In re Cassie's comment about not being allowed to see her cert til it was mailed: I requested a rellies death info from a City Hall here in the States. I did "fib" and say that the guy I wanted was my Great Grandfather- as I had already run into the "If they are not related to you- and how exactly do they KNOW???-- you can't get the info"-- well from some states anyways. So- the person on the other end of the phone told me that as the person on the cert was listed as "single" it was therefor impossible for him to be my Great Grandfather! Gee I wonder what school yard she was hanging out in when I was learning the "Facts of Life"? LOL! And after I received a wedding cert from England for my Great Great Great Grandparents I went to the local Staples Copy Shop and tried to have it laser copied. I was told that it was "Copyright" and there for I could not have it copied! I pointed out that the cert was dated 1869 and surely the people it was referring to were long dead- and if they were NOT I have a few questions for them!!!!--- and this moved them not a bit. A friend who happened to work at the shop took me aside and told me to go to the local Kinko's which had a self serve copier that used the laser tech. A few minutes later I was the proud possessor of several very nice color copies. No one paid any attention to what I was copying!!!! In New York you practically have to give your genetic info to get a copy of a cert etc but in New Jersey no one seems to much care and they give you all the info you need very willingly. In Pennsylvania they refused at first to send me the birth and death certs for my mothers sister as I was not closely related enough! I wrote back and explained that I needed the info to settle an estate and I was the ONLY relative left standing and got the info right away. Amazing. A funny- sort of- I called to find out who all was buried in a family grave in New Jersey- having discovered a total of 16 people buried in the Birmingham side of the family plot--- and the woman on the phone told me that the grave would hold four- and would I be needing the grave anytime soon? I guess what they were asking was if ANYONE in the family was being buried but some how I heard it as : Are YOU planning to use it anytime real soon???? Creepy! But funny when you think about it. And I had never really thought about asking to be buried there in any case but now- well you never know. I do agree that I would not want my kids- all born during or after 1984- to find that their birth certs etc were avail to the general public. Anyone could use that info for a false passport or identity theft couldn't they? judith in New York