One of the biggest stigmas attached to choosing an elopement over a traditional marriage is that people believe these marriages will not last! This is based on the assumption that most elopements are shotgun affairs which are done on the spur of the moment rather than being planned ahead of time after a long term relationship. However, this is simply not the case! Readers of the WhereToElope blog will know that some of the most popular elopement venues actually book up months in advance and while some couples do choose to get married on a whim, most elopements are planned very carefully! There is very little evidence to suggest that eloping increases the chances of divorce.
Long Lasting Elopements
If ever there was an endorsement for elopement, it is probably the story of John and Ann Betar of Connecticut who are America’s longest married couple. On November 25th 1932 the couple fled Connecticut to avoid Ann (now 98 years old) having to marry a man 20 years her senior in accordance with her father’s wishes. John, who is now aged 102 drove Ann all the way to New York State where the young couple married. In a recent interview, Ann reminisced about how John, the boy across the street would drive her to school in his Ford Roadster. John insists that it was the car that the young Ann fell for rather than his charms! The marriage caused quite a stir back home and John recalls how his wife’s aunt tried to console his new father-in-law by “telling him not to worry, the marriage won’t last!” Looks like the pair proved everyone wrong and have watched the world change around them in their 81 years together.
The Betars aren’t the only long standing couple from an elopement! I’ve noted before that the concept for the WhereToElope site came about based on my own experience of elopement when I was in my teens. My first marriage may have come to an end like many do these days, but I still think that our 26 year together following our own elopement in Minnesota was a great achievement. Another slightly more famous elopement fan is none other than Bette Midler. The legendary singer and actress eloped to Las Vegas with artist Martin Von Haselberg in 1984 after knowing him for just a couple of weeks and the couple are now approaching their 30th wedding anniversary.
Did you elope? If so we would love to hear how long you have been married and if your family thought it would never last! Get in touch with us by leaving a comment below!