Ask any bride who has tried to change her name after her wedding day and you'll hear a similar refrain. Dealing with the public records office in a given county is a pain. You might have to take off anything metal and wait in a long line. You might have to bring more documentation than you know how to find. It may seem as if a new hoop develops every time you jump through the last one. This can be especially true for those who seek marriage records in Texas. If you need those records for some reason, here are three challenges you may encounter.
The lack of proper documentation
If you want to get your hands on marriage records, you'll need proper documentation. Most administrators will not turn over these records to anyone other than the bride or groom. In some cases, where brides would have had to have traveled many hours to get the records, they've attempted to get their parents to access the records. Some have had success with this method, while others have not. In general, you'll need to be seeking your own records, and you'll need sufficient proof that you are who you say you are.
Lost records because of lapses in time
This may come as a shock to some, but government offices can sometimes lose track of records when those records get especially old. This is more true for marriage records in Texas than other records. Criminal records, business license records, and other such records tend to have a higher priority than marriage records. This means that marriage records may fall to the wayside when a county office runs out of space to physically keep them. To account for this, you'll need to give the records office plenty of time to find the records. It's probably not best to show up at four in the afternoon on a Friday expecting to walk out with old marriage records by the end of the business day.
A county by county approach that can be confusing
There is no centralized body of marriage records in Texas or in most other states. You'll have to navigate the difficult, confusing world of county clerks. Worse than that, some clerks will have digital records while others will not. While it is not a perfect rule, you can expect that bigger counties like Harris and Dallas will have digital records. Smaller counties may be slower to update their systems. Put in a phone call to find out what you are dealing with at any given county. You may also run into issues if a city has been re-classified in a new county. Over the years, county lines can shift and be re-drawn. This may impact where the records are housed.
Getting marriage records in Texas can be a chore. It is sometimes possible to find information online, but there is really no replacement for a good investigative nose when you're on the hunt for these. Be prepared for these challenges so you're not the guy or girl who feels silly seeking records from the wrong office.
