In England and Wales people have been able to register births, marriages and deaths since 1 July 1837. Certificates of events occurring from this date can be obtained from local Register Offices or the Registrar General (www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificate). You can search the General Register Office (GRO) indexes to these registrations at some local libraries and record offices who have copies in microform. Several commercial companies provide online digitised images of the index page for free or for a fee (see our Useful Websites page).