Scotlands People: duplicate entries?

[Stuart273]

Hi all.
Apologies if this has been covered before, but I'm a little confused by what appear to be duplicate entries on the system.
An example: Joseph Robert M Wellcoat appears twice in the births - once as registered in St George, Edinburgh City and once in St Giles, Edinburgh City. Both in 1901 but with different GROS numbers. Wellcoat was not that common a name around that time so the chances of it being different people are remote.
Same kind of thing with a George Wellcoat in 1894 - once in Milton and once in Blackfriars, both Glasgow City and different GROS numbers.
I've found a similar thing with marriages - 4 separate entries for a couple, two with one version of the grooms name and two with another, all four have the same spouse, place and year and all four have the same GROS number (no specific details on here because the couple will still be alive).
Final example: 2 separate entries for the same bride, same first name  but different surnames for the groom, same place and same GROS number (again both still living).
Is there a part of the system used that I don't understand, or are there glitches that I don't know about please? Any help gratefully accepted.
Cheers
Stuart

[Isabel H]

At one time births were registered in the district where they occurred, and also in the district where the family normally resided. The hospital may have been in a different district, or the mother may have gone back to her parents' home for the birth.

If the marriages you refer to are from the OPRs, and bride and groom were from different parishes, proclamation of banns would have been made in both parishes, so two entries would be expected.

If they are from statutory registers, then I think it is just one entry cross-referenced in the index because the parties involved were known by different versions of their names.

[Forfarian]

An example: Joseph Robert M Wellcoat appears twice in the births - once as registered in St George, Edinburgh City and once in St Giles, Edinburgh City. Both in 1901 but with different GROS numbers. Wellcoat was not that common a name around that time so the chances of it being different people are remote.
Same kind of thing with a George Wellcoat in 1894 - once in Milton and once in Blackfriars, both Glasgow City and different GROS numbers.

From Vital Registration by G R Bisset-Smith: Where a child is born in a district different from the [parents'] domicile, the Registrar is directed to enter the domicile in Column (4); and if the domicile is in Scotland, to transmit a copy of the entry within eight days to the Registrar of the district containing the domicile, who transcribes the entry into his Register ....

I've found a similar thing with marriages - 4 separate entries for a couple, two with one version of the grooms name and two with another, all four have the same spouse, place and year and all four have the same GROS number (no specific details on here because the couple will still be alive).
Final example: 2 separate entries for the same bride, same first name  but different surnames for the groom, same place and same GROS number (again both still living).

If either the bride or the groom is known by more than one surname, or has changed his or her surname for whatever reason, the marriage will be indexed under both or all surnames used by either one. Also if a name is double-barrelled it should be indexed twice, once with the full double surname, and once with the second component only. So if a woman who has been widowed once and divorced twice marries a man with a double-barrelled surname, you would get eight listings in the index, but only one GROS reference because there is only one certificate.

[Stuart273]

Thanks very much both of you for your responses. So am I right in thinking there'd be no point getting certificate copies for both the births for example as they would both show exactly the same thing?

[Isabel H]

In the examples of double birth registrations I have come across, both copies gave the same information.

For births in 1901 there's no need to buy certificate copies as they contain the same as what is on the  register entries available to view on ScotlandsPeople at a much lower cost.  You can save a copy or print it out as you wish.

[Stuart273]

Thanks for your help Isabel. I did of course mean the registry entries from scotlandspeople rather than ordering certificates, just the way I phrased it. It's late 

[Rosinish]

Forfarian,

Have to say your explanations are always worthy, understandable (in laymen's terms) & a great help to many.

Annie

[Forfarian]

Thank you, Annie, you are very kind.

I take no credit, of course, for the extract from Bisset-Smith's book Vital Registration.

[Forfarian]

Thanks very much both of you for your responses. So am I right in thinking there'd be no point getting certificate copies for both the births for example as they would both show exactly the same thing?

Yes, you are right. Don't waste your credits on the second certificate.