Some summary notes from Presentation given by Allan Murrin at Carrington Computer Club 4 April 2011
Joy Murrin Family History Services have been providing a Transcription Service for NSW births, deaths and marriages since 1995.
Allan outlined some facts regarding searching NSW BDM (Birth, Death and Marriage) Index.
This table outlines the years available on Fiche, CD and the Internet
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FICHE
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CD
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INTERNET
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BDM 1788-1888
BDM 1889-1918
DM 1919-1945
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BDM 1788-1888
BDM 1889-1918
DM 1919-1945
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B 1788-1910
D 1788-1980
M 1788-1960
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There are Restricted years for public access to the index which is 100 years for births, 30 years for deaths and 50 years for marriages. These years are reflected in the internet index. In January each year the Registry extends the years to reflect the restricted years.
Click here for the link to NSW BDM Index
In 1995 the Registry established the Transcription Service as "and economical alternative for obtaining certificates" The cost of a certificate from the Registry is $29. A transcription is $18.
Civil Registration commenced in 1856 prior to this research is restricted to Church Records; baptisms, burials and marraiges; which do not have the same detail as civil registrations.
There are several reasons why you may not find an entry in the index
l EVENT DID NOT OCCUR
l EVENT WAS NOT RECORDED
l RECORD DID NOT SURVIVE
l INFORMATION IS FALSE OR NOT KNOWN
l LOOKING IN THE WRONG LOCATION
l NAME IS WRONG
l INDEX ERROR
There maybe errors in the spelling of names on the index the wildcard (*) will help to find these.
Sometimes Stewart maybe spelt Stuart. By using the wildcard and entering ST* will find any variation of the name and will provide all names starting with ST
Remember ‘LESS IS MORE’ sometimes we enter too much detail for a search. If a search is not successful, remove some of the fields and search on LESS. It may provide MORE results but could reveal what you could not find.
View three presentation on Australian Research topics by Allan Murrin on FamilySearch.org