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Library of Virginia
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Processed by: Callie Lou Freed
Use microfilm copy, Albemarle County, Reel 62.
There are no restrictions.
Albemarle County (Va.) Marriage Register, 1806-1868. Albemarle County Reel 62, Local Government Records Collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.
The original marriage register, 1868-1894, came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Albemarle County.
The negative photostatic copy of the earlier register was created by the Virginia State Library`s (now the Library of Virginia) Archives Division from the original volume found in the Albemarle County Circuit Court Clerk`s Office. The microfilm copy of the earlier register, 1806-1868, was generated by The Genealogical Society of Utah--while filming in the Albemarle County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.
Albemarle County was formed in 1744 from Goochland County. Parts of Louisa County were added in 1761 and 1838. The county was named for William Anne Keppel, second earl of Albemarle and governor of the Virginia colony from 1737 to 1754.
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, 1806-1868, is divided into two sections. The first section covering pages 1-128, 1806-1861, records the names of both parties, the date when the marriage license was issued, the minister by whom the parties were married and the date when the marriage ceremony took place. In 1813, another category is added--to whom the marriage license fee was issued by or paid to. From 1816-1821, an additional category was recorded--to whom the marriage license fee was repaid. The second section covering pages 130-146, 1865-1868, records only the names of both parties, the date when the marriage license was issued and to whom the fee for the license was paid. On pages 145-146, there are additional entries for the year 1867. There is a gap in the entries for the marriage register from 1862-1864 due to the Civil War. From 1865-1868, the marriages of African Americans are recorded in this volume.
Marriage Register, 1868-1894, lists the date of the marriage license, the full names of the husband and wife, whether the couple was white or colored and to whom the license fee was paid. By 1886 (p. 139), witnesses to the ages of the husband and wife were also noted. In the front of the volume, there are nine marriage consents (1870, 1885, 1887-1888, 1892.) Unlike the earlier register, this register has not been microfilmed.
Chronological.
Additional Albemarle County Marriage Records can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm"
Albemarle County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Albemarle 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 marriage register, 1868-1894, is found at the Library of Virginia's State Records Center.