Genealogy Chat

I had a query on a marriage certificate, and decided to phone the local registrar to see if they could help, after reading several posts on here about how helpful the local offices can be. Well!! All I can say is don't bother with Shepton Mallet office, the Superindentant Registrar who answered the phone said he could not help me with any query on the phone, I would have to apply in writing and they could not check records first, I would just have to apply for the cert and hope for the best. I only have the marriage as being in Frome, do not know where- he said that they could not check all the records for Frome for this one marriage, if I did not have a parish. Well in that case I might aswell apply to the GRO, they do not ask/expect you to provide those details. Don't think I will bother with the local offices again, at least with the GRO I have not been lectured to/patronised by a Superintendant Registrar!!! (who does he think he is??????)Cross & disillusioned!!!

I can understand how you feel as there is a lot of variation in the service you get from different register offices. Yes, some of them are great and very helpful, and I know they send out certificates more quickly, but their records are kept in a different way to the GRO and they can't always look things up unless you know the parish you need. Overall, that is why I use the GRO. At least you know where you stand with them. On saying that, there is no need for registrars to be so patronising!!! Kath. x

Ann The difficulty with marriage deyails for the local office is that the records are stored by marriage venue not by name of bride/groom. Recently i had a couple of local office issued certs but there were only 12 possible venues,add to that the quarter was known and the registrar only had to consult a reasonably small number of registers. I have had to apply for GRO certs when there have been too many venues for the local registrar to check. If the entry in the GRO index indicates the Frome district then there may be dozens of parishes to chexk with several churh and chapels that could be the place. Birth and death entries are made by name and district,marriages are the slightly more awkward,and take a longer search to find. Glen

Local Register Offices administer their records in a totally different way to the GRO. Marriages are filed in parishes and churches so you do need to know which church the marriage is likely to have taken place in. I have had some success with local offices, but it is usually when an event doesn't appear on the GRO. For example, if you have a burial record, you can estimate (very closely) when the death took place and estimate where they died. The local offices are more likely to be able to help in these cases because you are narrowing down the date and the place. Marriages are difficult because they don't always take place in a church. Many occur in register offices. Cheers, Horatia

Just had a quick look for the parishes concerned,there are quite a few,but it is disappointing that the registrar didn't spend a few minutes explaining the circumstances. FROME REGISTRATION DISTRICT Registration County : Somerset. Created : 1.7.1837. Sub-districts : Frome; Kilmersdon; Nunney; Road. GRO volumes : X (1837-51); 5c (1852-1930). Parishes in Somerset (1837-1930): Babington (from 1845), Beckington, Berkley, Buckland Dinham, Cloford, Elm, Farleigh Hungerford, Foxcote, Frome, Hardington, Hemington, Kilmersdon, Laverton, Leigh upon Mendip, Lullington, Matston Bigot, Mells, Norton St. Philip, Nuney, Orchardleigh, Rodden, Rode, Selwood, Standerwick, Tellisford, Wanstrow, Whatley, Witham Friary, Woolverton, Writhlington. I think that makes 33 parishes,so at a conservative guess perhaps 50 or more possible venues.With a quarter quoted it would be a trawl,but not impossible to do. On the flip side there are offices which have checked through just nine parishes (all within a city) but covered 65 venues to find certs for me,and still only charged the standard £7,and sent them within two days of order. Glen

Ann, I'm sorry you had an experience such as this, unfortunately there are one or two (ok - a few more than that!) who don't like doing family history but it is what they are paid to do (but shouldn't come before the needs of the living or newly dead). I still say most offices are great and I would always go to the local registry offices before I'd consider the GRO. Maybe at some point down the line your faith can be restored - I hope so. Snowdrops .

I am very sorry to read that. I apply to the register office, nine times out of ten, for a birth or death certificate, but not often for a marriage one. Joy

I have used the local offices for many years and have had no problems at all.I always give them the reference that I found on freebmd and they have always been able to get me the right certificate,they have never asked for the church.I have used lots of different offices over the years.

Hello, thanks for all your replies. I have calmed down a bit down, (with the help of a Cadbury's Crunchie, yum!) but I still don't understand how they can expect people to know the venue, or even the parish of the marriage before applying for the certificate. Surely once you are back past anyone's living memory, most people would not know exactly where a marriage took place. (I accept it is different if you want , say, your parents certificate, or if you are lucky and your ancestors all lived in the same parish since records began) Surely if I had found a record of the nuptials in the parish records , I would probably would not be applying for a certificate since the information I want from the cert, eg Father's name & witnesses would be on the parish records anyway ( At least all the PR's I have seen so far have had this info ) Anyway, this certificate is potentially very important to knock down a few brick walls, so I think I will order it from the GRO anyway, it is worth speculating £7 on it!!

Ann, Your remarks about marriages are spot on! If you found the marriage in parish registers you wouldn't normally require the certifictate itself - unless you wanted it for sentimental reasons. However burials are different. They only show you when and where someone was buried. It doesn't tell you what they died of, who reported the death and where they died. A death certificate does. Cheers, Horatia

Ann - sorry to bunk in on your thread but does anyone know how to get a job at these offices - i look in the local papers and they're never advertised. If I worked there I'd be lovely and helpful - I think I'd really enjoy finding other peoples certs for them - wouldn't you? jen x

My experience of Local Offices has been of cooperation and helpfulness - and speed. Two years ago, I purchased a cert for my g-parents' marriage - a transcription-style, not photocopy. Recently I realised that it would be very, very helpful to have a copy of the original document with original signatures - so that I could compare with another doc for which I've applied. Parish Register not an option - it was a RO wedding. I wrote to the Registrar explaining that I'd really like to have a copy which showed the signatures, but didn't really want to have to pay for another copy of the same cert. I supplied their ref and the date & number of the cert I'd bought. I received a reply within a few days, explaining that they didn't have the facilities of some ROs for photocopy certs, but hoped that the photocopy of the signature section of the cert, which they'd attached below, would help! I thought that was a brilliant solution. - Now I just have to wait (possibly months!) for the other doc. Christine

I would give local offices,Hull,Lancaster and Kendal 10 out of 10 for helpfulness and Rochdale 1 out of 10,the man who answers the phone at Rochdale is also patronising and unhelpful if you are doing family history.Thats why I use GRO as well because most certs I need now are from Rochdale. Shame my names not Babs Windsor,bet hed bend over backwards then!!!!!

I think Jenny raises a good question there,you very rarely see these jobs advertised,i know there have been cutbacks in staff and offices,but i would imagine the job to be quite varied at times. It would be quite rewarding at times too,though i think it fair to say at times it may be quite mundane. One of those jobs that needs a certain type of person and sadly it appears this chap may have been having an off day. Glen

I think the offices are run by councils, so the jobs are probably advertised on council web sites when they do come up.

Yes, the jobs are definitely run by councils, I've seen one or two come up just recently. The county records office is run by the county council and the local register office is by the town council. Unfortunately my county records office is just that little bit too far away for me to consider it - oh well, I live in hope!!

thanks guys - have looked on the council website - nothing there but i'll keep looking - jen x