Philippines, Manila, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records/Known Issues

Known Issues
NOTE: For a way to determine what digital records are likely to be found within a collection or how to find missing images elsewhere, see Article 56000, Using Film Notes in the Catalog to determine the content of a final waypoint in Historical Records.

NOTE: Most missing records are available on microfilm which can be viewed at the Family History Library or some FamilySearch Centers.

Question #1: I get a message “Image not Available” for some of the records even when I am signed in. Can I view these records? Some were previously available; have some records been removed? Answer #1: Whenever possible, FamilySearch makes images available for all users. However, ultimate rights to view images on our website are granted by the record custodians.

Philippines Data Privacy rules prohibit viewing the following records: All birth, marriage, and death images must be 30 years or older. If any record on a digital folder contains birth records from the last 100 years, for example, the entire digital folder is restricted. The Historical Records collections will be updated each year to show new unrestricted records.

FamilySearch respects and strives to adhere to all privacy laws respective to preserving and providing access to genealogical records in its collections.

Question 2
Question 2: How do I find records in this collection when the dates and locations are not chronological or sequential? Answer 2: As stated in the collection description, “Some folders of images are not arranged chronologically and/or sequentially.” Use of Certificate numbers is the best way to search these records. When trying to sequence the certificate numbers, add zero’s to the front of the number so that each certificate number has the same number of digits, then put them in order numerically. For example, "Apr. #1501-2000" appears before "Apr. #2-496". If you change the second set of numbers, "Apr. #2-496" to "Apr. #0002-0496," they fit more naturally into the sequence.

Question 3
Question 3: When the records are numbered in more than one way, it is hard to search them. How can I find the records I am searching for when the sequences are so varied? Answer 3: Images that are missing or misplaced are as follows (listed by year, then alphabetically):


 * a. 1. (1931-1945)
 * a. Letter K.
 * i. image 3012 is very dim
 * ii. Images 3013-3014 and 3018-3020 are very dim.
 * b. 1946- It is noted that there are tight bindings.
 * c. 1948- Jul-Sep quarter is stated on image 383 as “Missing whole volume”.
 * d. 1949- Oct-Dec quarter is missing.
 * e. 1950-
 * i. Jul-Sep quarter letter “Z” is missing.
 * ii. Oct-Dec quarter is missing.
 * f. 1951- Jan-Mar quarter letters “W-Z” missing
 * g. 1952- Jul-Sep quarter missing most of “Y” and all of “Z” and Oct-Dec quarter is missing.
 * h. 1953- Oct-Dec quarter “Y” listings are incomplete, “Z” are missing
 * i. 1954- Jul-Sep quarter is on images 478( page 18)-653 (page 236) with part of “V” having badly torn pages, and “W-Z” are missing.
 * j. 1955- Jul-Sep quarter is on images 493 (page 1) -748 (page 283)
 * i. image 493 (page 1) very light
 * ii. image 748 (page 283) tight binding difficult to make out surname
 * k. 1967-
 * i. Jan-Mar quarter part of “t” and all of U-Z are missing.
 * ii. Apr-Jun quarter missing part of “T” records and all of U-Z
 * iii. Jul-Sep quarter missing part of “V” and all of W-Z
 * iv. Oct-Dec quarter missing part of “L” and all of M-Z
 * v. Year 1967 contains alphabetical listings for 1968 surnames Aala-Notay covering months January-June 1968.
 * l. 1968-
 * i. Jan-Mar Quarter missing records for part of “t” and all of U-Z
 * ii. Apr-Jun quarter missing part of “T” records and all of U-Z
 * iii. Jul-Sep quarter missing part of “V” and all of W-Z
 * iv. Oct-Dec quarter missing part of “L” and all of M-Z
 * m. 1969- Oct-Dec missing “V” records and all of W-Z missing
 * n. 1970-
 * i. Jan-Dec missing some "N" records and all of O-Z
 * ii. Jul-Dec missing all records prior to “K”
 * o. 1. 1957-1960 - Images 438 (page 1)-896(page 455) are alphabetical listings for the months January, February and March year 1966.
 * p. 1975 - ABC's of 1976 are at end of 1975
 * q. 1976 - ABC's of 1976 are at end of 1975

If you encounter additional problems with this collection, feel free to report them at [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the following information:


 * If browsing this collection: please include the full path you followed to where the problem occurred. The browse path is located above the Image viewer window. For example: Philippines, Manila Civil Registration 1899-1994 &gt; Birth Certificates &gt; 1903 &gt; Dec, #1912-4159 &gt; image 17 of 233
 * If you are reporting a technical issue: please include your operating system and browser version, such as Windows 7 and Internet Explorer. Your assistance will help ensure that future revisions will be considered.

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