New Jersey Marriage Records

How To Lookup New Jersey Marriage Records

A marriage is many things. When people marry, they agree to share their lives with someone else. They also agree to share their finances and other marital assets. A marriage also means that each person agrees to care for any children that may result during the marriage. When people get married in New Jersey, they must take out what is known as a New Jersey marriage license. A marriage license is a state sponsored document. This license is an official recognition from the state that both of the parties involved in the marriage have the right to get legally married. A man and a woman will need to meet certain requirements to get married. This includes legal residency, being a certain age and having no prior existing marriages that have not been dissolved before the license is taken out. There are a few different methods in looking up New Jersey marriage records that are outlined below.

What Are New Jersey Marriage Records?

New Jersey marriage records have been kept since the very start of the beginning of the nation. Many communities have marriage records that date back hundreds of years. Communities needed to know that people were getting married in order to keep track of specific issues such as the number of married people and the need for housing. City hall officials also wanted to be sure they were doing adequate urban planning. The same is true of churches and other houses of worship. Many such places also kept records going back to the very founding days of the church. Such records will typically include the name of the couple, their ages, the exact residence and the parents of each person getting married.

Searching For New Jersey Marriage Records

If you are looking for marriage records in a specific state, you’ll need to be mindful of that state’s regulations and history. Some states go back a few hundred years while others have shorter histories. However, each state was settled by people for at least a century. In New Jersey, statewide registration of any marriage did not start until 1848. It can be hard to trace any marriages back before that date. However, any searcher can find records of marriages in the state since that time frame. The New Jersey Department of State has records of marriages made between 1848 and 1912. They also have some marriage records that were kept earlier than this date. Keep in mind that many marriages were not recorded statewide. Rather, it was local communities that kept marriage records instead. It’s often possible to find records dating back from the very start of the state in the 1600’s. Other sources of records include churches, cemeteries, military records and obituaries. It helps to know as much as possible about the object of the search before you begin. If you have their birth dates or any other relevant information such as an exact name, that can also be highly useful.

New Jersey Marriage Records Online

Another ideal place to look for New Jersey marriage records is online. Online records are available as all marriage records today are considered public property. Third party databases have made it easier than ever to search for marriage records from many states. In New Jersey such databases can be used as a supplement to other sources of information. Residents who live in a community can easily go look for specific records in community halls. Those who live out of state can now also find the records they want. Online databases are reliable and often quite comprehensive. An online database also allows the person looking for records to conduct a search using specific criteria such as a name. This is often not possible when looking through written records that are not as well organized.

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