Conway County Marriage License

Conway County sits along the Arkansas River with Morrilton as the county seat. The Conway County Clerk issues every Conway County marriage license, keeps the marriage index from 1825 on, and also holds probate records for the same period. Couples who plan a ceremony in Morrilton or up at Petit Jean State Park apply here. This page lays out the clerk's office, fees, rules, and the search path for both fresh and older Conway County marriage license records so you know what to bring and where to look.

Conway County Clerk for Marriage License Records

The Conway County Clerk is Kathy Kordsmeier. The office is at 117 S. Moose Street, Morrilton, AR 72110. Phone (501) 354-9621. This is the office that takes the Conway County marriage license application, collects the fee, and prints the signed license. The same office is the keeper of the marriage index from 1825 forward, one of the longer runs of records in the state.

The Conway County Circuit Clerk is Darlene Massingill. That office sits in the same courthouse at 117 South Moose Street, Morrilton, AR 72110-3400, with a direct line at (501) 354-9640. The Circuit Clerk handles divorce, circuit court, and land records separate from the marriage work. If you need a certified divorce decree from a prior marriage for your new Conway County marriage license application, the Circuit Clerk is where to order that.

For general county info and department links, visit the Conway County genealogy summary on FamilySearch, which pulls the courthouse address and clerk contacts together in one place.

How To Apply for a Conway County Marriage License

Both parties go to the Morrilton clerk together. Each brings a valid, non-expired, government-issued photo ID. A driver's license, state ID, passport, or military ID all work. The state also lists an original birth certificate as an accepted form when a photo ID isn't available. The clerk records a Social Security number for each party for state reporting.

The Conway County marriage license fee is $60, the same as the rest of Arkansas. Call the clerk at (501) 354-9621 to confirm current payment options before you come in, since small counties sometimes swap out card readers or update surcharges. There is no blood test, no premarital class for a regular marriage, and no residency requirement under Arkansas Code Title 9, Chapter 11.

If either party was married before, bring a certified copy of the divorce decree or a death certificate for the prior spouse. If a party is 17, both parents must show up at the counter with a notarized affidavit of consent under § 9-11-102. A 5 business day wait applies with a 17-year-old applicant. No one under 17 gets a license in Arkansas except in the narrow case at § 9-11-103.

Documents to bring to the Conway County Clerk:

• Valid photo ID for each party
• Social Security number for each party
• $60 for the fee
• Divorce decree or death certificate if married before
• Parents and notarized affidavit if one party is 17

Conway County Marriage License Rules

The Conway County marriage license is valid anywhere in Arkansas for 60 days from the date the Morrilton clerk issues it. The signed license must be returned to the same office inside the 60 day window, used or not. State law can impose a $100 fine for failing to return the license.

Officiant rules live at Arkansas Code § 9-11-213. Judges of a court of record, ministers and priests, justices of the peace, and mayors may officiate. Ministers must record their credentials with a county clerk before they can sign a marriage license. The Conway County Clerk keeps the minister registry for the county.

A covenant marriage is a separate option at § 9-11-803. Both parties take authorized premarital counseling, sign a notarized declaration of intent, and file the declaration with the regular license paperwork. Covenant grounds for divorce are narrower than for a standard marriage, so read the rule carefully before you sign.

Conway County Marriage License Search

Conway County is on the CIS Arkansas online marriage license search for Conway County. The tool supports name search and date range search. Date types cover marriage date, issue date, and recorded date. It's free to use and is the fastest way to confirm a Conway County marriage license exists in the index.

The page below shows the full search form with county-specific fields.

Use the CIS Arkansas tool first when you just need to verify a date or a spelling before you order a certified copy from the clerk.

For older records, the clerk's office in Morrilton is the primary source. Arkansas marriages before 1917 are not at the state level, so the county is the only place that holds those. The Conway County genealogy wiki is a helpful backup for early marriages and points to scanned film where it exists.

For a quick reference on fees and office contacts, see the Arkansas marriage records search page.

That page also lists state Division of Vital Records fees so you can plan a state-level copy at the same time as a county-level one.

Certified Copies from Conway County

The clerk issues certified copies of the marriage license for $5 to $6 in most cases. The certified copy carries the raised county seal and the officiant block. It's what Social Security, passport offices, and pension funds accept for name change and benefit filings.

Mail-in requests go to the Conway County Clerk at 117 S. Moose Street, Morrilton, AR 72110. Send a letter with the names of both parties, the approximate marriage date, a phone number, the fee by check or money order, and a self-addressed stamped envelope. Give it a week or two for the return envelope to come back.

For the state coupon of the marriage, order through the Arkansas Division of Vital Records. The state index starts January 1917 and the fee is $10 per copy. You can also order online through VitalChek, the state's official online vendor.

Related Conway County Records

For court records connected to a marriage, like a divorce or a name change order, the Arkansas CourtConnect public case search covers Conway County Circuit Court filings. It does not hold marriage license records, but it shows the case docket and the order date.

The Association of Arkansas Counties directory is the best single source for clerk contacts statewide. It lists the Conway County Clerk and every other county clerk by phone. For extension-run county profiles, the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension site keeps a county-by-county page.

If you need related vital records, the state certificates page lists the full fee schedule for marriage, birth, death, and divorce records through the Arkansas Department of Health.

Nearby Counties

If the marriage license wasn't issued in Conway County, check the clerks in the surrounding counties. Each office runs its own index and staff can often pull a record by phone.