Genealogy Chat

nudge up, thank you!!

Hi all, my family tree searching could have come to an end as soon as it began!! My mum was born and registered as Shirley Gallagher, father Christopher Gallagher. Even though I knew his exact date of birth and fathers name, I wanted the certificate (well you do don't you!). As I still live in the area he was born, I completed the application form and took it to the Register Office, waiting for the certificate. Within 20 minutes I had the certificate. Later, when I was checking other things on the St Catherines Index, out of curiosity, I looked for the original entry for my grandfather Christopher Gallagher. To my surprise, it wasn't there! I looked in both the quarter before and the quarter after, and thinking my eyes were playing up, asked my sister to look. No joy. When I got home, I emailed the GRO at Southport, to ask how I had the certificate if he wasn't registered? I received an almost immediate response (well done GRO) telling me that my grandfathers name was actually Christopher GOLLAKER! I went back to my local Register office to ask them to check, and they confirmed that yes, it should be GOLLAKER, not GALLAGHER! They could'nt explain how this had happened, but thought it might have been tired eyes at the end of the working day, giving me the certificate I wanted!! The moral of this long tale, is that even though we all need to check our sources and details, sometimes when we do, we are misled!! Funnily enough, on Christophers fathers wedding certiciate, Patrick is a Gallagher, so I presume born a Gallagher, not Gollaker. Does this mean that really my mum is Shirley Gollaker, and not Shirley Gallagher as she was registered and married as?? (And so, is she really married - ha ha!!)All I can think is that as Mary, Christophers mother was from West Derby, Liverpool, and registered the birth, her strong scouse accent made Gallagher sound like Gollaker to a Salford ear!! Anybody else have any ideas? Thanks, Carol.

When I ordered my own birth cert for a passport some years ago it came back calling me MariAn. I went back to St Caths Hse (as it was) and they delved into the bowels and found the original listing with the O and N so close together it looked like an A! However I made such a fuss that in the end they agreed to change it .. so I didn't have to change my name. Mind you so many people spell and even say it wrong, that it probably didn't matter much anyway!!

Thank you all. At least I now know certificates can be wrong. Keith. The IGI record I have for William Gerrard says he was christened 01 Dec 1861, Cathedral, Manchester. I don't have an exact birth date at the moment. Melanie

My husbands gr-grandfather was Francis Thomas Ashfield. I have a copy of the parish register of his baptism, which says Francis, but the GRO entry and the subsequent copy birth cert says Frank Thomas. His marriage cert & GRO entry say Thomas Francis! We had quite a time deciding whether they were the same person. Also have a printer who is a painter on marriage cert, and a tailor who I am sure was a sailor! Debbie

Melanie, I have another example of wrong information on certificates . . . . My brother recently applied for a copy of his full birth certificate in connection with his retirement pension. It stated his Mothers maiden name was Bowers. . . but if fact it’s Powers. But when challenged ( he went into the Register Office to pick it up personally ) they said they would check it out there and then. But were adamant on return that it was correct !!!!!!! But the original was written in that copper plate handwriting so the O in Powers was put below the flourished P so it did look like a B. But they still stuck out it was Bowers. . . . But We know different Don’t we ??????? MIKE.

An official typed copy made in 1926 of an 1872 birth certificate has the mother's maiden name as Goddard instead of Gorrod. That caused me to spend quite some time looking for the wrong birth name for the mother.

This looks like a good one (Hello again May) I would read it that William had the surname of Gerrard as that was his mother's maiden name. When he married he elaborated a little to show a father on his marriage certificate. We had an exactly similar case with one of my wife's ancestors. Can I ask what date William was born so I can look at the 1837online site. Tks

They must be the same person but I don't know whether Henry was William's father or whether that was just put down on the marriage certificate because Henry was around from when William was 2 yrs old. Maybe he thought Henry was his father and the registrar put Gerrard because William's surname was Gerrard. It's all very interesting but a shame I will probably never find out the truth. I did wonder whether the mistake was with the person making the copy of the certificate rather than the original entry in the register.

Perhaps your g.grandfather didn't want anyone to know he was illegitimate.If he was christened with his mother's maiden name then the name would be different when she married. It could be as simple as that (or maybe not) May

Melanie errors in certificates are not uncommon. On my Grandmothers marriage cert in 1889, she is illiterate so someone signs for her after her X. She wouldn't know that under the bride's name, her Christian name had been mixed up with her female witness, so when you look at FreeBMD for Elizabeth Chandler, you see Catherine CHANDLER as well. They won't change the record (I've pointed out the error) because that's the official record and I'm sure it must have happened with surnames as well. Sue

I recently acquired the marriage certificates of my gr grandparents, William Gerrard and Mary Ellen Turner and my gr gr grandmother, Martha Gerrard. I knew my gr grandfather was illegitimate but his mums marriage certificate has her husband's name as Henry Moore, Occupation: Packer. My gr grandfather's marriage certificate has his father down as Henry Gerrard, Occupation Packer. My question is, if they are the same person why is the surname different? As Martha married Henry approx 2 yrs after her son was born can I assume that Henry really is William's father or could the name have been put on because he has been brought up with Henry as his father? I haven't got William's birth certificate but the IGI record of his birth does not list a father. I am confused!! Melanie.