Baptismal records
I have a batch Church of the Province of South Africa, Parish Registers, 1801–2004 [Part E][M3CK-4CD] Hand written at the top of the page is "the following baptisms were not entered in the right place. No record can be found of them anywhere".
My question: of the 8 records on the two pages, 5 of them have the birth date after the baptismal date. It seems they may have just been entered in the wrong column. Should I reverse them so that they are born before baptism?
Best Answer
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That is a tough one, but we are told to type what we see. Even though it appears the birth and baptism dates have been entered into the wrong columns, we need to type what is written on the image. As indexers, we are recording what is written on the document, without making assumptions. The PI under What to Remember, bullet point 2, says the completed index and links to digital images will be freely accessible online. A researcher, when led to the image, will see the dates recorded in the columns.
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Answers
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The batch M3CK-4CD, it is clear- there was a registrar error, the baptism dates entered in the wrong column, but we are told to type what we see. Even though it appears the birth and baptism dates have been entered into the wrong columns, we need to type what is written on the image. As indexers, we are recording what is written on the document, without making assumptions. The PI under What to Remember, bullet point 2, says the completed index and links to digital images will be freely accessible online. A researcher, when led to the image, will see the dates recorded in the columns.
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Mirevo is correct as far as the project instructions are concerned.
Historically speaking, and after indexing/reviewing thousands of South African vital records,
I noticed the column heading Declared Day of Birth. South Africa was still a British Colony until the early 1960s. Birth/marriage/death registration varied from one province to the other.
Once it was a requirement, not everybody registered their child in the first month of birth. Many non-whites (e.g., native Afrikaans and Asian Indians) were illiterate and unaware they were required to or were unable to travel to a district office to register. Some did it years later when they had more than one child to register. So there is often a gap between the actual year and the declared/registered year.
So anytime you see Declared or Registered in a date column heading, that is a hint that the actual date might be different.
Interestingly enough in South Africa, the British considered Asian Indians married when they registered at a Magistrate's office. No ceremony required.
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