Hi Roy The page and year references enable you to apply for copies of the relevant certificates - they refer to the registers, where entries would have been made as details were received. You can't look at the registers, but you can apply for certificates of the information therein online at the GRO website. Don't worry that the reference doesn't fit the standard form exactly - just give the details and make it clear it's a marine death. It will cost you. See https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/default.asp FAQs here https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/faqs-overseas.asp You may be able to discount a number of the entries if you know his approximate age. The details on the certificate are likely to include only a brief cause of death (eg fell from aloft, drowned etc) and may not take you much further. But it should give you the date of death and official number of the vessel, which may enable you to track down a copy of the crew agreement and or official log for the vessel and voyage concerned, and (assuming he gave accurate details when he signed on) you may be able to identify him from his place of birth/home address. The Newfoundland web site is the place to start: http://www.mun.ca/mha/ . I have always found the staff at the MHA extremely helpful. If you know that your guy was born at a particular place, or lived somewhere, you can ask them to check the archives to see if you can identify which William Davies he is - you don't have to get copies of ALL the documents, only those you want. There is a fee for research time but in my experience it is usually money well spent. The MHA now have a very interesting section entitled "More than a list of crew" which tells you something of what you might be able to discover from Crew Agreements and Official logs. See http://www.mun.ca/mha/mlc/index.php . I wasn't aware of this until I started to look up the links for you, but there's lots of good research tips there. I would just observe that depending on the DoB of the last child, Davies might have actually died anything up to 9 months earlier - but news may not have reached home by the time his wife registered the birth. So you might need to check 1885 too..... Unless he was the informant himself, of course, in which case you know he was alive then. Cheers Piers -----Original Message----- From: mariners-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:mariners-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of R Davies Sent: 18 July 2011 21:02 To: Mariners@rootsweb.com Subject: [MAR] William Davies Good evening, I have resubscribed to the list with new queries,that I hope can be answered. My great g/father.William Davies, was a seaman who died between 1886 (when his last child was born) and 1891 when his wife was described as "widow" in the census. In the "Overseas Deaths 1761-1991" ,Marine Deaths 1846-1902 section I found the following Surname Name age Vessel Page year Davies WB 53 Berwick Law 166 1866-1866 Davies William 22 Napier 118 " Davies WH 31 Lovaine 127 1887-1887 Davies William 22 Lord McDuff 109 " Davies William 18 Harry Russell 83 1888-1888 Davies William 36 Cartago Nova 112 " Davies William Adult County of Carnavon 162 1889-1889 Davies William 39 Kilmore 63 1891-1891 Davies William 22 Inchlonga 140 " Davies William 16 Sunbeam 167 " Davies William 26 Euphrates 241 " My questions are; How do I get to read the page numbers given? And other sites where I can possibly look for the causes of deaths. I have no idea where,or when William was born, but his widow was 36 in 1891 if that helps. Neither do I have any idea of the ON of the vessels. Apologies for the big ask Roy Davies ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to MARINERS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message