Births, Marriages, Deaths and Divorce
Before 1837
The civil registration of births, marriages and deaths in England and Wales began on 1 July 1837. For records before this date you will need to rely on church records.
Index of Births, Marriages and Deaths for England and Wales
- Births, Marriages and Deaths are available on Ancestry.co.uk (1837-2005) and Findmypast.co.uk (1837-2006) [subscription web sites].
- Births, Marriages and Deaths are also available at FreeBMD (1837-1983, incomplete)
Free access to Ancestry Library Edition and Findmypast.co.uk and is available at the Manchester Room@City Library. Free access to Ancestry Library Edition is also available at any Manchester City Council library.
Microfiche version
The Manchester Room@City Library also holds microfiche copies of the National Index of Births, Marriages and Deaths 1837-2009 and also:
- Provisional data for births and deaths up to September 2011
- Civil Partnerships Index 2005 - 2010
- Overseas Index: Births, Deaths and Marriages 1761-2010
- Adopted Children Index 1927-2010
Local Indexes
Each district register office in England and Wales has its own indexes, which tend to be more accurate than the national indexes, and can be accessed for a fee. However, free access to large sections of the indexes is available via the free web sites LancashireBMD and CheshireBMD. Although the indexes are not yet complete for all years and registration districts, the databases will eventually cover Lancashire and Cheshire births, marriages and deaths for the years 1837 to the present day.
Certificates
Once you have found the required entry from the index a copy of the original certificate can be purchased from the Manchester Register Office (for the City of Manchester), or from the appropriate district register office. However Manchester Register Office and the majority of district register offices will not supply marriage certificates if the church is not known.
Scotland
Statutory registers of Birth, Marriage and Death for Scotland 1855-2006 can be viewed on-line at Scotland's People [pay per view web site].
Divorce
We do not hold any divorce records, but Findmypast contains the index to Divorce and Matrimonial Causes 1858-1903. Free access to findmypast is available at Manchester Room@City Library.
The National Archives have produced a good guide on Divorce records.