Genealogy Chat

The only way to get a copy of the orginal is from the church where the marriage took place, or the orginal birth register book. EVERYTHING that comes from GRO, Southport is a copy (hence the same writing). When you get married, you sign the register which is kept by the church( and maybe eventually the local RO) When teh book is full a copy of the whole book goes to GRO. It is from this copy you get a copy. I wanted a copy of my Gt Nan's birth cert but despite going to the local office to where the event was registered I had to have a copied one as being a small office they don't have the facilities to copy the books. So many many chances for mistransciptions!!!!! Hope I have this right but am sure someone will correct if wrong LOL

Thanks for the replies. I've always got them from the local register offices, and they are always modern re-written versions of the originals. I order them from the local offices as it's much faster. But I'd really like a photocopy of the original of this one. Should I stump up another £7 and get it from the GRO? Is anyone prepared to *guarantee* that's what I'll get? <LOL>

I also have a photocopy of my dad's signature on my copy full certificate. (Only had the short version before)

I nearly always deal with Local Offices and ask for 'a photocopy if possible, please'. A very nice lady phoned one time to say that they couldn't photocopy the original, as the book's binding was in a very fragile state. This particular office does not yet have a scanner. Of the many I have received which ARE photocopies, they are often 'all in the same writing' simply because my rellies couldn't write. Photocopies from the GRO are 'all in the same handwriting' because they are copies of the copies that were originally made by the local office - pre typewriter days, so the only way to copy the register to send to the GRO was to - well, copy it! Marjorie

I ordered a copy of a marriage certificate from GRO and thought if was a true copy of the original but when a friend got me a copy of this marriage certificate from LMA it was completely different, this was the original that the couple had signed on the day they married. Irene

Like Helen all the certificates I've ordered have been photocopies from the GRO includinf a full copy of my own birth certificate. I can now prove that my mum's memory is flawed as she has said for years that she registered me but it's my dads signiture on the original record and not mum's. All the marrige certificats I've orderd have had signitures (different for each of the 5 signitrueries). I know that that branch were liturate as there have been quite a few teachers in the families. NOTE: even some illiterate people could sign their name and literate people sometimes used marks or crosses

I wanted a copy of the original from Camden, I think it was, and so I emailed them and asked if it was possible and they told me to send my order in writing and to ask for a photocopy of the original, so that's what I did and it came! I don't know if all register offices would do this, but it would be worth asking them before you order the cert. Kate.

So that's proved me wrong already! I've always got copies of originals so far anyway from GRO.

I recently obtained a 1837 marriage certificate from ONS and it looks like a photocopy, and is written in difficult to dicypher copperplate. Even if you do get photocopies, they always seem that all the writing is written by one person.

I've just got a typed one from the GRO, and one with 'new' handwriting. Must give yet another opportunity for transcription errors. Peter

The ones ordered direct from the GRO are photocopies of the originals but the local offices always supply rewritten ones. No idea why this is, someone will probably tell us.

I have just recieved a typewritten one. VERY disappointed.

Just got a certificate back from Tameside - 48 hour turnaround - and wondered why they don't just copy the original instead of re-writing it. I knew this was going to be the case as it's not the first I've ever received, but still disappointed as I would love to have seen the handwriting of this particular person. Oh well.