The response from Paula Ward was just right on target and most helpful! Additional information & discussion is covered in Wm Wade Hinshaw, "Encyclo. of American Quaker Genealogy", and also in one or two other references I just can't seem to locate here anymore. I'll add my 2 cents for what its worth; Hening's Statutes on Laws of VA is the primary source for finding a law for a particular year or time period. It might be helpful to understand the legal purpose of a bond which, I believe, was to indemnify the County against future "loss" (lawsuits) that might result in the event the intended bride or groom lied about their age, were already married, had too close a blood relationship, or some other human complication that would have made the bond basically illegal. Anyone under the age of 21 whose father had died might have had a guardian for managing their inherited estate until they came of age. This seems to have been important for males who stood to inherit land. I've read that women under 21 who had been married previously were considered legal adults and required no consent or guardian. (true?) Women over 21 needed no consenting person. Sometimes bonds state the intended bride gave her own consent. Keep in mind there was no such thing as legal adoption until early 1900's. The term "orphan" was applied to minor children when their father died, even if the mother was still living. Which I take to mean such terms as "guardian" seen in earlier times often pertained to role of caretaker & manager of real & personal property - usually a male domain in those days. As for "witnesses to consent " I don't really know, except the person who actually gave "surety" was the one who pledged the money - even if NOT a close relative; and it would seem logical that another person would come to testify as to age, status, etc. to further convince the Clerk all was well. The words and phrases used by Clerks when they wrote reflected their personal styles and also the customary language of their location/region. For this reason we find variations in writing which tend to confuse us and we wonder if different language was purposeful. I've encountered a number of bonds where the "surety" turned out not to have been a parent even if same surname. When a parent is identified in a written bond we assume it wasn't a lie just to further the couples desire to marry. And so did the Clerks. Many Clerks were personally acquainted with folks in their own county, and were related to some. The old saying , "this and 2 cents will get you a cup of coffee", can be updated to "this and $1.00 will get you a cup of coffee! BILL HUNT ----- Original Message ----- From: "Brian and Melissa Stewart" <stewartb@intrex.net> To: <VAFRANKL-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, July 23, 2000 4:13 PM Subject: [VAFRANKL] marriage bonds - "who consents" & why?s > Why do only certain Virginia marriage bonds have the phrase "who consents" > as part of the bond? > > Is this because one or the other person getting married was under a certain > age? If yes, what age? > > I have noticed that although consent is most often given for daughters by a > parent, not all females have a consent. Also, I have noticed that there is > an occasional male that has someone giving consent (for example, the person > giving consent is a guardian). > > Why also is it that some bonds have a "witness to consent"? or even if > consent is given, has the phrase "who testifies ..(each, both, she/he).. is > of age? > > What were the laws for getting marriage bonds in Virginia prior to the > 1850s? > > Thank you for any help in deciphering these bonds! > > > > Families being researched in Franklin County: PETERS, HALE, SIGMON/SIGMAN, > WINGFIELD > > > ==== VAFRANKL Mailing List ==== > The Franklin Co VAGenWeb "Surname Register" is located at URL: > http://www.rootsweb.com/~vafrankl/fran-sur.htm > >