Problems Related to Marriage Certificates
Sometimes, you may have difficulty in finding some marriage certificates.
Apart from wrong indexing and common-law marriages, there are some other reasons that contribute to frustrating, fruitless searches.
In case the ancestral name had been changed by deed poll, you should know whether it occurred before or after marriage.
In case it is after marriage, the new names are mentioned on the actual certificates along with an additional phrase stating "name changed by deed poll", "otherwise" or "formerly known as".
There are cases where there is a possibility of more than one marriage.
Here, the problem can be easily solved by checking the marriage location.
In case there is still some doubt, you can clarify matters by checking the father's name of either the groom or the bride against his/her birth certificate.
There are a few alternative sources too that can help you get hold of marriage certificates.
You can resort to the records of the church where the marriage was solemnized, or even the local newspapers which sometimes mention the parents' names along with that of the couple.
Copies can also be obtained from these churches.
In case of the armed forces, the National Archives serve to be the man sources.
Army personnel marriage certificates are kept separately from civilians since 1761.
You can also find marriage registers of a few of the regiments.
Sometimes, divorce records can also be very revealing, as they are comparatively less in number.
These too are as informative as marriage certificates.
A decree absolute not only lists the names of both the parties, but also includes the location and the date of the termination of their marriage, along with any correspondent's name cited in the case.
Apart from wrong indexing and common-law marriages, there are some other reasons that contribute to frustrating, fruitless searches.
In case the ancestral name had been changed by deed poll, you should know whether it occurred before or after marriage.
In case it is after marriage, the new names are mentioned on the actual certificates along with an additional phrase stating "name changed by deed poll", "otherwise" or "formerly known as".
There are cases where there is a possibility of more than one marriage.
Here, the problem can be easily solved by checking the marriage location.
In case there is still some doubt, you can clarify matters by checking the father's name of either the groom or the bride against his/her birth certificate.
There are a few alternative sources too that can help you get hold of marriage certificates.
You can resort to the records of the church where the marriage was solemnized, or even the local newspapers which sometimes mention the parents' names along with that of the couple.
Copies can also be obtained from these churches.
In case of the armed forces, the National Archives serve to be the man sources.
Army personnel marriage certificates are kept separately from civilians since 1761.
You can also find marriage registers of a few of the regiments.
Sometimes, divorce records can also be very revealing, as they are comparatively less in number.
These too are as informative as marriage certificates.
A decree absolute not only lists the names of both the parties, but also includes the location and the date of the termination of their marriage, along with any correspondent's name cited in the case.