Monroe County was formed from the Mississippi Territory in 1815 and at that time it had one of the largest populations and land masses of any county in the state. This remained true until Conecuh, Wilcox, and Clarke counties were formed from it. In 1835, there was a courthouse fire that destroyed all of Monroe county's records except the Orphan Court Minutes (1816-1821). The marriage records in this volume are among the earliest records on file in Monroe County. They are transcribed just as they were recorded in Book A (1833-1880). There are about 4,000 marriages and approximately 13,000 names of individuals including bondsman & minister.--From Introduction.