Coroners Records

Records of the Coroner of the Lower Division of Pembrokeshire, mainly registers of deaths reported and inquests held, 1886-2001; administrative records, 1932-1980; Coroner's notifications, 1965-1975; and certificates after inquest, 1971-1974.

Coroners were originally royal officers who, from the 12th century onwards, held inquests into matters affecting Crown rights, including sudden death, treasure trove and wrecks. Pembrokeshire was orioginally covered by two coroners, for the Upper and Lower Division of the county. The Upper Division of Pembrokeshire was abolished in April 1974. The Coroner for the Lower Division was based in Milford Haven; a Deputy Coroner was based at Fishguard.

Arranged into the following: daily records; and administrative records. From April 1974 onwards, the files have been integrated into one series (combining the records of the Coroner and Deputy Coroner), in the order in which they are recorded in the Coroner's daily record.

Restricted access. The daily records and administrative records, 1974-1987 are closed to public inspection for a period of 75 years. Other files transferred in September 1968, in February 1973, in March 1976, and in February 1980, are closed to public inspection for a period of 75 years.

Transferred by J. F. Johnson, Price and Kelway, Hamilton Terrace, Milford Haven and M. Howells, Coroner's Clerk between September 1968 and March 2005.

Compiled by Annette Strauch for the ANW project. The following sources were used in the compilation of this description: Pembrokeshire Record Office, Coroners Records, catalogue, Hey, David, Oxford Dictionary of Local and Family History, (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1997).

A hard copy of the catalogue is available at Pembrokeshire Record Office.

Usual copyright regulations apply

All records have been retained

From 1974 to 1980, the Deputy Coroner continued to maintain his own record of deaths and his own files in Fishguard; these were, however, also recorded in the Coroner's daily record in Milford Haven.

Accruals are not expected