Top 2 Ways to Find Illinois Marriage Records
Are you in need of information about a Illinois marriage? There are two main ways to get access to Illinois marriage records. In this article we look at each of these ways. By the time you finish reading this, you will be able to confidently select the approach that will work best for you.
Getting Certified Copies of Records
Illinois marriage records used to be difficult to find when you had to go to the state vital records office, wait around until your number was called, then fill out a form hope that the information you need would eventually turn up. Thanks to the Internet, it is possible to complete much of this process from the comfort of your own home.
If you've got time to spare (processing your request can take a month or more) you can request Illinois marriage records directly from the Illinois State Archives website (the address is listed below). You can get these copies for just a small processing fee. Be aware that these are uncertified copies. To get certified copies, you must go to the county in question.
I'm sorry to say that things get a little tricky at this point. Unfortunately, the Illinois State Archives do not contain copies of all the state's marriage records. Depending on which county the wedding was conducted in, and exactly when it was conducted, you may need to contact that county to get the information you need. Beyond that, there are certain requirements that you must meet if you want to be allowed to search Illinois marriage records. Among them are requirements that you must be a family member of the person that you are looking for or be able to prove that you have power of attorney for the person in question. More details are available at the state website.
If You Just Need Information Fast
When you just need information abou the marriage, you have another option which is much faster and easier. You can get details about a Illinois marriage in minutes if you use a commercial Marriage Records Search service.
These services are not affiliated with the state, but use records obtained from the state to get you the facts immediately. It is possible for the service to get you your information almost instantly. That's because they are simply looking up the facts about the marriage in their database instead of finding and creating a certified copy of the actual document.
Clearly there are major differences in the methods for getting information from Illinois marriage records. The state's website is the place to start if you need a certified copy of these vital records. There's the address of that site here.
Illinois State Archives: http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/marrcopy.html
Don't forget: If you simply need to get the facts about this marriage, rather than a certified copy of the wedding certificate, you can have your information in minutes if you just Click Here!