Interpretation

Question

In a Mexican Catholic Church record, when a person is described as “expuesto en la casa de …” is this comparable to a modern “foster” relationship, a guardianship relationship, or an an adopted relationship? It seems like the person always takes or given the surname of the person they are placed with.

I have seen this in both baptismal records and in marriage records.

Answer 1

Hello George.

Both, "expuesto en la casa de [...]"

or "expuesto a las puertas de [...]"

is used when the person, as a newborn baby was abandoned in front of the living place

of "[...]"

Usually, the baby was the child of a single mother, and the baby was grew up by the family living in that house.

Comments

Rubén, thank you.

In the marriage records I’ve seen, the child ends up with the surname of the person, so would they be considered adopted?

A somewhat related situation was the time when Bishop Lorenzana of Mexico sent a number of orphans to Colonial California. They were, of course, wards of the orphanage, but once they arrived in California, they had all been given the Bishop’s name, Lorenzana. I have a friend who descends from one of these children.

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You are welcome, George.

Very interesting case the orphans sent to Colonial California and they all been given the Bishop's name! 

Answer 2

Hi George, yes, it means that the child was abandoned close to the house of a certain family. If the child was baptized and given the family name, it means that it most probably was an illegitimate child of someone in or related to that family (as oposed to being abandoned in a church). To give them the family name was a sort of adopting act, a way to keep them with the family, although I don't think it had the same implications that modern adoption has, since they did not have the same rights as legitimate or legitimized children.