Hi List, >>Joshua Hirst January 1 1681/82 (St. Mary the Virgin Church) The actual wording in the St Mary's register is: January Joshua the son of George Hirst baptized 1st day On the previous page is April 1681, and all the other months are without their own year, until April following this January which is labelled April 1682. You're correct, Roy, it must have been the "professional researcher" who applied his own wording. I will happily do some lookups in this online Mirfield register for anyone who wants to check the actual words. If you enjoy these date problems, try some genealogy using a lunar calendar! I was involved in a Jewish family question some time ago where the wedding certificate was written in Aramaic, and had to be sent to the British Museum for translation. The BM did not supply a full translation, giving their own words in a description instead, and gave the date of the marriage in our calendar system. (The Jewish calendar has its own months and uses letters for the numbers in their year - today's date is 23 Tevet 5768). What the expert had failed to point out to the family was that the New Year is sometime in September, quite far enough away from Jan 1st to give a disturbing discrepancy when compared with a birth date of the firstborn recorded in the civil system. Whatever calendar you live by, have a good year. Maggie