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General => Technical Help => Topic started by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 11:37 GMT (UK)

Title: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 11:37 GMT (UK)
I ordered a death certificate PDF and when it arrived only the top half showed up.

I contacted GRO they said it should all show up.

I am not technically minded at all and I may be doing something stupid, has anyone got any thoughts on this? Thanks.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Milliepede on Tuesday 12 January 21 11:52 GMT (UK)
Have you tried waiting a little to see if more information loads?

Or scrolling up and down, left and right across the screen to see if more pops into view?
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 12:12 GMT (UK)
Have you tried waiting a little to see if more information loads?

Or scrolling up and down, left and right across the screen to see if more pops into view?

Yes I have tried everything I could think of.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: rosie99 on Tuesday 12 January 21 12:25 GMT (UK)
Are you trying to view on a desktop or something smaller
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 12:33 GMT (UK)
Are you trying to view on a desktop or something smaller

I'm viewing it on a laptop.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Romilly on Tuesday 12 January 21 13:24 GMT (UK)

Try printing it out, and see if the whole Certificate prints.

If it doesn’t, ask for a refund.

Romilly.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Christine53 on Tuesday 12 January 21 13:40 GMT (UK)
None of the pdfs I've had recently show the whole certificate, just the header and the entry information. Can you see any of the details at all ?
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Tickettyboo on Tuesday 12 January 21 13:48 GMT (UK)
If what you downloaded shows the actual entry stating when and where died, name & surname , sex, age, rank or profession, cause of death, informant, when registered

Then that all you get in the pdf versions, its a scan of the actual death register entry  same info as you would get on a cert where the above is photocopied onto the posh bit of paper.


If what you downloaded does not show the details, then go back to the order and click to download it again. Perhaps there was a blip in the connection which cut out the rest of the download?

Boo
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 14:14 GMT (UK)

Try printing it out, and see if the whole Certificate prints.

If it doesn’t, ask for a refund.

Romilly.

I've tried that it only prints what it shows
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: rosie99 on Tuesday 12 January 21 14:18 GMT (UK)

Try printing it out, and see if the whole Certificate prints.

If it doesn’t, ask for a refund.

Romilly.

I've tried that it only prints what it shows

How much information does it give ie. what is missing
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: cuffie81 on Tuesday 12 January 21 14:50 GMT (UK)
If you don't mind sharing the doc then maybe you could attach the PDF and others could check it.

As an aside, some of the PDFs I've received are composed of 2 images, one for the the header of the register and the other for the entry. Viewing the PDF they appear as one but when extracting the images they're actually individual images. On other PDFs there's only a single image.

So it's possible your PDF has 2 images and the one for the entry is corrupted (or something). Maybe.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 15:22 GMT (UK)
It does just show the main information, cuts off at the bottom but what I was looking for isn't there.

I'll explain, it's the informant I am interested in, I know she was illiterate ( if it's the correct person ) and a cert. I have from a similar period shows an X and says the mark of ........ widow

This one just gives a name and relationship to the deceased ( widow ) and I thought it could possibly say mark of in the area that I can't see.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Tickettyboo on Tuesday 12 January 21 15:38 GMT (UK)
Which registration district was the death registered at?

I've just looked at a couple of certs I have where the informant marked X and the part that says
'X, the mark of' is written above the person's name, rather than below the relationship.

That may vary from registrar to registrar though. You could try (if ever we get back to some semblance of normality) emailing the Registrar for the area and asking if there was any indication that she 'signed' or made her mark. If she actually signed her name then the local Registrar has the 'original' register, rather than the copy register which was sent to the GRO and they may be able to tell you if its in a different handwriting to the rest of the entry.

Other than that, it sounds like you have the full entry from the register in the GRO's possession.

Boo
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: cuffie81 on Tuesday 12 January 21 15:40 GMT (UK)
That makes more sense now jaywit, albeit frustrating for you.

Do you see the line at the bottom of the entry, that separates it from the one below? The GRO seem to slice the images along these lines regardless of the info, so I'm wondering if the info from the entry has spread across multi entries, which might explain the GRO's view that you have "all" the info (ie everything between the lines).
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 17:38 GMT (UK)
I can't see the line at the bottom, it cuts off very close to the bottom of the visible words that's why I wondered if there was something underneath that I couldn't see.

It was Woodstock Oxfordshire office and it was in 1882.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: rosie99 on Tuesday 12 January 21 18:14 GMT (UK)
I would also expect any reference to them marking with an x to be by the name and not after the occupation / marital description
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: cuffie81 on Tuesday 12 January 21 18:18 GMT (UK)
I've had a look through a number of mine and those with an 'X' always start with 'X the mark of ...' followed by the name. And the last lines are always the address.

That's not to say every entry is like that but, like Tickettyboo says, it looks like you might have all the info.
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: jaywit on Tuesday 12 January 21 18:30 GMT (UK)
Thanks all, I think I will have to assume she could write, so possibly back to the drawing board as I can't assume the informant was the person I am looking for, when I have done more work I might be back :o
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: Tickettyboo on Tuesday 12 January 21 18:33 GMT (UK)
What was the date range and how many years before this have you seen her mark her X ? Though many people hadn't had opportunities when they were young to be completely literate, as they got older many did (perhaps if their children were learning) become able to at least write their name.

 Boo
Title: Re: Death Certificate PDF only showing top half
Post by: andrewalston on Wednesday 13 January 21 13:46 GMT (UK)
The copy sent by the Registrar to the GRO ought to have tidied up things like an informant's mark being made in the wrong place.

That means that the registers held by the GRO ought to have all the items in their appropriate boxes.

That said, mistakes in transcription do happen!