is it possible for the DOB on a death certificate to be wrong?

[Emma Pierce]

As has already been said, it is not unusual for birth dates to differ from that given by the informant of the death.

The middle name Field may be a clue to her father's name, quite often the father's surname was given as a middle name. On the other hand, Albert Field LAWRENCE could be a made up name. It was not uncommon for an unmarried mother to use her father, brother or an uncle's name for a fictitious father of her child. I have this in both mine and my husband's  family.

I have little doubt that the birth certificate you have is the correct one. If I have followed  the right family in the census, her mother was born  Clara Harriet  LAWRENCE and had a younger brother Albert who may have given her the idea for the name.

Jebber

Hi Jebber many thanks for this. The 1893 birth certificate I ordered states that her mothers name is Clara Harriet Lawrence with no father on it.

[Marmalady]

Also remember that just because there is no fathers name given on the Birth Certificate, it does not mean that the mother & child did not know who the father was.
For unmarried parents, BOTH had to be present at the registration for the father's name to be  entered. So if the father was unable to accompany the mother for whatever reason (eg being at work) then he would not be listed -- even tho he may well have been very mush a presence in the family's life.
So a father's name on a later marriage certificate, may not be just a made up name but the actual name of the father

[Braindead]

Marmalady, thanks for that very useful piece of information. It explains why there is no father on my great grandma's birth certificate, yet he is listed on her elder sister's.
Going back to the original post, the same great grandma was shown as being born in 1877 yet she was actually born in 1876.