This is an index of the surviving Craven County marriage bonds from 1773 to 1867. The original bonds are held at the State Archives of North Carolina. All 6,546 of them are in one place here, so you can search by groom, bride, bondsman, or witness without hunting through a dozen separate pages.
A few things to keep in mind:
- Not every marriage is here. A bond wasn’t required for every marriage (couples could marry by banns), and some bonds have been lost over the years. If your couple isn’t listed, that doesn’t mean they didn’t marry in Craven.
- Names are standardized for searching. I’ve spelled names the way people usually search for them, so the original bond may spell them differently. Try partial names too.
- Look at the bondsman and witness. They were often a brother, father, uncle, or in-law of the bride or groom, and can be a great clue.
- See the originals. Images of the bonds are free on FamilySearch in the North Carolina, County Marriages collection (free sign-in required), and the originals are at the State Archives of North Carolina in Raleigh.
- After 1868, marriages were recorded in licenses and registers kept by the Craven County Register of Deeds.
| Groom | Bride | Date | Bondsman | Witness |
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