Jason If you have a birth certificate (which must be 1837 or later), it would be highly unusual to find a related Bastardy Order. Bastardy Orders were related to the Poor Law Union legislation and do not usually occur after 1834 when the Poor Law Union laws were changed. After this time claims against alleged fathers would have been pursued through Petty Sessions, if they were pursued at all. Jon Baker Jason Holmes wrote: > Hello all. I was asking a while ago about Mary Ann SPRATT. I have now > received her birth certificate, but now stuck with it. Charani wrote: You have very little chance of finding out who the father was unless there's a bastardy order, ie Harriet sought maintenance from the father for the child.