Marriage Records Marriage records include name and age of the bride and groom and the names of parents including, often, the maiden names of the mothers. Pictured above is the 1934 marriage record of Manny and Beatrice Tartasky, parents of Barbara Becker and Lois Sherman. Note that the witnesses were apparently related to the bride. Marriage records are important to genealogy because they are considered primary evidence, that is, they were created at the time the event, the marriage occurred. Often they are the only documents that give the maiden name of the mother. The ages and places of birth of the bride and groom may lead to their birth records.