Indiana Marriages, 1811-2019 - FamilySearch Historical Records

This wiki article describes a collection that is available for free online at FamilySearch Record Search – Pilot Site. To access the collection, see Indiana Marriages, 1811-1959

Collection Time Period
These records cover marriages from 1790, when the first marriages were recorded in Knox County, to 1957.

Collection History
Clerks of the Circuit Court recorded marriages performed by religious or civil authorities. Records consisted of licenses, marriage returns and marriage entries. The state of Indiana began collecting marriages from the counties in 1958.

Why This Collection Was Created
Counties in Indiana recorded marriages to legalize marital relationships and to safeguard the interests of wives.

Collection Reliability
The marriage date, residence, and other facts that were current at the time the marriage occurred are quite reliable, though there is still a chance of misinformation. Other data such as age or birth place have more chance of error due to the lapse of time between marriage and birth.

Collection Description
Early county marriage records were handwritten into bound books with multiple entries to a page. Preprinted register books began to be used about 1850. By 1905, the printed format included only one entry on each page.

Collection Content
Genealogical facts in county marriage entries before 1882 are:


 * Marriage date
 * Marriage place
 * Names of the bride and groom
 * Name of the clerk or the person performing the marriage


 * Marriage records from 1882 to 1905 give the additional information:
 * Age, birthplace and residence of bride and groom
 * Names of parents of bride and groom, including mothers' maiden name
 * Race, color and nationality of bride and groom
 * Occupation of bride and groom
 * Number of marriage for bride and groom


 * Marriage records after 1905 contain the additional information:
 * Birth date of the bride and groom (instead of the age)
 * Birthplace and residence of parents of bride and groom
 * Occupation, color and nationality are no longer given

How To Use This Collection
County marriage records are the best source of marriage information. Use the marriage as the basis for compiling a family group. Use the birth date and place of each partner to find a couple's birth records and parents' names. Use the place of residence to search for other records that may have information on parents and siblings.

Related Article
Indiana Vital Records

Bibliographic Information
[County Name] (Indiana). Clerk of the Circuit Court. Marriage records, [date range]. Salt Lake City: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, [filming dates]. Microfilm/item number, volume/page/entry number, names of spouses, marriage place (if any), marriage date.