Good morning, I googled "Confidential Marriage" and got over 60 hits, 58 counties plus the state of California addresses the issue. Then, I added "Missouri" to limit the number of hits. Try it. I have no idea of how to search in Bavaria. The St. Louis marriage records, civil and Catholic, were microfilmed by the Mormons. The county issues Confidential marriage licenses when the confidentiality of the marriage date is important. Couples who choose the Confidential License should be aware that when certified copies of the Confidential Marriage License are requested, the copies can ONLY be issued to the bride or groom with proper identification. The County Clerk strongly advises that a Regular marriage license be issued, except in those instances where the confidentiality of the marriage date is important. It has been their experience that complications frequently arise later when copies are requested and they can ONLY be issued to the bride or groom. The State of California states "Confidential Marriage License: The bride and groom must be at least 18 years old to apply for a confidential marriage license. Minors may NOT purchase a confidential marriage license. The bride and groom must be living together as husband and wife at the time they apply for the marriage license, and must sign an affidavit on the license attesting to those facts. The couple MUST be married in the county where the license is issued. No witnesses are required to be at the ceremony, AND no witnesses sign on the marriage license. The marriage license is a confidential record and is registered at the County Clerk’s Office in the county where it was purchased. Only the bride or groom may purchase copies of the marriage license and must present valid picture identification together with the required fee to the County Clerk in order to do so. Persons other than the bride or groom requesting copies of a confidential marriage license may only do so by presenting a court order to the County Clerk in the county where the license is registered. Copies of confidential marriages are not available from the state office." Each of the 58 counties of California regulates the issuance of confidential marriage. I hope this has helped somewhat in understanding "confidential marriage." Ellen LTBoehmke@aol.com wrote: >Hello, Ellen, > >Could you or perhaps someone familiar with marriage laws and records help us >understand "confidential" marriages where NO record is made? > >I have one set of grandparents for whom I cannot seem to find a marriage >record after trying various churches, both Protestant and Catholic. They would >have been married about 1848. Checking in Oberfranken, Bavaria, from which they >came, is hampered by the fact that I don't know her village. They were not >married in his village. LaVerne > > >==== MO-STLOUIS-METRO Mailing List ==== >To unsubscribe from this list, email MO-STLOUIS-METRO-L-request@rootsweb.com; in the subject line, put only the word UNSUBSCRIBE with nothing in the message body. You can contact Michelle or Laura at MO-STLOUIS-METRO-admin@rootsweb.com. > > __________________________________________________________________ New! Unlimited Netscape Internet Service. Only $9.95 a month -- Sign up today at http://isp.netscape.com/register Act now to get a personalized email address! Netscape. Just the Net You Need.