Genealogy Chat

Hello,

I've recieved a death certificate for a family member (d.1898). The cause of death is 'unknown'. There is no reference to an inquest or coroners report on the certificate.

Where inquests were held is it always listed on the death certificate?

In all cases where cause of death was unknown was an inquest held?

Thankyou.

Who was the informant on the death certificate? If there had been an inquest it would have been the Coroner who was the informant.

If the person died at home and had been ill for sometime there may not have been an inquest even if they were not sure of the cause of death.

Kath. x

If the death was of natural causes there would be no inquest or coroners report, if the death was unknown then there would have been, it is also worth looking at newspapers as it may have been reported in one

Thanks Kath,

The informant was her daughter (present at time of death)- so I guess that means there was no inquest.

I was just a little confused as I'd always believed that where cause of death was not known, there was an inquest.

Thanks for help
Helen x

Thanks Paul- now I am confused!!

The cause of death was not natural causes- but 'unknown'-

the coroner wasn't the informant- so does this mean that no inquest was held?

They would need to determine the cause of death, so hence an inquest or a coroner's court, it worth contacting the local record office and archive to see if they have got any records around the time of the death that you can go and look at

Thanks everyone,

I think I'll do as Paul suggested and check out the papers/ coroners reports at the city library- otherwise I'll be forever wondering!!

Many thanks for you help.

I think in the 1800's they did not always bother with an inquest if there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding a death, even if they did not know the cause.

I have the feeling that you won't find an answer to this since nothing is listed on the death certificate.

Kath. x

Hi Helen
Kathleen makes an important point sometimes if they didn't know the cause of death they would put down "act of god" which meant they didn't know the cause and they didn't pursue it through an inquest, but I do feel it would be worth a visit to the city archives, good luck

I'm not sure I will get any results, as on previous certificates I've had where cause is unknown, as Kathleen says, there has been some indication of coronor/ inquest- but I will check the archives just in case.

If an inquest is held, the informant will always be the coroner. There may be no explicit mention of any inquest however. The coroner may be the informant if he determines some natural cause of death, but doesn't feel any inquest is needed.

Especially in the early days, it's not unusual to have "unkown" or "act of god" or even "dropped down dead" listed as c.o.d., with no inquest held.

Hello Helen
If I read that a relative had died cause unknown I would read it that the doctor at the time simply didn't know. If there is an inquest and the cause of death cannot be proved then it would have been left as an open verdict so if anything else came to light, even years later , the verdict may be changed. As for the act of god, this would be used in a case where for example a tree was blown over in a gale and landed on someone and killed them. It wouldn't need a medical person to explain the death but it would have been described as as Act of God by a coroner if nothing worldly could be blamed-JLe

Helen - what sort of world did your folks live in that doctors were around and affordable?
Out of 37 19th C and 21 20th C d.regos I have in one of my folders, 11 were not certified.

1857 90 [blank]
1857 65 [I can't decypher this]
1863 89 Old Age
1865 75 Old Age
1865 25 Phthisis Pulmonalis
1867 73 Disease of heart
1867 22 Phthisis
1869 95 Paralysis
1873 71 Old Age
1873 80 Old Age & Debility
1904 3m Probably overlain by its mother

If there's been an inquest you would expect to see a marked difference between the date of the death and the date it was registered.

Most deaths are registered soon after the death occurred. With an inquest, there will be a delay.

Rose

Just for info only- after 1874 a doctor had to certify a death in order that a death certificate could be issued.-JLe

I have a death certifcate, where the person reporting it is a corner, states and inquest was held, but the date of death has been put down as the same day as the date of the inquest.

So I am not sure if an inquest would delay registration, I assume it depends on the circumstances of the death, and how soon the coroner is avaliable.

In the case of my ancestor, cause of death is 'disease of the heart' so I am actually guessing he died from a heart attack, and and inquest was held because he was only in his mid-forties and possiably at work at the time.

My great grandfather died in a railway accident at work and the inquest was started on the day of his death and finished the next day, and reported both days in the local newspaper so there wasn't a big delay from the time of death to the death being registered. This was in 1913.

Kath. x

My G/grandfather died in 1906 ..3 January.
He died of Syncope following heart disease
accelerated by alcohol there was an inquest
and it was held on 8th Jan 1906
the coroner was the informant on the death cert .

Thankyou for the replies, they have been helpful and interesting: I haven't made the city Library yet - but will check out if my relative's "unkown" cause of death was subject to any inquiry (Just to satisfy my curiosity). Although, I'm now of the opinion it wasn't- as I'm sure there would be some indication of this on the certificate

Thanks to Janet- "- after 1874 a doctor had to certify a death in order that a death certificate could be issued", I hadn't realised this.

Wilkipedia suggests that all deaths of unknown causes are subject to inquiry- but I assume this refers to today (and not necessarily a 100 years ago).

Re the time delay of certificates- there was two days difference. Not sure if this indicates anything, but will update you on anything I find at the library.

On a lighter note, I once read a thread (a few years ago, on here I think), where someone had laminated death certificates of her ancestors to use as placemats for her dining table- everyone then gave details of the "funniest" deaths of their ancestors- I don't mean to offend anyone, but some of them were hilarious. I'm not sure "unknown" cause of death would entice much conversation- I'm sure "act of god" would be far more interesting!!

Many thanks to you all, I've enjoyed reading your replies.
Helen x

EDIT... Sorry Joan, just read your reply- thankyou- yes, the death is certified- but yes, I quite agree with you- unitl our present laws existed there may well have been many sinister goings on- Too awful to think about.

"just because the certificate says the informant was said to be "present at the death" does not mean that the said person was actually with the deceased at the time they died, it merely means that the informant was present re the registration of the death."- Thanks Joan, something else I didn't know.

:)