Connecticut, Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Connecticut 

What Is in the Collection?
This collection is an index of marriages from the Charles R. Hale collection of marriage abstracts from notices in local newspapers from 1755 to ca.1870. The marriage index is divided into two parts, by newspaper and the other by surname. The collection is located at the Connecticut State Library.

For a list of Connecticut newspapers, the following guide prepared by the library will be helpful; Connecticut State Library. A Preliminary Checklist of Connecticut Newspapers,1775-1975. Some of the event dates may be the issue date of the newspaper instead of the marriage date. The marriage notices are located on film at the Family History Library. See the microfilms in the FamilySearch catalog Hale Collection "Newspapers with death and marriages notices." The following parts of the surname index are not included in this collection:
 * DUNHAM - FARNSWORTH
 * KINGSBURY - LESSIN
 * MITCHELL - NEVILL
 * PECK - PONDEXTER
 * POMEROY - PRIOR
 * SALE - SHAW
 * SHAWCROSS - SMITH
 * THOMPSON - TULLE
 * WELLS - WILCOX
 * WILCOX - M. WISE

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following is usually included in a:

Marriage Index:
 * Name of the groom
 * Name of the bride, often including the maiden name
 * Date of the marriage
 * Place of marriage
 * Name of the Newspaper
 * Issue date the Newspaper
 * Page number in the newspaper
 * Residences of the bride and groom

Birth Index
 * Name of person
 * Birth date and place
 * Names of parents

Death Index
 * Name of person
 * Date and place of birth
 * Date and place of death
 * Names of Reletives

Coverage Map
To see a coverage map of FamilySearch's holdings of Connecticut marriages, click here.

DGS Folder List
This table describes of the content of each of the digital folders in this collection. Clicking on the name of the Author will take you to the FamilySearch Catalog record where you can see additional information about the images. Please note not all of the films from an author may be available digitally in this collection.

How Do I Search the Collection?
You can search the index or view the images or both. Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:


 * Name of the person
 * The name of a parent or date of the event

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page.
 * 1) Select Digital Folder Number

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.

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

What Do I Do Next?

 * Copy the citation below, in case you need to find this record again later.
 * Use the age or estimated birth date to find other church and vital records such as birth, baptism, marriage, and death records.
 * Use the information found in the record to find land, probate and immigration records.
 * Use the information found in the record to find additional family members in censuses. Witnesses were usually family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family.
 * Church Records were kept years before counties began keeping records. They are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

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

 * If your ancestor does not have a common name, collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you find possible relatives.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby town or county.
 * Try different spellings of your ancestor’s name.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Check the info box above for additional FamilySearch websites and related websites that may assist you in finding similar records.

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: Top of Page