Nature of Source
Registers of British and foreign passengers who were born, married or died at sea on British registered vessels or vessels registered in the colonies. The requirement to register these events resulted from the introduction of civil registration in 1837 in England and Wales but did not extend to events that occurred on foreign soil. The registers also included British subjects travelling on foreign registered ships carrying passengers to or from the UK. The registers were compiled from the ships’ official logs and information given by the ship’s masters to the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen and its predecessor the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen (RGSS). Be aware that problems occurred with the quality of record keeping on board as many passengers were not recorded at all by the authorities or the details about the passengers was often wrong. The RGSS transferred details of the event to the relevant General Register Office for England and Wales, Scotland (from 1855) and Ireland (from 1864).
Deaths at sea have been officially registered since 1837 for deaths occurring in British waters and for vessels sailing from a British port. Up to 1889 separate series of registers were kept for seamen and passengers but in 1890 a combined series was introduced. In theory the event should appear in the appropriate local registry, however about a half of the events were never reported with the only record of the event remaining in these registers.
Also check newspapers for reports of disasters at sea. Searching the Official Index to The Times and Palmer’s Index to The Times, 1790-1905 which carry lists of shipping accidents will show whether the incident attracted national coverage. Local newspapers might carry coverage and provide more details. If the accident occurred further afield then foreign newspapers should also be consulted. Another source for a death at sea can be found on memorials commemorating lives lost at sea which can be found at the port from which the boat sailed or nearer to the scene of the accident. The National Maritime Museum hosts a database of maritime memorials containing records of over 6000 church, cemetery and public memorials to seafarers and victims of maritime disasters.
See also
Consular and Overseas Records of Births/Baptisms, Marriages and Deaths/Burials
Merchant Navy – Death At Sea Indexes
Where Found
The National Archives (BT 158, Registers of Births, Deaths and Marriages of Passengers at Sea, 1854-1890; BT 159, Registers of Deaths at Sea of British Nationals, 1875-1888; BT 160, Registers of Births at Sea of British Nationals, 1875-1891; BT 334, Registers and Indexes of Births, Marriages and Deaths of Passengers and Seamen at Sea, 1891-1972; RG 32-RG 36, General Register Office: Miscellaneous Foreign Returns, 1831-1969)
Merseyside Maritime Museum (Registers and records of Births, Deaths and Marriages at Sea and records of shipping companies including the Cunard Line)
The National Maritime Museum (Returns of Births and Deaths of Passengers, 1939-1963)
General Register Office for England and Wales (The General Register Office holds records covering England and Wales of births, deaths, marriages registered from July 1837 as well as overseas births, marriages and deaths, civil partnerships, stillbirths and adoptions. Full Certificates of birth marriage and death are available to order. Historic birth and death indexes can be searched online at the GRO website)
Period Covered
1854 – 1960
Genealogical Value
Births
- Name, date of birth and sex.
- Name of father, rank or profession or occupation of father. Father’s nationality/birthplace and last place of abode.
- Name of mother and maiden surname of mother. Mother’s nationality/birthplace and last place of abode.
- Name of ship, official number and port of registry.
Deaths
- Name of deceased, age, sex, date of death, place of death, cause of death and remarks.
- Nationality and birthplace and last place of abode
- Rating for seamen, rank or profession or occupation for non-seamen.
- Name of ship, official number and port of registry.
Marriages
- Names of both parties, ages, whether single, widow or widower and profession or occupation.
- Fathers’ names, professions or occupations.
- Name of ship and official number.
Further References
- Annal, David & Collins, Audrey. Birth, Marriage and Death Records: A Guide for Family Historians: Pen & Sword Books, 2012
- Higgs, Edward. Life, Death And Statistics: Civil Registration, Censuses And The Work Of The General Register Office, 1836-1952: Local Population Studies, 2004
- Watts, Christopher T. and Watts, Michael J. Tracing Births, Deaths and Marriages at Sea: Society of Genealogists, 2004
Websites
www.familyrelatives.com/articles/details.php?aid=46 (Family Relatives Article: British Overseas Records. Guide to overseas birth, marriage and death records including military and consular)
www.findmypast.co.uk/helpadvice/knowledge-base/overseas-military (findmypast Knowledge base guide to overseas records)
P&O Heritage
Researching births, marriages and deaths at sea. This is a guide to researching both national records and P&O records for births, marriages and deaths at sea.
www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/bmds_bt.php (Guide to Birth, Marriage and Death records onboard ships)
https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://yourarchives.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php?title=Births,_Marriages_and_Deaths_at_Sea (The National Archives: Your Archives Guide: Births, Marriages and Deaths at Sea)
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/birth-marriage-death-sea-or-abroad (The National Archives Research Guide: How to look for records of births, marriages and deaths at sea or abroad. This is a short guide to finding records of births, marriages and deaths of British citizens at sea on British registered ships or in other countries)
https://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/overseas-births-marriages-and-deaths-records-in-the-national-archives (The National Archives Media: Overseas births, marriages and deaths: records in The National Archives)
https://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/tracing-births-and-deaths-at-sea (The National Archives Media: Tracing births and deaths at sea)
www.gov.uk/research-family-history-general-register-office (Research your family history using the General Register Office)
National Maritime Museum
Research guide A3: Tracing family history from maritime records including Births, deaths and marriages at sea. How you can find out about family history at the Museum.
www.theshipslist.com/ships/Wrecks (Ship Wrecks)
Online Databases
www.ancestry.co.uk (UK, Registers and Indexes of Births, Marriages and Deaths of Passengers and Seamen at Sea, 1891-1922. This collection comprises records of births, marriages, and deaths of passengers and seamen while they were at sea. The records are dated between 1891 and 1972 and include information for British citizens and foreign-born passengers aboard British ships. The records are held in TNA series BT 334)
https://bmdregisters.co.uk (BMDRegisters: Registers compiled from ships’ official logs of births, deaths and marriages of passengers at sea by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen (RGSS) and its predecessor held by TNA in series BT 158, BT 159 and BT 160)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Global, Find A Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current. This database contains an index to cemetery and burial details posted on Find A Grave by volunteers who upload images of grave markers from around the world as well as photos, biographies and other details)
www.findmypast.co.uk (British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms. Search birth records of children born to those working within the armed forces, merchant navy, and consular forces, as well as, civilian ship passengers. The original records are held by the General Register Office and The National Archives)
www.findmypast.co.uk (British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages. Search records of British armed forces members and civilians who were married abroad and at sea. The collection has been compiled from records held by the General Register Office and The National Archives)
www.findmypast.co.uk (British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials. Search records of British armed forces members who died serving their country overseas, British civilians who died while travelling or working overseas, and individuals, including seamen, who died at sea. The collection has been compiled from records held by the General Register Office and The National Archives)
www.familysearch.org (United Kingdom, Maritime Births, Marriages, and Deaths, 1787-1933. Transcribed index with images available at findmypast UK)
www.theshipslist.com/Forms/marriagesatsea.html (Marriages At Sea extracted from TNA series BT 334/117 by Debbie Beavis)
CD Roms
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