Well I've finally done it..

Hermy

...today I started searching for my past. Until recently I had never given it a lot of thought as my adopted parents are the best anyone could ask for and digging up my past seemed like more trouble than it's worth. But having read the Trace Guide all that has changed. I was always lead to believe that I was not entitled to have access to my birth certificate and to discover that this is not the case was a bit of a surprise to say the least. Furthermore having read stories here and elsewhere of other peoples difficulties in gaining access to their files, medical records and even their non-identifying information made me pretty angry. Anyway, the upshot of all this is that I went into town today and got what I believe may well be mine and my birth mothers birth certificates. I have no idea what I'll do next as I wasn't expecting the wave of emotion I've been hit with since. I suppose next will be to put together a letter to Patrick's Guild requesting my non-identifying information and see what happens.
In the meantime I'd just like to say thanks to the contributors to this forum. While I've been lurking the various posts I've read have been a great help in getting me this far.:)

The_Conductor

Hermy- I'm thrilled for you.

If/when you decide to make your next move, perhaps you can post back here, and we might have some ideas of avenues that you could explore.

Do write off to SPG- regardless of whether you think you have the right cert or not- it really is a case of double checking everything.

I remember when I found my birthcert- I went all light headed and giddy- I thought I was going to start jumping up and down

Best wishes,

Shane

tyview

Thats great news Hermy! Best of luck with your next move and keep us posted on how things go. I remember finally having my cert in my hands, it was a very weird but exciting feeling..

whitemoon

Good for you Hermy,

As previously posted I got all that info for my husband plus his BM's marriage cert and details of 3 siblings in a very short space of time. Also her current address but we are now waiting for St Patricks to get back to us re trace and contact which I believe will take about 4/5 months. Initially we felt great and upset at the same time when we pieced all the info together but now just anxious for an outcome. Feel so close but yet so far away. This forum as been invaluable to me as I really had no idea where to begin but the advice and help here was just super. Best of luck.

Hermy

Well here's the first question. My cert says I was born in St. James's. Should I presume that that is the James's Hospital on James Street or could it refer to somewhere else in Dublin?

The_Conductor

Hermy wrote: »

Well here's the first question. My cert says I was born in St. James's. Should I presume that that is the James's Hospital on James Street or could it refer to somewhere else in Dublin?

Not sure on this one. St. James' hospital doesn't have a maternity unit- St. James and the Mater habitually use the National Maternity Hospital- Holles Street for neonatal/delivery and postnatal services.

Perhaps some other posters may be able to shed some light on this?

whitemoon

Depends on when you were born. My aunt was a nurse in St James and she also gave birth to her 3 children there. That would have been in the mid 70's. So it is quite possible that you were born there.

Hermy

I think whitemoon has hit the nail on the head.:)

EDIT: Welcome to Boards whitemoon.

whitemoon

Thanks Hermy,

Glad if that was of help to you.:) Every little bit of info matters and fits into big picture. I made a long shot phone call on Fri to the church on the Navan road beside where St Patricks home was, (my huband was born there) and asked about a baptismal cert for him. The lady called me back this morn and said that she did have a record of his baptism and I am going to pick up a copy of it tomorrow! He was delighted when I told him because he never knew.

Hermy

That's great whitemoon. Can I ask what type of info is contained on a baptismal cert?

whitemoon

Just got it. Nothing really of any significance on it other than the date he was baptized and the name of the church. The name on the baptismal cert issued to me is actually the name that his mam and dad gave him when they adopted him at two and a half, not the name his BM gave him when born! Nice to have it though, he now knows where he was baptized and that it was the day after he was born. Interestingly enough they have my name on it too and the date and place of our marriage !!

Hermy

Okay so. I won't go hunting for it now. Thanks again.:)

Hermy

whitemoon wrote: »

Interestingly enough they have my name on it too and the date and place of our marriage !!

How did that happen?

whitemoon

Dont actually know how they had that info cos we never knew what church he had been baptized in to begin with. Must be central church records although they did not know where or when he had been confirmed. May have read on another thread that when an adopted person gets married in church, the priest has access to original documents? really not sure.

Hermy

Terrible that strangers may have that access while those who need it most are denied.

lastminute

Hermy, I am very keen to find my birth cert as I only have my adopted one. How did you go about finding it. I was born in St Patrick's Home, 1977. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hermy

Hi lastminute,

First thing I'll say is that I'm not 100% certain that I've found my birth cert but I'm fairly sure that it's the right one but anyway, here's what I done...
I went to the General Registers Office in the Irish Life Mall armed with my original first name and my birth date. I requested the index books for the relevant year and searched them cover to cover looking for any entries with my birth date and christian name, paying particular attention to any entries where the surname and mothers maiden name were the same i.e. no marriage.
I found maybe half a dozen possible entries but only one that ticked all the boxes. There's a small form to fill out with the reference number from the index book which you hand to the staff member at the desk and minutes later you have a photocopy of the relevant entry from the Register of Births.
I happened to know my mothers age when I was born so I also have a copy of what I believe is her birth cert. When searching if you're not certain about dates you may need to search more than one year so if you can bring someone with you that will help.
If you haven't already I recommend that you read the Trace Guides in the sticky at the top of the page. That's how I got this far.
Best of luck with your search and post back here if you need more help or to let us know how you fared.
All the best.:)

lastminute

Thanks Hermy, not sure whether to just try search through the adoption board.
Thanks again.

The_Conductor

Hi Lastminute- there is no harm whatsoever in initiating a search via the Adoption Authority to run concurrently with your own search. You do need to keep in mind the timeframes involved though- I think their current backlog is a little under 2 years long.

If you follow the steps in the traceguide and then report back here, you will most probably be offered relevant advice on possible next steps.

Finding your original birth cert is the first step on a road to discovering who you are- it can be a confusing journey- with many different stepping stones, each further piece of information you get may unlock further steps for you to take. Its impossible to suggest that its either straightforward, or convoluted- it differs for everyone .

The very best of good luck to you in your search.

As Hermy has suggested- if you haven't already gone through the traceguides that he has linked to- now would be a good time to do so.

Kind regards,

Shane

Dee42

Hermy wrote: »

Well here's the first question. My cert says I was born in St. James's. Should I presume that that is the James's Hospital on James Street or could it refer to somewhere else in Dublin?

St. James Hospital in Dublin had a maternity unitw hich operated I believe until some time in the mid eighties

No1J

whitemoon wrote: »

Thanks Hermy,

Glad if that was of help to you.:) Every little bit of info matters and fits into big picture. I made a long shot phone call on Fri to the church on the Navan road beside where St Patricks home was, (my huband was born there) and asked about a baptismal cert for him. The lady called me back this morn and said that she did have a record of his baptism and I am going to pick up a copy of it tomorrow! He was delighted when I told him because he never knew.

I rang the same church and asked about getting my Baptismal cert and was told "no problem have it here" mentioned during the call that I was in the middle of an adoption search and it was like who shot JFK, "Oh sorry I thought you were, sorry my hands are tied, I cant give out that information".
Just wondered what my name is.:(

nudger

I had some info from Park house about my BM but not my name.
Contacted them around Christmas and got a phone call a few weeks ago telling me that my 1st and 2nd names were the same ones I already had, is this common?
Any way went into Abbey st today and it took 10 minutes to find my Birth cert and BM full name, happy days.
Problem, BM name is not the same as the one from Park House, close, like Mary/Maureen,June/Joesphine but county/age didn't work out either.
Who to believe, well the chances of 2 babies being born with the same first and second name on my date of birth in St Pat's, think I'll go with info on the Birth Cert, not Park House.
But this throws up a few things, my BM does not want contact, when I contacted Park House some time ago looking for medical info as I had a serious complaint and doctor wanted my family history. told them my illness and the answer came back "Not in the family, don't contact again"
Could they be protecting her I.D.?
So I guess I will contact Park House again to see what they say now that I have the right name for my BM.
Anyone got any ideas.
Thanks.

Hermy

I've been taking my time over this but I'd really like to take the next step forward with my search for my birth mother. Because I have my date of birth, original christian name and my mothers age at my birth I'm as certain as can be that the birth certs I've found are mine and my birth mothers but I'd like to get something to confirm this and then ultimately I'd like to make contact whether by letter or face to face.
So what should I do next? I'm assuming that the first step in the trace guide doesn't apply to me as I know from where I was adopted. The second step may help confirm or otherwise whether I have the right certs but what happens then. How do I go about arranging contact? I maybe getting ahead of myself but I would really appreciate it if someone could describe how this aspect of my search may pan out.

Hermy

What I'm thinking about at this stage is whether it's just about using my own initiative to find out what I want. From reading recent posts that seems to be the case and as an amateur genealogist that would not pose much difficulty for me.
However I know I should probably exhaust the proper channels first but I baulk at the thought of having to deal with nuns. The mere notion of the church having claim to information that's rightfully mine angers me so and it's just a fight I don't wan to have!

schoolmouse

Hi Hermy
don't let go of the fight just because of the involvement of the church as the state is just as guilty in the way they put obstacles in the way also.Any fight to a persons identity is a fight worth fighting, this I know, keep a cool head when dealing with these people and the more they try to railroad you the more you should pester them, in the end they will give in just to be rid of you.

Hermy

The point is I don't want to deal with them.
Both church and state are guilty of appalling cruelty for which they answerable to no-one.
I'd prefer to rely on my own initiative to get what's rightfully mine.
Hopefully later this week I'll get the ball rolling again.

schoolmouse

Unfortunately you will have to deal with one or the other in order to achieve your goal and I have said before that both Church and State are equally responsible. You don't have to go it alone as you have many friends here at Board's to help you in any way they can with support and a listening ear no matter what lies in the future. I wish you every success on your voyage of discovery and will be with you in spirit all the way as well as in my Prayer's.

PS (hope is the one thing that will help you to achieve your goal so never let it die)

Hermy

schoolmouse wrote: »

Unfortunately you will have to deal with one or the other in order to achieve your goal...

Thanks for your thoughts schoolmouse but why the above?
I reckon I could find my mother without sending letters to the authorities.
I also think it would allow me to maintain more control over things.
Maybe I'm just showing my ignorance - what do you think?

snowman224

Hermy wrote: »

Thanks for your thoughts schoolmouse but why the above?
I reckon I could find my mother without sending letters to the authorities.
I also think it would allow me to maintain more control over things.
Maybe I'm just showing my ignorance - what do you think?

I'd really recommend using a 3rd party Hermy. Its better for everyone involved.
Just making direct contact is not really advisable. You've no visibility of current circumstances of the other person and it can be risky.

Hermy

snowman224 wrote: »

I'd really recommend using a 3rd party Hermy. Its better for everyone involved.
Just making direct contact is not really advisable. You've no visibility of current circumstances of the other person and it can be risky.

Don't worry - I don't intend cold calling or anything like that.
But I'd like to do my own trace first and if that doesn't work then I'll be happy to try other options.

schoolmouse

The information you require is held by either state or church and as such you have no option but to deal with one or both in order to glean the information you require. I hope this will help you to understand where I am coming from.