Learn How to Find a Florida Marriage Certificate Record

If you are looking for records of a Florida marriage, you are luckier than most. Florida vital records have been much better kept than in many other states in the US that had entered the Union much earlier and had access to better means of record-keeping. In comparison, Florida has every reason to be proud that, ever since June 6th 1927, every single marriage in Florida has been registered with the state’s Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Not that this was the first attempt in recording such records. The state government had legislated to have Florida vital records registered and maintained from 1899. But times were different then; the need was not universally felt, and the implementation was poor.

Since 1927, Florida marriages have been properly documented and kept updated. With digitization of data, it has also become easier and quicker to access these records from the state’s database.

For marriage records after June 6 of 1927, as well as birth and death records, write to the State of Florida Dept. of Health, Vital Statistics, 1217 Pearl Street, P.O. Box 210, Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042. You can also call 904-359-6900 904-359-6911.

Make Sure Your Request is Complete

Request letters are best kept brief and topical. Avoid literary flourishes and unnecessary details about yourself. Also, never make more than two requests at once: if you do, your letter could keep moving back and forth between departments. They may also cause procedural delays. If you have many requests, make them step by step.

You are writing about real people in one of life’s most significant events. So make it count. Try your best to provide the most comprehensive, reliable and relevant information you can.

Leave no room for any misrepresentation. For instance, if the person who got married is known by more than one name, write them all down, including nicknames. If a name has alternate spellings, mention them all as possible options.

Be as painstakingly accurate as you possibly can about the date of marriage. Take no chances with hard data. If you are not sure of the precise date, provide a span of years that must be searched. Remember that you have to pay extra for searches that cover many years.
 
You should make no payments in advance. If you don’t already know how many pages there are in any particular Florida marriage deed there’s no way you will know exactly what fees will be. If that happens, paying in advance by guesswork may well leave you out of pocket – and still not speed up the processing.

It may be safest to send a blank check, duly signed. Write, under the "$____" line of the check, ideally in red ink, "Not to exceed $X.00", which should be the most likely amount.

Ideally, what you should do is take a little extra time and write two letters. The first letter should state your requirements, specify all the relevant information you can yourself provide, and request to be told the service charges payable. The second letter should carry your check for the specified amount. A stamped and self-addressed envelope should always be enclosed with your request letter.

Now a word of caution: state and county offices may be quite often short-staffed. Genealogical research is not part of their job. They do it as a service to you, and appreciate you keeping that in mind: do show some patience and courtesy if they are not responding as quickly as you would like!

Little Details to Remember

When writing for a copy of a Florida marriage certificate, make sure always to include the following:
 
•    Date of request
•    Husband’s full name (last name in caps)
•    Wife’s full maiden name (last name in caps)
•    Date of marriage
•    Place of marriage
•    Relationship to you/the applicant
•    Why the record is needed
•    Your name & address
•    Your driver's license number & state (some counties require it)
•    Your signature

Why You May be Interested in a Florida Marriage Certificate

Perhaps you have a relative who was married in Florida and settled down in the state, and perhaps you are mapping your family tree. It would surely be a lot of fun to track down the person and know what he or she was like and how she/he lived. With a FL marriage certificate you will actually be able to learn a lot. In fact, a marriage certificate is often asked for by all those people who are carrying out a genealogy research.

There are others too who are searching. Perhaps your son or daughter is getting married or maybe you are yourself getting married. You just want to be sure about your would-be spouse and want to do some checking. The marriage certificate search can be very handy here as well.

The Internet can help you carry out a search today. The biggest advantage of the Internet is that it can save you time and hassles. This requires no writing of letters and no waiting. You just click and you can place your request.