New Hampshire, Marriage and Divorce Records, 1659-1947

Vital records in early New Hampshire are kept at the town level, with some records dating back to early Colonial days. Statewide registration was required by law beginning in 1866, although compliance didn’t follow immediately, and even as late as the 1880s, not all records found their way to the Secretary of State.

In 1905, New Hampshire established its Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics. To create a state set of vital records, towns were asked to send in copies of their pre-1905 records. This database includes cards created by the state using details extracted from those original town records, as well as later marriage and divorce records created through 1947. The bulk of the divorce records range from 1858 to 1937.

What You Can Find in These Records

There are two card images for each record, so be sure to page forward to view the second image. Details that can be found on these cards include the following:

• groom's name, age, residence, color, occupation, and birthplace
• bride's name, age, residence, color, occupation, and birthplace
• number of marriage for each and whether widowed or divorced
• date intent to marry filed
• officiant, station, and residence
• marriage date and place
• groom's parents' names, residences, ages, colors, occupations, and birthplaces
• bride's parents' names, residences, ages, colors, occupations, and birthplaces

Not every town provided copies of its records to the Bureau of Vital Records, so even if your ancestor doesn’t appear in this database, it doesn’t necessarily mean a record doesn’t exist at the town level. Images are arranged alphabetically by first and third letter of surname (A*a, A*b, etc.). This may cause images to appear out of order.