United States Freedmen’s Bureau Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States

What is in the Collection?
This collection consists of marriage registers and certificates recorded by Bureau Officials for marriages performed by "any ordained minister of the gospel." Most of the marriages recorded are from 1865 and 1868 while others recorded may have taken place prior to the end of slavery.The date given is the original marriage date, while for others the date is the marriage was legalized. Some entries give the names of children born to the couple.

Most of the marriages are from the Commissioner's Office and are from NARA microfilm publication M1875 Marriage Records of the Office of the Commissioner, Washington Headquarters of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands,1861-1869 part of Record Group 105. Additional marriages are from the field offices of Arkansas (M1901), District of Columbia (M1902), Kentucky (M1904), Louisiana (M1905), Missouri (M1908),Tennessee(M1911) and Virginia (M1913).

The registration of marriages is based on an order from the Bureau Commissioner from Circular No.5 dated May 30,1865:

"VIII The unity of families, and all the rights of the family relations, will be carefully guarded. In places where the local statutes make no provisions for the marriage of persons of color, the Asst. Commissioners are authorized to designate Officers who shall keep a records of marriages, which may be solemnized by any ordained minister of the gospel, who shall make a return of the same, with such items as may be required for registration at places designated by the Asst. Commissioners. Registrations made by US Officers will be carefully preserved." The circular will be found in NARA microfilm publication M742, roll 7 Selected Series of Records Issued by the Commissioner of the Bureau of Refugees,Freedmen,and Abandoned Lands.

The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands, generally known as the Freedmen's Bureau, was established March 3, 1865, in the War Department. The Bureau was responsible for the supervision and management of all matters relating to the refugees, freedmen, lands and property abandoned or seized in the former Confederate States, border states, District of Columbia, and Indian Territory. The aim of the Bureau was to help freedmen become self-sufficient. Bureau officials accomplished this by issuing rations, overseeing labor contracts, establishing schools and hospitals, and representing former slaves in legal and other disputes. They also helped freedmen in legalizing marriages entered into during slavery, and provided transportation to refugees and freedmen who were attempting to reunite with their family or relocate to other parts of the country. Letters sent and received by bureau officials often contain information from and about African Americans. The Bureau was abolished in 1872, but the bulk of its work was conducted from June 1865 to December 1868. About 4 million slaves were freed during the Civil War. The names of thousands of these former slaves are included in the records.

Coverage Tables
Coverage tables of Cohabitation Records.
 * Alabama Cohabitation Records
 * North Carolina Cohabitation Records
 * Virginia Cohabitation Records

Collection Content
This database combines two record groups created by the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, as shown below:


 * “Marriage Records of the Office of the Commissioner, Washington Headquarters of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, 1815-1869,” which contains marriage certificates for Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee and some for Alabama (one marriage license), Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina, and the District of Columbia as well as monthly reports of marriages for Arkansas, Florida, Missouri, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. (National Archives and Records Administration publication number M1875)
 * “Records of the field offices for the state of Virginia, Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands” which includes marriage records from the counties of Augusta, Goochland, Louisa, Nelson and Rockbridge in Virginia. (Only the marriage records from this collection were added to the database.) (National Archives and Records Administration publication number M1913)

Each marriage record contains some or all of the following information:


 * Date marriage was registered
 * Name and residence of groom
 * Groom's age and color
 * Color of groom's parents
 * How many years lived with another woman
 * Cause of the separation
 * Number of children by former companion
 * Name and residence of bride
 * Bride's age and color
 * Color of bride's parents
 * How many years lived with another man
 * Cause of the separation
 * Number of children by former companion
 * Number of children with present companion
 * Name of officiating minister
 * Sometimes, names and ages of children

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search, it is helpful to know the name and some other identifying information such as the birth place or birth date.

Search the Collection
To search the collection by name: Fill in your ancestor’s name in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about those in the list to what you already know about your own ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person.

To browse by image: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select the "Marriage Place - State" ⇒Select the "Surname" ⇒Select the "Given Name" which takes you to the images

Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

With either search keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Save a copy of the image or transcribe the information. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details such as a title, an occupation, or land ownership. Add this new information to your records of each family. You should also look for leads to other records about your ancestors.

Use Freedmen's Bureau records to learn your ancestor's marriage year, and possibly birth year and place. The records often provide names and ages of family members, and may contain information not found in any other available source.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Continue to search the index and records to identify other relatives.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * You may need to compare the information of more than one family or person to make this determination.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

What if I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor.

Related Websites

 * Freedmen's Bureau Records: An Overview
 * Freedmen's Bureau Marriages, 1815-1869
 * Marriage Records of the Office of the Commissioner, M1875
 * Marriage Registers of Freedmen
 * Freedmen's Bureau Marriage Records
 * Virginia Memory Collections Library of Virginia African American Resources Cohabitation Registers

Related Wiki Articles

 * African American Freedmen's Bureau Records
 * African American Research

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry): Image Citation: