50 year closure on Marriages

[Ruskie]

Ruskie,

As far as I know, to order any cert. listed on BMDs on the indexes of GRO & SP you only have to request with the indexed ref. & pay the fee, no questions asked.

Annie

That's a bit worrying. I don't expect anyone to want to steal my or my children's identity, but the easy availability doesn't sit well with me.

[majm]

Ancestry has agreement with Sydney Diocese.  Doesn't need NSW BDM permission, as it is NOT the document that NSW BDM holds.

I explain:

From 1856 with commencement of civil registration in NSW, when a couple are married by clergy, then there's two ceremonies happening concurrently... the religious one and the civil one.   The civil record is a separate set of documents signed by the parties. 

So for example when I married:
I signed the church registers (two off)
I signed the civil registers (one was a form for the clergy to keep for proof, and the other was a for the clergy to forward to NSW BDM etc)
I signed the 'bride certificate' (the document handed to the bride by the clergy at end of the ceremony.

Two off church registers ... C of E rules, keep these two registers separate from each other, never deliberately destroy them. 

JM

[majm]

http://www.sydneyanglicanarchives.com.au/index.php/p2/family_history.html

Ancestry and Sydney Diocese Archivist 

We are currently preparing for a mass digitisation project with Ancestry.com, which will provide even wider public access to the information contained in our baptism, confirmation, banns, marriage, and burial registers.

JM

[Ruskie]

Most of my NSW ancestors married C of E.  Those that married in Sydney Diocese ... yes all those marriages are easily findable via Ancestry.   I can definitely confirm that my parents marriage is there, and that I recognise their signatures ... not just the info there.  Same with both sets of Grandparents, I recognise their signatures too ...And aunties/uncles etc...   

My concern is not for family history buffs, but for the unscrupulous scammers who may well phone some of my older rellies and say "Hello Fred (or whatever),  this is Joe (or whatever) from next door to JM (or my real name) and JM says that you will be able to help support our local charity drive with a donation.  I wrote down the bank account details that JM gave me, but I want to check with you.  Can you please confirm your credit card number ...... (etc).... and your mother's maiden name .... so we can go online and organise your donation on JMs behalf....

It is something that NSW senior police officers express concern about regularly when addressing community forums in regional and rural NSW... 



JM

Oh, I didn't know that images of (relatively recent) Australian marriages were on Ancestry. I will have to see what I can find.

Good point about the possibility of scammers JM. I never trust anyone but I can imagine my "ridiculously trusting" father being taken in by someone saying they know someone who knows him, though he would not give his card details to anyone. (though I can imagine many might)

[Ruskie]

http://www.sydneyanglicanarchives.com.au/index.php/p2/family_history.html

Ancestry and Sydney Diocese Archivist 

Thank you JM. I don't have any connections with Sydney so that will explain why I haven't seen this.

[Andcarred]

Hi JM,

The copy from Ancestry says "Register Book for the use of Ministers authorised to celebrate Marriages under the Acts Nos. 15 and 17, 1809."  so obviously from the Church register which was Church of England then, now Anglican.   I now live in Queensland and here we have to produce identification if we order certificates, be related to the people we are enquiring about and say why we need the certificate.   Too bad I married in NSW.  Concerning situation about the Sydney Diocese.

Sorry can't continue this very interesting top as out to lunch.

Cheers,

Andcarred

[majm]

Yes the NSW marriage act 1899 is readily available online.
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/ma1899n15112.pdf
http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/robdama1899n17429.pdf

later one:
http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/ma1934n1192.pdf

harmonising in 1960s
http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/ma1934n1192.pdf
http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/lrpa1964n17310.pdf

current
https://www.justice.nsw.gov.au/Pages/media-news/media-releases/2018/NSW-first-to-harmonise-marriage-act.aspx



Here's the heading from Ancestry : Sydney, Australia, Anglican Parish Registers, 1814-2011   

yes, 2011.

JM

[giblet]

I am in Qld and our unrestricted availability is:
- births that took place more than 100 years ago
- marriages that took place more than 75 years ago
- deaths that took place more than 30 years ago.

I was unable to obtain a marriage cert. i wanted due to the 75 year restriction. I then ordered their divorce records from the State archives [which off the top of my head had a 30 year restriction] There was a copy of their marriage cert. in the divorce records. So at times these records can be found amongst other data so it seems. Not that it should make any difference but the couple were young when they married and divorced when aged early 70's.

[Rosinish]

Ruskie,

I was doing a family tree for a friend as a gift & was able to purchase the marriage cert. of the parents to get back to the next generation as the people in question were still alive i.e. the mmn wouldn't be on the index of deaths & I had no problem.

I also have a BC of someone born as late as 1950s which has 'Adopted' on their record!
The child was adopted 'by' another family, rather than being adopted 'by' the 'birth' parents named on the BC.

I ordered that cert. in the same way as the marriage above, both not being downloadable, wait for it...
Because of the 100 yr birth rule & 75 yr marriage rule 

I don't actually see the difference of being able to purchase yet not download the certs?
The only difference is the price if compared with the privacy rules which could be incorporated for those later certs. 

Annie