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I have located a father & 2 spinster daughters' burials on the NBI all in the same church, Ascot Heath All Saints Berks, 1906, 1929 & 1934. I visited the church last month but no luck, I got in touch and asked about burial records & where they are in the graveyard, I've just received an email from them saying they are not there! "I am sorry that your search for the Bruce family graves was unsuccessful. I have consulted our administrator but he has no knowledge of the name Bruce. He also checked in the register for the Priory Road Cemetery, but could find no trace of this name. The register for the Priory Road Cemetery was prepared by the Berkshire Family History Society but there are omissions." I could understand one person maybe, but three? They are relatively recent too, anyone else experienced this? Sam

Sam I haven't experienced this, but I do know that censuses can be wrong, birth, marriage and death certificates can be wrong, memories can be wrong, banks can be wrong, the post office can be wrong and (whisper it quietly) I can be wrong. So yes, I think the NBI could be wrong too. (but I could be wrong about that). If I were you, I'd be tempted to contact the Berks FHS to see if they've had any other people query it. Perhaps Bruce could be misread as something else? If the same person did the records they might consistently misread it. Helen

Hi Sam Hope you won't mind me asking but what made you think the burials were there? Heather

Sam, There are quite a few cemetries in and around Ascot, I have emailed you as I am going into Bracknell tomorrow, if you want to check in the library. I do have to leave the house by 9am though! Kim

Thank you Kim, I have replied with all my info. Heather, I found them on Family History Online, all three deaths & all three say buried at Ascot Heath, All Saints. I did email the church before I went, but they said there were no records to say where individuals are buried in their churchyard (which I thought was a bit strange) but I was welcome to browse around as it is not very big. This is true, it is a quaint little church, with headstones much older than 1906, so I was suprised not to find them. However, there was an overgrown patch at the back, and at the risk of being a pest I emailed them about 9 days ago asking who could be buried there & if it was due to be trimmed (the rest was tidy) But as you see from the reply today, my lot are not there Sam *I actually have a photograph of the 1929 one

Sorry, yes I should have realised from the title. There was a thread on one of the boards a few days ago where the person had a newspaper report of a burial but couldn't find it in the parish register, I can't find the thread now! Do the dates match the GRO records? Heather

Hi Sam Is it Monumental Inscriptions (gravestones) that you can't find or the burial records in the parish register or both. Heather

Hi Heather Yes the dates do match, the NBI tells me they are buried, and buried at a specific church, but I could not find the actual graves and the church are saying they are not buried there.

Would you have expected them to be buried there? I think you said the first one was 1906 so were they living in that parish in 1901?

Oh yes, they lived a "stones throw" away

Have you checked the burial register yourself? The gravestones might have been removed, its possible that the list was done several years ago but the records should still be there,were there other older graves around?

I haven't looked on the NBI myself no, I am just assuming the information I have from Family History online is correct. As I said above there are many headstones older than 1906. The father of this family was a Baronet, see him here if you're interested, scroll to the bottom, he is the standing man in the photograph http://web.ukonline(.)co.uk/Members/tom.paterson/BruceStenhouse.htm *Remove brackets And on his knee is his grandson, the actor Nigel Bruce of "Sherlock Holmes" fame See here.. http://sherlock-holmes.org.uk/Media/Cinema/The_films_of_Basil_Rathbone/Biog_Nigel_Bruce.htm So you see, I was expecting a family plot, albeit a modest one, or maybe the three of them buried closely together. Sam

There wouldn't be something inside the church would there? An inscription on the wall or floor? Clutching at straws now!!! Heather

My mum & I searched the place Heather, no luck. Time for bed? I reckon Thanks for your interest Sam

Hope you find them. Heather

Hi I found a burial on the family history site for Ascot Heath I have not been there yet but intend going, but what I will say is the rest of the family are buried at ALL SOULS church in south Ascot this church was built in 1897 my gg grandmother and father are buried there first one being in 1903, perhaps they were buried there. Where did they live? hope you find them Margaret

Sammy - hope you're still smiling :-) As I understand it, the NBI is an Index, not an original. The original burial registers might be held at the local records office. Worth giving them a ring? As Oscar Wilde might once have said, losing one relative is a misfortune, but losing 3 is looks like carelessness! Helen

Sammy http://www.berkshirerecordoffice(.)org(.)uk/familyhistory/parish.asp

Thank you everyone for you help, and your interest. Thanks for the link Helen, I'll see if Kim finds anything out today, failing that I will give them a ring. Margaret, they lived in Kennel Ride, Sunninghill Ascot. The family had been in that general area since the 1880's at least. I drove all around there a couple of weeks ago, it's a lovely place. When you find out info it's great, all neatly filed, then move on to the next, but when something doesn't add up, it's a real thorn in the side. I'm sure you all know what I mean I'll let you know if anything turns up.