New Haven County Superior Court Marriage Record Collection
Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/4/2025, 3:18:00 PM
Added description
Description
New Haven County Superior Court Marriage Record Collection (1772‑1789)
Overview
This collection comprises marriage and divorce records from the New Haven County Superior Court, created between 1772 and 1789. It is housed by the Connecticut State Library and includes digitized images (JPEG and TIFF) of original court documents, accompanying OCR text, and a PINAX metadata file. The collection is indexed under the NHSC BAAI Cases Papers Subject field, linking it to the broader Black, African American, and Indigenous history project.Background
The records were produced by the New Haven County Superior Court in the late 18th century, a period when court documentation of marital status was essential for legal and property matters. The Connecticut State Library acquired the collection as part of its effort to preserve and make accessible historical legal documents, particularly those relating to African American and Indigenous communities. The PINAX metadata reflects the library’s cataloguing standards and the NHSC BAAI project’s focus on identifying and contextualizing cases involving enslaved and free Black individuals.Contents
Key items include a marriage certificate dated October 16, 1772, documenting the union of Dick, a Negro servant of Capt. Moses Rice, and Time, his female servant. The certificate was examined and issued by Clerk Elisha Whittlesey on February 10, 1789. The collection contains high‑resolution JPEG and TIFF scans of the original certificate, along with OCR‑derived text that reproduces the document’s wording. Additional files include the PINAX metadata record and the NHSC BAAI Cases Papers Subject index entry. The subjects represented are marriage, divorce, African American history, slavery, and legal documents.Scope
The collection covers the period 1772‑1789, focusing on New Haven County, Connecticut, with a particular emphasis on marital and divorce records involving enslaved or free Black individuals. It includes both primary source documents and their digitized reproductions, but does not contain ancillary court filings or unrelated civil records. The material is valuable for researchers studying early American legal practices, the history of slavery in Connecticut, and the social status of African Americans in colonial New England.Entities
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Entity Relationships
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Raw Cheimarros Data
@file_pinax:file {title: "pinax.json", type: "Metadata (PINAX)"}
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_003_jpg:file {filename: "RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_003.jpg.ref.json", type: "Image/Asset with OCR"}
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_004_jpg:file {filename: "RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_004.jpg.ref.json", type: "Image/Asset with OCR"}
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_003_tif:file {filename: "RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_003.tif.ref.json", type: "Image/Asset with OCR"}
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_004_tif:file {filename: "RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_004.tif.ref.json", type: "Image/Asset with OCR"}
@new_haven_county:place {state: @connecticut, country: @united_states}
@wallingford:place {county: @new_haven_county, state: @connecticut, country: @united_states}
@new_haven_county_superior_court:organization {location: @new_haven_county}
@connecticut_state_library:organization {location: @connecticut}
@marriage_record_collection:concept {title: "New Haven County Superior Court Marriage Record Collection", creator: @new_haven_county_superior_court, institution: @connecticut_state_library, created_range: {start: @date_1772, end: @date_1789}, subjects: ["Marriage","Divorce","African American History","Slavery","Legal Documents"], description: "Collection of marriage and divorce records from the New Haven County Superior Court, including a certificate of marriage between two enslaved individuals, Dick and Time, in 1772, and a certificate examined and issued in 1789.", place: @wallingford}
@dick:person {status: "Negro servant", enslaved_by: @moses_rice, married_to: @time, marriage_date: @date_1772_10_16, place: @wallingford}
@time:person {status: "Servant", gender: "female", married_to: @dick, marriage_date: @date_1772_10_16, place: @wallingford}
@moses_rice:person {title: "Capt.", role: "Slave owner"}
@elisha_whittlesey:person {occupation: "Clerk", role: "Examined marriage record", examination_date: @date_1789_02_10, location: @wallingford}
@marriage_certificate_1772:document {type: "Marriage certificate", parties: [@dick, @time], date: @date_1772_10_16, place: @wallingford, examined_by: @elisha_whittlesey, examination_date: @date_1789_02_10}
@nhsc_baai_cases_papers_subject:concept {description: "Subject-index field for New Haven County Superior Court files concerning Black, African American, and Indigenous cases and papers"}
@dick -> married to -> @time {when: @date_1772_10_16, where: @wallingford}
@dick -> servant of -> @moses_rice
@marriage_certificate_1772 -> documented in -> @marriage_record_collection
@marriage_record_collection -> indexed by -> @nhsc_baai_cases_papers_subject
@file_pinax -> metadata for -> @marriage_record_collection
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_003_jpg -> contains OCR of -> @marriage_certificate_1772
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_004_jpg -> contains OCR of -> @marriage_certificate_1772
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_003_tif -> image of -> @marriage_certificate_1772
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_timevsdick_004_tif -> image of -> @marriage_certificate_1772Metadata
Files (4)
RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_003.jpgJPEG
OCR Text
Dick a Negro Servant of Capt Moses Rice married Time his Servant a woman October 16th in 1772 in A true Copy of Record Examined by Elisha Whittlesey Jun Reg'r Wallingford Feb 10th 1789 in
RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_TimevsDick_004.jpgJPEG
OCR Text
E. Whittlesey's Certificate
Version History (4 versions)
- ✓ v4 (current) · 12/4/2025, 3:18:00 PM
"Added description" - v3 · 12/4/2025, 2:43:28 PM · View this version
"Added knowledge graph extraction" - v2 · 12/4/2025, 6:39:21 AM · View this version
"Added PINAX metadata" - v1 · 12/4/2025, 6:29:57 AM · View this version
"Reorganization group: Marriage_Record_Certificate"
Parent
No children (leaf entity)