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Arlington County (Va.) Marriage Registers, 1850-1881, consist of two separate volumes. The first volume dates from 1850-1865 and includes 210 pages. This volume is divided into three distinct sections. Pages 1-74, 1850-1854, include the date of the marriage license, names of groom and bride, record of ministers' returns and written consents from parents. On page 7, there are listed two marriage returns from the Quakers or Society of Friends. In the 1850s, marriages between persons of Irish descent are noted. Beginning in 1852, page 26, information is added under the bride's name regarding her age. Pages 75-132 1/2, 1854-1861, include the date of the marriage license, the names of the groom and bride and whether a consent was given. Pages 134-210, 1861-1865, include the number of the marriage license--a consective numbering system used for each year, the date when the license was issued, the names of the groom and bride, the ages of the groom and bride, information on the parents' consent, date of ministers' returns and record of ministers' returns (including date and by whom married.) There are numerous references to marriages between "free persons of color" throughout the volume. This volume also contains an internal index arranged alphabetically (A-Y) by groom's name according to page number.

Arlington County (Va.) Record of Ministers' Certificates, 1801-1850, records the returns made by individual ministers performed within the county and the District of Columbia. Some returns in this volume take the form of registers which record the date when the marriage was solemnized, the parties names, when married and by whom. Later, these registers also indicate the date of the marriage license. Other returns in this volume are in the form of lists which record when the parties were married, the names of the parties, the minister's name and denomination. Along with these returns, the ministers' filed marriage certificates with the county clerk. These signed documents certified that a minister had performed the actual marriage ceremony between the named individuals on a certain date. Marriages between free blacks or free persons of color are noted between 1808-1822 and 1841-1848. All pages in this volume are unnumbered.