England, Durham Diocese, Calendar of Marriage Bonds and Allegations - FamilySearch Historical Records
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| Location of Durham, England | |
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| Location of England | |
| Record Description | |
| Record Type | Marriage Bonds and Allegations |
| Collection years | 1594-1815 |
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What is in the Collection?
This collection consists of marriage records from County Durham for the years 1594-1815.
Marriage allegations and bonds were sworn statements filed by a bride and groom as part of a marriage license application. The allegation stated that there was no known reason that the marriage should not take place; bonds contractually obligated the signers to pay a sum of money if the allegation was incorrect. Until 1733, marriage bonds were written partly in Latin but the wording was standardized and is easier to decipher in the printed forms that were in use by the 1690s.
Due to both tradition and a fee associated with obtaining a marriage license, most English couples were married by banns, not by license, and so would have neither a marriage allegation nor its related bond. However, families able to pay the fee would often avoid the reading of public banns and obtain a license, since many families did not like the thought of public objection to the intended marriage. Before the 1830s, nonconformists were required to marry officially in the Church of England, so most applied for licenses, rather than having their marriage announced by banns. Other possible reasons for obtaining marriage licenses are explained in the Marriage Allegations, Bonds and Licences in England and Wales page.
Although most bonds and allegations have survived, some are in poor condition and difficult to read, especially when the microfilmed images are badly focused. Licenses themselves were not normally retained for long after being handed to the officiating minister, but a few survive with parish records.
The Bishop of Durham’s transcripts of marriage bonds and allegations for Allertonshire Peculiar includes the following Yorkshire parishes:
- Birkby
- Cowesby
- Hutton Bonville
- Leake
- Nether Silton
- North Otterington
- Osmotherly
- Thornton-le-Street
A marriage allegation is a sworn statement filed often by the marriage participants in connection with their license application. It is a statement that there is no known reason that the marriage should not take place. Marriage licenses could be granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, bishops, and archdeacons or their surrogates within their respective jurisdictions. The original allegations and bonds were held by the various church officials. Most were later transferred to county record offices. Many of the records are now published by the respective dioceses. The majority of English people would have been married by banns, not by license, and so would not have a marriage allegation. However, from the early 16th century those able to pay the fee could avoid the reading of public banns and obtain a license, since many families did not like the thought of public objection to their intended marriage. Dissenters (other faiths) were obliged to marry in the Church of England and obtain a license to marry.
As one of the 39 historic counties of England, County Durham has a long history. From the time of the Norman Conquest, the county was governed by a series of bishops who had been endowed with great secular authority by royal decree, making the city of Durham one of the foremost centers of both religious and political influence in the north of England. This eminence lasted until the nineteenth century when the bishops of Durham were stripped of the bulk of their secular powers.
For a list of parishes which historically made up this county, see the Durham Parishes page.
Collection Content
The collection consists of calendar (chronological) typescript copy of the Diocese of Durham Marriage Bonds and Allegations. It contains men, women, and place indexes in each volume.
Sample Image
Marriage Allegation
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What Can This Collection Tell Me?
The following list indicates potential information provided in these records. It must be remembered that every record may not provide all the listed information, as record-keeping practices varied greatly over time.
Marriage Records usually contain:
- Names of the marriage partners
- Ages of the marriage partners
- Occupations of the marriage partners
- Marital status of the partners (whether single or widowed)
- Parish of residence
- Where the marriage was to take place
- A parent’s name or signature
- If either of the marriage partners was a minor, the name of the parent or guardian who was consenting to the marriage
How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search, it would be helpful if you knew the name of the bride or groom. If no index is available, you should know the jurisdiction where the allegation was filed and an approximate marriage date.
View Images in This Collection by Visiting the Browse Page
If granted the rights to view the digitized records in this collection (see below), the images may be accessed by following this series of links:
⇒ Select Browse through images on the initial collection page
⇒ Select the appropriate Year Range
⇒ Select the appropriate Durham University Reference Number
⇒ Select the appropriate Abstract or Index to go to the images
Compare the information found on the images with what is already known determine if a particular record relates to the correct person. This process may require examining multiple records before the correct person is located.
Some of the records in this collection may be written in an old script that can be challenging to read. Refer to BYU’s Script Tutorial for assistance with reading the records.
What Do I Do Next?
I Found the Person I Was Looking for, What Now?
- Make sure to fully transcribe and cite the record entry for future reference; see below for assistance in citing this collection. Save or print a copy of the image if possible.
- Use the information which has been discovered to find more. For instance, use the age listed in the record to estimate a year of birth, if that is yet undetermined.
- Use the information which has been discovered and locate the original parish marriage record, if possible. See the Durham Bishops' Transcripts page for more information and options.
- If in the appropriate period, use the information which has been discovered to find the individual in civil records. Particularly useful for research in nineteenth-century England are the England Census and the England Civil Registration records.
- Continue to search the index to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives. Note that family members often appear on an individual's vital records, such as in the role of witnesses to a marriage.
I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking for, What Now?
- When looking for a person with a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which individual is correct. Use other information, such as place of birth, age, occupation, or names of parents, to determine which candidate is the correct person. If listed, a personal title may be a clue to property ownership or occupation, either of which might be noted in other records.
- Check for variants of given names and surnames; simple clerical errors were always possible. In addition, spelling was not standardized for much of the period of this collection, so pay special attention to how the name should have been pronounced and try variations on the pronunciation. Individuals could also be listed under a middle name, nickname, or abbreviation of their given name. For women, it was not uncommon to revert to a maiden name after the death of a previous husband.
- Vary the search terms. For example, search by either the given name or surname to return broader list of possible candidates which can then be examined for matches. Alternatively, try expanding the date range.
- Search the records of nearby areas. While it was uncommon for an individual in this period to move more than about 20 miles from their place of birth, smaller relocations were not uncommon. For this particular collection, this step may require finding records in the bordering English counties of Northumberland or Yorkshire, or perhaps even Cumberland or Westmorland.
- Look at the actual image of the record to verify the information found in the online description, if possible.
For additional help searching online collections see FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.
Known Issues with This Collection
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How You Can Contribute
Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.
Collection Citation:
| Collection Citation: The citation for this collection can be found on the Collection Details Page in the section Cite This Collection. |
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