In a message dated 02/01/2007 20:26:00 GMT Standard Time, [email protected] writes: am helping my half brother Peter trace his ancestors specifically the GIBSON family. He has very little information about his ancestors except that his father was Andrew Henshaw GIBSON - lived in Dorset and died in Somerset not so long ago. Andrew's father was Captain H.H. GIBSON and was believed to be from Paisley, Scotland. Apparently a GIBSON married a descendant of Joshua Reynolds but at this stage it is not possible to confirm it. The golden rule is to go from the known to the unknown ..so the first thing that Peter needs is a copy of his parents's marriage certificate. This will give him the full name of his grandfather and his occupation and from his age at marriage an approximate year of birth. If you're lucky he'll have been alive at the time of the 1901 census but if not, then Peter needs a copy of his grandfather's birth certificate in order to find the names of his parents. Scottish certificates are available to personal callers at Register Housein Edinburgh or online at scotlandspeople.gov.uk Death certs up to 1956, marriages to 1926 and births to 1906. Irene