In a message dated 30/05/2011 21:07:49 GMT Daylight Time, [email protected] writes: what happens when a single mother registers a birth has changed over the years. Prior to the Birth and Death Act 1874 the mother could name anyone as the father wihout him being present or agreeing Dick is correct, I should have said that in the case of illegitimacy, the father was supposed to be present from 1874. Both before and after that date it was not unusual for a fictitious father to be named to conceal illegitimacy, sometimes the mother would name her own father, brother or uncle as the child's father, so the surname would appear the same as her own. Even after 1874, it was still possible for a woman to name the father in his absence if they were living as a married couple, you did not have to show any proof that you were married. No certificate should be taken at face value, the information is only as reliable as was given at the time. I have come across numerous cases, both in my own and friends family trees, where the information has been, shall I say, massaged to conceal parentage, ages, present and previous marital status, even as recently as the 1950's. I have two certificates dated 1912 and 1915, where the mother was the informant, where, to all intents and purposes the parents appear to be married, all the information is correct, including the mother's maiden name, with one vital difference, the family surname was changed to a vaguely similar sounding name starting with the same initial. This was done to conceal both the children's illegitimacy and the fact that the couple, although living together, were both still married to other people at the time. Regards, Jennifer