A relative is married in 1843 in St. Louis, Missouri. He is married again in Illinois in 1848. The most likely scenario is that she died. It is possible that the couple actually divorced or separated and never bothered to divorce. The divorce would have generated a court record. A separation that never resulted in divorce may not have generated any records at all.
But I should not assume the first wife died unless there is some additional evidence other than simply the subsequent marriage.
2 Responses
How can I list a putative marriage date if it is not valid until the ‘impediment’ is removed?
Question: Putative. A putative marriage is entered into in good faith by at least one of the parties. The marriage is invalid due to a technical error, such as a pre-existing marriage. The putative spouse is not legally married, but is given legal rights based on their good faith belief.
In some jurisdictions, the marriage becomes valid if the impediment is removed.
If the impediment is not removed, the innocent spouse may be entitled to the same protections as a divorced spouse. This includes the right to divide property and child custody. The putative spouse may also be entitled to inherit community property and maintenance.
What are some examples of putative marriages?
A marriage where one of the parties was unaware that the other party was still married to someone else
A marriage where one of the parties was unaware that the other party had a previous domestic partnership.
List the date of the marriage because that’s the date on the record. You can put in your notes whatever the issues there were with the marriage but the date needs to be the date that’s on the record.