Everything but the information in the medical part of the form, (doctor or coroner's job) and the part about burial (probably comes from the funeral company) is provided by the informant. Given that memory is imperfect, especially under stress, and given that anyone in the family, even a granddaughter's husband, could be giving the information, it's not surprising there are a lot of errors. It's always wise to consider the source! In many cases the informant is simply the records office at the hospital, which takes very little information from an incoming patient...especially one near death!... or the Public Trustee's office if the person had no relations around. To verify such information, the registrar's office would have to undertake extensive research -- and that's not what they are there for. I occasionally see slightly different, more precise information in a person's probate file, from that on their death registration. On the report form that Vital Statistics fills out, re the Wills Notice Search, (a required process -- checking to see if the deceased registered a will) there is a line for the birthdate and birthplace of the deceased. Between the time of filling out the death registration, and the time that the estate is processed, more exact information may come to light in the personal papers of the deceased or from talking to family, so you see just "England" as place of birth on the death registration, and "Windsor, England" on the wills search. Sometimes it IS the job of the executor or administrator of the estate to find out more about the family, make sure all heirs are found, or at least make an effort. Of course there is a limit to how much time an administrator will spend on researching and many heirs are never found. I've noticed the declaration regarding the search for missing heirs usually takes the format "have made numerous inquiries" which doesn't sound like they've done much more than ask acquaintances or neighbours who may only have met the man five years before his death. We all know how much work it can be to trace back through the life of one ancestor, and you can bet the Vital Statistics office isn't remotely interested in taking on any part of that task! So if there's a discrepancy, don't stop at getting the death registration. Check other sources. For tracing the length of time a person was in British Columbia, I'd use the city directories if enough is known about where the person lived. Voters' Lists can be helpful too, but they were only compiled in years when there was an election. BC Archives has all these, also a guide to tell for what years voters' lists exist. One amazing find I had, when searching for the date a family arrived in BC from England, was finding a man's name in the BC Sessional Papers (detailed annual report of the provincial government). He was a farmer, but was hired to run the ferry across a river in his remote area, so we got several other facts besides a date for his arrival in that area. You never know what you might find! Claudia Cole Independent Research Agent 304 - 1960 Lee Avenue Victoria BC V8R 4W8 Canada 250 598-7859 [email protected] -----Original Message----- From: debi [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Sunday, March 20, 2005 11:21 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [CAN-BC] informant on death registration question Goodmorning list - I have a question about the death registration information. Who gives the information regarding ' years in province', date of immigration etc. Does this information all come from the informant?. The reason I'm asking is because I don't think the information given was correct. Is the info verified at all - do they check for the actual immigration dates??. Many thanx for your help................debi ==== CAN-BRITISH-COLUMBIA Mailing List ==== Visit the British Columbia Gen Web page at http://www.rootsweb.com/~canbc/ -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.308 / Virus Database: 266.7.4 - Release Date: 3/18/2005 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.308 / Virus Database: 266.7.4 - Release Date: 3/18/2005