Search Jefferson Davis County Marriage and Divorce Records

Getting a Marriage License in Jefferson Davis County

The Jefferson Davis County Circuit Clerk issues marriage licenses. That office is led by Clint W. Langley and is reached at P.O. Box 1090, Prentiss, MS 39474, by phone at 601-792-4231, by fax at 601-792-4957, or by email at circuitclerk@co.jefferson-davis.ms.us. A license must be in hand before the ceremony. After the signed license comes back, the same office keeps the county marriage record, so it stays the local point of contact for copies. Profiles of the office and its duties sit on the county Circuit Clerk page.

One detail trips up applicants. The county FAQ still lists a blood test receipt dated within the last 30 days, a picture ID, and a parent's signature for anyone under 21. State guidance reads differently. The Mississippi State Department of Health says a blood test has not been required since July 1, 2012. The state marriage page that carries this update is shown below.

The lead-in source is the MSDH marriage records page, which states the blood-test rule plainly.

Because the county and state pages disagree on this point, call the Circuit Clerk at 601-792-4231 before applying so you bring exactly what the office wants on the day. The clerk can confirm whether the outdated blood-test line still applies and what the current license fee is.

How to Apply for a Marriage License

Applying is short once the right documents are in hand. The steps below follow the county FAQ and current state health guidance.

1. Call the Circuit Clerk at 601-792-4231 first, since the county FAQ appears outdated on the blood-test point and a quick call confirms what to bring.
2. Bring a valid picture ID for each applicant.
3. If either applicant is under 21, ask the clerk about the parental-signature requirement listed in the county FAQ.
4. Pay the county marriage-license fee. The exact amount is not published online, so confirm it when you call.
5. Keep the license and any record numbers, because they speed up later certified-copy requests.

Marriage License Application Items

The county has not posted an online application form, so the exact field list is not published. County and state sources still point to a short set of items every applicant should expect to present or provide. The table frames each item as required per the county FAQ and MSDH guidance, not as a separate verified form.

Jefferson Davis County Marriage and Divorce Fees

Fees split between the county offices and the state health department. Jefferson Davis County has not published the price of a marriage license or a certified decree, but the state copy fees are fixed. Call the relevant office for any amount marked as not published.

Note: The MSDH divorce-index search only locates the county, book, and page where a divorce was recorded, so it does not produce the decree itself.

How to Look Up Jefferson Davis County Marriage Records

Two offices hold marriage copies. MSDH says Mississippi marriage records are maintained by both state and county officials, and the department can provide copies and search for the county where a license was issued. The county copy stays with the Circuit Clerk, while the statewide copy stays with MSDH Vital Records.

The state explains this split on its MSDH marriage record access page, shown here.

That page confirms the dual local and state path for ordering a marriage certificate. To pull a record either way, have the full legal names of both spouses, the wedding date, and the county where the license was issued. For a local copy, contact the Circuit Clerk. For a statewide copy, contact MSDH Vital Records at 601-206-8200 or VRInfo@msdh.ms.gov.

There is no separate county-branded marriage database to search from home. The practical channels are the Circuit Clerk counter, a written request to P.O. Box 1090, a phone call to the office, or the statewide MSDH order. A marriage record generally shows the names of both spouses, the license date, the date of the ceremony, and the officiant who returned the license. Older records may be held only on paper, so a phone call first can confirm whether the office can pull the year you need.

How to Find Jefferson Davis County Divorce Records

Divorce is not a Circuit Court matter in Mississippi. It is handled by the Chancery Court, and the county case and decree live with the Chancery Clerk, Bobby Rushing, at 2426 Pearl Avenue, P.O. Box 1137, Prentiss, MS 39474, phone 601-792-4204, fax 601-792-2894. State law sets a residency rule for filing: under Section 93-5-5, one party must have been a bona fide Mississippi resident for six months before filing, with a separate provision for military members. Office details and request methods appear on the county Chancery Clerk page.

The state health department does not keep divorce records, but it can search county divorce indexes for a fee. The MSDH divorce records page explains this limited search, shown below.

MSDH offers a five-year index search for January 1, 1926 to June 30, 1938, and January 1, 1942 to the present, for $17. That search locates only the county, book, and page where the divorce was recorded, not the decree. To get the certified decree itself, order it from the Chancery Clerk. If the case is in the electronic system, the docket may be viewable through Public Access to Mississippi Electronic Courts, which requires a free account login. Jefferson Davis Chancery Court went live on that electronic system on April 22, 2019, so newer cases are more likely to appear there than older paper files.

A divorce file can include the complaint or joint petition, the property and debt settlement, custody and support terms, and the final judgment of divorce signed by the chancellor. Some of that content is sensitive. Chancery Court also handles adoptions, minor settlements, and mental-health commitments, and details tied to minors, adoption, or medical matters may be sealed or withheld even when the rest of the file is open. If a portion is restricted, the Chancery Clerk can explain what is releasable and what needs a court order.

Getting Certified Copies

A certified copy carries an official seal and is what most agencies want for a name change, a benefits claim, a remarriage, or an immigration file. An uncertified printout will not be accepted for those uses. Marriage copies come from the Circuit Clerk or MSDH, and certified divorce decrees come from the Chancery Clerk.

For state marriage copies ordered online or by phone, the order page runs through a vendor. The MSDH online and phone ordering page handles this, as shown here.

That ordering route uses VitalChek, which adds a fee on top of the $17 MSDH charge. Ordering directly from the county clerk by mail or in person avoids the vendor surcharge, though processing times vary by office, so ask about turnaround when you place the request.

When you request by mail, send a written note with the full names on the record, the event date, the county, your relationship to the parties, a return address, and payment as the office directs. Include a daytime phone number so the clerk can call if a detail is missing. For a divorce decree, address the request to the Chancery Clerk, and for a marriage copy, address it to the Circuit Clerk or to MSDH. A clear request the first time avoids a second round of mail and a longer wait.

Mississippi Vital Records Office

The statewide office for marriage copies is MSDH Vital Records. It keeps marriage records filed across Mississippi, searches for the county where a license was issued, and processes certified-copy orders. It does not keep divorce decrees, but it can run the paid divorce-index search described above.