GuidedResearch:Why Can't I Find the Record - Wales Civil Registration Deaths

This page will give you additional guidance and resources to find civil death information for your ancestor. Use this page after first completing the Wales Civil Registration page. If researching before 1864, see the Wales Guided Research page.

Additional Databases and Online Resources

 * 1837-2007:  England and Wales Death Registration Index  at FamilySearch
 * 1837-2007:  England & Wales Deaths  at Findmypast ($)
 * 1837-2005:  England & Wales, Death Index, 1837-2005 at MyHeritage ($)
 * 1837-1957:  Search the GRO historical birth and death indexes  at General Register Office (free to search, login required) -- death index lists age at death
 * 2007-2017:  United Kingdom Deaths 2007-2017  at Findmypast($)

Substitute Records
Substitute records may contain information about more than one event and are used when records for an event are not available. Records that are used to substitute for death events may not have been created at the time of the death. The accuracy of the record is contingent upon when the information was recorded. Search for information in multiple substitute records to confirm the accuracy of these records.

Finding Town of Origin
Knowing an ancestor’s hometown can be important to locate more records. If a person immigrated to the United States, try Finding Town of Origin to find the ancestor’s hometown.

Virtual Genealogy Consultations
Schedule a free online consultation with a research specialist:

Ask the Community
Select a community research group where you can ask questions and receive free genealogy help.

Tips for finding deaths
Successfully finding death records in online databases depends on a few key points. Try the following search suggestions:
 * Registration District. To narrow results even more, include the registration district. Go to Finding the Registration District.
 * Add information. For common names, add more information to narrow the search such as approximate birth date or parent's names if known.
 * Spelling variations. Your ancestor's name may be misspelled. Search with spelling variations for the first and last name of your ancestor.
 * Search given name. Search by given name (leave out the last name) with the approximate date of birth or death.
 * Know county. Because of the abundance of common names, knowing the county is important to narrow down the search. See Finding the Wales County or Parish of Origin to learn how.
 * Date range. Expand the date range of the search by 5 years.

Why the Record may not Exist
Records Start Mandatory death registration started in 1837. However, universal compliance did not occur until 1866. Before 1837, deaths and burials can be found in church records (mainly nonconformist records). Although the oldest burial records date to 1538, most churches did not start recording burials until the 1600s. Records Destroyed Civil registration records are generally complete.