Genealogy Chat

My Mother was adopted back in 1932 I would like to try and find the reason for this as she was adopted by her birth mothers sister. All parties are now dead does anyone know or can tell me if I can obtain a copy of the adoption hearing records. I have her birth cert with her birth parents names on it and it appears that they had more children later in life

I'm not certain but I think only the adopted person themselves can access the adoption files.

Kath. x

The adoption file 'dies' when the person to whom it relates passes away.............so you will not be able to access any info.

Do you know when her parents died? If she was orphaned this might explain the adoption. However, you seem to think they had more children - how sure are you about this?
Jan

Were your mother's birth parents married at the time of her birth? Perhaps they were not married and young so your mother was adopted into the family and the parents later went on to marry and have more children which they kept.

Kath. x

Are you sure she was adopted officially? It might be her Aunt just took her in, for whatever reason.
Jan

Ignore flick, she/he hasnt a clue :-D

Access to birth records dies with the adoptee YES !

But you already have that, that is the birth certificate.

The records are held by the adoption agencie/court where the adoption took place.

I know this because my mothers best friend applied for her deceased fathers, they still had them and she actually found out who her real grand parents were.

Im trying to find my real great grand-parents and that was the first route i took, unfortunatly all records before 1950 where my grandads adoption took place no longer exist.

So im trying to change the law instead :-D so i can know who they were and do a real family tree

Best of luck and dont give up, rach

Hello Rachel,

You have replied to a post from earlier this year and it seems that David did not return to read the replies he received.


You can try clicking on his name and sending your message that way. If he still has the same email address, he will received it.


Cx

Do you work at being rude, Rachel? Or does it come naturally?

Thankyou Cynthia for letting me no, I appreceate it.

Flick, no im afraid i dont work at being rude, im just too honest at times, if this offends you then i apologise.

I just like to give people hope, and i hate reading messages that are so negative with such delicate subjects at stake.

This issue is extremely close to my heart, i as of yet do not know who my real great-grandparents were and if i had recieved a reply like that. Especially with regards to the fact that i know you can try to gain access to adoption records as it is completely different to access to birth records.

I know this from my years of research and speaking directly to the courts and the `General Register Office`, that reply would have dis- heartned me so much.

Maybe just try adding a smile or a bit of hope, instead of just the facts , thats the end of it, give up kind of attitude.

Were here to help each other at the end of the day

kind regards
Rachel

Rachel, as the law stands at the moment - what Flick put is perfectly correct.

As an adoptee myself, do I think that my children have a right to know who their ( as you put it) 'real' grandparents are if I have chosen not to tell them?

My childrens real grandparents are the ones that administered hugs and sticking plaster.

Are bith certs and adption records the same thing? nope!
Birth cert tells who
The adoption records tell the whys's and there where for's

The adoption file does Not always contain the names of the origonal parents in fact its very common that before 1975 when the law changed that they contain anything at all.

I wrote to the courts regarding my late grandfather, they were willing to let me have hid adoption records. However they only had records dating back to 1950.

Im talking about adoptions before 1975 not after.

My mothers best friend was in the same situation however her late fathers documents still existed and she found out who they were as she was allowed the files.

if you dont believe me ring the courts if you were adopted before 1975 or whoever delt with the adoption. Ask them, your child would not be allowed the files as you are still alive and im guessing were adoptedf after the legislation changed in 1975. If thats the case then yes your circumstances are under different rules.

Descendents of Desceasaed Adopted Persons, that is what i am, my grand father was adopted in 1934, if the courts had his adoption records, they were going to allow me them due to the time-scale.

It was explained to me by the `General Regisrar Office` to ask for these, however its rare that any details of the biological parents will be in their.

It is mainly just details of the circumstances of the adoption, from that time period.

I am not allowed my grand fathers origonal birt certificate as that dies with the adoptee. He never knew what or who they were. That is what is called `access to birth records`. This is only held by the GRO who have all of the linking information.

kind regards, rachel

Thank everyone for there advice I have written to the court where the addoption took place and will post the answer when I hear from them

And what, pray, is unhelpful about giving factual information?

I know you've got a bee in your bonnet, Rachel, but until the law changes..............the situation is as it is.

"Ignore flick, she/he hasnt a clue" isn't being 'honest'....it's being downright offensive

Agreed, the comment was offensive and therefore contravenes the terms of use of the boards.

There are far better, and much politer, ways of getting the point across

Happy to help Rachel, but it would have been better if you had omitted the comment re Flick or have said something like "My experience has been different Flick".

Sometimes, it's not what we say, it's the way that we say it.


If you see what I mean.


Cx/


Cx.

I do so agree with you, Penny, about a child's 'real' relations..........they are, as you say, the ones who loved them, and were 'there' for them.

'Biological' relatives are what Rachel's crusade is about. Using the correct terminology is important.

My Mother was adopted back in 1932 I would like to try and find the reason for this as she was adopted by her birth mothers sister.
_____________

To get back to David post.

In my family's case,
the family was "split up" because of the Depression Years.

( The Great Depression in the United Kingdom, also known as the Great Slump, was a period of national economic downturn in the 1930s, which had its origins in the global Great Depression. It was the largest and most profound economic depression of the 20th century for the United Kingdom.)

EXAMPLE
One of the children was sent to her aunt in New York & when her father got employment again, she returned.

So the answer could just be simply economics.

If it was just economics, I would doubt if it was an official adoption.

The ONLY way to know, is to purchase the birth certificate & if it does NOT say adopted, this would go to most likely mean they just helped a family member.

Unless you have a copy of your mother's birth certificate that is not the original issued at the registration of her birth & that does say adopted ?



:-)

I will make sure of that cynthia, looking and reading it back now you are right.

I apologise for any offence i have caused, It takes a real person to say sorry and , I am sorry.

David good luck with everything. My mums best friends found out her grandparents that way, she just wrote to the courts asking for the adoption file.

You all ready have all the origonal birth certs and are just wanting to know the circumstances.

That is what will be in the adoption file, if anything. Some files do not contain anything at all, it just depends on the time scale.

Before 1975 the law said all legal ties would be severed with biolgical parents and child. Things have cahnged since and in december of 2005 the law changed to allow those mothers to find their biological children via an intermeadiary service.

Things are changing every day, so basically the longer the time that has passed, the better your chances becasue you arnt trying to find anybody and nobody can then be hurt.

My biological great grandparents if still alive would be probabley in their hundreds now, hence the courts allowing me the records if they had them. However like i said the records mostly never hold the origonalbirth certificate or identity to the biological birt parents.

Good luck again, and im glad to help

kind regards
Rach