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[TSL] British BMD at sea events
Sue Swiggum <swig@ns.sympatico.ca> on 05/07/2007

Don and Stella,

I can't respond about "ships' logs" but I also think a lot of people use 
that term rather generally when seeking a passenger list / 
manifest.    From about 1854 the Captain of British registered ships 
were  'required' to record BMD events at sea and forward a copy of the 
information of those events to the BoT  (Board of Trade), which were later 
supposed to be forwarded to the GRO (General Register Office) . . . some 
helpful Captains or Pursers also made notations on the passenger lists 
themselves.   Seems it was a case of  "woulda / coulda / shoulda" with some 
of these records.

Maybe this is a helpful website  (they quote my website for the marriages 
for the BT 334/117 which includes the marriages found in BT 158, which 
Debbie Beavis transcribed)
Births, Marriages and Deaths At Sea
http://www.familyrecords.gov.uk/frc/research/bmdatsea.htm

Below is an very informative collaborative effort by Harry Dodsworth and 
Debbie Beavis, which Harry posted to TSL seven years ago and I'm re-posting 
in its entirety.   I still use it as a guide.

Sue
-- 
TheShipsList Website
http://www.theshipslist.com/
___________________________________________________
(May 1, 2000)

    I've been trying to reconcile various British BMD at sea records
  with LDS film numbers and this is what I have come up with so far.

    The Board of Trade records (PRO groups BT158, BT159, BT160)
  which cover births, deaths and a few marriages on British
  registered ships from 1854 to 1890 are available from the LDS
  on four films 1419469, 1419470, 1419471, 1419472. These are not well
  organised, or usefully indexed and an event may be recorded on any
  one of the four reels.
    However these are real registers (sometimes with gossippy comments)
  which make for interesting reading.

    Later BoT BMD records in group BT334 (1890 to 1972) don't appear to
  have been filmed by the LDS.

    These Board of Trade records were supposed to be passed to the
  Registrar to be used in a GRO series. Sometimes this was not done,
  and sometimes entries were made directly to the GRO so are absent
  from the BoT registers. Also the GRO series started earlier.

    GRO Births at sea from 1837 to 1965 are available on 56 microfiche;
  however these are only indexes which contain names, dates and in some
  years, ship names. LDS Fiche numbers 6137268 - 6137322
    The LDS Family Search Library Catalog will identify which fiche
  relates to which year.

    GRO Deaths at sea from 1837 to 1965 are on 160 microfiche, again
  these are only indexes. LDS Fiche numbers 6137189 to 6137266.
    The LDS Family Search Library Catalog will identify which fiche
  or fiches relate to which year.

    Observant readers may wonder what happened to microfiche 6137267.
  This is listed separately as:
    Index to informal certificate of births at sea (1-41) 1839 - 1867

    Marriages at sea were really rather rare and the GRO doesn't have
  a separate series. There is an RG34 series of miscellaneous foreign
  marriages for British nationals and at the end of the places named,
  the list adds - and at sea. I've no idea how many 'at sea' marriages
  are on the film. LDS have filmed these:

   volume 1, 1826-1870 film number 1818071
   volume 2, 1871-1895             1818072
   volume 3, 1896-1900             1818073
   volume 4, 1900-1905             1818074

    Apparently BoT were passing marriage entries to the GRO but GRO
  were not processing these and were actually denying they had them!
  (source: mariners list)

    The LDS catalog lists many other record groups which may contain
  a few BMD at sea events but the above seem the most likely.
     Note that these records generally refer to events on British
   registered ships whether the people are British or not.
     Also the ships need not have been trading between British
   (Empire) ports; so a birth on a Cunarder sailing from Trieste
  to New York may be recorded.

    I'd like to thank Debbie Beavis of the Mariners List for supplying
  the information about record groups but the connection to LDS numbers
  is my work, so please blame me if the film or fiche numbers are wrong.

--
Harry Dodsworth Ottawa Ontario Canada
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