You still needed blood work and a license when I got married in the NY suburbs in the late 1960s.  The first two pages of my grandparents' 1913 license are dated 3 days before the wedding. They both signed it, as did the 'deputy city clerk'. The 3rd page is dated the actual day of the wedding and is signed by the priest and both witnesses.  All signatures are in the individual's handwriting.  The 3rd pg says "to clergymen and magistrates' that they must return the doc to the city clerk by the 10th day of the month following the marriage or they will be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined between $25 and $50 for each offense. I also have their church marriage cert.  All facts agree and we knew the facts anyway.  All four of my grandparents lived until I reached adulthood, I am blessed to be able to say.  Three were at my own wedding. But still no marriage cert as we are familiar with from Italian Gen and FHL and ordering from NYC, tho now I get them thru FHL microfilm.Virginia   From: metronycancestry via <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, August 19, 2015 12:24 PM Subject: [NYC-ROOTS] Searching Marriages in NYC During the pre-marriage licensing period, 1908 - 1951, we seek the Certificate first, because it has a definite date. Once the Certificate is found, then we seek the License. The License was applied for at the county level in New York. Potential brides and grooms had to appear in person at the county where the bride lived, no matter where the actual marriage ceremony was to take place. No photo ID was required then. In NYC couples often slipped away from work at lunch time to apply.  Note the mode of dress in Norman Rockwell's painting "Marriage License." http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Marriage-License-June-11-1955-Posters_i7553226_.htm At one time blood testing wad required to apply for the License, probably due to disease that wartime soldier might carry. A marriage LICENSE was valid for a given period of time. They are filed by county first, then by the date of application. Researchers know to look backwards from the date of marriage ceremony in the county where the bride resided. Can you imagine the number of Marriage Licenses applied for in one month in Manhattan? This is why searching for marriage licenses is  more time consuming than the usual certificate. Marriage Licenses  are important because the bride and groom provided the facts, not a third party. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message