Adams County Marriage Records

Adams County marriage records are kept by the County Auditor in Ritzville, Washington. The Auditor's office issues marriage licenses, maintains marriage certificates, and provides certified copies of records going back to the late 1800s. If you need to find a marriage record in Adams County, you can contact the Auditor directly, search the Washington State Digital Archives online for free, or request a certified copy from the Washington State Department of Health for marriages from 1968 forward. This guide covers how to apply for a license, get a certified copy, and search historical Adams County marriage records.

Adams County Auditor

The Adams County Auditor's office in Ritzville handles all marriage licenses and marriage records for the county. This is the place to go if you need a new license, a certified copy of a marriage certificate, or help tracking down an older record. Staff can check their files by name and date and assist with both in-person and mail requests.

The office follows standard Washington State practices. Both parties must appear in person to apply for a marriage license. If that is not possible, a notarized application form can be used for one party who cannot attend. The Auditor's office records marriages and also passes records along to the Washington State Archives, which is why many Adams County marriage records are now available through the Digital Archives online. For general questions about fees and current processing times, call the office directly.

Note: The office closes for lunch from Noon to 1 PM. If you plan to visit in person, arrive well before noon or after 1 PM to make sure you have enough time.

Marriage License Requirements in Adams County

To get a marriage license in Adams County, both applicants must appear at the Auditor's office in person. Bring a valid, government-issued photo ID such as a driver's license or passport. You do not need to be a Washington State resident to apply, but the ceremony must take place within the state. There are no blood test requirements and no waiting for divorce or birth certificates unless your situation involves a prior marriage that was not yet dissolved.

Washington State requires a three-day waiting period before a marriage license becomes valid. This rule comes from RCW 26.04.180, and it cannot be waived for any reason. The first day counts as the day after you apply. The license then becomes valid on the third day following your application. Once the license is valid, you have 60 days to use it. The ceremony must take place within that window, or you will need to apply for a new license. Fees vary; call the Adams County Auditor at (509) 659-3247 for current pricing before you go.

If one applicant truly cannot appear in person, they may complete a notarized application form. The other applicant must still come to the office in person to submit everything and pay the fee. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. Washington State does not allow marriages for those under 18 without going through a court process.

The license you receive before the ceremony is separate from the marriage certificate. The license allows you to marry. The certificate is the official record that a marriage took place. After the ceremony, the person who performs it signs and returns the license to the Auditor's office. That signed license becomes the marriage certificate on file. The WA211 Adams County Auditor listing notes that the license must be used within 60 days and has a three-day lapse before it becomes valid.

Certified Copies of Adams County Marriage Records

You can get certified copies of Adams County marriage certificates directly from the Auditor's office. Certified copies carry the official seal and are accepted for legal purposes such as name changes, insurance updates, and immigration paperwork. Call the office at (509) 659-3247 to ask about current fees and what identification you need to bring or include with a mail request.

For marriages that took place in 1968 or later, you can also request a certified copy from the Washington State Department of Health. The DOH handles statewide vital records and charges $25 per certified copy. Requests can be made by mail, in person at their Tumwater office by appointment, or through their third-party online ordering service via VitalChek on the DOH website. Mail requests go to: Department of Health, P.O. Box 9709, Olympia, WA 98507-9709. Include a completed order form and your fee. When ordering by mail, send a check or money order; additional fees apply for shipping options beyond first-class mail.

For a marriage that happened within the past five months, go directly to the Adams County Auditor. The state office may not yet have received the record. It can take up to five months for the Auditor to forward a completed marriage certificate to the Department of Health.

Note: Plain photocopies cost less than certified copies but may not be accepted for legal uses. If you need the record for an official purpose, request a certified copy.

Historical Adams County Marriage Records

Adams County has marriage records going back to 1884. That makes this one of the longer-running county records collections in eastern Washington. The records were scanned and indexed by Washington State Archives staff and volunteers from the Eastern Washington Genealogy Society. The result is a searchable online database at the Washington State Digital Archives, which is free to use.

The Digital Archives collection for Adams County contains 9,482 marriage records. Coverage runs from 1884 to the present with two known gaps. Records from 1900 to 1903 are missing, and records from 1913 to 1919 are also absent. Outside of those gaps, the collection is solid. You can search by last name, first name, middle name, or marriage year. The system also supports Soundex searches, which helps when spelling variations make exact matches harder to find.

The collection includes marriage certificates from 1884 to 1899 and from 1941 to 1995, marriage returns from 1904 to 1905 and from 1910 to 1912 and from 1920 to 1940, and electronic records from 1988 forward that came directly from the Adams County Auditor. For records between 1920 and 1940, the returns were digitized from the Eastern Regional Archives. If you need help with a specific record that does not appear online, you can contact the Washington State Archives Eastern Region Branch at (509) 235-7508 or by email at eabrancharchives@sos.wa.gov.

The Washington State Library also maintains a research guide for Adams County marriage records at washstatelib.libguides.com. This guide lists the sources of the digitized records and provides contact information for the archives. It is a useful starting point for genealogical research.

One thing to know about older records: the search fields in the Digital Archives use "Groom" and "Bride" for marriages before December 6, 2012. After that date, Washington's Marriage Equality Act changed the terms to "Person A" and "Person B." Keep this in mind when searching for more recent records.

Search Adams County Marriage Records Online

The Washington State Digital Archives is the main free tool for searching Adams County marriage records online. The site covers records from 1884 through the present with the gaps noted above. Go to digitalarchives.wa.gov and select Adams County from the collection list. You can search by name, year range, or case type. Images are available for many of the older records.

The state's Department of Health vital records page covers marriages from 1968 forward. That site does not offer free search results, but it explains how to order a certified copy by mail, phone, or in person. Per WAC 246-491-340, you need to provide the first and last name of at least one spouse, the month and year of the marriage, and the county where the license was filed. The DOH charges $25 per certified copy.

For the most current records or any record that may not appear in the Digital Archives, contact the Adams County Auditor directly at (509) 659-3247. Staff can search their internal records and confirm whether a specific marriage certificate is on file. In-person visits during business hours are welcome. The office is located at 210 West Broadway Avenue in Ritzville.

The Washington State Library has posted a screenshot of their Adams County marriage records research guide, which is a helpful reference for anyone doing genealogical work. The guide is available at washstatelib.libguides.com.

The Washington State Library Guides page shows available Adams County marriage record collections and research pathways. Visit the guide for source listings and archive contact details.

The Library Guides page links to finding aids and describes what records are available from the Eastern Regional Archives for Adams County.

WA211 lists the Adams County Auditor as the office that handles marriage licenses and certified marriage certificates in the county.

The WA211 listing confirms office hours, phone number, and address for the Adams County Auditor at 210 West Broadway Avenue, Ritzville.

The Washington State Digital Archives collection page for Adams County shows all 9,482 records and the date ranges covered by the digitized marriage certificates and returns.

The Digital Archives collection page for Adams County describes the record types, date ranges, and how records were digitized and transferred from the Auditor's office.

Note: The Digital Archives is free to use. You do not need to create an account to search basic index information, though some images may require a free login.

Cities in Adams County

Adams County includes Ritzville, Othello, Lind, Ritzville, and several small communities. None of these cities meet the population threshold for individual city pages. All marriage licenses in Adams County are issued through the Auditor's office in Ritzville, regardless of which city in the county you live in.

Nearby Counties

Adams County borders several counties in eastern Washington. If you are unsure which county handles your marriage record, check which county issued the license.