Marriage Records

When searching for marriage records, keep in mind they are largely indexed by the groom’s surname, but likely located near the bride’s family or hometown. Couple’s were often married in the church of the bride or her family (but not always!).

In order to find a marriage record, you will need to know the location and year of the marriage, and possibly any religious affiliations. Other sources, such as census records or naturalization records, might hold clues about the date of marriage.

Remember to be exhaustive with your research: look for both the intent to marry (or bond, or application, or engagement) and the marriage license or certificate. Look for both civil records and religious records. And don’t stop when you find records of one marriage - check for second and third marriages as well, or confirm there was only one.

Be sure to research the laws and customs of the time and place of the marriage.

Types of Marriage Records

Marriage Certificate - an official document issued by the courts, or a copy of the church’s marriage certificate or record returned by the minister or priest, and registered by county or town records and reported to the state.
Marriage Certificate (Religious) - issued after the ceremony by the Church to the couple, often signed by witnesses and kept in family records as an heirloom.
Declaration of intent: often published shortly before the marriage event in church records or with the town clerk, and later engagement notices could be found in local newspapers. Not the same date as the wedding, and not a guarantee that an actual wedding took place.
Banns of marriage: often announced in church or posted around town, with the purpose of allowing locals to object to the couple’s marriage before the event. They were usually read in a church or posted for three consecutive weeks. Reasons for objection include: one of the couple was too young, one of the couple was already married, or the couple were too related to be legally wed.
Application for Marriage License - filed through the courts, proof of a couple’s intention to marry. In some states, banns of marriage took the place of the marriage license.
Marriage Bonds: proof of the groom’s intention to marry and his belief there should not be any legal objection to the wedding, by him agreeing through the courts to pay a certain sum of money should the marriage not go through. The date of the marriage bond could be a few days or even weeks before the actual wedding took place, if it did at all. Marriage bonds were most common in the southern states. Also note that the ‘bondsman’ was usually a relative of the bride, her father, or if he was no longer living, perhaps her brother.
Marriage Consent Form - if the bride or groom was too young to be legally wed, their parents or legal guardians would have to give permission for the wedding. Usually filed the same time as the application for a marriage license. In most states the groom had to be 21 and the bride had to be 18.
Index of Marriages - usually a collection or reference to a collection of marriage records.
Marriage Record - any recording of the marriage date from any sources, such as newspaper engagement or marriage announcements, notes in a Family Bible, answers on census records (both the 1900 and 1910 census asked for marital status and length of marriage), or marriage dates on naturalization papers. Could also refer to any of the above.

How to Find Marriage Records

1) Check home sources. For more recent marriage records, your parents or grandparents may hold copies of marriage certificates in home safes. They may have wedding photo albums or saved invitations that can tell you where or when the wedding took place. There may be a simple notation in a family bible that shows the date of marriage for ancestors.

2) Request them from a third party website. As with other vital records like birth certificates and death certificates, you can request copies of marriage certificates for a small fee. If they are certified copies of the marriage certificate, they may be restricted to certain individuals by law (such as those in the wedding party and their children or grandchildren for example). These laws vary by state.

VitalChek

3) Request from local government offices, such as the town or county clerk where the wedding was held. Depending on the location, you may have to do this in person, by mail, or online. After a certain amount of time, generally 50 - 100 years, vital records become public and available to anyone. For newer records you may have to prove your relationship or follow other requirements. There are usually small fees with these requests.

For examples, see the Clark County Clerk’s website for Las Vegas, Nevada, or the Office of the City Clerk of New York, New York.

4) Request or find church records. To request records, you will need to know the couple’s religious affiliation, and the general location and date of marriage (within 5 years). If you’re unsure, try to narrow it down by the churches that existed near the couple (or near the bride’s family) at the time they were most likely married (after the age of 16, at least seven months before the birth of their first child). Though these churches may no longer exist, records were generally transferred when a church as closed. For a Catholic church, you’ll want to look up the Archdiocese in the area and contact their archivists. While some places accept donations for this service, others will request fees.

You may be able to find church records online, especially if they are older. Database sites like FamilySearch, Ancestry, and American Ancestors all carry collections or church records from many denominations. An example:
- “Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789 - 1920”, hosted by the New England Historic Genealogy Society on AmericanAncestors.org with a free browsable collection for registered guests and a searchable option for paying members
Also see Church Records.

5) Research marriage records through other genealogy sources.

Newspaper records can show engagement announcements, marriage banns, bridal showers, wedding announcements, anniversaries, and more. Obituaries can also offer wedding details or the length of the marriage.
Census records can offer marriage information. Starting with the 1850 census and continued through the 1890 census, it shows if the marriage took place within the last year. The 1880 census was the first to ask marital status and relationship to head of household. The 1900 and 1910 census both show the number of years a couple was married.
Naturalization papers and other immigration records can show spouse names and give more date context about when the marriage may have taken place.
Military records, such as draft registration cards or pension documents can show spouse names and survivor benefits.
Will and probate records, land deeds, and death certificates may show spouse names.
Biographies, family histories and genealogies, and town histories can offer a wealth of information and vital records
Local genealogical and historical societies may be of assistance, especially for prominent families of the area