Find Marriage Records in St. Clair County

St. Clair County marriage records go back to 1763, making this one of the oldest collections in the state of Illinois. The County Clerk office in Belleville is the main place to search for marriage licenses, get certified copies, and look up past records. St. Clair County sits across the river from St. Louis and has more than 253,000 residents. Whether you need a recent marriage license or an old record for genealogy work, the St. Clair County Clerk can help you find what you need. You can also order marriage record copies through VitalChek if you prefer not to visit in person.

St. Clair County Marriage Records Office

The St. Clair County Clerk is the official keeper of all marriage records in the county. This office is at 10 Public Square in Belleville. You can call them at (618) 277-6600 or use the toll-free line at (888) 290-6363. Staff handle marriage license applications, issue certified copies of marriage records, and help with searches of old files. The fax number is (877) 846-4972 if you need to send forms that way. You can also reach them by email at countyclerk@stclaircountyil.gov for questions about St. Clair County marriage records.

The St. Clair County Clerk website has details on all the services the office provides, including vital records.

The clerk's site shows you how to reach the office and what services are on hand for marriage records in St. Clair County.

Getting St. Clair County Marriage Records

You can get certified copies of marriage records from the St. Clair County Clerk in a few ways. The most common is to go in person to the office in Belleville. Bring a valid photo ID with you. Tell the clerk the names on the marriage record and the approximate date. Staff will search the files and print a certified copy for you. The first certified copy costs $15. Each additional copy of the same record costs $8 when you order them at the same time. These fees are set under 410 ILCS 535, the Illinois Vital Records Act, which governs how counties handle vital records across the state.

You can also order by mail. Send a written request to the St. Clair County Clerk at 10 Public Square, Belleville, IL 62220. Include the full names of both parties, the date of the marriage, and a check or money order for the fee. Make it payable to the St. Clair County Clerk. Mail orders take longer to process, so allow a few weeks for your copies to arrive.

VitalChek is another option for ordering St. Clair County marriage records. This is an online service that works with the county. You can order through their site and pay with a credit card. VitalChek charges its own service fee on top of the county fee. It is a faster option than mail for people who cannot visit in person.

St. Clair County Vital Records

The vital records division of the St. Clair County Clerk handles marriage records along with birth and death records. This is a busy office that serves a large population base in the Metro East region of Illinois.

The St. Clair County vital records page spells out what you need to bring and how to request copies of marriage records and other documents.

This page lists all the vital record types the St. Clair County Clerk office can provide, including marriage records, and what each one costs.

St. Clair County has marriage records going all the way back to 1763. That is over 260 years of marriage records on file. The county was one of the first settled areas in what is now Illinois, and the clerk's office has kept records since the earliest days of the territory. These old records are a gold mine for anyone doing genealogy or family history research. Under 410 ILCS 535/25, marriage records more than 50 years old are open for genealogical searches, and anyone can request copies of these older St. Clair County marriage records without showing a direct connection to the people named on them.

Note: The oldest records may be in handwritten ledgers, so allow extra time for searches that go back before the 1900s in St. Clair County.

Marriage License Rules in St. Clair County

To get a marriage license in St. Clair County, both people must appear at the clerk's office in Belleville at the same time. You each need a valid photo ID that shows your date of birth. A driver's license, state ID card, or passport all work. Under 750 ILCS 5, the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, both parties must be at least 18 years old. Minors who are 16 or 17 can apply with written consent from a parent or guardian. There is no blood test needed in Illinois.

After you get the license, there is a one-day waiting period before the ceremony can take place. The license stays good for 60 days. If you do not use it in that time, it expires and you have to start over at the St. Clair County Clerk office. The ceremony must take place in St. Clair County for the license to be valid. After the wedding, the person who performed the ceremony must sign the license and return it to the clerk's office within 10 days. Once it is filed, the license becomes an official marriage record in St. Clair County.

If you were married before, bring your divorce decree. The clerk needs to see proof that the prior marriage ended. This is a state rule that applies in every county.

St. Clair County Court Records

The St. Clair County Circuit Clerk is a separate office from the County Clerk. The Circuit Clerk handles court records, which can include divorce decrees and annulments that relate to marriage records. If you need court documents tied to a marriage case in St. Clair County, this is the office to contact.

The Circuit Clerk office is in Belleville at the same courthouse complex. You can reach them at (618) 825-2334 or by email at CircuitClerk@co.st-clair.il.us. Court records can show details that you will not find on a marriage license or certificate. For example, a dissolution case file may have information about property division or name changes that came out of the end of a marriage in St. Clair County. People sometimes need both types of records to get a full picture of a marriage and its legal history.

Note: The County Clerk handles marriage licenses and vital records, while the Circuit Clerk handles court case files in St. Clair County.

St. Clair County Genealogy Records

St. Clair County is one of the best places in Illinois for genealogy research on marriage records. With records dating back to 1763, the collection covers the French colonial period, early American settlement, and every era since. Few counties in the state can match this depth. Researchers come from all over to look through the St. Clair County marriage files for family connections that stretch back centuries.

Records from the 1700s and 1800s are in older formats. Some are handwritten in ledger books. The clerk's office can help you search these, but it may take more time than a search of newer records. If you know an approximate date and the names of the couple, that will help staff find the right St. Clair County marriage record faster. For records that are 50 years old or more, you do not need to show any particular reason for your request. The state law under 410 ILCS 535 opens these up for public genealogy access.

The Illinois State Archives in Springfield also has copies of some early St. Clair County marriage records. If the local office cannot find what you need, try the state archives as a backup source.

Cities in St. Clair County

St. Clair County has several cities and towns spread across its borders. All of them rely on the St. Clair County Clerk for marriage licenses and marriage records. The largest city in the county is Belleville, which serves as the county seat. East St. Louis and O'Fallon are also in St. Clair County. No matter which city you live in, you go to the clerk's office at 10 Public Square in Belleville for all marriage record needs.

Nearby Counties

These counties sit next to St. Clair County. If you are not sure which county handles your marriage records, check the address where the license was issued. Each county clerk only has records for marriages that took place in their own county.