Always label dates of events precisely in your genealogical database.Call them what they are. If the date is a birth date, then list it as a birth date. If the date is a baptismal date, then list is as a baptismal date–don’t use it as a birth date. The date of a marriage license is the date of the license, not the date of the marriage. The date of a marriage bond is the date of the bond, not the date of the marriage. The issuances of licenses and bonds does not mean the marriage necessarily happened. Most of the time it did, but there are always exceptions.
Being careful can reduce confusion later on.
Unlike one distant relative of mine who, in families that practiced infant baptism, just decided it was easier to call all dates of baptism dates of birth.
3 Responses
How would you list the Friends practice of marriage? They would have a meeting for marriage each mo for 3 times, then the marriage?
I’m a bit confused on the marriage date of my parents. I have a copy of the marriage certificate from New York City dated 4 January 1933. Yet, if I look them up in the vitals for NYC it shows 1 March 1933. The certificate shows with a signature by the NYC clerk.. a regular certificate. I have not sent for the 1 March document.. but it shows the parents’, etc (albeit with some incorrect name spellings) I have found many incorrect name spellings by the volunteers at FamilySearch. It’s a best guess based on the handwriting. The document is usually correct. But back to the two different dates. I don’t know what to make of it. I called the NYC Clerk and they just said to order it.
We have several ancestors where Ancestry.com has the bond or license date labeled as the marriage date. To be expected on their marriage databases that can incude sources such as genealogies and family group sheets etc. But no excuses when the visual is the cover of the court document which is clearly labeled “Marriage License.”