Bills of Mortality
Preserved but no longer current.
In 1592, wben a great pestilence broke out, the Company of Parish Clerks, representing 109 parishes in and around London, began to publish weekly returns of all deaths occurring; these later included births or baptisms, but continued to be known as "bills of mortality." The term is now used for those abstracts from parish registers which show the births, deaths, and baptisms of the district.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Bills of Mortality” mean?
In 1592, wben a great pestilence broke out, the Company of Parish Clerks, representing 109 parishes in and around London, began to publish weekly returns of all deaths occurring; these later included births or baptisms, but continued to be known as "bills of mortality." The term is now used for those abstracts from parish registers which show the births, deaths, and baptisms of the district.
Is “Bills of Mortality” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.