Divorce records provide genealogically relevant information, such as the marriage's date and dissolution. They provide the couple and their children's names, as well as place the couple in a specific time and place. These records also provide insight into the marriage and the family's life. Divorce records may answer research questions about why a husband or wife suddenly "disappears" or why there is a remarriage.
A divorce is a legal action that dissolves a marriage. Couples who divorce may or may not be free to marry again. Annulments are similar to divorce, but the main difference is the marriage is considered invalid as if it never existed. The rules for an annulment are different depending on the place the ancestor lives. Annulments are sought in cases where the couple should have never been married, such as when they were closely related or were too young to marry. Some religions also issue divorces so that the religious act of marriage is dissolved or annulled, but this is not a legal action, except in countries where there is no civil marriage, like Lebanon, Israel, Indonesia,[1] Jordan[2] and Iran; in countries where civil marriages exist, religious divorce may be done in addition to legal divorce.
Information available in divorce records
Divorce records can include the following:
- Names of the married couple
- Names of children
- Date of marriage
- Reason for the divorce action and history
- Current address
- Property of the married couple and its division
- Custody arrangements (if the couple has children)
- Spousal and child support, if ordered
- Which party is "at fault"
- Testimonies from the couple or witnesses
How to verify an ancestor went through a divorce
It's easy to assume that people didn't divorce in past generations, but divorce, or at least separation, has always been a reality. In some places, divorce was illegal, which means the couple may have simply separated, moved, or divorced elsewhere.
Some clues that an ancestor may have separated or divorced include:
- A subsequent marriage (even if the marriage license does not indicate a prior marriage)
- A change in a woman's surname
- Newspaper notices that a man is no longer responsible for his wife's debts
- Census enumeration that gives a marital status as widowed or divorced
- Census enumeration that includes children with different surnames from the husband and wife
Whenever a person is listed as a widow or widower and is remarried, always search for the death information for the spouse. If that cannot be found, check court records for a possible divorce.
Where to find divorce records
Finding divorce records will depend on the era and location you are researching. To begin, read the law regarding divorces during that period. You can search for divorce records in the MyHeritage record collection. Sometimes, digitized book websites like Google Books have older legal journals, reports, and statutes that might help. For example, a report based on the United States Census provides the laws for each state regarding divorce in the following publication: Marriage, and Divorce 1867-1906.
Depending on the laws of the time, divorce records might be part of a legislative or court record. Because of this, they may be available in a state archive or library, a state historical society, a courthouse, or a court archive. For example, the Connecticut State Library has divorce indexes by state and county starting in 1698. Some divorce records can be found on online genealogy websites. These sources can include indexes or actual court records. However, most divorce records will be available from the entity that granted the divorce.
Indexes to divorces or court records are one way to find possible records. These may be found via digitized book websites such as Google Books, Hathi Trust, or the Internet Archive. Indexes for Canada, the United States, and England may also be found in the Periodical Source Index (PERSI) searchable on The Genealogy Center website (Allen County Public Library). When searching PERSI, search by the name of the location or type of record, not by your ancestor's name. PERSI is not an every-name index. Once you find a relevant article, you must order it and search it for your ancestor's name.
In the case of court records, it would be necessary to contact the court to ascertain whether the records can be ordered from the court or are stored offsite or at an archive. it is important to keep in mind that it is possible that an ancestor did separate and even remarry but did not legally divorce. Due to societal expectations and cost, some couples may have just separated, or one member moved away and started anew.
See more
Search for divorce records
Explore more about divorce records
- Marriage and Divorce records collection at MyHeritage
- Florida, Divorces, 1970 - 1999 records collection at MyHeritage
- Tennessee Divorces records collection at MyHeritage
- Colorado, Divorces, 1878 - 2004 records collection at MyHeritage
- Wisconsin Divorces records collection at MyHeritage
- Minnesota, Divorces, 1970 - 2003 records collection at MyHeritage
- Nevada, Divorces, 1968 - 2000 records collection at MyHeritage
- North Dakota, Divorces records collection at MyHeritage
- England and Wales Divorces records collection at MyHeritage
- D-I-V-O-R-C-E! at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Marriages and Anniversaries. Mining newspapers for engagements, marriages, anniversaries, and divorce records at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- To Have but No Longer to Hold: Divorce in Australia at Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- How to Look for Records of Divorce at National Archives (UK)
References
- ↑ Marriage in Indonesia
- ↑ Marriage in Jordan. US Embassy in Jordan