When Robert Morrison and Eliza Lowrey, his intended bride, “entered into” this contract prior to their marriage ceremony, they were clearly thinking ahead. The contract transferred more than 31,000 acres of land from Robert to Eliza. While this may have been due to conjugal love, it could also have been to thwart investigations into fraudulent land dealings of which Morrison was accused.

Regardless of the personal motives for the contract, a pre-marriage record was created that is now almost two hundred years old. This record is only one of many that helps us establish a date and place of marriage for our ancestors. In the United States, other records associated with marriage include the consent to marry, marriage bonds, the marriage license, and any prenuptial agreements.

If you are seeking marriage records, your search will be made easier if you know the types of records created for various periods, the circumstances peculiar to regions, and the jurisdictions responsible for maintaining the records of marriage and enforcing the laws that surround them.

In early periods, consents were handwritten on scraps of paper and only occasionally will be found. Later, for some areas, a detailed, printed consent form was part of the marriage license. Usually the father of the underage person gave consent, especially in southern states. When a mother gave consent, the father was probably deceased. If a legal guardian signed the consent, it is likely both parents were deceased.

Although the traditional age of consent for men was fourteen, and twelve for girls, very young marriages were never the custom. Many states enacted laws to raise the ages to seventeen for men and fourteen for women in the eighteenth century. Ages were raised again in the nineteenth century.

The permission for Cecelia Lee to marry John Scott in 1855, for example, was written on a scrap of paper that was then filed in the marriage register book. “To the County Clerk (Jackson County, Illinois) Sir, this is to certify that I have given my Consent to the marage [sic] of my Daughter Cecelia Lee to Mr. John Scott and this shall be your Sufficient Warrant for Ishuing [sic] a Licence [sic] on my part. This January the 28th 1855. Elizabeth A. Lee.”

Marriage Bonds. Marriage bonds were not required by all colonies or states, but they are often found in the southern states. Bonds were posted prior to the issuing of a license in some states, and were the only documents required in other states. Bonds may have been posted by the groom alone or with another person, usually the father or the brother of the bride, to defray the costs of litigation in the event the marriage was nullified. If you find a reference in a northern state’s records to a marriage bond, it may reflect the southern origins of the people. Or it could indicate the recent migration of a southern family northward.

Prenuptial Agreements or Contracts. Prenuptial agreements and contracts are relatively uncommon in America, but they were widely used in Louisiana during the colonial period. Under civil law, the French and Spanish used formal marriage contracts to protect their property, regardless of their social position or wealth.

For example, Mary Emily Pratte of St. Genevieve County, Missouri, and Edwin John Darby of St. Louis signed “This Ante Nuptial contract and agreement made and entered into this 22nd day of January 1866…” It states that the marriage was about to be solemnized, but the parties agreed that the property now owned or that may be acquired by Mary Emily will be held as her “sole and separate property apart from her said future husband and free from his control or interference and not subject to his debts.”

The French custom of contracts may have influenced Robert Morrison, as well. Both St. Genevieve County and Kaskaskia, where the Morrison contract was recorded, were home to many French settlers who exchanged goods with the Delta states via the Mississippi River.

Marriage Licenses. Traditionally, applying for and securing a license to marry provided an opportunity to determine whether or not the couple met certain conditions. One condition was that the agreement to marry was made without coercion. Another was age requirements. A third was consanguinity. In most states, marriages cannot be made between kin closer than first cousins. Knowing the law governing marriage in the state and during the time period of your search is a great help in finding and interpreting the records.

License applications may be recorded in books designed exclusively for this purpose, or they may be handwritten in a recorder’s book. Some license applications may be filed separately as loose paper and may include a consent.

Keep in mind that the application for or granting of a license, with or without a consent form, is not proof the marriage occurred. It means only that the couple sought or received a license to marry.

A marriage return is made by the official who conducted the marriage. The notation of a return may be found in the license application book in a space provided. The pages in such a book, generally referred to as a register of marriages, may be pre-printed in quarters. The top two quarters are the license application and any affidavits. The lower half is a form for a bond and space to enter the information from the marriage return. The lack of a return does not necessarily mean that the couple didn’t marry. There are many reasons for failure to file a return, including the difficulty of travel for those who officiated in rural or frontier areas.

The ideal marriage record gives the full names of the bride and groom; the full names of the parents (including mothers’ maiden names) of both bride and groom; the ages of the parties to be wed; the towns in which they were residents; the occupations of employed parties; the place and date of the ceremony; the person who officiated at the marriage; and the full names and places of residence of any witnesses. Although this detail is seldom found for any single marriage record, combining civil and church records will often provide most of the information.

Prior to the year of a state requirement, a record search should begin at the county level. When Cecelia Lee married John Scott in 1855 in Illinois, their marriage could have been recorded in any county in the state. Eventually, residency requirements were added for either party or just for the bride, if she had been a resident less than six months. Some states asked instead that the filing be done in the county in which the marriage was performed. It is critical to know the state marriage laws for that specific time period to find the civil record of a marriage.

Exceptions to county jurisdiction exist for marriages in some major cities and in the New England states. For example, city courts issued marriage licenses in New Orleans from 1846 to 1870, and the city of St. Louis holds marriage records dated as early as 1808. Marriages in New England were recorded at the town level and many have been indexed and published. As an example, the extensive Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Vital Records (GPC, 1994–2000) numbers more than thirty-eight volumes and continues alphabetically by town. During 2000, entries for the town of Sharon, 1739–1865, were published. See Printed Sources (Ancestry, 1998) for details concerning the use of the Barbour Collection.

Another significant exception is South Carolina. South Carolina, along with Pennsylvania and New York, did not require its counties to issue marriage licenses or record marriages until the turn of the twentieth century. Newspaper announcements are the best source for early South Carolina marriage information.

To find civil marriage records for any time period, consult Redbook (Ancestry, 2004) or visit vitalrec.com. The Redbook will help you identify the county of jurisdiction at the time of the wedding.

It is not always necessary to know the wedding date as most counties have indexes by the names of both bride and groom. Several of these indexes have been published, either on compact disc, in print form, or online. Visit cyndilist.com to learn what is available online. Consult PERSI (Periodical Source Index) or Genealogical Books in Print to learn what has been published in journals or as books. Ask the local genealogical society to determine if an unpublished index exists for the area you are searching.

A series of compact discs offers marriage indexes for records in several states, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Virginia. These indexes include only a portion of the marriages from that state. You can judge the quality of an index by how well the contents are explained and defined, and how easy it is to identify the source of the entries. The explanation should make it possible for you to locate the original marriage entry after you find it in an index.

Once the marriage date and place are known, you may seek a church record. This record may have information which supplements or differs from the civil record. A polite request for a search of church records, accompanied by a small sum to cover time and trouble, will usually net results. To obtain information from a church record, see Chapter 6 in The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy (Ancestry, 2006).

Family records, such as family journals, diaries, and personal histories, can also include references to a marriage. Similarly, family Bibles often contain marriage entries that may not have been recorded elsewhere. The Daughters of the American Revolution Library is a major repository of early Bible records, and the Virginia State Library has initiated a program to collect photocopies of Bible pages that contain family information.

Certificates of marriage, presented to the couple by the official who conducted the service, may also be found in the home of a descendant. Such evidence of a marriage should be noted and evaluated, along with any corresponding church and civil records that are extant.

Master Indexes. There is no national marriage index for the United States, but when the place of marriage is not known, one possible search is the International Genealogical Index www.familysearch.org. Most of the entries are for years before 1875. The IGI includes civil marriage records, church recordings, and a few entries from home sources. This tool can also be helpful in finding evidence of marriage in another country. Because it is an index, you will need to consult the original record. It may contain important additional information.

Several states have made indexes of their holdings of marriage records available, and many of these have been filmed and are available through the Family History Library. Some states for which microfilm exists of both indexes and marriage records (sometimes only by county) are Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

One unique database indexes thousands of pre-1901 Illinois marriages. The index brings together early county and unofficial marriage recordings. This is on ongoing volunteer project of the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office and the Illinois State Genealogical Society. The years covered are 1763 thru 1900 and three-quarters of the counties are complete. The database may be searched online at the Illinois Secretary of State website www.sos.state.il.us.

Transcripts, Extracts, and Abstracts. Many regional finding aids exist that give a full or partial accounting of official marriage entries. Often these represent marriages registered at the county level or for a particular church. These can be found online or in print. An example is Vital Records from Maine Newspapers 1785-1820.

Newspapers. Local and city newspapers often carried lists of persons who applied for marriages licenses or reported on weddings, particularly those of the town notables. Don’t overlook newspapers that were published in foreign languages and stories that refer to marriages having occurred years before. The 1872 date of the wedding of Kathryn Seimetz and Mathias Mertes was found not in church, civil, or family records, but in a 1922 edition of the Abendpost, a widely-circulated German-language newspaper. Within these pages was the story of the couple’s fiftieth wedding anniversary.

Also consider the denominational newspapers. Many have been indexed, particularly the Christian Advocate series of newspapers. See Brett Holcomb’s Marriage & Death Notices: Southern Christian Advocate, 1837-1867.

Hidden Sources. The quote from the marriage contract between Robert Morrison and Eliza Lowrey at the beginning of this article is an example of a source that gives marriage information without being a marriage record. Information within these unusual items of evidence can often provide much family data. The Morrison-Lowry contract, for example, names Eliza’s father, Colonel William Lowrey of the City of Baltimore, and her brother, James Lowry Donaldson, Esq.

This valuable evidence was not found in a civil marriage record book nor in a church register. Because it is a contract, it was recorded in a deed book. Furthermore, it was recorded not in 1806 when it was written, but in 1815. Never overlook the possibility of finding evidence of a marriage in a hidden source some time following the actual event. b

•“What You Need to Know About the History of Marriage and Have Been Afraid to Ask–Parts 1 and 2.” Willard Heiss. Genealogy 34 (January 1978, February 1978), Indiana Historical Society.

•Marriage Laws in the United States, 1887-1906. edited by Desmond Walls Allen. Arkansas Research, 1993.

•Public Vows: A History of Marriage and the Nation. Harvard University Press, 2002.

The marriage ceremony was simple: a minister heard the vows. The bride may have worn her mother’s or aunt’s wedding dress, which had probably been worn by many others, or she may have been gaily attired in a calico dress. She would most likely don a bobinet cap, a tight-laced jacket, cotton stockings, and kid slippers (Her wedding day was perhaps the only time in her life when she would wear fancy shoes.) The groom would be dressed in English broadcloth if possible, with velvet for the collar and brass buttons on the vest. He would don a silk twist and shiny new boots. Or, both bride and groom would appear in linsey-woolsey or homespun garments.

The neighbors contributed china, pewter, silver, linen, cooking utensils, and serving pieces. They would help with the wedding dinner, which took days to prepare. Board tables would be laden with roast beef, pork, and turkey; corn and wheat bread, butter and homemade molasses; cabbage, beans, potatoes, and pickles; and baked custard surrounded by stacks of cakes, pies, and crullers.

By late afternoon, the food was gone and the older folks went home. The young people remained to dance four-handed reels and square sets long into the night.

During the nineteenth century, unions between slaves were often common-law marriages. An Alabama law of 1868, declared that “freedmen and women…living together as man and wife, shall be regarded in law as man and wife”; and their children were “declared entitled to all the rights, benefits and immunities of children of any other class.”

In most states, common-law marriage was a custom that died out by 1900. Marriage became more formal and the state began to take a more active interest in the subject.

Sandra H. Luebking, FUGA, is a genealogical and historical researcher and lecturer. She is the editor of FORUM Magazine and co-editor of The Archives and the revised and third editions of The Source.

Return to the Ancestry Magazine May/June 2002 Table of Contents.