Changes

The informality of marriage practices--and their variability from state to state--became more visible after the American Civil War. When the federal government recognized a need to provide pensions to widows of former soldiers in 1862, women throughout the country attempted to collect these pensions that they were due. Requiring a proof of marriage, though, meant some women had to be creative or resourceful. Few women had official documents from priests, judges, or other local officials.  More often than not, women submitted letters from friends or neighbors attesting to the fact that the couple were was married, or artifacts like pieces of uniforms, or locks of hair. The preponderance of these artifacts in the National Archives Civil War Pension files suggests that legal marriage was not a standard practice. And increasingly, from the late 19th century through the 1920s, marriage became a formal process in local government.