How a person defines a problem often determines how they will or possibly will not solve it. An obsessive focus on trying to find a birth certificate, that may not exist, can actually hinder finding the answers to the research questions that a researcher hopes to find on a birth certificate.

This article was the basis for my popular lecture, No Birth Certificate?, No Problem! The lecture includes a varity of additional examples and a large selection of sample records.

 

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Experienced researchers and GenWeb volunteers are often asked this question, "Where can I get the birth certificate for my great-great-grandmother, Jane Doe?" Unless the person asking the question is quite young, the answer is probably, "I'm sorry, but they did not have birth certificates back then." Birth certificates, for most areas, have been in use for only about the last 100 to 130 years. However, when they can be obtained they often help answer a number of questions, such as:

• Who were the parents?
• What was the baby's name?
• Where did the birth take place?
• When was the date of birth?
• Where was the family living at the time?
• What were the physical characteristics of the baby?
• What was the mother's maiden name?
• What were the ages of the parents, their dates and places of birth, and occupations?
• Who delivered the baby?
• [2009: What was the sex of the baby?]

If a birth certificate is not available, keep in mind that if there is proof that a person lived, died, and was buried, got married, or had a family it is a pretty good bet that they had been born. A researcher seeks answers to the above questions, but especially the identity of the parents.

[2009: The caption for the 1920 Census should have been: Alvar Bockman showing an incorrect age of 27.]