Montgomery County Marriage and Divorce Records

Getting a Marriage License in Montgomery County

The Circuit Clerk runs marriage licensing in Montgomery County. Robert M. Perry serves as Circuit Clerk, and his office both issues the license and keeps the county marriage records. The office sits inside the courthouse at 614 Summit Street in Winona. That same clerk files Circuit Court civil and criminal cases, draws juries, and registers voters. For a couple planning to wed, though, it is the first and main stop. There is no second county marriage office to track down.

Mississippi sets statewide marriage rules, yet the official county pages do not post the local marriage license fee, the accepted forms of identification, the minimum age, or any waiting period. No online marriage application exists for the county either. Because those details are not published, the safe move is to call the Circuit Clerk before showing up. A short phone call confirms the cost, the IDs both partners must bring, the accepted payment methods, the office hours, and whether both applicants need to appear in person.

How to Apply for a Marriage License

Applying is a short, in-person process once the details are confirmed. Because the county does not post its rules, treat the first phone call as part of the application. The steps below follow the official county source and stay general where the county stays silent.

1. Call the Circuit Clerk at 662-283-4161 to confirm the current fee, ID rules, payment methods, office hours, and whether both applicants must appear.
2. Go to the Circuit Clerk's office at 614 Summit Street in Winona, or follow the clerk's instructions if an appointment or mail option is offered.
3. Provide each applicant's full legal name and the identification the clerk requires.
4. Pay the license fee using a method the clerk accepts, confirmed by phone in advance.
5. After the ceremony, confirm the return and recording steps with the Circuit Clerk, since that office keeps the marriage record.

What to Bring and Confirm

No public Montgomery County marriage application form was found online, so this list is a planning checklist, not a copy of the county form. Treat every row as an item to verify with the Circuit Clerk by phone. The clerk has the final word on what each applicant must present and sign at the counter.

Montgomery County Marriage and Divorce Fees

Money is the part most people want pinned down, and it is also the part the county keeps offline. The official Montgomery County pages do not list a marriage license fee, a certified-copy charge, a divorce filing fee, or a decree copy cost. Rather than guess, confirm each amount with the office that handles the record. Under Mississippi Code Section 25-61-7, copy fees are limited to the actual cost of search, review, duplication, and mailing, which gives a useful ceiling even when a flat price is not posted.

How to Look Up Montgomery County Marriage Records

There is no online county index for marriage records, so a lookup runs through the Circuit Clerk. Call, write, or visit the office and ask staff to search the marriage book by the couple's names and an approximate date. The more you can narrow the year, the faster the search. If the office accepts a mailed request, send it to P.O. Box 765, Winona, MS 38967, with both spouses' full names and the date or year of the marriage. A certified copy is the version you will need for a name change, a benefit claim, or an estate matter.

Local court contacts can help point you to the right counter when you are unsure which office to call. The City of Winona keeps its own Municipal Court office and schedule page, which lists local court clerks, hours, and phone numbers for the Winona area.

That municipal court office handles city citations rather than marriage records, but it shows the kind of direct, phone-first access Montgomery County relies on. Marriage and divorce questions follow the same pattern: identify the office, then call or write. Because broadband reaches only part of the county, the clerk's phone line stays the most reliable tool for many residents.

How to Find Montgomery County Divorce Records

Divorce is a Chancery Court matter, not a Circuit Court one. Chancery Court hears divorce, child custody, property division, alimony, and other family and equity cases. The Chancery Clerk, Ryan Wood, keeps those files at 614 Summit Street, P.O. Box 71, Winona, MS 38967. There is no public online divorce index for the county, so a search goes through that clerk. Provide the names of both parties, an approximate filing year, and the case number if you have it. Ask whether you need a plain copy or a certified copy of the final decree.

A divorce file can hold a range of documents. Common contents include the original complaint, the summons, financial affidavits, temporary orders, custody and child-support orders, a property-division or settlement agreement, and the final decree. Some of these papers carry sensitive detail. Where minors or private financial accounts appear, parts of a file may be sealed or redacted by the court. The Chancery Clerk can tell you which documents in a given case are open to the public and which are restricted. For estate and guardianship questions that touch the same office, the county's Chancery Court records path covers those filings.

Restricted Family Records

Not every family-court paper is open to the public. Adoption files are handled by Chancery Court, and they are not ordinary public domestic records. Treat them as restricted. Court records involving children, including custody-sensitive material and youth-court matters, are generally confidential under Mississippi law. A judge can also seal individual filings within an otherwise open divorce case.

Personal identifiers add another layer of limits. Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and certain minor details are often redacted before a file is released. A general public-records request is not a key that unlocks sealed or confidential material. To reach a restricted record, a requester usually must qualify under the relevant law or hold a court order. When in doubt, ask the Chancery Clerk whether a specific file is open, sealed, or limited before you plan a copy request.

Background Checks Before Marriage

People in Montgomery County sometimes run a quick public-safety check on a future spouse before a wedding. That review sits outside the courthouse marriage record, but it is a common companion search. Mississippi runs a statewide registry that anyone can use, and it covers offenders living across the county, including the Winona area.

The state's Department of Public Safety sex-offender registry lets the public search by an offender's name, by distance from an address, or by ZIP code after accepting the terms of use.

The registry is free and statewide, so a Montgomery County ZIP search returns results for the local area. Before you rely on any listing, it helps to understand the rules behind it. The DPS site also posts the Mississippi sex-offender registration law, which explains who must register and how the central registry works.

This kind of check is a supplement, not a substitute for a marriage record. It tells you nothing about a prior marriage or divorce. For that history, you still need the Circuit Clerk and the Chancery Clerk. Keep the two searches separate and use each for what it does best.

Getting Certified Copies and Public Records

A certified copy carries the clerk's seal and proves a record is official. You need one for most legal uses, such as a name change, a passport, a benefit claim, or an estate filing. Order a certified marriage record from the Circuit Clerk and a certified divorce decree from the Chancery Clerk. Give the office the full names, the date or approximate year, and the case number if the record is a court file. Ask about the fee and the turnaround time when you call, since neither is posted online.

When a record is older, offline, or slow to locate by phone, the Mississippi Public Records Act gives a written fallback. Under that law, any person may inspect or copy public records through a public body's reasonable procedures, and access is generally due within one working day of a written request when no procedures are set. The Mississippi Ethics Commission publishes the statute, including the fee rule that limits charges to actual cost. Put your request in writing, name the record as precisely as you can, and state whether you want to inspect or to receive certified copies. Sealed, juvenile, and adoption records stay off-limits even under this law.

Marriage and Divorce Record Contacts

Two offices hold the two record types, and each has its own phone, mailbox, and email. The Circuit Clerk is the marriage side. The Chancery Clerk is the divorce side. Use the matching card below, and call before you mail or visit to confirm what each request needs.