A History of Same Sex Weddings—in Pictures

A year after the Stonewall riots, which ushered in a wave of gay rights activism, Jack Baker and Michael McConnell (pictured here) were the first same-sex couple to apply for a marriage license in the United States. The two applied in Minneapolis, were turned down in Hennepin County, and then continued to fight their case to the Supreme Court, who dismissed the case "for want of a substantial federal question."

That ruling blocked federal courts from ruling on on same-sex marriage for decades to come, leaving the decision to legalize same-sex unions to the states.In 1971, the couple received a license to wed in another country and were finally able to exchange vows. Baker and McConnell are still happily married, according to an interview conducted by the New York Times in 2015, when gay marriage was legalized across the nation.

In 1973, Maryland passed a statute banning same-sex marriage. Virginia did the same in 1975, followed by California, Florida, and Wyoming in 1977.

According to Harvard Magazine, legal recognition of gay marriage didn't pick up until the late '80s, given that the focus of gay activism had been more about the decriminalization of gay sex. The movement turned its focus to marriage in response to the tragedies of the AIDS epidemic, with more and more couples seeking to publicly and officially declare and celebrate their love and commitment to one another.

Hawaii's Supreme Court made strides in 1993, ruling that denying marriage to same-sex couples was in violation of their state Constitution, which included an Equal Protection Clause.

In the early '90s, group ceremonies were performed for couples during Gay Rights Marches. Here, Eva Yaa Asantewaa, now the senior curatorial director at Gibney, a performing arts and social justice organization, cries during a group ceremony on Constitution Avenue, after exchanging vows with her partner, Deborah Feller.

Pedro Zamora (right) was the first openly-gay, HIV-positive man to appear on television—on MTV's The Real World: San Francisco. The show captured a commitment ceremony between Zamora and his partner, Sean Sasser, marking the first time a same-sex ceremony of any kind had appeared on national television. Zamora passed away hours after the finale of the season aired in 1994 and is remembered as a key player in shifting how members of the LGBTQ+ community living with HIV and AIDS were perceived nationwide.

The state of California passed a domestic partnership statute in 1999—and the state of Vermont soon followed, allowing for civil unions to be recognized in the state. Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage in 2003, prompting 11 other states to pass amendments to ban same-sex marriage in 2004.

In 2005, civil partnerships were legalized in England. Sir Elton John and his partner, David Furnish, were one of the first couples in the country to have a civil ceremony.

As California legislators continued attempts at marriage equality, they were met with resistance by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger both in 2005 and 2007.

One of (if not) the first same-sex weddings was featured on HBO's Six Feet Under, in the series finale of the show. The show was also one of the first to showcase a gay male lead, but the character (played by Michael C. Hall) doesn't get his happy ending until a dream sequence at the end of the show, which is intended to flash forward into the future.

While almost all same-sex weddings on television until this point were small civil unions, commitment ceremonies, and the like, David's wedding to Keith (played by Mathew St. Patrick) on Six Feet Under was iconic for many reasons—from it's formality to the two being married by a religious officiant.

In May 2008, ABC's Brothers & Sisters became the first primetime, scripted show on a broadcast network to picture a same-sex wedding between two lead characters. Kevin and Scotty, played by Matthew Rhys and Luke MacFarlane, were married in the show's season finale.

That same year, Connecticut legalized same-sex marriage.

Iowa, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, and Washington D.C. all legalized same-sex marriage in 2009. And in 2010, Judge Joseph Tauro in Massachusetts rules that a key section of the Defense of Marriage Act, signed into law by President Clinton, was unconstitutional.

In 2010, Proposition 8 was also declared unconstitutional in federal court. That decision was upheld in 2012 by a federal appeals court.

In February 2011, the Obama Administration announced that it will no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act. That June, Gov. Andrew Cuomo legalized same-sex marriage in New York. Here, Maria Vargas and Maira Garcia wait on line to be married at the Brooklyn County Clerk's office on July 24, 2011, the first day couples were legally allowed to marry in the state.

ABC's Grey's Anatomy featured the first wedding between two women in reoccurring roles on a scripted, primetime series on a broadcast network when doctors Callie and Arizona, played by Sara Ramirez and Jessica Capshaw, wed on the show.

Here, Phyllis Siegel and Connie Kopelov hold up their marriage certificate on July 24, 2011 in New York City.

In May 2012, President Obama became the first sitting president to declare his support for same-sex marriage. Here, President Obama hosts a reception in honor of Pride Month in the East Room of the White House on June 15, 2012.

That same year, Washington state governor Christine Gregiore signed a law legalizing same-sex marriage, but her opponents delayed the law being implemented until a referendum was passed in November of that year, USA Today reports. In a similar battle, New Jersey's Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a bill approved by legislators to allow same-sex marriage.

While many states were making strides towards legalizing same-sex marriage, a judge in Nevada uphold's a ban on gay marriage in the state.

In Johannesburg, South Africa Tshepo Modisane and Thobajobe Sithole made history as the first same-sex couple to wed in a traditional African ceremony. The couple were married on April 6th at Siva Sungum Hall in Kwadukuza, South Africa.

NBC's The New Normal, created by Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler, was the first sitcom on a broadcast network to be completely based on the storyline of a same-sex couple. The plot follows David and Bryan, played by Justin Bartha and Andrew Rannells, as they invite their surrogate to move in with them—along with her 9 year-old daughter. In the series finale, "The Big Day," the two wed after the birth of their child.

Rhode Island, Delaware, Minnesota, Hawaii, Illinois, and New Mexico signed same-sex marriage into law in 2013, and Gov. Chris Christie finally dropped his appeal in New Jersey, legalizing gay marriage in the state.

In June 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that a key section of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was unconstitutional, and dismissed the challenge to Proposition 8, making same-sex marriage legal in California (again).

Modern Family's Jesse Tyler Ferguson wed Justin Mikita in New York City. The wedding, which ran in Martha Stewart Weddings, was one of the first same-sex real weddings to ever be published in a national wedding publication.

Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka were married in Italy in September of 2014. The two were together for 10 years before tying the knot, and welcomed twins Harper and Gideon in 2010.