Family History - General Registration

Family Sources | General Registration | Census Returns | Parish Registers
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General Registration is the main source of genealogical information about those who have been born, married or died in England and Wales from 1837 to the present day.

For births and deaths, these events are registered locally by an informant in front of a Registrar for the appropriate Registration District. In the case of marriages in churches, synagogues or nonconformist chapels, the officiating minister is responsible for passing on the recorded information to the Local Registrar. All Registrars send copies of their records to the Registrar General in London. These are indexed and form the national records of General Registration.

These indexes can be searched at many local libraries and are also available on-line, usually for a fee. On locating a suitable entry in the volumes, a copy of the relevant certificate can be obtained. This takes about a week to arrive.

A birth certificate records the name of the child and its parent(s), including the maiden surname of the mother, and the date and place of birth. The name of the informant is also included.

A marriage certificate shows when and where the union took place and the denomination if there was a religious ceremony. The entry records the names of the bride and groom, their ages, occupations and places of residence, together with the names and occupations of their fathers. The names of at least two witnesses are also recorded. These may be relatives of the bride or groom.

A death certificate is required to record the name of the deceased, his or her age, occupation and marital status. The date, place and cause of death are also shown together with the name of the informant.

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