Virginia Genealogy Treasures at the Library of Virginia
Family Tree Magazine recently recognized Virginia as one of the top 10 states for genealogy research. Once you visit the Library of Virginia online (or in person) you will agree that it is one of the best free Virginia genealogy resources available to you. Virginia can be called the ancestral home of millions of Americans so chances are, you might have a Virginian in your family tree! Several of my lines originated in Virginia and I now call the state home (by coincidence!) and have personally been to this wonderful library in Richmond.
The best page to start on is the What We Have page for genealogists. This gives a great summary of the library’s offerings. The Library of Virginia is elite among libraries for its access to actual databases you can search at home over the internet. Here are some of the highlights:
- Virginia Land Office Patents and Grants/Northern Neck Grants and Surveys – This is one of the most exciting databases for those digging deep into Virginia heritage. This is a fully searchable index of land patents issued before 1779 in Virginia, land grants that were issued after 1779, grants issued in the Northern Neck area of Virginia from 1692 – 1862. The index leads to the actual images of the land patents and surveys in some cases. Using this information, you can find out exactly where your ancestors owned land!
- Archives and Manuscripts Catalogs – This is the main portal. Here you will find official state vital records, bible records, cemetery records as well as church records which main contain other vital information.
- Henley Marriage/Obituary Index – This is a name index for notices of marriage and death published mainly in the Richmond newspapers from 1780 to 1910. If you find someone in the index, the Library then has most of the newspapers on microfilm.
- Index to Marriage Records – A marriage record index for a select set of counties (not all are in this database)
- Death Records Indexing Project – Another great database of vital records but this is also limited to about 15 counties so far.
- J. Henry Brown Monuments - This is a collection from a monument maker in Richmond, who kept a record of the orders information for headstones. The database covers 1899 – 1907
There are many other databases on the website – this is just a sampling. Take some time to explore the Library of Virginia’s website to learn more about Virginia genealogy and your Virginia ancestors.
