California Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This Collection will include records from 1850 to 1945.

This index is an electronic database of information compiled from a variety of sources including the following:


 * Family Records
 * Church Records
 * Civil Registration

For over 30 years, volunteer indexers extracted this information from microfilm copies of the original records. In 1998, a few of the entries were published on 7 CDs by the Family History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the "North America Vital Records Index." This index is an index of the births, marriages, and deaths throughout California. The index is not necessarily complete for any particular place or region.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sponsored the indexing to accomplish its program of identifying the ancestry of mankind.

Church records and civil registration were official sources and are some of the most reliable sources of information available on those who were born, married, or died in California.

Coverage Table and Map
A coverage table for this collection is available is the wiki article California Marriages, Coverage Table (FamilySearch Historical Records)

To see a coverage map of FamilySearch's holdings of California marriages, click here.

Record Content
The information found in marriage index entries may include:


 * Name of the bride and groom
 * Names of the parents
 * Marriage date
 * Marriage place
 * Family History Library Microfilm and item numbers for the source materials

How to Use the Record
To search the collection fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

Each entry in this index has a source listed which includes a batch number. You will need to trace the batch number for the individual entry to learn its source. Please see the following wiki articles for more information on batch numbers:


 * International Genealogical Index (IGI)
 * IGI Batch Number Descriptions
 * IGI Batch Numbers for the British Isles and North America

Related Websites

 * Western States Marriage Index, hosted by BYU/Idaho. Search by bride or groom - Free.
 * Online California Death Records and Indexes. Free
 * Death Records Search. A guide for finding death records on the internet
 * California GenWeb Project

Related Wiki Articles

 * California County Marriages (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * California Marriage Index (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * California
 * California Vital Records

Citations for 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):


 * Vital]]