Access Free Charleston County Marriage Records & Licenses

Find free Charleston County marriage records via searchable databases and online lookup tools.

This helpful resource can be used to find out if someone is married in Charleston County, South Carolina, whether out of personal curiosity or for official purposes. It also provides step-by-step instructions on how to get copies of marital records from the appropriate record custodian offices.

How To Perform a Search for Charleston County Marriage Records

Under the South Carolina Public Records Law, marriage records and indexes maintained by the state are open to any member of the public.¹ Records of marriage licenses issued from 1879 to the present day can be found through the probate judge’s office in the Charleston County courthouse.

Those wishing to look up Charleston County marital records online, can use the Probate Court’s License Lookup Portal.²

If someone applied for their marriage license in this county, their name will appear in the search results, providing that the record has already been digitized and released for general public viewing.

Users can search for a record by entering the name of the bride or groom. No fee is charged and no login/signup is required to view some of the basic information about each case (e.g., marriage license number, names of the married parties, date of application etc.).

If a record cannot be found online, but there are reasons to believe it might have occurred in Charleston County, a search may be requested at the probate judge’s office though it may require a fee. For questions regarding marriage licenses, reach out to:

Marriage License Clerk
Charleston County Probate Court
100 Broad St., Suite 469
Charleston, South Carolina 29401

Phone: 843-958-5183
Email: [email protected]

Although the marriage bureau is open during regular office hours (Monday to Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm), only virtual public access is encouraged.³ So, there are no provisions for a marriage record search in person, via mail or by phone since the department’s operations are conducted fully online.

Interested parties may also Request Certified Copies of Marriage Licenses Online. Each certified copy is available for $5, plus an online processing fee. Requests are typically processed within the next business day and the requested documents are delivered by mail.

“Certified” copies are copies of the original license with official signature and a raised seal of the issuing government agency. These copies are used for legal reasons, such as changing names or enjoying rights and benefits that come with being legally married.

Note that under SC Code 44-63-86, only specific individuals are eligible to get a certified copy of a marriage license in South Carolina.⁴ Examples include the spouses themselves, their adult children or legal representatives etc.

The marriage records of the county can be searched only at the county level or state level, they are not held by the municipality governments or councils.

For example, if a couple got married in Charleston – the most populous city in South Carolina – their license record won’t be available at the city’s records center; instead, it may be obtained through the the State Department of Health & Environmental Control (DHEC), Vital Records. The process will be detailed in a later section of this article.

While recent marriage records can be found through the above-mentioned sources, some searchers may seek older records for the purpose of genealogy. Anyone can access archived marriage records and indexes to find their family history and origins, as long as they have a name and a range of dates to search for.

How To Look Up Archived Marriage Records in Charleston County South Carolina

Historical record collections of early Charleston County marriages (pre-1950) are preserved at local archives, public libraries, historical societies, and genealogical societies.

To locate vital records for someone’s ancestors in South Carolina, with special emphasis on Charleston, the following resources are recommended:

• College of Charleston Libraries Genealogy Resources
• Charleston Library Society Archives
• Charleston Public Library – The South Carolina Room
• Catholic Diocese of Charleston Archives Repository Marriage Records (Note that church records can be an excellent source for researching early marriages because churches stored these records prior to 1879, earlier than those held by Charleston County probate court)

To access the preferred records, any Charleston County resident can appear at the physical locations and review the manuscripts/materials in person. The address and contact information are provided on the respective websites.

The South Carolina Historical Society (SCHS), located in Charleston, accepts requests for Family History & Genealogical Research. Research fee ranges from $35 to $50 per hour. The requester may fill out the form, enclose their check or credit card number and then send the application to the following address:

South Carolina Historical Society
100 Meeting St.,
Charleston, SC 29401

Phone: 843-723-3225

Before sending a request, people can use their online catalog search tool, check the FAQ section, view their collections in digital format, or refer to the genealogical charts to check what types of resources may be available for research at the SCHS Reading Room.

Even if an exhaustive search through the local government indexes and archives is not uncovering the desired information, consider running a statewide record search.

A state level search for archived marriage records in Charleston County can be done through the South Carolina Department of Archives & History.⁶ The department keeps microfilm of marriage licenses and registers for events from 1911 to 1950.

Some other potential sources that can be helpful for genealogy enthusiasts are: Charleston’s historic newspapers, military records, obituaries, cemetery, death records or census records.

County government records may not include couples cohabitating without having a marriage license or a ceremony because common law marriages are no longer recognized in South Carolina (since 1999).⁸

Similarly, same-sex marriages are not recognized in the state as per SC Code Section 20-1-15.⁹ Also, persons engaged in any kind of informal relationships, such as a domestic partnership or civil union, do not have legal status equivalent to a married couple.

How To Review Marriage Records Throughout South Carolina (Statewide Search)

The Probate Court’s Marriage License Search tool allows users to look for marital records in Charleston County, as well as marriages recorded in surrounding counties.²

For more comprehensive results, a statewide marriage record search may be requested from the South Carolina Department of Health & Environmental Control’s DHEC State Vital Records Office, located in Columbia. The state office has kept marriage records since July 1950.

The website does not have an online search tool that could allow the general public to access South Carolina marriage records. Instead, the DHEC state vital records office accepts public marriage record requests made in person, online (through a third-party provider VitalChek website), by phone and by mail.¹⁰

The detailed process for each method has been explained in the Marriage Certificates – South Carolina Vital Records page. A certified copy of a marriage certificate costs $17.00 and each additional copy is available for $3. The request can be mailed to:

DHEC State Vital Records Office
2600 Bull St.
Columbia, South Carolina 29201

Phone: 803-898-3630

How Do You Apply for a Marriage License in Charleston County South Carolina?

To get married in Charleston County, South Carolina, it is essential to obtain a marriage license prior to the ceremony.

The cost for a Charleston County marriage license is $70 (plus online payment processing fee) and it can be used to marry anywhere throughout the state.

Those wishing to apply for a marriage license online, may visit the official website of Charleston County Probate Court’s Marriage License Division.

The process begins with filling in the Live Online Virtual E-Application Form (LOVE) and providing basic details such as the applicant’s name, age, address, phone number and email address.¹¹

Next, upload an identification document, as well as a proof of social security number, as instructed in the form. The final step is to make payment online using credit card/debit card. Complete the marriage license application form by clicking ‘Submit’ at the end of the form.

Following a mandatory 24-hour waiting period, the parties will receive the license via email from the Marriage License Clerk. The license should be printed and used in accordance with the instruction sheet provided along with it.

The parties (bride and the groom) must meet the following requirements to legally enter into a marriage in Charleston County, South Carolina:

• Each person must be at least 18 years of age at the time of application to get married without parental consent
• Both South Carolina residents and out-of-state residents can apply
• Only authorized ministers and rabbis (pursuant to South Carolina Code § 20-1-20) and notaries can solemnize a marriage in the state.⁹
• Couples who have completed a qualifying premarital preparation course, as per SC Code § 20-1-230(B) should bring their certification of completion.⁹

A Charleston County marriage license is valid for six months and can be used for marriages performed within the state.

When a wedding is solemnized according to South Carolina Marital Laws, the record of the union will be officially filed, indexed, and made accessible for any citizen wishing to search Charleston County marriage records for free.