Documenting Marriages in Georgia: Colonial Period through 1900 Introduction This guide is intended to provide researchers with information of the various types of marriage records found in Georgia during the 18th and 19th centuries. The first part of the guide contains a time line outlining some significant legislative changes pertaining to marriage records. The second part contains a list of the various types of marriage documents with definitions and information content. The third part of this guide is a chronological listing of significant legislation relating to marriages. Note: However, please be aware that genealogical information such as the names of parents and where the family came from do not appear on most marriage records in Georgia. Ordinary Court (entitled Probate Court since 1976) Marriage Licenses Marriage Certificates Marriage Bonds Parental Consent Form Marriage Applications Superior Court Marriage Contracts (or Marriage Settlements) State Board of Health Definitions Marriage Banns Marriage Notices Guide to Abbreviations Marriage records for most Georgia counties are available on microfilm at this Department through 1900. Additionally, for a few counties, some original marriage records are also included in our collection. Generally, information concerning post-1900 marriages is available from the Probate Judge’s office of the individual counties. On-site researchers are invited to review these records Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:45 p.m., and on Saturdays 9:30 a.m.-3:15 p.m. This Department is closed on most state and federal holidays. When requesting marriage records by mail, please include the county, names of individuals and approximate date (within 10 years). Do not specify type of marriage record from the Ordinary’s office (i.e., bond, license, certificate). We shall search the index to the available type(s) of marriage documents for that county, during that time period, and inform you of our findings. Please see our Mail Reference Form. This information is also available in a complete brochure. For more information, please see our publications page. Marriage Banns A marriage ban is a public notice stating that a man and a woman have plans to marry on a certain date. State laws, dating from 1799 through 1863, refer to the publication of marriage banns in a church for at least three weeks. Later laws do not cite a time period with regard to banns. The law authorized a Justice or Minister to marry a couple if they had been granted a marriage license or if marriage banns had been published, and after 1863, required him to certify to the Ordinary that the marriage was performed. The Ordinary, in turn, was to record this in the book with the marriage licenses. One may expect to find few, if any, references to marriage banns, either in County Marriage cooks, or Church Minute Books. Marriage Notices Notices of marriages are in some cases published in newspapers, usually announcing a marriage which has already taken place. One may not expect to find a marriage notice for most pre-1900 Georgia marriages. Those that do exist are found most frequently in the newspapers of major towns, and cite usually name of bride and groom, county or town of residence, and date of marriage Guide to Abbreviations Marriage documents contain signatures of various officials who participate in the marriage bonding, licensing, performing, certifying, and recording process. In many, but no all cases, the official’s name is followed by initials which indicate his office or position. Incidentally, do not expect to find the signatures of the bride and groom on most marriage documents. A groom, bound to a county official in a marriage bond, is expected to sign a marriage bond. When transcribing or recording this record his name may be followed by the abbreviation "LS", indicating that the original record contained his legal signature. CC; CCO; CO – Clerk of the Court; Clerk of the Court of Ordinary; County Ordinary: The term "Ordinary" is most often used to indicate the name of the county office holder whose duties include the issuing of marriage bonds, granting of marriages. (Example: CCOFC – Clerk of the Court of Ordinary of Fulton County.) DC; DCO – Deputy Clerk; Deputy Clerk of Court of Ordinary: May grant marriage licenses and record marriages in absence of the Clerk of the Court of Ordinary. There are infrequent references to a Deputy Clerk. JIC – Justice of the Inferior Court: Justices may perform marriages. Likewise, a Justice of the Inferior Court may sign a marriage certificate indicating he married a particular man and woman. (Example: JICRC – Justice of the Inferior Court.) JP – Justice of the Peace: With regard to performing and certifying marriages, a Justice of the Peace has the same authority as a Minister or a Justice of the Inferior Court. However, the performing of marriages by Justices of the Peace and Ministers is more frequent than by Justices of the Inferior Court. MG – Minister of Gospel: Ministers, like Justices and Judges, may join persons in marriage, and in the same manner, certify that the marriage was performed. RP – Register of Probates: Before approximately 1800, the Register of Probates handled estate settlements, marriage records and other matters. These duties were later handled by the Ordinary