Births, deaths and marriages in Guernsey to be recorded online

Births, deaths and marriages in Guernsey will be recorded online in a new project.

Millions of Greffe records, parish church registers, World War Two identity cards and conveyances are to go on a family tree website.

It would allow people all over the world to "discover their Guernsey roots", said Mary McKee of family tree company Findmypast.

Original records would continue to be preserved in archives, managers said.

Ms McKee, UK archives manager of Findmypast, said: "These records tell the stories of thousands of people: from intimate family moments to the major events that shaped lives and communities, and we're excited to bring these to light."

Priaulx Library chief executive Steve Foote said the online records would not only help people to find out more about their relatives, but would help "highlight our island on an international level".

Making the records available online would also help conserve the records, said island archivist Vikki Hart.

She said: "These are popular records for viewing and are therefore handled frequently, so digitisation will help us to preserve the original records and make decisions around conservation."

All of the scanning work was to be carried out at the Priaulx Library, Island Archives and Greffe, project staff said.

A steering group made up of key stakeholders from the Priaulx Library, Island Archives, the Church of England, La Societe Guernesiaise and the Greffe is to oversee the project.

Findmypast said it was sending two full-time staff to the island, but it hoped to recruit islanders with "a passion for the island's history and broadening public access" to support the project.

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