mandatory.” From May 5, 1929, the Ogre city council and the civil registry office were located at Brīvības Street 11.
After World War II, a new order was introduced in Latvia. The registration of natural population movement in cities was carried out by civil registry offices, and in rural areas by the Councils of Workers’ Deputies of villages and hamlets. Birth registration was mandatory for all citizens. Relatives of a deceased citizen were obliged to report the death within three days and hand over the deceased person’s passport and military service documents to the civil registry employees. By the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of July 8, 1944, it was stipulated that only a registered marriage certified the rights and duties of spouses. By the decision No. 312 of the Council of Ministers of the Latvian SSR of June 15, 1965, the Civil Status Acts Registration Office of the Latvian SSR was established. In everyday life, the abbreviation ZAGS was commonly used — an abbreviation formed from Russian (Organy zapisi aktov grazhdanskogo sostoyaniya, meaning ‘Bodies for the registration of civil status acts’).
After World War II, the Ogre registry office was initially located in a building at Krasta Street 9, but later moved to a three-room apartment on the second floor of Brīvības Street 21, occupying two rooms, while a notary worked in the third. The head of the registry office was Ilze Miķelsone. In the cramped premises, sometimes the bride and groom signed documents without even taking off their outerwear. 20. century 60. In those years, in cooperation with Vilma Millere, the head of the Ogre Culture House, the solemn ceremony took place in the culture house if there were 60 or more invited guests.
Long-time Director of the Civil Registry Department, Ārija Iklāva, recalls: “Raimonds and I arrived on September 3, 1955, at the Riga City Civil Status Acts Registration Department at Kirova Street 63 (now Elizabetes Street), where all Riga residents’ marriages were registered in a small room on the second floor. I wore a light blue georgette dress. At that time, white dresses and bridal veils were considered remnants of capitalism and inappropriate for Soviet youth. The law of that time also did not require wedding witnesses.
Later, it was determined that the departments’ duties included not only registering births, marriages, and deaths but also conducting solemn marriage registrations. During the Soviet era, a marriage registered in a church had no legal force, so it was crucial that marriage registration at the civil registry office was not only legal but also solemn. The prestige of the heads of civil status acts registration offices was enhanced by the official badge I proposed, which was introduced by a government decision in 1968 and worn by the head when solemnly registering a marriage. Together with designers from the Riga Fashion House, we developed recommendations and later also costume models for the solemn registration attire of department heads. To improve the speech culture and posture of civil registry employees, we invited well-known theater directors or actors who individually taught public speaking to each head.”
Ārija Iklāva recounts that during the Soviet era, the principle stipulated in the law of independent Latvia (Civil Law of 1937) that an engagement takes place before marriage registration was not recognized. The law, however, did not specify how long before marriage one should get engaged, or how and in what form the engagement should take place, for example, publicly or privately. But Latvians had not forgotten engagements. This was especially true for residents in rural Latvia. In many districts and cities, the day documents were submitted to the registry office was considered the engagement day.
1966. On January 14, 1966, Lidija Cekule (later Vītola) became the head of the Ogre District Civil Registry Office. With expertise and immense enthusiasm, she led the department’s work for 55 years — until the summer of 2021.
Lidija Vītola recalls that in 1966, when she started working in Ogre, brides wore white dresses. Good cooperation had been established with the designers of the Ogre Knitwear Factory, who created models for official attire, while solemn garments were produced in the experimental workshop.
1970. On September 19, 1966, Lidija herself (then Cekule) got married. Ārija Iklāva recalls: “It was the first time for me that the head of the Latvian Civil Status Acts Registration Department wanted to register a marriage. Together, we persuaded my husband to take on the role of best man. The wedding ceremony was conducted by Zinaīda Resne, the newly appointed chairwoman of the Ogre Executive Committee. She was nervous because she had never done anything like that before. And then the ceremony was captured by the press, radio, and filmed.” Lidija Vītola remembers that the matron of honor made the newlyweds spin with a spinning wheel. However, this task was not successful. They celebrated the wedding at Tomes Community Center. The next day, the wedding attendants or witnesses traveled back to Riga by train with the spinning wheel and the accompanying treat — dried vimba fish.
1965. In 1966, the Ogre Civil Registry Office acquired premises in the newly built building at Brīvības Street 33, where the Ogre City Council is now located. The newspaper “Padomju Ceļš” (Soviet Way) wrote that “the state commission from the construction department accepted the new Soviet House from the builders. Here would be located the district executive committee with its departments, the collective and state farm production management, the city executive committee, and the civil registry office.”
The Ogre Municipality Civil Registry Office moved to its long-awaited new premises in the Ogre Central Library building in August 2021, and already on August 7, seven couples received their marriage certificates.
“OGRE KANGARI” HIKING TRAIL
We invite you to explore the hiking trail to better discover the hills of Ogre. View the photo gallery and read the story on the museum's website or Facebook page. By looking at historical images, you can compare how the city has changed over time. We have marked the route in the "BalticMaps" map browser. The “GPX” file is convenient to use with the LVM GEO mobile app. The total length of the hiking trail marked on the map is 14 kilometers (7 kilometers in Pārogre and 7 kilometers in Ogre center and Jaunogre). The hiking trail winds through both the urban part of the city (with asphalt, cobblestone, and gravel surfaces) and green areas (park paths and pedestrian-trodden forest trails without special amenities).
