Find Free Allegheny County Marriage Records & Details

Search free Allegheny County marriage records using public record databases and other authoritative sources that require no fees to get started.

This resource assists readers looking to find out if someone is married in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, by providing links to search tools, databases, and other sources. It also offers helpful instructions for quickly identifying the correct agency to make marital history information requests so the searchers can get the most up-to-date and relevant results according to their preferences.

How To Search Allegheny County Marriage Records for Free

Under Pennsylvania State Statutes: Title 23, marriage licenses and applications maintained by the state are public records.¹ These records can be obtained from the marriage license clerk’s office at the county courthouse in the county where it was originally purchased.

Records of marriages that took place in Allegheny County can be obtained both online and in person.

If the marriage occurred from January, 1996 to the present, the record can be found by using the Online Marriage License Search Tool, provided by the County Department of Court Records.²

To look up marriage licenses for free, the user needs to enter at least the last name of either the bride or the groom, and then fill in the range of years in which the event might have occurred.

The search results will display an index with lists of all marriages recorded in Allegheny County, matching the criteria. The database contains basic details of each event such as the license number, date of issuance, as well as the date the couple became legally married.

The index of Allegheny County marital records (since 1996) is searchable by name and can be viewed completely free of charge. However, ordering the hard copies will cost a small fee, according to the document type requested.⁴

Note: The process to search for archived indexes for older marriage records is explained in a later section of the article.

Those wishing to order a recent marriage record online, may select a record, click the “Get Copy” file icon and fill out the form to have the copies delivered by mail.

A certified copy of the marriage license application is available for $10 while a plain, non-certified copy can be purchased for $4. Certified copies are legal proof of marriage and can be used for any legal matter (e.g., name change, passport, social/welfare benefits). A non-certified copy is suitable for personal and historical (e.g., genealogy) use only.

Marriage records filed in Allegheny County prior to 1996 are not stored electronically. So, there is no online index of marriage licenses earlier than date.

However, interested parties may use the Marriage Record Search/Order Copies (Pre-1996) Portal if they can provide identifying information about a specific event.⁵ Upon receiving a request online, the department staff will manually search through all records kept on file in their offices, charging $4 per search.

The same fees are charged for copies of marriage record documents in both cases (pre-1996 and post-1996).

Those who wish to search or request a marriage record in person, may go to the Allegheny Marriage Records Department at the following address:⁶

Allegheny Marriage Records Dept.
1st Floor, City County Building
414 Grant Street
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15219

Office Hours: Weekdays 8:30 am – 4:30 pm

For any question concerning marriage licenses or applications, interested parties can email [email protected] or call 412-350-4230.

The marriage license search process is the same all through the county of Allegheny, Pennsylvania. For marriages involving residents from the city of Pittsburgh, the township of Penn Hills, or the borough of Bridgeville, all records are available only through the Department of Court Records.

Historical marriage documents are maintained in various local and state repositories, and can be reviewed for the purpose of genealogy (i.e., trace someone’s family lineage, find their ancestors).

How Do You Access Historical Marriage Records in Allegheny County for Genealogical Purposes?

The marriage license clerk in the Allegheny County courthouse can provide information only about licenses issued since September, 1885. Marriage records from earlier periods may not be available for viewing here because the records might be too old to be preserved at the courthouse.

Alternatively, the two major local public library systems that enable researchers to access archived marriage records within Allegheny County are outlined below with helpful links.

• Allegheny County Library Association: Residents can search the online library catalog, locate a library, or get a library card for free to view the materials and books at the library building to see what historical marital documents are hosted there.
• Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (CLP): CLP library cardholders can use the available genealogical resources or research family ancestry and local history to find marriage-related documents.

Furthermore, anyone can make a marriage record search request online through the CLP to locate people who were married in Allegheny County back in the 1800s to the 1900s.

The microfilm collections held by the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh include the following:⁷

• Index to Allegheny County Marriage Licenses Vol. 1-14 (1885 to 1925)
• Marriage Notice Index (1786-1910, collected based on information obtained through local newspapers)
• Minister’s Returns, City of Pittsburgh (for the period: Feb 1875 to June 1886)
• Marriage License Docket Vol. 1-70 (1885 to 1905)

The Allegheny County Library Association and Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh together provide an online catalog search option to help users identify their available resources (e.g., past indexes to marriage licenses, marital consents, and applications).

The State Library maintains a list of Genealogy Centers & Historical Societies in Pennsylvania that includes genealogical society addresses and contact information in Allegheny County.

Marriages earlier than 1885 were not officially registered in Allegheny County. So, some scattered marriage records can be found in church records and newspapers.

Persons interested in conducting a search through the state’s archives can use either the Historical Society of Pennsylvania Marriage Indexes & Records or check out the State Library of Pennsylvania Digital Record Collections.

How To Find Marriage Records That Occurred or Originated Elsewhere in Pennsylvania

If a marriage occurred outside of the county of Allegheny, perhaps in a neighboring county, a local search may not generate the desired information. In that case, people may consider approaching the state vital records office for broader and more comprehensive results.

However, the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of Health Statistics & Registries does not provide a search service for the state’s marriage records. Instead, their official website instructs readers to reach out to the relevant county courthouse with any marriage license or certificate inquiry.⁸

To maximize search efforts, individuals may also run a check through counties that surround Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. For example, both Westmoreland County and Washington County allow the public to search for marriage license records online.

Note that Pennsylvania state statutes do not provide for certain types of relationships such as common law marriages, same-sex marriages and civil unions/domestic partnerships. As a result, they might not be discovered by performing a marriage license lookup through the state.

Another convenient approach is to look up Allegheny County records of marriage online through third-party public record search sites. Besides collecting data from a variety of government and non-government sources, third-party providers enable users to filter results by county, city, state and date range, making the search process more effective.

How Do You Get a Marriage License in Allegheny County?

To make a wedding legal, a marriage license is required before the ceremony. The cost for an Allegheny County marriage license is $80.

Couples may review the eligibility requirements to apply for a marriage license:

• Individuals wishing to marry should not be related by blood or close family members (e.g., first cousins)
• Each applicant should be 18 years of age or older
• Each person must show a valid photo ID, plus a second ID containing their social security number; if previously married, a certified copy of their divorce decree

A marriage license application in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania can be made either in person or online.

Online: To apply remotely, fill out the Marriage License Application Form and submit it online.⁹ This step includes providing each applicant’s full name, date of birth, address, and other personal details.

Then, both parties must appear together for a video conference interview at the appointed date and time, to complete the application process.

In Person: Allegheny County Pennsylvania marriage licenses are issued at the county courthouse. Persons who intend to marry may submit an application by visiting the Allegheny County Marriage License Section within the same department.¹⁰

Note that the Department of Court Records Marriage License Guidelines contains the address and contact info of the marriage license office.¹¹

Also check the Pennsylvania State Statutes for further details and to apply for a license to marry.¹

Once issued, the marriage license will be valid for 60 days and can be used to get married anywhere in the state of Pennsylvania.

As soon as the ceremony is performed and the Marriage Return Document is duly filed by the officiant, the event will be officially entered into Allegheny County marriage records, and the union will be recognized as legal anywhere, in or out of the state.