Genealogy Chat

My Gt.Grandmother had two children by my Gt.Grandfather - she registered both births. Would she, when registering the births, have to had proof that she was married to the Father of the children? She died when only 29 yrs. old. The only census that she appears on when 'married' shows her as 'wife' with my Gt.Grandfathers surname. Both children have their Father's surname. Her Death Certificate is in her 'married' name. I have been unable to find any record of their marriage. M. Steer

No. I didn't have to prove I was married when I registered my son in the 1990s. I've got a missing marriage for my gt grandmother too. Not sure if she did marry or whether the copy of the cert got lost on the way from the register office to the GRO. nell

Do the children;'s certs give her maiden name? Is she described as wife or widow on the death cert? Want anyone else to look for the marriage - if so give names and dates and places. nell

I don't believe that proof of marriage has to be provided - I don't remember taking my marriage cert when registering my son's birth. Also, during the 1870s, I have an ancestor who registered children as if she were married, but I have proof that the parents didn't marry until 1909! Angela

She wouldn't have to provide proof of marriage when registering the births. If she was unmarried she couldn't name the father unless he went with her when the births are registered,but it wasn't unknown for the odd fib to be told here and there,the registrar would never know for certain if the informant was being truthful. Glen

Could you give any dates + details so we can see if we can find anything? Dea x

As everyone else has said, she wouldn't have had to prove anything at the reg office..... It may be that they WERE married, even if you can't find the entry.....between 1 and 2% of marriages are incorrectly recorded in the GRO indexes in some way or other. Some of these will be marriages that are missed off altogether.....and/or any other mistake you can possibly think of will be represented somewhere in the indexes! Who are the happy couple and roughly when should they have married? Merry

My GGMx3 SAID she was Horstead formerly Smith on the kiddies birth cert but in fact the marriage didnt happen til 17 years later.

Snap Heather! My ggggrandmother declared herself 'Mary Harris formerly Saunders' on the birth certificates of her first and second children, but in fact didn't get married until 2 years later. Bev x

You won't be asked for proof that you are married at a birth registration as you are essentially under oath when you are before the registrar. In the office, there will be at least one yellow card displayed, saying that, if you are wilfully providing false information, you can be prosecuted under the Perjury Act of 1911. The onus on you as the informant is to provide what you believe to be true information. When you give notice of marriage, it is written on the sheet you sign and is explained by the registrar, that it is supposed that you are telling the truth about various pertinent facts (age, freedom to marry etc) and that if it turns out that you have deliberately given false information, the marriage will be invalid and again you can be prosecuted for perjury and also such things as bigamy. Jack

Elizabeth Webb - born 1852, Ditcheat, Somerset. 1874 Elizabeth Webb marries Frank Smith. (have Marriage Cerificate) They have two children. The second child Mary Ann 'Eliza' is born in Evercreech, Somerset in 1876. 1881 Census (Chepstow, Monmouth) Elizabeth is 'wife' to George Hooper with two children (Samuel and Kezia). Both children are registered by their Mother as Hooper (Mother - formerly Webb). In 1882 Elizabeth Hooper ('wife' of George Hooper ) dies in Chepstow, Monmouth. Were they ever maried? M. Steer

Margaret, In 1884 George Hooper married Lucy Webb in Chepstow. No listing of Hooper marrying Elizabeth Smith between 1876 and 1882. Kristeen

what years were the two children born in? (the Hooper ones)

What happened to Frank Smith? Karen

Thankyou all for your replies. Elizabeth's two Hooper children were born Feb.1879 and April 1880. I have both Birth Certs. George Hooper did marry Lucy Webb, Elizabeth's younger sister and their Marriage Cert., gives him as 'bachelor'. I have no idea what happened to Frank Smith. I've looked everywhere but as you can imagine with a name like Smith......! The last documentary evidence I have on him is his daughter's Birth Cert., in 1876. Elizabeth & Frank were living near Bath (with his family) but she returned to her Father's house to have her second (Smith) child. My intuition tells me that Elizabeth left Frank (for whatever reason) and later met George Hooper but perhaps was not 'free' to marry him. Maybe, though, Frank died and her in-laws didn't want her around. The odd thing is her first Smith child remained with the Smith family but the second Smith child stayed with her Maternal Grandfather and later (according to the Census) was with George Hooper (even after her Mother's death). It really doesn't bother me whether or not my Gt.Grandparents were married. I'd just like to know one way or another - just one of those 'loose ends' that niggles me. Why did she have to marry a Smith? No offence intended. M. Steer