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Another example from the Probate Court in Crawford County, Ohio |
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Marriage of Bessie Bittner and Curtis P. Mader
The groom's mother, Mrs. Lissie Mader, gives consent for son Curtis P. Mader, age 20 years, to marry and states: "I have had sole charge of my son for the past 15 years. His father has done nothing for his support of education. His father does not live in Ohio. My son is employed as a ticket agent for the Erie R.R." |
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Witness: J. G. Meuser, dated 2 September 1896 |
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The required legal age to marry in the United States has always varied from place to place. Some locations demanded that everyone who married for the first time have the consent of a parent, but in most places consent was required only for those under legal age. |
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Age twenty-one for males and eighteen for females has been used as a rule of thumb when the legislated legal age for a place is unknown. Keep in mind that some States, especially in the south, allowed female children to marry at age fourteen without permission. Be sure to check the laws establishing legal age before jumping to conclusions about the age of an ancestor. |
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Consent affidavits can be found attached to marriage
bonds and licenses, noted in marriage registers, and
in separate consent books.
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