<P> The documentation of births is a practice widely held throughout human civilization , especially in China , Egypt , Greece , Rome , and Persia . The original purpose of vital statistics was for tax purposes and for the determination of available military manpower . In England , births were initially registered with churches , who maintained registers of births . This practice continued into the 19th century . The compulsory registration of births with the United Kingdom government is a practice that originated at least as far back as 1853 . The entire United States did not get a standardized system until 1902 . </P>
when were birth certificates first issued in the united states
1902