Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society
“…increasing and enriching public knowledge of our heritage”
Vital Records: Marriage, Birth, & Death: Marriage Records
About Marriage Records
Wedding Photograph
26 February 1891
Sand Prairie Luthern Chuch
Marriage records in Tazewell County vary in form, content and location depending on the time period in which the marriage was reported. The records may be in the form of a one-line entry on a register page or a certificate which can contain a great deal of information about the bride and groom.
Recording of marriages has been required since Tazewell County was formed in 1827. Therefore, the Tazewell County marriage records are fairly complete. Recording at the county level has continued through present day.
Prior to 1869, marriage records were simply a one-line entry in a records book. Starting in 1869, marriage records began to be transitioned to certificates. Marriage records prior to 1878 only contain the names of the bride and groom, the date of the marriage, and the name of the officiate.
Starting around 1878, marriage licenses began containing additional information such as the groom's and bride's full names, places of residence, ages, birthplaces, father's name, mother's maiden name, and number of marriages. Other items included are the groom's occupation, the location & date of marriage, witnesses, and the presiding official.
Beginning in 1962, marriages also began to be recorded by the Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records.
The cost of obtaining a marriage certificate can vary widely depending on the repository and whether the copy is certified. Certified marriage certificates are only available from the Tazewell County Clerk’s office.
By far the cheapest way to get a noncertified copy of a marriage record from 1869-1950 is from our marriage records collection.
Marriage Record Links
- TCGHS 1869-1950 Marriage Record Collection
Available from the Society or can be ordered online. - Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD)
Marriage records from 1827-1922 are available on microfilm. - Tazewell County County Clerk
County Clerk maintains all marriage records for Tazewell County, starting in 1827. - Illinois Department of Public Health
The Division of Vital Records maintains marriage records starting in 1962. They can only provide verification of a marriage which includes names, dates of birth, date of marriage, and city/county of the marriage. - TCGHS Research Services
Conduct research including making copies of records from the TCGHS collections.
Accessing Marriage Records
Tazewell County did not start recording marriages until 1827.
1827 - 1922
Recording of marriages has been required since Tazewell County was formed in 1827. Therefore, the Tazewell County marriage records are fairly complete. However, records prior to 1878 only contain the names of the bride and groom, the date of the marriage, and the name of the officiate.
Only the Tazewell County Clerk's office recorded marriages during this period.
The Tazewell County Clerk charges $5.00 for a document search - whether a record is found or not.
If the document is found, an uncertified copy can be issued at no further cost.
If a certified copy is desired, the fee will increase to $15.00 for the first copy and $11 for each additional copy.
Note: Marriages prior to 1869 do not have an original certificate. You will receive an abstract of the one-line entry in the marriage records book.
Check out the Application for a Marriage Record search by the Tazewell County Clerk's office for more details including latest access restrictions and prices.
Tazewell County has placed copies of the 1827-1922 marriage records into the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) system. Other than minor photocopy fees, IRAD does not charge to access these records. Here's how to make a request from IRAD
The Illinois State Archives is developing an online database for all Illinois marriages occurring prior to 1901. The index currently includes Tazewell County marriages from 1827 - 1900. A list of counties with corresponding date spans included in the marriage index is available. Or, search the archives marriage index now.
The Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society (TCGHS) has published indexed transcriptions for all Tazewell County marriages from 1827-1897. Marriage records prior to 1878 only contain the names of the bride and groom, the date of the marriage, and the name of the officiate. These transcriptions contain all information that was in the original record. Our transcriptions may be consulted and/or purchased at our library or by mail order. Or, we can research them for you for a small fee.
Uncertified copies of marriages from 1869-1922 are also available in our marriage collection. TCGHS members can consult our online marriage 1869-1950 record index.
TCGHS also published a four-volume index for 1898-1938 marriages using the original returned marriage licenses which were in storage at the Tazewell County courthouse. These indexes may be consulted and/or purchased at our library or by mail order. Or, we can research them for you for a small fee.
1922 - 1961
Marriage records for this period were only recorded by the Tazewell County Clerk's office.
The Tazewell County Clerk charges $5.00 for a document search - whether a record is found or not.
If the document is found, an uncertified copy can be issued at no further cost.
If a certified copy is desired, the fee will increase to $15.00 for the first copy and $11 for each additional copy.
Check out the Application for a Marriage Record search by the Tazewell County Clerk's office for more details including latest access restrictions and prices.
Uncertified copies of marriages from 1922-1950 are also available in our marriage collection. TCGHS members can consult our online 1869-1950 marriage record index.
TCGHS also published a four-volume index for 1898-1938 marriages using the original returned marriage licenses which were in storage at the Tazewell County courthouse. These indexes may be consulted and/or purchased at our library or by mail order. Or, we can research them for you for a small fee.
TCGHS later published a two-volume index for 1939-1950 marriages using the original returned marriage licenses. These indexes may be consulted and/or purchased at our library or by mail order. Or, we can research them for you for a small fee.
1962 - Present
Marriage records for this period were recorded at both the county and state level.
The Tazewell County Clerk charges $5.00 for a document search - whether a record is found or not.
If the document is found, an uncertified copy can be issued at no further cost for marriages more than 20 years ago.
If a certified copy is desired, the fee will increase to $15.00 for the first copy and $11 for each additional copy. Only certified copies are available for marriages within the last 20 years.
Check out the Application for a Marriage Record search by the Tazewell County Clerk's office for more details including latest access restrictions and prices.
The Illinois Department of Health, Division of Vital records charges $5.00 for a verification of a marriage. Please note this is only a verification of the facts of the marriage (names, dates of birth, date, and city/county) rather than a copy of the original record. Here's how to order a marriage verification from the Illinois Department of Health.
All information on this page was current as of March 2019.
Let us know if you find any information is out of date.
