In my effort to join the DAR, I’ve spent quite a bit of
time looking like I’m doing something. I
contacted a local chapter. I created a
spreadsheet to stay organized. You know –
busy work. But I finally DID something
that looks like something: I ordered a
marriage record.
That’s no small feat for me. I am always reluctant to order records. Don’t ask me why. It can’t be the money because I don’t hesitate
to shop online. In this case, though, I’m
glad I hesitated.
My maternal grandparents married in Hagerstown, Maryland
in 1922. Had they been thinking about
what I would need 90 years later, they’d have gone down to the EUB Church in
Shenandoah, Virginia to exchange their vows.
Then their records would be available free at the Library of
Virginia. But no, I have to search in
Maryland.
Assuming Maryland would house records in the Archives
like Virginia does, I Googled my way to the Maryland Archives. Certified marriage records are available for
$35, non-refundable even if no record is found.
Wow. In Virginia, a certified
record is only $12. But Maryland isn’t
Virginia.
I printed the form and started filling out the required
information. Before I signed my check
for $35, I decided to Google one more time, just to see if there were any other
source. And ta da – I landed on the
Hagerstown Circuit Court website.
Certified copies of marriage records are $5.50. $5.50?!?! How did I not find this place in my first
search?
Just to be certain I wasn’t dreaming, I called Hagerstown,
and sure enough, the nice lady said they would indeed have marriage records for
1922. Score! Attention Hagerstown! The. Check. Is. In. The. Mail.
The $29.50 I saved will cover the cost of TWO – count’em TWO – Virginia records. Hmm, what shall I
order next?
©2014, Wendy
Mathias. All rights reserved.
That is a bonus and make your day kind of happening. Persistence is rewarded.
ReplyDeleteThat's great! Good old Google. :)
ReplyDeleteI have had a long affair with google, and I'll never let it go! :)
ReplyDeleteYeah -- Google is my BFF.
DeleteThat is AWESOME! Some of my first purchases were marriage, birth and death records for my grandparents and great grandparents in order to start my paper trail for DAR. I should have procrastinated because guess what I found in my treasure trove of records in the storage unit - yep, the same records :-(
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like me -- I go looking for the same census record or deed over and over.
DeleteHurray for you Wendy!!
ReplyDeleteYa, Google pretty much rocks! What DID we do without it way back when?
I guess encyclopedias are a thing of the past.
DeleteYou have a point there. I'll have to consider that. Maryland isn't my happiest research playground, either. Trying to find my missing grand aunt (though not for DAR purposes, of course) has been a bear since she passed away without any other trace in Maryland. A "trip" to the courthouse may be in order!
ReplyDelete