Source Information

Ancestry.com. Minnesota, U.S., Marriage Index, 1958-2001 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.
Original data:
  • Minnesota Department of Health. Minnesota Marriages, 1997-2001. Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, Minnesota.
  • Minnesota Center for Health Statistics, Office of the State Registrar. Minnesota Marriage Index, 1958-1995. Minnesota Center for Health Statistics, Office of the State Registrar, St. Paul, Minnesota.

About Minnesota, U.S., Marriage Index, 1958-2001

This database is an index to marriages in Minnesota from 1958-2001 (excluding 1996). The database is a compilation of two indexes obtained from the Minnesota Center for Health Statistics (CHS) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).

Information available in this database includes:

  • Names of bride and groom

  • Ages of bride and groom

  • Birth dates of bride and groom*

  • Marriage date

  • Marriage place

  • State file number**

*Exact dates of birth are only available in data from the MDH. Records from the Minnesota CHS may have estimated birth years calculated from the year of marriage and age of bride or groom.

**Only available for data from the MDH.

Data from the Minnesota CHS covers the years 1958-1995 (and may include a few earlier and later marriages). Data from the MDH covers the years 1997-2001. Records from the Minnesota CHS also include images of the index.

I Found An Ancestor In This Database….What Now?

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 and establish important family relationships.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the 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 listed in this index.

Finding the Original Marriage Record:

Copies of marriage certificates are issued through the county where the marriage occurred. Contact the registrar office of the appropriate county for more information on ordering copies.