Yippee! I found the 3rd marriage of my Great-grandfather. His first two marriages were in "my" county and the one next door, and I found those two records. In fact when wife #2 popped up on a computer at the FHC years ago, I thought it was wrong since I'd never heard of that name and thought it must be an error (Her surname was Sinquefield; I lived in the same area until adulthood, had never heard of that name.). But I ordered the microfilm and it led me to him in the 1880 census where I had been unable to find him before. (His children were in MY county with their aunt. Where was GGpa???)

I knew the 3rd wife's first name (Louisa) because she was on a deed with him in the late 1880s when land for the cemetery was donated and in the 1900 census. I also saw her on later land records after his death in 1905. Plus my dad and his sister remembered hearing of "Miss Lou-Iza." But no marriage record to be found.

I had learned that he had pastored an AME church in DeSoto County, Mississippi in the late 1880s, so I searched this data base for a marriage in Mississippi and hit paydirt.

Now, if only I could find my grandmother and her first husband..... she had 3 husbands, all from "my" county, and I still have no record of her first marriage. I did finally find them together in the 1900 census. In Mississippi.... but no marriage record even in this database. I believe her maiden name to be "Jones," which adds to my problem. Her husband's name is variously spelled in records as Stoutenburg, or Stoutenburgh, or Stoutenberg, or Stoudenburg, berg, burgh, etc. The name must be spelled exactly in this database.

Sheesh.........

*Sinquefield - her father was Richard Sinquefield, a Presiding Elder in the AME church. In censuses from the time period, you can see folks named for him sprinkled around in places where he served. They are mostly misspelled:
Saintfield, Sankfield, Santfield, etc. At a reunion, I met a Santfield, Jr., who hated his name, (Why did my father have to named that???") but I explained the derivation of his name and that helped. A little.....

Rev. Sinquefield had been a Presiding Elder in the Southern Methodist Church, with a circuit of churches. He transferred to the AME church at their first Arkansas Conference in 1866, bringing with him the circuit. (And Santfield, Jr.s family is still mostly AME, as is he.....)

Here's his obit from the local paper:
December 1, 1910 - Uncle Dick SINQUEFIELD, died at Dalark last week, and in his death the colored race lost one of its ablest, best known and most useful members, and the state a good citizen. "Uncle Dick" as he was familiarly known, was raised at Holly Springs, Dallas County, and for over 50 years he had been preaching the gospel and in a varied line of activities to elevate his race. He was an honest and useful citizen and if the colored people generally would only follow the advice and teachings of "Uncle Dick" they would make much better and more useful citizens.