Getting Married in Hood County Starts at the Clerk on Bridge Street

The County Clerk's vital records counter at 201 W. Bridge St. in Granbury is where a Texas marriage starts. Both people come in with a valid photo ID that proves age and identity, and you both need to know your Social Security numbers. Those go on the application even though they don't print on the license.

Now, the part that saves you money: take the state's free Twogether in Texas marriage-education class and the license runs $17. Skip it and you pay $77. Either way there's a 72-hour waiting period between buying the license and the ceremony, so you can't get one Saturday morning and marry that afternoon. Active military and a judge's waiver are the only ways around it. Once issued, the license is good for 90 days and works anywhere in Texas, not just Hood County.

If one person can't make it to the counter, the clerk has an absent-applicant affidavit for that, and couples who've been living as married can record an informal (common-law) marriage instead. Whatever your situation, the clerk's office is the place that actually issues the document. A wedding venue or an online form can't.