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All the deposited Protestant nonconformist registers, pre- 1837, are in the National Archives in class RG4, and are now digitised at www.thegenealogist.co.uk. Failing that, try the local archives.

Principally in the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland at 66 Balmoral Avenue, Belfast, BT9 6NY 028 9025 5905 http://proni.nics.gov.uk and the record repositaries of Guernsey, particularly the General Register Office, Royal Court House, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 2PD 01481 725277

Much more probably exists. I would suggest doing your own searches for his vital records, in the General Register Office, using a reputable guide (I might humbly suggest my own book, 'Tracing your Family History' (Collins, ISBN 0-00-715892-0), which has detailed sections on this. Also remember variant spellings- Whalley could easily have been recorded Walley, Whaley and so on.

It depends on what acxtual channels you have tried, but the Deaths at Sea is one you could explore - on www.findmypast.com. Records of merchant seamen are at The National Archives.

I think you may be going wrong by not working back methodically. If you have the 1861 birth record, then next look for the parents' marriage. If not, seek the birth first. Censuses will help you gain further coordinates at each turn.

I suggest looking for this man's marriage record and then, if really stuck with his birth, try seeking the father in the censuses, or even seek his own marriage first. Thanks to you all for a very good series of questions tonight. Good luck with all those illegitimacies. I must stop now, as an hour's intensive question-answering is enough. Good luck!

Look for her and her father in the censuses. This will say where she was born,. Then, if it was in England and Wales, you can look in the indexes to these births, on this site. If you have done this and have not found her yet, try variants - Lathom, for example.

It's a bizarre change of name - I wonder what motivated it. As you know the original name, there's nothing to stop you seeking his original marriage and the births of his first set of children in General Registration. As with the previous question, some patient and steady searching will be required, but the records should be there, all the same.

It's a shame your father's name isn't in GenesReunited (aprt from on your page, of course). The best advice I can give actually is to read the last question and answer, as these also concern a beginner. There's lots on record so you should be able to find your father's marriage and birth records and then start tracing back further.

I have not come across the surname before - it is presumably a locative surname, derived from a place - maybe there is a small place called Binnersley, or it may be a variant of something else. It doesn't sound similar enough to Billingsley to make that suggestion convincing - Barnslel, perhaps? As to the luncatic assylum records, maybe you should volunteer to sort out the papers yourself - provided, of course, the task does not drive you mad!

Ages can be stated differently in different records. When stuck in a case like this, learn what other records you may be able to use to learn more about the people concerned. By studying them more closely, you can often work out whether a baptism you have found fits the right person. NB: you have probably found a baptism, not a birth, so don't forget that baptisms did not always take place as soon as children were born.

Census records were compiled to compile statistical information on who was alive at the time: there was no thought of rtheir providing long-lasting genealogical information. Frustratingly, there still isn't!

This question shows the sort of scenario that I was hinting at in the last answer. The army created an extraordinarily international dimension to many ‘ordinary’ families’ histories in the 19th century. As to this question, no, as the wife of a British subject (soldier or not) Alice would have had no impediment to entering Britain (Jamaica was British then anyway) and no papers would have been expected or deposited.

Ah, good. So, to find Mr Rowland's first name, you can seek the births of either Bertram or Reginald. Having done so, you can then seek Nancy and Mr Rowland's marriage. She may have married as Anne/Ann/Hannah, as these names were interchangeable with Nancy.

Same comment as above, really - to diagnose the problem you need to know what the problem is. The ideal sort of questions are the sort posed earlier this evening by Julia Dudley and Alana Rogers - clear, concise questions that explain who the person is, in terms of names and dates, and what the problem is.

Yes, but for me to help you'll need to tell me a few details about the person on whom you're stuck., and where you've looked already. As it happens you're in luck as, unusually, there don't seem to be many other people asking questions this evening.....

Take it slowly! Look for your family in each available census (please note the spelling - genealogists must try to be accurate in all matters - a rule I know I often fail to live up to, but a good rule none the less!). These should provide several sets of coordinates on when and where someone was born. Seek their marriages, to confirm their ages and fathers' names. Then, when searching, always think about what variant spellings may have been used, and look in army births as well as civilian ones. "Slowly, slowly, catchee monkey", as they used to say under the Raj.

Good - thanks. Well, you should be able to find this family in the censuses, not least as Priscilla had a nice, fairly unusual name. The two next steps, would be to seek the marriage of James Stokes, as this will confirm his father's name and occupation, and then seek the birth of James himself, in the approximate year suggested by the censuses and confirmed by his marriage record, and in the place indicated by the censuses. This birth record will state Priscilla's maiden name, and then you can seek their marriage. Please don't be tempted to cut corners - seek James's marriage and obtain the certificate before anything else. Tracing a family line properly is a difficult business with a popular surname like Stokes, and you cannot afford to miss out the important pieces of evidence that you can pick up along the way.

Again, as with the question above, you want to be working back steadily from information that is known for certain. The birth records of one of George and Mary's children will give you her maiden name so you can seek their marriage. As to Nancy, I need dates! When did this Nancy live? It is important, as the techniques you'd use would vary accordingly.

Can you tell me a bit more - his name, when you think he was born and on what basis you think he was born in Dundee? Do you have his marriage record?