civil war weddings

[Ladyof21st]

I am currently trying to research the way weddings were conducted during the civil war era. Any information that anyone can provide concerning every aspect of the wedding ceremony would be much appreciated.:D

[cwar1864]

Re: civil war weddings

As for the ceremony I found ours online at www.lahacal.org/wedding/wdpg3.gif This site has all kinds of cemony stuff. If you have any more questions, which I am sure you do contact me. I will be happy to help.

[LibertyHallVols]

Re: civil war weddings

Moderator Hat On...
The original question was concerning 19th Century customs and practices related to weddings. It was not about what is/has/could be done today. Let's keep this discussion on the right track.

Thanks!

[ElizabethClark]

Re: civil war weddings

Donning my Moderator Bonnet:

Please do remember to sign your first and last names to all your posts, so we'll know who to congratulate. If you want help setting up a profile signature, let me know.

And to ditto Mr. Wicket--let's please keep things concentrated on what The Originals did, rather than on modern weddings with a historic flair. If we can share original resources, individuals can apply them... individually.

/Mod Bonnet.

:)

What have you looked at so far with regards to mid-century marriage ceremonies? What religious tradition or civil "class" are you looking at? There are so many variables, it would be helpful to know where you've already researched, and what you've found, so we can help steer you toward resources you've not yet seen.

[Ladyof21st]

Re: civil war weddings

First of all, let me apologize for not signing my name.

The wedding traditions/ceremony is not for me. Our Unit(21st Ohio) hosts an event in July and two of our civilians have decided to be married at this event. The couple are older and don't really have an opinion about the wedding. They would be satisfied to be married under the big shade tree. They have left the majority of the planning to the committee and unfortunatley I don't have a lot of knowledge in this area. I have tried searching the web for sites with information, but so far I've only been able to find info about the wedding cakes and the tradition of the cakes.

Any info would be greatly appreciated. Our goal is to transform the modern spectators into the 1860's for the entire weekend!

Ladyof21st
Kristi Meade

[ElizabethClark]

Re: civil war weddings

Kristi, here are some things to think about, and resources that might help:

Is the ceremony to be religious or civil? If civil, talk to your local historic society and see if they have any mid-century manuals for judges that include a civil marriage service. If religious, determine the denomination and talk to that sect's church historian for possible access to an order of ceremony for the mid-century, appropriate to that denomination (this can also be found on-line in some cases.)

Look at mid-century manners handbooks. Most have a section on weddings. (Use Google Books for on-line access there.)

Since the couple is mature, be sure to take a look at second marriages... and my understanding so far is that a second marriage would be very likely to be extremely private--only very close family and perhaps a few friends attending a private ceremony, with a modest reception afterward. That's not something that translates well to a public/spectator situation.