Carol wrote : >Hi fellow seekers... I am trying to find info for my >gggrandfather who was born in Greensboro in 1852. Did they even have birth >certificates back then? If so where would copies of them be kept? If not, >can someone give me some ideas of where I might start digging for such >information? His name was Nereus Harper Leonard. ********************* Carol, North Carolina didn't require birth certificates until 1913. 1) Death certificates were begun about the same time, so if he died after that time his birth and death dates should be on that. You would need to check with the county for this information) 2) If he died in Greensboro, he might also be listed in the cemetery records for Guilford Co., NC. 3)Sometimes, a bride and groom's ages were listed on their marriage bonds. 4)Also, if Nereus was born in 1852, you could check the 1860 census records for the Leonard families in Guilford Co. All of the members of a household were listed as well as their ages. This isn't foolproof however, because the ages given on a census record are frequently off somewhat. Good hunting, Vickie Crim Davis vcdavis@netunlimited.net