Wythe County, Virginia Genealogy

Guide to Wythe County, Virginia ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.



Description
Wythe County is located in the southwest portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia and was named for George Wythe, a noted lawyer of Eastern Virginia, who was among the first Virginians to sign the Declaration of Independence; he also designed the Virginia Seal.

County Courthouse
Wythe County Courthouse 245 South 4th Street, Suite 205 Wytheville, VA 24382 Phone: 276-223-6079 Wythe County Website

Clerk Circuit Court has marriage, divorce, probate, court and land records from 1790.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

History Timeline
The county was named after George Wythe (1726-1806), Virginia signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Bible Records

 * [Carter] Family Records of James Turner Walker and Mourning Carter [ca. 1795-1922]. MSS., microfilmed reproduction available at.
 * [Graham] Graham Family Bible Records, 1800-1894. Original records, microfilmed reproduction available at.
 * [Raper] Raper Family Bible Records, 1796-1813. Original records, microfilmed reproduction available at.
 * 1607-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * [Shepperd] Prosser--Sheppard Family Bible Records, 1795-1901. MSS., microfilmed reproduction available at.

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

 * Kegley, Mary B. The Lost Children of Wythe County, Virginia, 1790-1878: Poor School Children, Orphans and Apprentices from County Records. Wytheville, Virginia: Kegley Books, 1995. Available at.

Cemeteries

 * 1800-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Census Records
1840
 * Douthat, James L. 1840 Mountain Empire of Virginia Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2001. 975.5 X2d 1840.  Surname list. Includes Wythe County.

1890 Union Veterans
 * Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890. By Ronald Ray Turner..
 * 1890 Veterans Schedules of the U.S. Federal Census. Online at: Ancestry ($). Includes this county.

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Quaker Early monthly meetings (with years of existence):
 * Pine Creek Monthly Meeting (1882-1889) aka Broadway

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records
 * Kegley, Mary B. Abstracts of Court Orders of Wythe County, Virginia [1790-1850]. 5 vols. Wytheville, Virginia: Kegley Books, 1996-2000. Available at.

Emigration and Immigration
During the War of 1812, American officials reported finding a total of 7 British aliens, many of whom had families, living in Wythe County.

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American
 * See Virginia_Cohabitation_Records for links to online records.
 * 1865-1872 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Heinegg, Paul. "Wythe County Personal Property Tax List 1802-1820," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * Kegley, Mary B. Free People of Colour: Free Negroes, Indians, Portuguese and Freed Slaves. Wytheville, Virginia: Kegley Books, 2003. Available at.
 * Search the Library of Virginia's Virginia Untold collection for digitized records related to African Americans of Wythe County.

Funeral Homes

 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Genealogies
Compiled Genealogies by Surname A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 * See Wythe County, Virginia Compiled Genealogies for a list of published books and articles, or jump to the surname using the alphabet bar.

Compilations Genealogies for Multiple Families
 * Cameron, Joseph Rodney and Constance Ann Cameron. Addendum to Early Settlers of Old Mount Airy, Wythe County, Virginia. Wytheville, Va.: J.R. Cameron and C.A. Cameron, 1999. . [Includes Brandstetter, Buck, Burkett, Cameron, Cassell, Chambers, Cormany, Daut, Duncan, Kinder, Levinson, Musser, Snavely, Staley, Tobler, and Weaver families.]
 * Kegley, Mary B. Early Adventurers on the Western Waters. 5 vols. 1990-1998..

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records An early settlers map is available for Wythe County. The cartographer plots the locations of pioneers from 1745-1858. The FamilySearch Library has a copy:.

Deeds
 * Dillon, Janie, and Mary B. Kegley. Wythe County, Virginia Deed Abstracts. Wytheville, VA: Wythe County Genealogical &amp; Historical Association, 2009. WorldCat page.
 * Schreiner-Yantis, Netti. 1800 Tax Lists &amp; Abstracts of Deeds (1796-1800) of Wythe County, Virginia. [Springfield, Virginia: N. Schreiner-Yantis], 1971.

Grants and Patents
 * Hudgins. 976 patents dated 1750-1883 in what is now Wythe County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper. 2009. [Names of those who received land patents, dates, land descriptions, and references may be viewed free of charge (click "Index" next to the county listing); however, in order to view the maps, it is necessary to purchase Direct Line Software's DeedMapper product.]
 * Sims, Edgar Barr. Sims Index to Land Grants in West Virginia. [Springfield, Virginia]: Genealogical Books in Print, c1992. Available at . [Includes Wythe County, Virginia.]

Local Histories

 * Boyd, Charles Rufus. Resources of South-west Virginia: Showing the Mineral Deposits of Iron, Coal, Zinc, Copper and Lead, also the Staples of the Various Counties, Methods of Transportation Access, Etc. New York J. Wiley, 1881. Available at.
 * Hall, Karen Lynn Jones. Wythe County (Images of America series). Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 2004. WorldCat page.
 * Hauser, H.M., comp. A Short Historical and Physical Description of Wythe County, Virginia. 1907. (online text in New River Notes)
 * Kegley, Mary B. The Lost Children of Wythe County, Virginia, 1790-1878: Poor School Children, Orphans and Apprentices from County Records.
 * Kegley, Mary B. Wythe County, Virginia: A Bicentennial History.
 * Kegley, Mary B. and F.B. Kegley. Early Adventurers on the Western Waters. 5 vols. Orange, Va.: Green Publishers, 1980, 1982 and Wytheville, Va.: Kegley Books, 1995, 1998. Available at.
 * Virginia Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Hildebrand, John R., F.B. Kegley, Mary B. Kegley and Roanoke Valley Historical Society (Roanoke, Va.) A Settlement Map of Wythe County, Virginia: Giving the Names and Locations of Many of the Early Adventurers in the Territory - From 1745 to 1858. [Roanoke, Virginia]: Roanoke Valley Historical Society, 1974. Available at ; available online.
 * FamilySearch Places: Cities and Towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War War of 1812
 * Kegley, Mary B. Revolutionary War Pension Applications of Southwest Virginia Soldiers. n.p.: M.B. Kegley, 1997. [Includes Smyth County pensioners.]
 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census]. 1841. Digital version at Google Books et. al. 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. [See Virginia, Western District, Smyth County on page 136.]
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." ; digital version at Ancestry ($). Includes veterans. Virginia section begins on page 238.
 * 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, Wythe County, p. 107. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

Regiments. Wythe County men served in the 35th Regiment. Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * Douthat, James L. Wythe County, VA, Civil War Records, 1861-1865. 1986. Available at.

Regiments. Civil War service men in Wythe County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed here:
 * - 4th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company A (Wythe Grays).
 * - 5th Regiment, Virginia State Line (Cavalry, Artillery, and Infantry) (Confederate). Company I.
 * - 22nd Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Bowen's Virginia Mounted Riflemen) (Confederate). Company G.
 * - 29th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company B.
 * - 45th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company B (Mount Airy Rough and Readys) and Company D (Minute Men).
 * - 51st Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company E (Wythe Rifles).
 * - 63rd Regiment, Virginia Infantry (McMahon's) (Confederate). Company H.

Civil War Battle The following Civil War battle was fought in Wythe County.
 * May 10, 1864 = Cove Mountain
 * Maps of Civil War battles in Virginia: 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865

World War II
 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1906-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Newspapers

 * Chronicling America at the Library of Congress: Wythe County, Virginia Newspapers
 * The Geography of Slavery in Virginia: Professor Tom Costa and The Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia have created a database of all runaway advertisements for slaves, indentured servants, transported convicts, and ship deserters listed in the Virginia Gazette and other Virginia newspapers (1736-1803), see: The Geography of Slavery in Virginia.
 * Obituaries (Wythe Co., VA GenWeb Project)
 * Wytheville Enterprise, Wytheville, VA
 * 2011-present Wytheville Enterprise at Genealogy Bank ($).

Miscellaneous Records

 * 1607-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.

 * Kegley, Mary B. The Lost Children of Wythe County, Virginia, 1790-1878: Poor School Children, Orphans and Apprentices from County Records. Wytheville, Virginia: Kegley Books, 1995. Available at.

Periodicals
Watauga Association of Genealogists Bulletin Genealogical articles with abstracts of Wythe County, Virginia records have been published in the Watauga Association of Genealogists Bulletin (39+ vols., 1972-present), the journal of the Watauga Association of Genealogists. The organization has posted tables of contents for most volumes on their website. Back issues are available for purchase. The FamilySearch Library has a complete collection, including Margaret W. Hougland and Betty Jane Hylton's Bulletin Subject Index: The First Thirty Years, 1972-2001 (Johnson City, Tenn.: Watauga Association of Genealogists, 2002).

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1633-1800 Wills and Estate Records Index at Library of Virginia.*Douthat, James L. Wythe County, Virginia Will Books 1-2, 1790-1822.
 * 1652-1900 Virginia, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1900 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * 1770-1773 Kegley, Mary B. New River Tithables, 1770-1773. Wytheville, Virginia: M.B. Kegley, 1972. Available at.
 * 1793-1830 Wythe County Personal Property Tax Lists 1793-1830 (images); digital version in Tax List Club at Binns Genealogy ($).
 * 1793-1850 Wythe County, Virginia Personal Property Tax Lists, 1793-1850. Original records, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va.; microfilmed reproduction available at.
 * 1793 Personal property tax list, 1793, Watauga Association of Genealogists Bulletin. Johnson City TN: 1977. Vol. 6 Iss. 2.
 * 1793 Weaver, Jeffrey C. The 1793 Wythe County, Virginia Personal Property Tax List, available online, courtesy: New River Notes.
 * 1793 Images of the 1793 Personal Property Tax List of Wythe County, Virginiaare available to browse online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * 1793 Weaver, Jeffrey C. 1793 Wythe County, Virginia Land Tax List, available online, courtesy: New River Notes.
 * 1793-1800 Murphy, Malita Warden and James L. Douthat. Wythe County, Va. Tax List, 1793-1800. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 1985. Available at . Free online surname index.
 * 1800 Indexed images of the 1800 Personal Property Tax List of Wythe County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * 1800 Schreiner-Yantis, Netti. 1800 Tax Lists &amp; Abstracts of Deeds (1796-1800) of Wythe County, Virginia. [Springfield, Virginia: N. Schreiner-Yantis], 1971. Available at.
 * 1802-1820 Heinegg, Paul. "Wythe County Personal Property Tax List 1802-1820," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * 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. Wythe County is included in Vol. 5.]
 * 1815 Kegley, Mary B. Southwest Virginia Tax Assessments, 1815: Grayson, Lee, Scott, Russell, Washington, and Wythe Counties. Wytheville, Va.: Kegley Books, 1991. Original edition and 1992 supplement available at . [The source for this publication is a private collection of 1815 tax assessment tickets for the First District of Virginia. The tickets include landowners' names, number of acres or lots, number of buildings along with descriptions, and number of slaves. N.B. These are not the 1815 land tax books.]

Birth

 * 1853-1859 Fowler, Deborah Thompson. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records: Births 1853-1859. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2004. Available at.
 * 1853-1866 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1865-1872 Kegley, Mary B. and Jean Porter Desmarais. Birth Records of Wythe County, Virginia, 1865-1872. Wytheville, Virginia: Kegley Books, 2005. Available at.
 * 1873-1879 Desmarais, Jean Porter. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records, Births, 1873-1879. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2004. Available at.
 * 1882-1884 Moore, Jeraldyne A. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records, Births, 1882-1884, Deaths, 1881-1884, 1886, 1888. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2004. Available at.
 * 1891-1895 Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records, Births 1891-1895. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2005. Available at.
 * 1912-1913 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1584-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Marriage

 * 1660-1800 Virginia Marriages 1660-1800 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1660-1959 Virginia, United States Marriages at at Findmypast — index, ($) — index $
 * 1740-1850 Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1785-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
 * 1785-1940 Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1790-1880 Hoch, Beverly Repass, Mary B. Kegley, and Janie Dillon. Wythe County, Virginia, Marriages: 1790-1880. 3 vols. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2006-2007. Available at . WorldCat page 1 | 2 | 3.
 * Wythe County Marriage Index. Batch M01013-6
 * 1817-1822 Wythe County, Virginia Marriage Register 1817-1822 (New River Notes)
 * 1853-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry ($)
 * 1936-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Death

 * 1853-1894 Moore, Jeraldyne A. and Mary B. Kegley. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records, Deaths. [1853-1894] 2 vols. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2004. Available at.
 * Deaths are online in the Library of Virginia's Death Index of Virginia, 1853-1896, sponsored by The Virginia Genealogical Society.
 * 1853-1911 Virginia, U.S., Death Registers, 1853-1911 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1853-1912 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection;  index & images
 * 1881-1888 Moore, Jeraldyne A. Wythe County, Virginia, Vital Records, Births, 1882-1884, Deaths, 1881-1884, 1886, 1888. Wytheville, Virginia: Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association, 2004. Available at.
 * 1912-1987 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Luck, Joyce Shelton. Wythe County, Virginia Annotated Death Records. Chester, Virginia: J.S. Luck, 2008. Available at . WorldCat page.

Divorce

 * 1816-1886 Kegley, Mary B. Divorces of Wythe County, Virginia, 1816-1886. Wytheville, Va.: Kegley Books, 2004. Available at.
 * 1918-1988 at FamilySearch — index & images

Family History Centers

 * Pembroke Virginia Family History Center


 * F.B. Kegley Library - an affiliate library
 * Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library - Christiansburg - an affiliate library
 * Smyth County Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
Wythe County Genealogical and Historical Association Website Wythe-Grayson Regional LibraryWebsite

Websites

 * References for Southwest Virginia (Southwest Virginia Project)
 * Wythe County Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Wythe County, VA (New River Notes)
 * Wythe County, VA (RootsWeb)
 * Wythe County, Virginia Genealogical Links (GenealogyLinks.net)
 * Cyndi's List


 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Wythe County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 25, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1981):49-51. Available at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).