Warwickshire’s Register Offices can help you delve into your family’s past
If you’ve been inspired to trace your family tree by the BBC series ‘Who do you think you are?’, you may be interested to know that Warwickshire’s Register Offices can help you dig up your roots.
The most recent series has followed celebrities including Barbara Windsor, David Tennant and Jeremy Irons as they’ve gone on a journey of discovery to trace their family history. For anyone starting to investigate their ancestry, personal documents such as certificates of birth, marriage and death can provide vital clues into your heritage.
Warwickshire Registration Service holds records for all births, deaths and marriages that have taken place in Warwickshire since 1st July 1837. If your ancestors were born, died or got married in Warwickshire, Warwickshire’s Register Offices will hold the original records and copies of the certificates can be obtained in person or by post. Some certificates can even be applied for online via the Warwickshire Registration Service website.
Polly Dickinson, Head of Registration Services, Warwickshire County Council, said: “I think that the ‘Who do you think you are?’ programme has certainly inspired people to take a look into their own family’s past.
“Since 1837, every birth, marriage and death had to be registered and a certificate produced. This means that all your ancestors, as they were born, married and died, would have generated this paperwork.”
Over the past year, Rugby Register Office has issued 2,299 copies of birth, marriage and death certificates, Warwick Register Office has issued 3,954 copies and Nuneaton Register Office has issued a whopping 6,100 copy certificates!
Your family’s records may be held at either Rugby, Warwick or Nuneaton Register Office, depending on where they lived in the county. If you’re unsure where your family’s certificates might be held, contact one of the offices and Warwickshire registration staff will be happy to help you.
All copy certificates produced by Warwickshire’s register offices are official watermarked certificates countersigned by the Registrar and can be obtained for a small fee (currently £7.00 for a full certificate).
For lots more information on how you can apply for copy birth, death or marriage certificates and to search and apply for certificates online, visit the Warwickshire Registration Service website.