Washington Parish Marriage Records
Marriage records are a Washington Parish Clerk of Court function. The Clerk's official function page lists marriages and divorces among the records handled by the office, along with civil suits, criminal and juvenile proceedings, adoptions, court proceedings, and other parish records. The online Washington Parish Clerk eSearch portal lists marriage images from 5/1/1984 forward, but the public layer requires account access before full searching.
For a license, certified copy, or older marriage record, use the Clerk's office rather than the parish government public-records form. The Clerk is at 908-B Washington St., Franklinton, LA 70438, with mailing at P.O. Box 607, Franklinton, LA 70438. The main phone number is 985-839-4663. Current local marriage-license fees, identification rules, and certified-copy costs were not published in the official pages reviewed, so those details should be confirmed with the Clerk before travel.
The Washington Parish Clerk forms page is a useful source for family and court forms, but it did not publish a field-level marriage application in the research record. Marriage applicants should expect the Clerk to verify identity, eligibility, prior marriage status, and ceremony timing under Louisiana law.
The official Clerk forms page is the source for several family-law filings used near the marriage and divorce process. The image below comes from the Washington Parish Clerk forms page.
That forms inventory matters because divorce, custody, support, contempt, and related family filings may be handled through forms listed by the Clerk and the 22nd JDC.
Apply for Washington Parish Marriage License
A marriage license request should be handled with the Washington Parish Clerk of Court. The research did not locate an official Washington Parish web application or appointment rule, so the safest path is to call the Clerk before visiting. Ask what identification is required, whether both applicants must appear together, how payment may be made, and whether any local scheduling rule applies. Louisiana law also creates a waiting period before the ceremony unless a lawful waiver applies.
- Call the Washington Parish Clerk of Court at 985-839-4663 to confirm the current license fee, identity documents, and office procedure.
- Go to the Clerk's office at 908-B Washington St. in Franklinton or follow any mail or office instruction the Clerk gives for the specific request.
- Provide the information the Clerk requires for both applicants, including identity and prior-marriage facts when requested.
- Pay the current Clerk fee using an accepted method. Recording payments listed by the Clerk include cash, check, money order, and credit or debit in office.
- Wait the Louisiana marriage-license period before the ceremony unless a valid waiver applies under state law.
The Louisiana marriage waiting-period law is a state rule, not a local website preference. The image below is tied to La. R.S. 9:241, the statute identified in the research.
Use the statute for the waiting-period rule, then confirm local issuance details with the Clerk because the official local pages did not publish a full application checklist.
Washington Parish License Fields
No official Washington Parish marriage-license application form with field-level labels was located in the research source set. The field inventory below separates confirmed facts from practical items to confirm with the Clerk. It avoids treating general expectations as published local requirements.
| Application item | Status in research | How to handle it |
|---|---|---|
| Applicant identity | Local field not published | Ask the Clerk which photo ID or proof is required before visiting. |
| Full legal names | Local field not published | Confirm exact name format with the Clerk for the license and later copy requests. |
| Date of birth or age | Local field not published | Ask whether birth record or age proof is needed for the applicants. |
| Prior marriage status | Local field not published | Ask what proof is needed if a prior marriage ended by divorce or death. |
| Ceremony timing | State waiting period confirmed | Account for the 24-hour wait in La. R.S. 9:241 unless a lawful waiver applies. |
| Fee and payment | Fee not published | Call 985-839-4663 for the current license and certified-copy fees. |
Washington Parish Marriage Fees
The research found the Clerk's recording fee page, payment methods, eSearch subscription costs, and a parish-government public-record copy fee, but it did not locate an official posted marriage-license fee or divorce filing fee extract for Washington Parish. Fee content must therefore be handled as a confirmation table, not as a guessed dollar schedule.
| Item | Amount from research | Source or next step |
|---|---|---|
| Marriage license | Not published in reviewed local pages | Call the Clerk at 985-839-4663. |
| Certified marriage copy | Not published in reviewed local pages | Ask the Clerk for copy and certification costs. |
| Divorce filing or service | Not published in reviewed local pages | Confirm with the Clerk before filing. |
| eSearch one-day subscription | $20.00 | Shown on the Clerk eSearch public page. |
| eSearch one-month subscription | $75.00 | Shown on the Clerk eSearch public page. |
| Parish government copies | 25 cents per page plus postage | For parish-government records, not Clerk court files. |
Note: The parish-government public-records form is not the right path for certified marriage licenses or divorce decrees kept by the Clerk.
Washington Parish Divorce Records
Divorce records are district-court records in Washington Parish. The 22nd Judicial District Court Family Court page identifies Divisions K and L as the family divisions and lists divorce, custody, child support, spousal support, paternity, matrimonial property partitions, protective orders, and adoptions as family matters. The Clerk is the district-court clerk and repository, so the final divorce judgment and related filings route through the Clerk rather than a separate county clerk system.
The 22nd JDC Family Court page is the official source for the family-court structure. The image below comes from that source.
Family Court is important for divorce records because child custody, support, paternity, and property issues may be part of the same case file or a related filing.
Divorce access can be narrower than ordinary civil access when a file includes child-related matters, adoptions, protective orders, sealed material, or personal identifiers. The 22nd JDC FAQ says proceedings are generally open, but certain civil matters involving children and all juvenile proceedings are not open to the public. Ask the Clerk what parts of a divorce file can be inspected or copied.
Washington Parish Divorce Forms
The Clerk and the 22nd JDC forms pages list divorce petitions and checklists. The 22nd JDC orders and forms page also notes that forms are legal-size and must be submitted on legal-size paper. That detail matters because a filing can be delayed if the form format is wrong.
| Form | Use | Research note |
|---|---|---|
| Petition for Divorce under La. C.C. art. 102 | Divorce with request for incidental relief | Listed by Clerk and 22nd JDC forms. |
| Appendix 27.0A checklist | Article 102 divorce support | Listed as a divorce checklist. |
| Petition for Divorce under La. C.C. art. 103 | Alternative Louisiana divorce article | Listed by Clerk and 22nd JDC forms. |
| Appendix 28.1B checklist | Default or uncontested divorce support | Listed for La. C.C.P. art. 1702E. |
The image below is from the 22nd JDC orders and forms page, where legal-size court forms are listed.
Use the official form source for the current court document, then file the completed divorce materials with the Washington Parish Clerk of Court.
Certified Marriage and Divorce Copies
Certified copies are usually needed when a person must prove a marriage, divorce, name change, property status, or family-law order to another agency. Washington Parish marriage copies and divorce decrees should be requested from the Clerk when the record is a Clerk or 22nd JDC file. A plain online image may help identify the record, but it may not replace a certified copy for legal use.
For a certified copy request, gather names, approximate date, record type, and any known case or license number. Use eSearch when the image date range helps, then call or visit the Clerk for certification and older files. For divorce records, include whether the request is for the final judgment, pleadings, custody or support orders, or the entire case file.