Hello...I am not necessarily a newbie but I was wondering if in 1894, was a birth certificate mandatory in Warren County, NC...I am desperately trying to find my Great Grandmother Emily Alston's mother...she was given to her Great Aunt to be raised and was never told who her Mother or Father was...I searched for quite some time...

Generally, birth records weren't kept statewide in North Carolina before 1913. There are delayed birth records which include births that occurred before the time when births began being recorded.

The Warren County Register of Deeds office has birth records from 1914 to present, so a birth certificate from 1894 is probably not going to be available, though you might ask them if they have older birth registers pre-1914. You'll need to get creative. Does Warren County have old school census records? Some if not all Kentucky counties kept a census of all school-age children, and their actual birth dates were recorded there, certified by their parents or guardians. If Warren County NC had school census, perhaps the clerk would certify a birth record for you based on those census records.

As bonedigger 176 states, delayed certificates may be available and often are not kept with the regular birth certifs (and may not show up in a search of a birth certif database, either). Did Emily have a Social Security number? The Social Security applications asked for names of birth parents, so if she ever knew it, it may appear there. You can order the SS-5 but may need to provide proof of Emily's death- I think if she was born less than 120 years ago, you need to prove she is deceased, otherwise SS will redact the parents' names from the application, if they appear.

The NC Birth Indexes are online at Ancestry.com, and they include the Delayed Birth Records. The only Emily Alston, if that was her birth name, who obtained a birth certificate born in Warren Co. was in 1933. If she was given to someone at birth, you're not likely to find a record unless there was something that a family member kept privately, say, an old family bible, or some other personal possession by a family member at the time. In the 1900 Warren Co. NC Census, I see an Emily Alston, b. June 1894, age 5, listed as niece to William A. & Margaret Alston; also in that h/h was another "niece" Emma B. Alston, b. 1880, age 19; have you looked into Emma having been the mother, if this is your family? Also of note, is that the name "Emily" was often also called "Emma", and there are several females of that name in 1900 Warren Co. abt that same age, so you may want to be more specific in looking for her.
One other thing, if you know who Emily Alston married and if it was in NC, her Marriage Record may be online at FamilySearch.

Deloris Williams