Author Topic: Death records in WW2  (Read 4183 times)

Offline groom

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 21,144
  • Me aged 3. Tidied up thanks to Wiggy.
    • View Profile
Death records in WW2
« on: Tuesday 14 July 09 17:33 BST (UK) »
Hi

I was searching for a death between 1930 and 1940 and it made me wonder just how reliable are the death records between 1939 and 1945. Were all the civilians who died in the Blitz etc recorded or did some just vanish? For instance if a whole family were wiped out who would have reported it?
Something I'd never thought about before.

(Found the one I was looking for in 1931!!)

Jan
Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline nanny jan

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 14,079
  • Russian John
    • View Profile
Re: Death records in WW2
« Reply #1 on: Tuesday 14 July 09 18:53 BST (UK) »
Hi Jan,

I've found some civilian rellies on www.cwgc.org.

I'm sure ARP teams would have been aware of the residents in their area.



Nanny Jan
Howard , Viney , Kingsman, Pain/e, Rainer/ Rayner, Barham, George, Wakeling (Catherine), Vicary (Frederick)   all LDN area/suburbs  Ottley/ MDX,
Henman/ KNT   Gandy/LDN before 1830  Burgess/LDN
Barham/SFK   Rainer/CAN (Toronto) Gillians/CAN  Sturgeon/CAN (Vancouver)
Bailey/LDN Page/KNT   Paling/WA (var)



All census look-ups are crown copyright from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline stanmapstone

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 25,798
    • View Profile
Re: Death records in WW2
« Reply #2 on: Tuesday 14 July 09 19:43 BST (UK) »
Everyone was registered for rationing books, so the names and addresses would be known. If bodies were never found an inquest would be held with a verdict "Presumed killed by enemy action" and their deaths registered as normal.

Stan
Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline stanmapstone

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 25,798
    • View Profile
Re: Death records in WW2
« Reply #3 on: Tuesday 14 July 09 19:48 BST (UK) »
Under the National Registration Act, a 'census' was carried out in 1939. Because of the need to introduce rationing, it was necessary to know everybody's name and where they lived. Identity numbers were assigned to all individuals which were used as the basis for National Health Numbers in 1948.

Stan
Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk


Offline groom

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 21,144
  • Me aged 3. Tidied up thanks to Wiggy.
    • View Profile
Re: Death records in WW2
« Reply #4 on: Tuesday 14 July 09 20:04 BST (UK) »
Under the National Registration Act, a 'census' was carried out in 1939. Because of the need to introduce rationing, it was necessary to know everybody's name and where they lived. Identity numbers were assigned to all individuals which were used as the basis for National Health Numbers in 1948.

Stan

Thanks - that's interesting about the "census" Do you think this will ever be released or would it come under official secrets or something?
Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline stanmapstone

  • RootsChat Marquessate
  • *******
  • Posts: 25,798
    • View Profile
Re: Death records in WW2
« Reply #5 on: Tuesday 14 July 09 22:00 BST (UK) »
The results are stored at the GRO, in Southport and will remain closed until 2040.

Stan
Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk