Marriage Records on Genealogy Research

Except birth records, the best sources of reliable information are marriage records (marriage license, marriage register and marriage certificate). Not only will you have a proof that your ancestors were legally married, these records also give you the maiden name and other valuable information of your female ancestors.

3 Types of Marriage Records

Marriage License is an official government record that must be obtained by any couple who wishes to get married. It is applied in proper civil authorities (town, district, county or parish) where the marriage is to take place. What is good with obtaining marriage license of your ancestors is that it provides useful genealogical data such as the couple’s names, the parents’ names, ages, occupations, addresses, birth dates, race and even the parents’ birth dates. Marriage license, however, is not a proof of marriage. It is possible that the couples applied for a license but did not follow through with the wedding.

Marriage Register is a record which proves that the marriage has really took place. The marriage register includes the details about the ceremony such as the names of the couple, date of the ceremony, place where it was held and the name of the person who performed the marriage.

Marriage Certificate is a physical proof given to the couple after the ceremony took place. It is mainly for framing and display purposes. The data that are indicated in marriage certificates vary but it always includes the couple’s name, the date of the wedding and the place where it was held. While it is possible that your living relatives have kept ancestor’s marriage certificate, it is the most difficult to locate because the original copy was not always saved by officials (although it may still be in some archives and repositories).

Marriage records may or may not contain the following genealogical information:

Full name of the groom (first name, middle name and last name)
Full name of the bride (first name, middle name and last name)
Date of marriage
Place of marriage
Date of birth and age of the groom and bride
Place of birth of groom and bride
Residence of groom
Residence of bride
Occupation of groom
Occupation of bride
Names of the couple’s parents
Places of birth of the couple’s parents
Number of previous marriages (both groom and bride)
If single, widowed or divorces
Witnesses present at the marriage
Officials present at the marriage

 FIRST NAME

 LAST NAME

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