De Partu Register of Midwives pre-1902
Although the title and form of the regulating body for midwives has changed over the years, it remains the case that the name of every midwife who has qualified in Britain since 1902 has been recorded. However, there is no record of the names of thousands of women who practised as midwives prior to the Act.
De Partu is embarking on a project to capture and record the names of women who practised in Britain prior to the implementation of the 1902 Midwives Act, with a view to promoting midwifery research and assisting family historians. As there was no systematic central record keeping in earlier centuries, we welcome your help in identifying new candidates for this register. Some midwives from as far back as the sixteenth century have already been traced.
Appropriate evidence includes:
- GRO certificates of marriage or death
- Ecclesiastical licence
- Coroner’s court record
- Bastardy case court record
- Parish register entry
- Census record
- London Obstetrical Society record
- Hospital record
- Family history records
If you know the names of any midwives who practised before the 1902 Act and have further information about them, please email Dr Julia Allison: juliacardinal@waitrose.com.
Register of midwives pre-1902 (updated August 2011)
