Suffolk (Independent City), Virginia Genealogy

Description
The City of Suffolk is located in the Southeastern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia and was named after Governor William Gooch's home of Suffolk County, England.

Courthouse
For additional records, see Nansemond County.

Parent County
1910--Suffolk was created in 1910 from Nansemond County.

Record Loss
1734, 1779, and 1866 Many Nansemond County (later Suffolk Independent City) Courthouse records were lost by the burning of the county clerk's office where the records were in April 1734, when the courthouse was razed by British troops in 1779, and by a fire 7 February 1866.


 * Lost federal censuses: 1790, 1800, 1810, 1890

Bible Records

 * Bible Records of Suffolk &amp; Nansemond County, Virginia: Together With Other ...: By Fillmore Norfleet

Church of England

 * Hall, Wilmer Lee. The Vestry Book of the Upper Parish, Nansemond County, Virginia, 1743 - 1793. Richmond [Virginia]: Commonwealth of Virginia, Division of Purchase and Printing, 1949. Available at and.

Quaker

 * Putnam, Martha A. Quaker Records of Southeast Virginia. Westminster, Maryland: Family Line Publications, 1996. Available at . [Includes records about Quakers in Dinwiddie, Isle of Wight, Nansemond, Norfolk, Prince George, Southampton counties and Suffolk City from 1600s and 1700s (Blackwater Monthly Meeting, Chuckatuck Monthly Meeting, Pagan Creek Meeting, Western Branch Monthly Meeting, and Somerton Monthly Meeting.)]

Immigration

 * Ljungstedt, Milnor. "Items from Southern Records" (Showing Family and Trade Connections with Northern Colonies and the Home Countries), The American Genealogist, Vol. 15 (1938):95-104. Online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($). Suffolk, VA surname: Gibson.

Grants and Patents

 * Hudgins. 882 patents dated 1638-1749 in what is now Suffolk City (previously Nansemond County), Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper, 2003. 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.

Civil War, 1861-1865
Since Suffolk was created in 1910 from Nansemond County, go to the Nansemond County page for information about the Civil War military units of that county. Civil War service men from Suffolk served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their area.

Civil War Battles
The following Civil War battles were fought in Suffolk:


 * April 11-May 4, 1863 = Suffolk/Hill's Point, also known as Fort Huger
 * April 13-15, 1863 = Suffolk/Norfleet House, also known as Norfleet House Battery


 * Maps of Civil War battles in Virginia: 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865

Probate Records

 * 1652-1900 Virginia, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1900 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)

Vital Records

 * 1853-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; ''Also at: Ancestry ($)

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers
 * Bennetts Creek Virginia Family History Center
 * Elizabeth River Virginia Family History Center