England Vital Records Index - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
This index covers events from 1700 through the mid 1900s.

Record Description
The index is an electronic database of information transcribed from original records.

Record Content
The key genealogical facts found in birth or christening index entries may include:


 * Name of the child
 * Gender
 * Names of the parents
 * Birth date
 * Birthplace
 * Christening date (if the source is a church record)
 * Family History Library Microfilm and item numbers for the source materials

The key genealogical facts found in marriage index entries may include:


 * Name of bride and groom
 * Names of the parents
 * Marriage date
 * Marriage place
 * Family History Library Microfilm and item numbers for the source materials

The key genealogical facts found in death or burial index entries may include:


 * Name of the deceased
 * Gender
 * Names of the parents
 * Name of the spouse (if married)
 * Death or burial date
 * Death or burial place
 * Family History Library Microfilm and item numbers for the source materials

How to Use the Record
Use this index to help you learn more about your ancestors. The information could help you identify family relationships and lineages as well as direct you to original records of your ancestors, which may contain additional information.

In birth or christening records, if a surname is not listed for the child, the indexer often assigns the father’s surname to the child. This surname may not be correct. So if you are looking for a birth or christening, search by the given name of the child, adding parents' names and as much locality information as is permitted.

Record History
For over 30 years, volunteer indexers extracted this information from microfilm copies of the original records. In 2001, some of the entries were published on 6 CDs by the Family History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the "British Isles Vital Records Index: England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales." This index is an index of the births or christenings; marriages; and deaths or burials throughout England. The index is not necessarily complete for any particular place or region.

Why This Record Was Created
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sponsored the indexing of this collection to help individuals find information about their ancestors.

Record Reliability
Church records and civil registration were official records and are some of the most reliable sources of information available for those who were born, married, or died in England.

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Related Websites
www.freebmd.org.uk 1837 to present day. Birth, Marriage and Death registration quarterly index, the transcriptions are still in progress and are freely available. The website explains the registration process and its chronological implementation. The website provides access to their images of the index and a double entry checking system as well as the opportunity to correct entries in the database. Two other websites are also available,

www.freereg.org.uk a database of church records for some of the English Counties and still "work in progress". Some records are incomplete due to their destruction and others through non-availability.

www.freecen.org.uk a database of the English and Welsh Census records, 1841 and thereafter every 10 years up to 100 years ago (1911 census). This is still a "work in progress" project.

The above websites are all charitable and rely on volunteer transcribers as can be seen from the websites.

Related Wiki Articles

 * England Church Records

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should also list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection
Please add sample citations to this article following the format guidelines in the wiki article listed above.


 * United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th census, 1900, digital images, From FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: September 29, 2006), Arizona Territory, Maricopa, Township 1, East Gila, Salt River Base and Meridian; sheet 9B, line 71
 * Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1886-1933, digital images, from FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: April 22, 2010), Baptism of Adolfo Fernandez Jimenez, 1 Feb. 1910, San Pedro Apóstol, Cuahimalpa, Distrito Federal, Mexico, film number 0227023

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Style Guide
For guidelines to use in creating wiki articles that describe collections of images and indexes produced by FamilySearch, see: FamilySearch Wiki:Guidelines for FamilySearch Collections pages.

Sources of Information for This Collection
"England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org/). Index entries derived from digital copies of originals housed in various repositories throughout England.

"England Marriages, 1538-1973," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org/). Index entries derived from digital copies of originals housed in various repositories throughout England.

"England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org/). Index entries derived from digital copies of originals housed in various repositories throughout England.

Each entry in this index has a source listed. The index may be a compilation of records from a variety of sources, including the following:


 * Family Records
 * Church Records
 * Civil Registration

We welcome your assistance in adding source citation information for individual archives when collection data was collected from various sources or archives. The format for citing FamilySearch Historical Collections, including how to cite individual archives is found in the following link: How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections