Record of Marriages

9/30/1865

While many slave couples formed lasting bonds during their enslavement, slave marriages had no legal foundation or protection. The abolishment of slavery not only meant citizenship but the ability to have legally recognized marriages without fear of the loss of a spouse through sale. The Bureau helped facilitate and record marriages. The Freedmen's Bureau recorded these county marriages performed by D Maxwell, Clerk of the Court, for the quarter ending on September 30, 1865.

National Archives, Records of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands

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