Thursday, January 15, 2009

Texas Marriage Records Search Online

By Ben Dave

With a population in excess of 20 million and second only to California, it comes as no surprise that there are millions and millions of Texas State Marriage Records in one form or another, past and present. Amid the current age of computerization, both public and private databases exist aplenty and the mother of all repositories in Texas is of course The Texas Vital Statistics Office under the umbrella of Department of State Health Services of Texas. As to be expected, it is the most widely patronized center of information pertaining to marriage records.

Ever since 1966, all marriages in the state of Texas are documented and filed at the Texas Vital Statistics Office along with the other 3 principal vital record categories namely Texas Divorce, Birth and Death Records. Prior to that year, marriage records were only maintained at the respective county or district offices within which the marriage was transpired, likewise other records. Of them, Texas Marriage Records is the oldest.

Such Vital records go way back to the mid-nineteenth century as early as 1837 but were all scattered and isolated within their own respective county boundaries. Many failed to survive the ages due to a variety of reasons: fires, floods, accidents, negligence or just plain deficient storage by modern-day standards but for all practical purposes, marriage records upon the surrounding handful of generations (as of 1966) should generally suffice, especially with the high standards today's government public records.

A Public Marriage Record Search will virtually unveil all information in regard to someone's marital history and status in the state. In Texas, Marriage License, Marriage Certificate and so forth plus the particulars of the people involved: couple, parents, witnesses and even the conducting official are considered public information. Marriage records are under individual state jurisdiction and thus subject to variations in their governance. Respective State Records are not linked either so marriage records in other states will not appear in Texas. Likewise, Texas Marriage Records won't show up in other states.

Different folks search marriage records in different ways but it's done by far the most frequently through the net. They are convenient, swift, clean and quiet. You can buy them or find them but each has its price and purpose. The free ones save on financial cost but they typically can't match up to the paid ones in terms of quality and delivery. Given the immense competition in the information industry, a nominal financial outlay will generally fetch a high degree of worthy professional service.

Going by the sheer volume of search, Texas Marriage Records has to be the top record category within the state. The most common reason for them is checking out a romantic partner. It's also a requisite in the application for a Marriage License. Other reasons for conducting their search include Family Tree research and other legal and investigative pursuits. People are also increasingly self-checking their marriage records just be to sure that they're not shortchanged on that count as they become aware of the increased likelihood of their being checked. - 15437

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