29,535
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
→Obtaining Copies of Records
==Obtaining Copies of Records==
'''Certified''' copies of ecclesiastical records, with the seal of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, acceptable for official purposes, can be ordered from the British Library -current cost (2018) is £18 each. These contain details from the ecclesiastical registers held in the British Library which are "contemporary copies of registers of baptisms, marriages and burials sent to London for the information of the East India Company and the India Office" The certified copies are transcriptions with data extracted from the ecclesiastical records. Because of the possibility of error with any transcription, for family history purposes copies of the microfilmed register pages are preferable. Copies can be obtained at no cost by using the microfilm digital copying machines in the reading room which scan to email or memory stick. Hard copies can be obtained cheaply from the microfilm copiers - also in the reading room. Note that sometimes the name of the church may be on a different page to the record you require. The records for a church may extend over several pages and the name of the church usually appears either at the beginning, or possibly at the end of these records, included in the words of certification by the chaplain/minister/priest for that church. [https://www.bl.uk/help/search-the-india-office-records-for-baptisms-marriages-and-burials Search the India Office records for Baptisms Marriages and Burials]. '''A great many of these images are now also available on the pay site [[Findmypast|findmypast]]''', which would be the most common option used by those who cannot personally visit the British Library, but . However for ecclesiastical records, where images are not available on findmypastdue to privacy considerations, unless you have a full record reference from elsewhere it is believed you can not possible to order a non-certified image in terms of [https://www.bl.uk/digitisation-services/ordering-images Ordering images] and ([https://www.bl.uk/digitisation-services/pricing Pricing]) as the findmypast transcript only provides a partial record reference as it does not include the page (folio) number. If ordering an image online, include IOR as part of the catalogue description.
:'''Note''' above paragraph that the cheaper register copies will be preferable for family history purposes.
:'''Note''' some documents cannot be photographed digitally - eg some european manuscripts - and you would need to use the Library's imaging services to obtain copies.
: '''Note''' some India Office records from the British Library, including all the ecclesiastical records, are available for free on [[FamilySearch]] digitised microfilms - refer [[FamilySearch]] for links to the FamilySearch Library catalogue and [[FamilySearch Centres]] for information about viewing digitised microfilms. However, for some researchers, [[FamilySearch Centres]] will not be geographically convenient.
==Contact information==
The British Library can be contacted via the means below. The Library will provide a limited research service and can supply copies of records and documents, particularly, if you have the reference of an item you would like and cannot visit - charges apply. For baptisms, marriages and burials, consider whether you need a certified copy, refer above, as for genealogical purposes, a photocopy of the record may be preferable. [[APAC]] also hold a list of professional researchers familiar with the collections. Please, however, note that, as mentioned above, FIBIS can provide research assistance and copies of documents for FIBIS members unable to visit the Library. As stated above, some India Office records from the British Library, including all the ecclesiastical records, are available for free at [[FamilySearch Centres]].
