Marriage Certificate Entries

[7Y]

Am I right in thinking that a deceased Father wasn’t always marked a so - thus leading one to think they are still alive.
Thanks

[aghadowey]

Depends on the country and period of the marriage. Different locations have different rules which can vary of time.

[Girl Guide]

Yes, that can be the case.  One way to check would be to follow the father through census records and see when he stops appearing.  Then you could check to see if you can find a death registration.

Whether or not a father appears as deceased depends on what questions were asked when the marriage was registered.

[carol8353]

It may have depended on what question the vicar asked.
What job did you father do?
And is he still alive? (or maybe not even asked)

Some people would not have volunteered more info than they felt necessary.

[7Y]

Thanks for the replies.  The marriage took place in 1864. The 1861 census says mother was a widow.  The only death showing on GRO for Henry Crawford, Salford is 1856; but can’t find burial record to confirm.  Will have to order certificate, and hope it’s the correct one.

Many thank everyone

[carol8353]

Thanks for the replies.  The marriage took place in 1864. The 1861 census says mother was a widow.  The only death showing on GRO for Henry Crawford, Salford is 1856; but can’t find burial record to confirm.  Will have to order certificate, and hope it’s the correct one.

Many thank everyone

You know you can order a birth or death copy as a PDF for just £7 from the GRO site?

[Marmalady]

The required information is Father's name & occupation so the most usual question would be "Who is your father and what does he do?"

So unless the minister asked or the bride / groom volunteered the information that the father was deceased, then then is no way of knowing.

I have a certificate where there is no father entered for the bride -- just a line through that section so i though she was probably illegitimate -- until i found her living with her father upto the census before her marriage and her was still alive at the census afterwards too!

[Comberton]

[andrewalston]

I have a certificate where there is no father entered for the bride -- just a line through that section so i though she was probably illegitimate -- until i found her living with her father upto the census before her marriage and her was still alive at the census afterwards too!

He may have been the mother's husband, but was he the father?

The entry is just what was volunteered. No documentary evidence was needed.

I have a man who was illegitimate but the mother married the father soon after the birth (there's a matching Bastardy Bond). He married with his birth name (father left blank) but lived all his life with his father's surname. His children were all registered with his birth name too. It was very satisfying to work it all out!

I have marriages with father invented, father "deceased" but alive elsewhere, and in one very lucky case, father named even though he had left the district around the time of my gg gm's birth.