Kansas County Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is in This Collection?
The collection consists of an index and images of marriage registers and records made by county clerks in Kansas from 1855 to 1911. The type of record and time period varies between counties. Records for the following counties are included: Allen, Anderson, Bourbon, Brown, Chase, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Clay, Coffey, Crawford, Doniphan, Douglas, Elk, Franklin, Geary, Greenwood, Harvey, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Labette, Linn, Marshall, McPherson, Miami, Montgomery, Morris, Nemaha, Neosho, Osage, Pottawatomie, Riley, Saline, Sedgwick, Wabaunsee, Washington, Wilson, and Woodson. Counties recorded marriages to legalize marital relationships and to protect the interests of the wife and other heirs to legal claims on property. The marriage date, place, and residence of the bride and groom are relatively reliable. Other information, such as age or birthplace, is dependent on the knowledge, memory, and accuracy of the informants, usually the bride and groom. The earliest marriage bonds and licenses were usually handwritten on loose papers that were later bound into lettered volumes. Some marriage records had multiple entries on each page, while others had single records per page. Marriages were usually recorded by the clerk of the district court for each county from the time the county was formed. Persons desiring to marry obtained a license that they presented to the minister or other person authorized to marry, such as a justice of the peace. Once the marriage was performed, the officiator sent a return to the clerk confirming that the marriage had occurred. Marriage records were generally well preserved, although fires, floods, or other disasters may have destroyed some records.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Early marriage records
 * Date of marriage license
 * Name of bride and groom
 * Age of bride and groom
 * Residence of bride and groom
 * Marriage date
 * Marriage place
 * Name of person performing the marriage

Later marriage records
 * Birthplace of bride and groom
 * Name of bride and groom’s parents
 * Occupation of bride and groom
 * Number of times previously married
 * Witnesses to the marriage
 * Residence of witnesses

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching the collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of your ancestor
 * The approximate date of marriage
 * The place where the marriage occurred

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select the County
 * 2) Select the Record Type, Year Range, and Volume Number to view the images.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use the age to calculate a birth date and to find other records such as birth, christening, land and death
 * Use the information to find additional family members in census records
 * Search for church records

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the state of Kansas.
 * Kansas Guided Research
 * Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Research

Related FamilySearch Historical Record Collections

 * Kansas Marriages, 1840-1935
 * Kansas, Marriages, 1811-1911

Related Digital Books

 * Kansas Historical Records Survey, Division of Community Service Programs, Work Projects Administration. Guide to public vital statistics records in Kansas. Topeka, Kansas : Historical Records Survey (Kansas), 1942

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.