Why register some children and not others?

[littleem1906]

I'm looking into Adelaide Pearce (born 1843, Birmingham). She appears in the 1861 census with her parents Henry (a steel pen maker) and Emma Pearce. She also has a brother, Henry, born in 1850/51.

Neither Adelaide or Henry had their birth's registered. I found the family in 1851 (mis-transcribed as Peake) but neither Adelaide or Henry appear on this census. There are other children and all but two of them have birth's registered. Details as follows:
Mary Ann Pearce - 1839 - mmn Silvester
Ann - 1841 - not registered
Adelaide - 1843 - not registered
Sarah Jane - 1849 (died 1850) - mmn Silvester
Thomas - 1851 - mmn Silvester
Henry - 1851 - not registered
Sarah - 1854 (died 1855) - mmn Silvester
Alfred - 1857 (died 1857) - mmn Silvester

I did wonder whether Thomas and Henry are the same child. Is that possible? Adelaide's absence in the 1851 census is odd so I did wonder whether she and Ann are perhaps the same child. Is that a long shot?

Why would a family register the births of most of their children and not others?

[Pheno]

Adelaide is recorded on the gro website as Adelaide Pearce Mar 1842 Dursley, but mmn is Pearce so I think you need to check all these children out to ascertain they are the same family.

Use gro.gov.uk where you can use mmn to search.  It is a free site but you do have to register.

Pheno

[Kay99]

I would think that it is likely that Thomas and Henry are the same child - born in the same year  Also the change from Ann to Adelaide is possible.   

Kay

[littleem1906]

I did get the birth record for the Adelaide Pearce born in Dursley to see if it would provide any insight. It doesn't tally with my Adelaide's marriage record. On her marriage record her father is Henry Pearce, a steel tool pen maker.

The Adelaide born in Dursley has a strange birth record. The name Adelaide Pearce doesn't actually appear on it at all. The name given is Emma. The father is called Cornelius Vizard and the mother's name is Emma Vizard (formerly Spencer). How this relates to Adelaide Pearce is unclear. An error perhaps?

[Kay99]

It sounds like you were sent the wrong certicate with Emma Vizard having the same reg details

VIZARD, EMMA        SPENCER     
GRO Ref: 1842  M Qter  DURSLEY  Volume 11  Page 332

[littleem1906]

Oh how frustrating! I might contact them and see if they can send the correct one. I'd be really interested to see if the Dursley registration is my Adelaide. I'm not sure why she'd have been registered there when all the other children were registered in Birmingham, but we'll see.

Do you think it's possible that Ann in 1851 is actually Adelaide? Similar age and there is no birth record for an Ann. Only Mary Ann (1839) who appears in the same census so it can't be her. It would explain why I can't find Adelaide in 1851.

[Kay99]

The couple seem to have had their children with some large gaps,  I think it's possible Ann and Adelaide are the same child but can't think of a way to confirm it in the abscence of birth or bapt certs 

Kay