When any genealogy website “dishes up” an image of a genealogical record, determine exactly what you are looking at before quickly jumping off on your next research task. It can be easy to draw incorrect conclusions about a record with which you are unfamiliar. Marriage records are a great example of this.
Are you looking at a list of marriage licenses that were issued?
Are you looking at a book of marriage license returns?
Are you looking at the actual marriage license?
Are you looking at a marriage bond?
Are you looking at a marriage register?
Different locations required and kept different records. Some records indicate a marriage was intended (bonds and licenses) and some records indicate a marriage had actually been performed (marriage registers and returns). It’s important to know the difference.
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