Library of Virginia
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Processed by: Callie Lou Freed
Use microfilm copy, Culpeper County, Reel 50.
There are no restrictions.
Culpeper County (Va.) Marriage Register and Index, 1781-1853. Culpeper County Reel 50, Local Government Records Collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.
The original index was compiled by the Virginia State Library's (now the Library of Virginia) Archives Division from the original court records found in the Culpeper County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.
The negative photostatic copy of the register was compiled and created by the Virginia State Library's (now the Library of Virginia) Archives Division from the original court records found in the Culpeper County Circuit Court Clerk's Office. The negative photostatic copy of the index was created by the Virginia State Library's (now the Library of Virginia) Archives Division from the originl compilation. The microfilm copy of these volumes was generated by The Genealogical Society of Utah--while filming on-site at the Library of Virginia.
Culpeper County was formed from Orange County in 1749. It was named for Catherine Culpeper, or for her mother, Margaret Lady Culpeper, or for Thomas Culpeper, second baron of Culpeper of Thoresway, governor of Virginia from 1677 to 1683, or for their family, which long held proprietary rights in the Northern Neck.
Prior to 1853, when the Commonwealth began recording vital statistics, Virginia marriages were recorded at the county or city level. Beginning in 1661, in order to be married by license, the groom was required to go before the county clerk and give bond with security that there was no lawful reason to prevent the marriage. The license, issued then by the clerk, was given to the minister who performed the service. Written consent from a parent or guardian was needed for individuals younger than twenty-one years.
Marriage Register, 1781-1853, records the date of marriage, the name of both parties and the name of the minister who performed the ceremony. Additional information, the fathers' names of both parties, is included beginning in 1850 (page 101.)
An Index to Marriage Register, 1781-1853, is a separate volume. This original typescript index contains the first and last names of both parties. It is arranged alphabetically from A-Z and in addition, lists alternate spellings of last names.
Additional Culpeper County Marriage Records can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records On Microfilm" found on the Library of Virginia web site.
Culpeper County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Culpeper County Court Records may be found in the Virginia Lost Records Localities Collection at the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Localities Database found at the Library of Virginia web site.
The original index (compilation) is found at the Library of Virginia's State Records Center.