Augusta County (Va.) Marriage Register, 1813-1846

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888
Restrictions:

There are no restrictions.

Terms of access:

Use microfilm copy, Augusta County (Va.) Reel 98.

Preferred citation:

Augusta County (Va.) Marriage Register, 1813-1846. Augusta County (Va.) Reel 98, Local government records collection, Augusta County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.

Summary

Creator:
Augusta County (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Augusta County (Va.) Marriage Register, 1813-1846. Augusta County (Va.) Reel 98, Local government records collection, Augusta County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.

Background

Scope and content:

Augusta County (Va.) Marriage Register, 1813-1846, is a list of marriages celebrated in the county and certified by the county clerk. The register consists of the names of both parties, by whom married, the authority (license or publication) and the date when married. There are references, found on pages 18-a (1824) and 66 (1846), to marriages between "free persons of color." Due to the photostatic process, marriages between 1828-1833 are difficult to read.

Biographical / historical:

Augusta County was formed from Orange County by a statute of 1738 that stipulated that when the population was large enough the new county government would begin to function. The county court first met on 9 December 1745. The county was named for Augusta of Saxe-Gotha, who married Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, and was the mother of King George III.

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 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 by publication of banns was a public notice of an intended marriage that had to be published, verbally or by written notice, for three consective meetings at the churches of the bride and groom. This notice allowed the community to object to the union. Prior to 1848, banns were a legal substitute for a marriage license.

The original marriage records, from which this volume was compiled, were created by the County Court.

Acquisition information:

This negative photostatic volume was created by the Virginia State Library's (now the Library of Virginia) Archives Division, under the accession number 24379, from the original volume found in the Augusta County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.

The microfilm copy of this volume was generated by the Genealogical Society of Utah while filming in the Augusta County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.

Physical location:
State Records Center - Archives Annex, Library of Virginia
Physical description:
1 v. (134 p.); 1 microfilm reel