Warwick, Virginia

Warwick County, Virginia genealogy and family history research page. Guide to Warwick County (established 1634) genealogy, history, and courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

Parent County
1634--Warwick was created as an original shire or county. It was formerly Warwick River. The name changed in 1642. It was incorporated as an independent city in 1952, but merged with the city Newport News 1 July 1958.

Record Loss
1864 and 1865. Courthouse records were destroyed several times, but the most damage was done in two incidents during the American Civil War. Court minute books and loose papers 1787-1819 were destroyed when the clerk's office was burned 15 December 1864. Additional courthouse records were destroyed in the 3 April 1865 fire in Richmond where the records had been taken for safekeeping.


 * Lost censuses: 1790, 1800, 1890

Research Guides

 * Davis, Virginia Lee Hutcheson. "Records of Tidewater Virginia Counties," Tidewater Virginia Families: A Magazine of History and Genealogy, Vol. 1, No. 2 (May-June 1992):53-66. 975.51 D25t [For Warwick County, see pp. 63-64]
 * Dorman, John Frederick. "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Warwick County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1980):57-58. Available at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).
 * Dunn, Richard. Warwick County, Virginia: Colonial Court Records in Transcription. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002. ; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes many miscellaneous records and guides to various archives for finding records of this burned county.]
 * Mero, James H. and Tidewater Genealogical Society. Warwick County, Virginia (Now the City of Newport News, Virginia): A Guide for Research in Warwick County Records. Hampton, Virginia: Hugh S. Watson, Jr. Genealogical Society, 1991.

African American

 * Heinegg, Paul. "Warwick County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1820," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * Search the Library of Virginia's Virginia Untold collection for digitized records related to African Americans of Warwick County.

Cemeteries

 * Newport News Cemeteries (The USGenWeb Project) - free.
 * FamilySearch Places

Census
1782 Enumeration


 * Warwick County Heads of Families - 1782 at U.S. Census Bureau - free. County begins on page 45.

1784 Enumeration


 * Warwick County Heads of Families - 1784 at U.S. Census Bureau - free. County begins on page 79.

1850


 * Matheny, Emma Robertson. 1850 Census of Warwick County. Richmond, Virginia, 1966. Reviewed in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1967):40. Review available at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).

1890 Union Veterans


 * Turner, Ronald Ray. Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890. Available online, courtesy: Prince William County Virginia website. [Includes residents of this county.]

Church
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Baptist
Early Baptist churches (with years constituted):


 * 1) Grafton (1777)

Warwick County fell within the bounds of the Dover Association.

Denbigh Baptist Church is pictured to the right.

Church of England
See also Blount Point Parish See also Denbigh Parish  See also Elizabeth City Parish  See also Mulberry Island Parish  See also Nutmeg Quarter Parish  See also Stanley Hundred Parish  See also Warwick Parish  See also Waters Creek Parish


 * Mason, George Carrington. Colonial Churches of Tidewater Virginia. Richmond, Virginia: Whittet &amp; Shepperson, 1945. Available at ; FamilySearch Digital Library.

Court
County Court


 * Dunn, Richard. Warwick County, Virginia: Colonial Court Records in Transcription. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($); and World Vital Records ($). [Includes orders 1648-1651, order book 1680, 1689-1690 court book (2), orders 1691, 1697-8, 1701, 1701, 1705, 1705, 1713-1714 and county minutes 1748-1762.]
 * "Warwick County, Virginia, Court Orders, 1647," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1957):51-63. Available at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).
 * "Warwick County, Virginia, Records, 1663," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 18, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1974):285-287. Available at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).

Chancery Court


 * Library of Virginia's Virginia Memory: Chancery Records Index can be used to search Warwick County chancery records for the years 1860-1912. This collection includes only Warwick County and not the City of Newport News. Original records located at the Library of Virginia.

Genealogy
More than 100 genealogies have been published about Warwick County families. To view a list, visit Warwick County, Virginia Genealogy.

See also: Virginia Compiled Genealogies

A great place to start searches for Warwick County's earliest settlers is:


 * McCartney, Martha W. Virginia Immigrants and Adventurers 1607-1635: A Biographical Dictionary. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Pub. Co., 2007. ; publisher's bookstore: Genealogical Publishing Company.

Studies that treat multiple Warwick County families include:


 * Heinegg, Paul. Free African Americans of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware. 2005-present. - free online book. Ashby, Banks, Cuttillo, Francis, Gowen, Howell, Johns, Peters, Pickett, Spruce, Wallace, Williams, Wood, Wooten families of pre-1820 Warwick County, Virginia.
 * Stauffer, William Tilden. "The Old Farms Out of which the City of Newport News was Erected, with Some Account of the Families which Dwelt Thereon," The William and Mary Quarterly, Series 2, Vol. 14 (1934):203-215; Vol. 14, No. 4 (1934):333-341; Vol. 15, No. 2 (Apr. 1935):126-137, Vol. 15, No. 3 (Jul. 1935):250-266. Digital versions at JSTOR ($).

Immigration

 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes wills of residents of Mulberry Island and Warwick County proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.]
 * [http://immigrantservants.com/search/advancedResults.php?surname=&givenName=&varientSurnameSpellings=&gender=&dateOfBirthDay=&dateOfBirthMonth=&dateOfBirthQuantifier=&dateOfBirthYear=&placeOfBirthParish=&placeOfBirthTown=&placeOfBirthCity=&placeOfBirthCounty=&placeOfBirthColony=&placeOfBirthNation=&occupations=&religions=&orphan=&familyPosition=&immigrationYearQualifier=&immigrationYear=&portOfDepartureTown=&portOfDepartureCity=&portOfDepartureCounty=&portOfDepartureNation=&placeOfArrivalTown=&placeOfArrivalCounty=&placeOfArrivalColony=&shipName=&convict=&yearOfIndentureQualifier=&yearOfIndenture=&lengthOfIndentureYears=&lengthOfIndentureMonths=&yearOfFreedomQualifier=&yearOfFreedom=&placeOfIndentureTown=&placeOfIndentureCity=&placeOfIndentureCounty=Warwick&placeOfIndentureColony=Virginia&agentSurname=&agentGivenName=&agentTitle=&masterSurname=&masterGivenName=&masterTitle=&residenceParish=&residenceTown=&residenceCity=&residenceCounty=&residenceColony=&residenceNation=&landowner=&literate=&spouseSurname=&spouseGivenName=&spouseMarriageDateDay=&spouseMarriageDateMonth=&spouseMarriageDateQualifier=&spouseMarriageDateYear=&spouseMarriageLocationParish=&spouseMarriageLocationCounty=&spouseMarriageLocationColony=&spouseMarriageLocationNation=&deathDateDay=&deathDateMonth=&deathDateQualifier=&deathDateYear=&deathLocality=&deathCounty=&deathColony=&deathState=&testate=&proofServantStatus=&proofConvictStatus=&headright=&preServitudeSources=&postServitudeSources=&comments=&family=&sourceCitations=&interestedResearchers= List of imported servants and transported convicts from Europe] who served labor terms in Colonial Warwick County, Virginia (work in progress), courtesy: Immigrant Servants Database.

Land
Grants and Patents


 * Nugent, Nell Marion. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants 1623-1666. Vol. I (1934; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1991). Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes Warwick County. N.B. If Ancestry's search engine fails, try checking the printed index at the end of the book.]
 * Walter, Alice Granbery. Virginia Land Patents of the Counties of Norfolk, Princess Anne &amp; Warwick. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1993. ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Maps

 * FamilySearch Places: Cities and Towns in this couinty - How to Use FS Places

Migration

 * Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1977):49-53. Available at ; digital version at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($). [These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Warwick County's 1789 Delinquent List appears on p. 53.]

Colonial Militia

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at . [Identifies some Warwick County militia officers and/or soldiers; see place name index.]
 * Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at ; digital book at Ancestry ($). [Identifies some Warwick County militia officers; see place name index.]

French and Indian War

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at . [Identifies some Warwick County militia officers, soldier enlistments, and veterans; see place name index.]

War of 1812
Warwick County men served in the 115th Regiment.


 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Virginia, Warwick County, p. 106. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

Newspapers

 * 1898-1988 - Newport News, Virginia, Daily Press Obituary Index, 1898-1988 (Ancestry) ($).
 * 1898-1910 - Daily Press, Newport News, Va. at Chronicling America - free.

Occupations

 * Dunn, Richard. Warwick County, Virginia: Colonial Court Records in Transcription. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes cattle accounts.]

Officials

 * Dunn, Richard. Warwick County, Virginia: Colonial Court Records in Transcription. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002. ; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Identifies sheriffs and undersheriffs.]

Private Papers

 * [Lawrence] Family Bible Records of George Lawrence. MSS., Smithfield Branch of the Isle of Wight Library in Smithfield, Virginia; available on microfilm at.

Probate
London Courts


 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes wills of residents of Mulberry Island and Warwick County proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.]
 * Hopkins, William Lindsay. Some Wills from the Burned Counties of Virginia and Other Wills Not Listed in Virginia Wills and Administrations 1632-1800. Richmond, Virginia: W.L. Hopkins, 1987. Available at . [Includes Warwick County.]

Taxation
Bibliography


 * [1704] "Virginia Quit Rent Rolls, 1704," Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 28 (1920):207-218, 328-339; Vol. 29 (1921):18-28, 337-343, 402-412; Vol. 30 (1922):21-30, 280-285, 341-347; Vol. 31 (1923):70-75, 153-163, 215-231, 314-318; Vol. 32 (1924):69-75, 144-158, 281-287, 338-343; Vol. 33 (1925):47-50, 359-370; Vol. 34 (1926):113-119, 252-258, 313, 321. Available at ; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at ; digital version of VMHB at JSTOR ($). [Warwick County appears in 30:344-347.]
 * [1704] Hansford, Thelma. Tax Lists York County 1782, 1783, 1784; Rent Roll York County 1704, Gloucester 1704, Warwick 1704; James City County Taxes 1768. Virginia?: T.I. Hansford?, 1950. Available at.
 * [1713] Rollings, Virginia H. Warwick, Va. 1713 Rent Roll. [Newport News, Va.: s.n.], 1990. Available at . Available online.
 * [1780] Account of Indian corn received for taxes, 1780, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Feb 1992. Vol. 30 Iss. 1.
 * [1782] Warwick County, Virginia 1782 Tax List; index online at Ray's Place - free.
 * [1782-1861] Warwick County Personal Property Tax Lists 1782-1861 (images); digital version in Tax List Club at Binns Genealogy ($).
 * [1782] Weaver, Jeffrey C. The 1782 Warwick County, Virginia Personal Property Tax List, available online, courtesy: New River Notes.
 * [1782-1820] Heinegg, Paul. "Warwick County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1820," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * [1782-1890] Vollertsen, Arthur H. and Dorothy F. Vollertsen. Warwick, County, Virginia, 1782-1880: Who was Who, a Statistical Abstract Transcribed from the Virginia State Tax Lists (1782-1890) and the Federal Census Records (1810-1880)... Fort Eustis, Va.: Fort Eustis Historical and Archaeological Association, 1977..
 * [1783] 1783 Personal Property Tax List is online.
 * [1787] Schreiner-Yantis, Netti and Florene Speakman Love. The 1787 Census of Virginia: An Accounting of the Name of Every White Male Tithable Over 21 Years, the Number of White Males Between 16 &amp; 21 Years, the Number of Slaves over 16 &amp; Those Under 16 Years, Together with a Listing of Their Horses, Cattle &amp; Carriages, and Also the Names of All Persons to Whom Ordinary Licenses and Physician's Licenses Were Issued. 3 vols. Springfield, Va.: Genealogical Books in Print, 1987. Available at . [The source of this publication is the 1787 personal property tax list. Warwick County is included in Vol. 2.]
 * [1789] Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1977):49-53. Available at ; digital version at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($). [These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Warwick County's 1789 Delinquent List appears on p. 53.]
 * [1788, 1800] Indexed images of the 1788 and 1800 Land Tax Lists of Warwick County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1789, 1798] Indexed images of the 1789 and 1798 Personal Property Tax Lists of Warwick County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1815] Ward, Roger D. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Pub. Co., 1997-2000. Available at . [The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Warwicck County is included in Vol. 3.]

Marriage

 * 1660-1800 - Virginia Marriages 1660-1800 (Ancestry) ($).


 * 1740-1850 - Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 (Ancestry) ($).

Societies and Libraries

 * Tidewater Genealogical Society

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers

Websites

 * Warwick County VAGenWeb
 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.