Marriage Records California Updated Database Available Online

By Ben Kingsley


The Freedom of Information Act has mandated the government of each state to let its residents to access their personal documents. CA marriage records have been made public since then.

Marriage records in California are vital documents in genealogy. Once an individual marries, the family tree has to be updated in a timely manner. Aside from genealogy, a marriage certificate is also required when processing transactions in the government. These transactions includes, but not limited to, insurance or financial related matters as well as the declaration of properties and assists of a couple. Ironically, a marriage certificate is needed when filing for separation.

Back in the old days, there was only little information that can be obtained in a California marriage certificate. One would only know the basics of the marriage like the names of the bride and the groom and the date and place where it took place as well as the names of the witnesses and the officiant. Now, it is a little more complex since it now includes the maiden name of the bride as well as other personal details of the bride and the groom such as their residence address, race, age and occupation during the marriage. Another thing that was added is the name of the couple's parents and their birth place.

Marriage records in California have been available since 1850's but the state only releases certificates since July 1905. This is because of the limited information documented back then. The state has not indexed records between 1987 and 1995. One has to go to the county where the marriage was registered in order to get a copy of the license. A processing fee of $14 has to be paid when requesting it at the office of the Vital Records Section. Fees would vary if the request was made at the county office. In order to get a copy of the marriage license, one has to provide some basic information about the file being requested. By doing so, the retrieval process can go smoothly. Mail request can also be sent to the state office but it usually takes time.

To avoid any delay in the retrieval process, one can take advantage of the Internet since marriage records of California can now be obtained online. This method helps obtain the document without putting much effort into it since the document can be requested at home and in just a few clicks on the mouse, the results of the search are displayed.

Many websites now offer to obtain the document for you. Some would allow you to get marriage records free of any charges, while others can only do the search after you pay for the processing fee online. There are websites lets their users test their system before they are urged to pay. It is up to the user if they want to pay for the service or not.




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