MARRIAGE & DIVORCE RECORDS - Washington State Library

11/2013 Office of the Secretary of State

How to find Washington State

MARRIAGE & DIVORCE RECORDS

Washington State Library

www.sos.wa.gov/library/Genealogy.aspx

Who has the records?

Marriage & divorce certificates from January 1, 1968 to two months before the present day are held

by the Washington Department of Health. The Washington State Archives might also have copies

www.doh.wa.gov/LicensesPermitsandCertificates/BirthDeathMarriageandDivorce/CertificateOrderingInformation.aspx

For recent marriage certificates from the last 2 months, contact the county auditor where the

license was filed. For divorce certificates, contact the county clerk.

www.wacounties.org/waco/county/map.html [Links to all county officials for Washington State]

For marriage certificates before January 1, 1968, the Washington State Archives has copies of many

of them.(see next section) Otherwise, contact the county auditor where the license was obtained.

For divorce certificates before January 1, 1968, the Washington State Archives might have copies. (see

next section) The county clerk in each county will have copies for certificates issued in their county.

Washington State Archives

Many county auditors have given the marriage records held in their offices to the Washington State

Archives. They will be held at one of the 5 Archives branches around the state. Check out the map

to locate the correct branch for your county. www.sos.wa.gov/archives/search.aspx

Washington State Archives has digitized many of the marriage records in their collections, and the

records that have been digitized can be viewed for free on the Washington State Digital Archives web

site. www.digitalarchives.wa.gov/Collections#RSID:1

WA Digital Archives has some early divorce records listed in their Frontier Justice Index.

www.digitalarchives.wa.gov/Collections#RSID:13

Many county clerks have given copies of the divorce records they hold to the Washington State

Archives. To see if records for a particular county are at the State Archives, go to the Search Page ,

and do a search on the county name and the keyword divorce. www.sos.wa.gov/archives/search.aspx

How can I find a marriage or divorce date?

The State Library has a Washington Marriage Index and a Washington Divorce Index for 1968-2004.

You can submit a lookup request on our Ask-A-Librarian page. www.sos.wa.gov/library/ask_form.aspx

For marriage dates before 1968, it is more difficult to locate dates. If the record you are looking for

has been scanned into the Washington Digital Archives, you can locate the date there.

www.digitalarchives.wa.gov Otherwise, you will need to try various organizations, print and online

resources, such as a county auditor’s office, state and county archives, libraries and genealogical

societies.

11/2013 Office of the Secretary of State

The genealogy collection at the Washington State Library includes over 50 titles indexing early

marriages in the Pacific Northwest. You can browse our online catalog to see what areas, and what

years are covered. www.sos.wa.gov/library/catalog.aspx

We are not aware of any pre-1968 divorce indexes for Washington State.

Additional Resources:

Clark County

1924 Clark County Marriages – A-D / E-J / K-Q / R-Z - www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~waclark/clark.htm

Island County

Island County Marriage Index 1855 – 1891 - http://usgwarchives.net/wa/island/island.htm

Island County Marriage Index 1859-1915 - http://usgwarchives.net/wa/island/island.htm

King County

The King County Archives has marriage records, and several marriage indexes in its collection.

The 1853-1900 index is online. www.kingcounty.gov/operations/archives/vital/marriage/index.aspx

Their complete marriage index, from 1853-1983 is available to search in house only.

At the King County Recorder’s Office web site, you can search for a marriage record from 1979 to

the present. www.kingcounty.gov/business/Recorders/RecordsSearch.aspx

Pierce County

Pierce County Recorder’s Office has marriage dates from 1980’s to the present.

http://armsweb.co.pierce.wa.us/

Stevens County

Stevens County Marriage Index 1859-1864 - http://usgwarchives.net/wa/stevens/stevens.htm

Stevens Co. Marriage Index 1886-1890 - http://usgwarchives.net/wa/stevens/stevens.htm

Stevens Co. Marriage Index 1901-1902 - http://usgwarchives.net/wa/stevens/stevens.htm

Pacific Northwest

British Columbia Marriages 1859-1936 - http://search.bcarchives.gov.bc.ca/sn-41E0088/gbsearch/Marriages

California Marriage Records 1949-1985 - (access by subscription only, state library has a subscription)

www.vitalsearch-ca.com/gen/ca/_vitals/camarrin.htm

Kootenai, ID Marriage Index 1885-1910 - www.usgwarchives.net/id/kootenai/kootenai.htm

Multnomah County (Portland, OR) Marriages 1855-1910 - www.gfo.org/multcomar.htm

Old Western States Marriage Record Index - http://abish.byui.edu/specialCollections/westernStates/search.cfm

Oregon Divorce Index 1946-60, 2001-2004 - (access by subscription only, state library has a subscription)

www.vitalsearch-ca.com/gen/or/_vitals/ordivorm-go.htm

Oregon Historical Records Index (includes marriages) - http://genealogy.state.or.us/

Oregon Marriage Records 1921-24, 1946-2004 (access by subscription only, state library has a subscription)