United Kingdom, Maritime Births, Marriages, and Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This collection will include records from 1787 to 1933.

The collection consists of Maritime Births, Marriages, and Deaths taken from various collections. The images are an index linking to Find My Past. Localities included are:


 * England
 * Channel Islands
 * Ireland
 * Scotland
 * Wales

Record Content
Birth records generally contain the following information:


 * Names of parents
 * Date of birth
 * Gender of child
 * Name of child
 * Note stating stillborn or live birth
 * Name of ship and its official number
 * Date of receipt of record

Marriage records generally contain the following information:


 * Names of bride and groom
 * Ages of bride and groom
 * Groom's place of birth
 * Date of marriage
 * Names of witnesses
 * Name of chaplain or person on board who performed ceremony
 * Name of ship and its official number
 * Date of receipt of record

Death records generally contain the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Gender of deceased
 * Age at death
 * Cause of death
 * Date of death
 * Name of ship and its official number
 * Date of receipt of record

How to Use the Record
To begin your search in the birth records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Names of parents
 * Approximate year of baptism
 * Name of child

To begin your search in the marriage records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Names of the bride or groom
 * Approximate year of marriage
 * Place of marriage

To begin your search in the death records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Approximate year of death
 * Place of death

Searching the Collection
To search the index:

Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination. Since the information is brief it is easy to confuse individuals.

When you have found your ancestor, the image on the record will have a link to the Find My Past website. This will take you to the partner site which hosts the images. Fees may apply to view the image.

As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

For tips about searching online collections see the on-line video at FamilySearch Search Tips.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Download a copy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details. Add this new information to your records of each family. The information may also lead you to other records about your ancestors.

For example:

Use the estimated age to calculate a birth date. When you have found the year of birth on a marriage or death record, you can search in the England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 collection.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Continue to search the index and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * If you are unable to find your ancestor, check for variant spellings of the names.

Related Websites

 * Find My Past
 * England and Wales History Links
 * England and Wales Historic Maps

Related Wiki Articles

 * Top Genealogy Websites for Finding Ancestors in the United Kingdom
 * England Royal Navy Records (National Institute)
 * British Births, Marriages and Deaths Overseas
 * England
 * Beginning British Research

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Record collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher and archive for the original records.