Whoever told you that they didn't have marriage licenses there for Wake Co. except up to 1868 didn't know what they were talking about. I have personally researched at both the Wake Co. Register of Deeds office and the Archives (which is currently closed to the public for renovations until July). Before 1868, there were marriage bonds, not licenses. For a few years after the end of the Civil War in 1865 there was some overlap where there were both bonds and licenses issued. But generally after 1865 they were transitioning to marriage licenses, which is when the parents' names started being added to the marriage documents. Wake Co. sent all their marriage licenses before 1930 (back to whenever they began in the 1860's to the Archives. Licenses after 1930 are still at the Wake Co. Register of Deeds office. Indices for both bride and groom remain at the Register of Deeds office for all marriage records of any type; at the Archives they just have the licenses and bonds filed alphabetically by the name of the groom, which means you have to know who the groom was. The cheapest way normally to get such a document is to hire a professional (or amateur) researcher to go to the Archives and get it for you as they charge us only the photocopy costs. But things are in such an uproar now until July (stuff being moved around from building to building) that I am staying totally out of the building until it's all back together, not just in temporary quarters (that may not be until the first of the year). If you do write to them to order the license, just give them the names and dates and let the people who handle the out of state requests deal with it; they know what they actually have. You may have gotten some employee assigned from somewhere else like the State Library due to the renovations. The indices remain at the Wake Co. Register of Deeds. I do not know if someone will look in the books for you, but I would do so for you for $5 plus my parking costs (probably $2 to look up one license). Carla Tate _________________________________________________________________ More photos, more messages, more storage—get 2GB with Windows Live Hotmail. http://imagine-windowslive.com/hotmail/?locale=en-us&ocid=TXT_TAGHM_migration_HM_mini_2G_0507

Carla, you know more about how the Archives work than just about anyone, and I know your advice is excellent. However, it does say on that request form that the Archives has for us to print out on their website that their marriages go up to 1868! I've always thought they meant the marriage bonds, which did end around then I think, but as I said to Tee, I've certainly gotten later marriages by just writing in the dates I wanted. I wish they'd redo their form! Joanne Gaudio