Process for Obtaining California Marriage Records

California entered the U.S. on September 8, 1850 as the 31st state of the union. At the time the statutes described marriage as "a civil contract to which the consent of the parties is required", with gender specific pronouns applied to "husband" and "wife".

As early as 1851, when official records began to be kept, California marriage records included only marriage certificates and contracts. It was not until 1858 that the Office of the State Registrar was created to maintain information on births, marriages, divorces and deaths.

Marriage Records Reflect the Drama of Social Change

California marriage records reflect the many social changes this multi-ethnic state has been witness to over some five centuries. Take interracial marriages for instance. Prior to 1850, California’s Spanish rulers went to great lengths to prevent their progeny from marrying even white American colonists!

In 1850, as a U..S state, all marriages of white persons with ‘negroes or mulattoes’ were declared to be illegal and void. This racist stricture stayed on the books for nearly a century, until 1948 when massive immigration had again transformed its social mix.

That year, the California Supreme Court became the first state court in the country to strike down any law prohibiting interracial marriage as violating a fundamental right of all U.S. citizens. That may be the reason why so many older interracial couples chose to settle in the state.

California also is known for groundbreaking strides in same-sex marriages. In 2004, the Mayor of San Francisco directed the City-County Clerk to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples, citing the California Constitution's guarantee of equal protection under the law.

The California Supreme Court quickly annulled the marriages. Governor Schwarzenegger twice vetoed bills for legalization. However, the same-sex marriages permitted before the these annulments still show in the California marriage records.

Marriage Records are Considered Public Domain

If you are a U.S. citizen, you have the legal right to access marriage records in any state of the union. It is the responsibility of every state’s government to keep them properly maintained, updated, with authenticated copies easy to obtain.

You need to fill out no forms explaining why you want them--whether to replace a lost copy of your own marriage certificate, or check out the marital background of a prospective spouse.

More and more now, marriage records are also used as primary sources to research genealogy. They provide information not only about the wedded couple but also their parents (including the mother’s maiden name and residence at the time of wedding), the witnesses, and the person conducting the wedding.

Records are Now Easier to Obtain

In California, you can get records of marriages prior to 1905 only in the county where the wedding happened.  For records after that year, contact the Office of Vital Records and Statistics in the Department of Health Services located at 304 S Street, P.O. Box 730241, Sacramento, CA 94244-0241. Requests may also be faxed to 800-858-5553.

Thus, you are legally entitled to receive your copy of California marriage records. It has also become much easier to find the record and access your copy. All you have to do is know where to apply for your California marriage records and how to do so, and you can get your copy very easily and quickly. In most cases it is absolutely free, and there is no waiting period, no long queues and no hassles.