Source Information

Ancestry.com. South Carolina, U.S., Compiled Marriage Index, 1641-1965 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2005.
Original data: Hunting For Bears, comp.. South Carolina Marriage Index, 1641-1965. South Carolina marriage information taken from various sources. Many of these records were extracted from copies of the original records in microfilm, microfiche, or book format, located at the Family History Library.

About South Carolina, U.S., Compiled Marriage Index, 1641-1965

This database contains marriage information from selected areas of South Carolina from 1641-1965. Information that may be found in this data set for each individual includes:

  • Name
  • Spouse's name
  • Marriage date
  • Marriage location
  • Where to locate copies of the original marriage record

Marriage records are great sources for genealogists because they document an individual in a particular place and time as well as provide details about that person's marriage.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the original records that this index references. Usually more information is available in the records themselves than is found in an index. For example, marriage records sometimes provide the birth dates and places of the bride and groom, their parents' names, their addresses, and witnesses' names, in addition to the information found in this index.

This collection represents South Carolina marriage information compiled from various sources. Until 1911 there were no laws requiring marriage licenses or marriage documentation in South Carolina. Therefore, the records gathered to compile this index had to be found in places other than the county courthouses. Some of these other sources include newspapers, church records, and pension applications. Because the South Carolina marriage records are taken from various sources, source information is provided for each South Carolina entry. Use the source information provided to locate the original record used to compile the index.