West Virginia Archives and Libraries

United States West Virginia  Archives and Libraries

The following archives, libraries, and societies have collections or services helpful to West Virginia genealogical researchers:

Archives and History Library - Division of Culture and History The Cultural Center Capitol Complex 1900 Kanawha Boulevard East Charleston, WV 25305-0300 Telephone: 304-558-0220 Fax: 304-558-2779

National Archives—Mid-Atlantic Region (Downtown Philadelphia) 900 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19107-4292 Telephone: 215-606-0100 Fax: 215-606-0116&lt;

National Archives– Mid-Atlantic Region (Northeast Philadelphia) 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1025 Telephone: 215-305-2000 Fax: 215-305-2038

West Virginia Genealogical Society P.O. Box 249 Elkview, WV 25071 Telephone: 304-965-1179

West Virginia Collection West Virginia University Library P.O. Box 6069 Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 Telephone: 304-293-3536 Fax: 304-293-3981


 * A useful guide to this collection is James W. Hess, Guide to Manuscripts and Archives in the West Virginia Collection. Morgantown, West Virginia. West Virginia University Library, 1974. The 1959 edition by Charles Shetler, is on

Library of Virginia (State Library) 800 East Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219-8000 Telephone: 804-692-3888 Fax: 804-692-3556


 * The Virginia State Library is an important resource for pre-1863 West Virginia research.

The Allegheny Regional Family History Society Post Office Box 1804 Elkins, West Virginia 26241 Email: [mailto:arhfs@yahoo.com]

Locating Archives


 * An online listing of many West Virginia Archives and societies is at:


 * West Virginia State Archives


 * A resource for locating archives in Appalachia is:


 * Archives in Appalachia: A Directory. Boone, North Carolina: Appalachian Consortium Press, 1985. (Family History Library book 975 A3a.) The record covers the states of Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The record is arranged alphabetically by state, then by the name of the repository. Each entry lists the archive, its address, phone number, inclusive dates of the collection, the records of the collection, what subjects are covered by the collection, and the size of the collection. There are two indexes: Record type, and Subject, with reference numbers corresponding to the repository. Also included is a list, under “Coming Attractions,” of agencies that do not currently collect manuscript materials but plan to do so in the future.

General Information

To learn more about the history and record-keeping systems of West Virginia counties, use the 13 inventories of the county archives published by the Historical Records Survey around 1940. The Family History Library has copies of all of these inventories. These are listed in the Family History Library Catalog under WEST VIRGINIA - ARCHIVES AND LIBRARIES.

The Historical Records Survey also compiled unpublished (manuscript) inventories for the records of most West Virginia counties. These are available on microfilm at the Family History Library. These are listed in the Family History Library Catalog under WEST VIRGINIA, [COUNTY] - COURT RECORDS - INVENTORIES, REGISTERS, CATALOGS.