What you do with the data after you find it depends on why you’re looking.  Are you trying to determine whether your spouse actually filed your marriage license?  Was the whole thing a sham designed to fleece you?  If you think significant other’s finances may have substantial gaps in history or you are working on a family tree, you may need to retrieve marriage records.

Marriage Records RequireTime and Place

The first thing you want, beside the name of at least one of the involved parties, is some information on when the “wedding” took place and in what state.  Different locales will have varying levels of public records, but you can usually run searches on marriage license issues or other types of marriage records.

Search Newspapers for Marriage Announcements

Everyone says the newspaper is a dying breed.  However, as a source for public information, a newspaper can give you data regarding a given marriage, which can facilitate your search of the public records.  This is more time consuming, but almost all weddings and a lot of license filings wind up in the local paper.

Researching Marriage Records Online

You can also look into using a reputable online retrieval system.  This can save you time as well as errors and has access to much more information.  These databases are updated daily.  Learn how to find marriage records online to save yourself time and energy.