Genealogy Chat

I have recieved a death cert today and the death was on 5th Nov 1842 and was registered on 13th Nov..The mother registered the death and marked her name with an X....My problem is that the original parish record burial says she was buried on 4th Nov 1842!!

Was wondering as there is a gap between death and registering that maybe the mother got mixed up with the date of death or is it possibly the parish record could be wrong??

Jules x

Not sure what the rules were then but thought you had to have a death cert, or an authorisation if an inquest was involved, in order to have a funeral. Wonder if in fact the child was buried on the 14th rather than the 4th and its a mistranscription of the parish record

I would tend to believe that the entry in the parish register is the correct one. As the mother was illiterate and the gap between the death/burial is over a week later then that is the most likely to be suspect. You may of course be able to view the actual parish register at the local archive office to confirm the date entered.

It was quite common for people to be buried almost immediately after their death, no refrigeration then as now remember. I may be wrong but the priority would be to bury their remains before worrying about officialdom.

Although an inquest might delay the issue of a death certificate back then it did not usually delay the burial. An inquest might decide that they were pushed rather than jumped (Metaphorically speaking) but in 1842 a delay would have been unlikely to depend upon awaiting toxicology reports and the like.

When I looked at the parish records I checked the burials either side and they were both the 4th Nov..Have been to Chichester Records office and have looked at originals.....I also thought you had to have a death cert before you could be buried...
I also have another death/burial, she died on 12th July 1855 and was buried the next day although the death wasnt registered until 17th July...Maybe t it was different back then I don't know...

Jules x

Today you do need a death certificate, back then you didn't.

So I expect the mother may have got the dates mixed up..I can only presume..Thank you both for your input...

Jules x

Since it was 1842, I presume you haven't seen the original registration, but either the GRO's original copy of it, or a recent copy from the local office. I would suggest you call the local office that now holds the original registration, and ask them to check the date on that. Course, she might have been off by a couple of days when she made the initial rego.