# Married Dopers - how long did you know your spouse before marriage? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 7, 2016, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108 "2016-12-07T13:57:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/61 "2016-12-08T12:54:11Z")
2 years 4 months from first meeting to marriage. 17 years and counting. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/62 "2016-12-08T12:57:42Z")
Knew her for 24 days, proposed, got married a month later. And no, she wasn’t pregnant. Just knew it was right. We’ll be celebrating 37 years in January. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/63 "2016-12-08T13:01:05Z")
We met when we were both in USAF and happened to be stationed together. We had a close relationship for 2 years then she got transferred away. We kept up an intermittent half-assed long distance relationship another 3 years while we both dated other local people. We eventually both realized this was stupid and that we belonged together. By then she was out of USAF. It was just under 5 years since we met when we decided to get hitched and just over 5 years when we did get hitched. I picked the 3-5 year poll option. It’s been 28 very happy years since then. Ref the OP’s ref to the “arranged marriage” thread … The fact neither she nor I had much choice in being stationed together means in some sense USAF was the matchmaker. Who says it’s just a cold, impersonal, and heavily armed bureaucracy? Seems it has a soft side too. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_Hey_Paula)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/64 "2016-12-08T16:52:23Z")
Engaged two weeks after we met, married nine months after we met. That was in 1994, and we’re still married. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/65 "2016-12-08T17:32:52Z")
I actually met my wife in 7th grade, we dated in 10th grade, then didn’t see or speak to each other for about 15 years after HS graduation. She moved back into the area, we started dating again, and married 4 years later. So, either 4 years or close to 27. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/66 "2016-12-08T17:34:51Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > More than 30 years. (What do I win?) Sorry. See my previous post. Got you beat by 12 years. We met and dated steadily 42 years prior to getting married. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/67 "2016-12-08T18:02:40Z")
I think I win the quickest trip from meeting to married. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/68 "2016-12-08T18:07:50Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I think I win the quickest trip from meeting to married. 😃 I’ll claim the prize for most specific answer to the OP! _spikes football_ ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/69 "2016-12-08T19:16:58Z")
We were friends for eleven years before we started dating. We married about three years after that. We’ve been married 21 years. ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/70 "2016-12-08T20:01:06Z")
Met, in passing and for less than five minutes, in 1997. Met again one year to the day later. Got married three years after that in 2001. So technically, four years, but really only three. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/71 "2016-12-08T20:35:51Z")
I knew him for 2-3 years before we dated, but there was nothing romantic during that time. We have a large enough age difference where at 16 when we met I was still very much involved with my high school boyfriend and school stuff. He was seriously dating someone his own age. I worked in a restaurant and he was a customer who came in all the time. I don’t know that he would have recognized me outside of the restaurant. Once we started dating, we dated for two years before getting engaged. So I wasn’t sure what to put. ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/72 "2016-12-08T20:52:04Z")
Practice marriage: Dated for 1 year, got married after 1 year of living together, divorced after 10 years. Marriage: Dated for 1 year, got married after 1 year of living together, celebrated 30th anniversary last August. ---
**Author:** ![Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d9b06d/32.png) [@Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boozahol_Squid_P.I)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/73 "2016-12-08T21:03:58Z")
Knew her for ten years. Never dated, just went straight from bar trivia teammates to friends to “let’s just do this thing.” ---
**Author:** ![Raza](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raza/32/213_2.png) [@Raza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raza)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/74 "2016-12-08T22:11:22Z")
“Arranged” marriage. 2 months. ---
**Author:** ![scootergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@scootergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scootergirl)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/75 "2016-12-08T22:26:01Z")
We met at work in 2009. Became friends in September of the same year. We married in July of this year, but consider our anniversary September 10th since that’s when we had a great party with friends and family. So, 7 years before we got married. ---
**Author:** ![Neo-Calredic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/96bed5/32.png) [@Neo-Calredic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neo-Calredic)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/76 "2016-12-08T22:29:29Z")
My wife and I got married on the 4th anniversary of the day we first went out. We’ve been together about 8.5 years now. Still going strong. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/77 "2016-12-08T23:10:48Z")
Engaged after 3-4 weeks, married 6 months later. We’ve been happily married for 26 years now. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2016, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/78 "2016-12-08T23:27:56Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I think I win the quickest trip from meeting to married. 😃 So far. You’ve even got Bambola and my 54 days beat. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2016, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/79 "2016-12-10T03:18:28Z")
Met in '83, married in '89 (after we both got out of school), January will be 28 years. ---
**Author:** ![Toledo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/34f0e0/32.png) [@Toledo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toledo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2016, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108/80 "2016-12-10T03:53:42Z")
Met in 1968, Married in July of 1974. It lasted nearly 41 years (she passed away just before our 41st). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/married-dopers-how-long-did-you-know-your-spouse-before-marriage/774108.md?page=5)