Happy Birthday to Same-Sex Marriage in Massachusetts! (AP):

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court made the state the first to sanction same-sex marriages a year ago Thursday, and the aftershocks are evident in the daily lives of the thousands of couples who took vows they once didn’t believe possible.

…According to an Associated Press review of wedding certificates publicly recorded with the state since May 17, when the court decision took effect, at least 2,980 certificates have been filed by same-sex couples.

During the first months of same-sex weddings, Boston was the gay marriage capital, with 407 couples exchanging vows. Northampton, a gay-friendly community about 100 miles west of Boston, was second with 99 and Cambridge, Boston’s liberal neighbor, was third with 92.

But same-sex marriage was not limited to the state’s large cities or gay enclaves. Certificates were filed by same-sex couples in 290 of the state’s 351 cities and towns, including two couples came from Tolland (pop. 426), in western Massachusetts.