How to Find New York Marriage Records
Looking for a marriage record from New York State as part of your genealogy research? New York State briefly kept marriage records from 1847 to about 1850 and started recording marriages again in 1881. Copies of all records can obtained from the town or city of birth or by contacting the state archives.
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New York City keeps marriage records separately from New York State. Learn more about finding marriage records from New York City. |
Next Step: When did the marriage occur? [edit | edit source] |
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Marriages Before 1847[edit | edit source]
Before 1847, no marriages were recorded by New York's county, city, town, or village governments. The Secretary of the Province of New York issued approximately 20,000 marriage licenses before 1784.
| Marriage Indexes | |||
| Database Name-Index Only | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| Ancestry, Marriages, 1664-1784 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | 23,226 |
| Ancestry, Marriages, 1600-1784 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | 19,477 |
| Findmypast, United States Marriages, 1639-1962 | On Findmypast ($) | ||
| FamilySearch, Marriages, 1686-1980 | On FamilySearch; free; INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 768,885 | |
| Ancestry, Marriages, prior to 1784 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | not given |
| Can't access Ancestry? | Visit your local family history center or your local public library. |
| No marriage record for your ancestor? | Search for Gretna Greens-- locations away from the home county where marriage laws were less restrictive. Search other records with marriage information. |
In most cases during this time period, you will need to search substitute records to locate your ancestors' marriage date and place. Substitutes for marriage record information:
| 1. Look first in | 2. Then search |
| Church Records Newspapers Military Records Obituaries |
Census Records |
Marriages from 1847 thru 1850[edit | edit source]
In 1847, New York State passed a law requiring marriages to be reported. It quickly fell into disfavor and few communities reported marriages after 1850 (with many discontinuing after the 1847-1848 time period). Extant records for this time period are either held by the local village, town, or city clerk or by the county clerk.
PART A: You know the village, town, or city of marriage
Try 1st:
Determine if the records from your village, town, city, or county have been microfilmed by FamilySearch. Search the Catalog for both village/town/city and county and then locate any available microfilms at your local family history center.
Try 2nd:
Order a copy of the marriage record from the village, town, or city clerk. To locate contact information, search for the village, town, or city in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. Note that in some counties the county clerk holds all marriage records for this time period.
If you do not want to order the marriage record, you can search other records with marriage information.
PART B: You do not know the village, town, or city of marriage
If you do not know the village, town, or city of marriage, learn more about the family using census, land, probate, and church records.
| Marriage Indexes and Images | |||
| Database Name | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| New York, County Marriages, 1847-1849; 1907-1936 | On FamilySearch. Also on Ancestry ($), free at family history centers. INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 549,389 | |
| FamilySearch, Marriages, 1686-1980 | On FamilySearch; free; INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 768,885 | |
| Findmypast, United States Marriages, 1639-1962 | On Findmypast ($) | ||
Marriages from 1851 thru 1880[edit | edit source]
After the failure of the 1847 law, no marriages were recorded by the State of New York between 1850 and 1880 though some cities (including Albany, Buffalo, Yonkers) started recording marriages in the 1870s. Some records for this period are available in the following Findmypast collection:
- United States Marriages – New York, 1639-1962 ($) index and some images
Try also searching substitute records to locate your ancestor's marriage date and place.
| 1. Look first in | 2. Then search |
| Church Records Newspapers Military Records Obituaries |
Census Records |
Learn how to access records kept by Albany, Buffalo, and Yonkers from the 1870s.
Marriages from 1881 thru 1907[edit | edit source]
Starting in 1881, New York required that village, town, and city clerks record marriages. Copies of these marriages were then filed with the State Department of Health. Due to earlier city laws, copies of marriages recorded in Albany, Buffalo, and Yonkers were not sent to the State between 1881 and 1914.
STEP ONE - Search the Index[edit | edit source]
The New York Archives as well as nine other repositories in New York hold copies of microfiche indexes to marriages certificates. Contact one of these ten repositories (listed on the State Archives website) to search the index.
| Marriage Indexes and Images | |||
| Database Name | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| New York, County Marriages, 1847-1849; 1907-1936 | On FamilySearch. Also on Ancestry ($), free at family history centers. INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 549,389 | |
| FamilySearch, Marriages, 1686-1980 | On FamilySearch; free; INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 768,885 | |
| Findmypast, United States Marriages, 1639-1962 | On Findmypast ($) | ||
| Ancestry, Marriage Index, 1866-1937 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | not given |
| Ancestry, Marriage Index, 1881-1967 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | not given |
STEP TWO - Obtain the Certificate[edit | edit source]
With an exact date (from your records or the index above), you can order a copy of the marriage record for a fee from the following locations:
| To Order Marriage Certificates | |||
| From village/town/city of marriage (search the Research Wiki for contact info) | From NY Dept of Health State office | ||
| Pros | Cons | Pros | Cons |
| May be less expensive and faster than ordering from the state | Individual clerks may not be aware of state laws regarding record availability | Offers a standard search covering 1-3 years with additional years with the option to increase the number of years searched for an additional fee; expedited orders through VitalChek | May take more than eight months to fulfill a request |
See list of restrictions for ordering marriage records
if you don't want to order the marriage record, you can search other records with marriage information.
Marriages in Albany (city), Buffalo, or Yonkers[edit | edit source]
Albany
Marriage records for the 1870-1914 time period can be ordered from the Albany City Clerk and the Albany County Hall of Records
Buffalo
Marriages records for the 1878-1914 time period can be ordered from the Buffalo City Clerk.
Yonkers
Marriages records can be ordered from the City of Yonkers, NY Genealogical Research.
See list of restrictions for ordering marriage records
Marriages from 1908 thru 1935[edit | edit source]
Starting in 1908, marriage records (including those from Albany, Buffalo, and Yonkers) could be only be filed with a town or city clerk. Copies of marriage records were then filed with county who sent them on to the state. Since the counties did not always forward the marriage records on to the state, some towns and villages stopped sending their marriages to the county in 1915, 1922, 1926, or 1935. Copies of all marriages records (except New York City) were filed with the New York Department of Health. Copies can be obtained either through the town or city clerk where the marriage took place, through the county, or through the Department of Health. Most of the records filed with the counties area also available from FamilySearch
STEP ONE - Search the Index[edit | edit source]
| Marriage Indexes and Digital Images | |||
| Database Name - Index and Image | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| New York, County Marriages, 1847-1849; 1907-1936 | On Ancestry; ($); INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | ||
| FamilySearch, Marriages, 1908-1935 | On FamilySearch; free; INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 636,587 | |
| If you do not locate the marriage in the above, try: | |||
| Database Name-Index Only | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| FamilySearch, Marriages, 1686-1980 | On FamilySearch; free; INCOMPLETE for all counties and years | 768,885 | |
| Findmypast, United States Marriages, 1639-1962 | On Findmypast ($) | ||
| Ancestry, Marriage Index, 1866-1937 | Free using Ancestryinstitution at FamilySearch Centers | $, Use your own Ancestry subscription | not given |
| No marriage record for your ancestor? |
Search for Gretna Greens-- locations away from the home county where marriage laws were less restrictive. |
STEP TWO - Obtain the Certificate[edit | edit source]
With an exact date (from your records or the index above), you can order a copy of the marriage record for a fee from the following locations:
| To Order Marriage Certificates | |||
| From village/town/city of marriage (search the Research Wiki for contact info) | From NY Dept of Health State office | ||
| Pros | Cons | Pros | Cons |
| May be less expensive and faster than ordering from the state | Individual clerks may not be aware of state laws regarding record availability | Offers a standard search covering 1-3 years with additional years with the option to increase the number of years searched for an additional fee; expedited orders through VitalChek | May take more than eight months to fulfill a request |
The New York Archives as well as nine other repositories in New York hold copies of microfiche indexes to birth certificates. Contact one of these ten repositories (listed on the State Archives website) to search the index.
See list of restrictions for ordering marriage records If you do not want to order the marriage record, you can search other records with marriage information.
Marriages after 1935[edit | edit source]
STEP ONE - Search the Index[edit | edit source]
After 1935, all marriages in New York were recorded by individual town and city clerks. Copies were sent to the state.
| Marriage Indexes | |||
| Database Name-Index Only | Link or links to access database | # of records | |
| FamilySearch, New York Marriages, 1686-1980 | On FamilySearch; free; index only | 859,927 | |
| FamilySearch, New York City Marriage Licenses Index, 1950-1995 | On FamilySearch; free; index only | not provided | |
| Findmypast, United States Marriages, 1639-1962 | On Findmypast ($) index and some images | ||
STEP TWO - Obtain the Certificate[edit | edit source]
| To Order Marriage Certificates | |||
| From village/town/city of marriage (search the Research Wiki county pages for contact info) | From NY Dept of Health State office | ||
| Pros | Cons | Pros | Cons |
| May be less expensive and faster than ordering from the state | Individual clerks may not be aware of state laws regarding record availability | Offers a standard search covering 1-3 years with additional years with the option to increase the number of years searched for an additional fee; expedited orders through VitalChek | May take more than eight months to fulfill a request |
See list of restrictions for ordering marriage records
If you do not want to order the marriage record, you can search other records with marriage information.
Restrictions for Obtaining Marriage Records[edit | edit source]
To obtain a marriage certificate copy for a marriage that occurred within the past 50 years, you must be:
- The person named on the marriage certificate
- Persons who have a documented judicial or other proper purpose
- Persons by order of a New York State Court
Restrictions are waived if both spouses are deceased.
Wiki Articles[edit | edit source]
- Learn more about U.S. marriage records
- How to find U.S. birth records
- How to find U.S. marriage records
- How to find U.S. death records
- United States Record Finder
- United States, How to Use Marriage Records
- United States Marriage Records
- United States Vital Records
- U.S. Vital Records Overview
- Locating United States Vital Records
