Orange County, Virginia Genealogy

United States   Virginia    Orange County





History


The county was named after King William III of England (1650-1702). Before ruling England, he governed the Dutch Republic and was known as Stadtholder William III of Orange.

A large group of Germans settled in the area during the eighteenth century, while it was the frontier of European settlement.

Parent County
1734--Orange County was created 1 February 1734 from Spotsylvania County. County seat: Orange

Record Loss

 * Lost censuses: 1790, 1800, 1810, 1890

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Orange County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 19, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1975):283-286. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * Cortada, James W. A Select Bibliography on Orange County, Virginia. Orange, Virginia: Green Publishers, 1975. FHL US/CAN Book 975.5 A1 no. 158.
 * Miller, Ann L. A Guide to Historical Research in Orange County, Virginia. Orange, Virginia: Orange County Historical Society (Virginia), 1988. FHL US/CAN Book 975.5372 H2m.

Cemeteries

 * Klein, Margaret C. Tombstone Inscriptions of Orange County, Virginia. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1979. Available at FHL US/CAN Book 975.5372 V3k; digital versions at Ancestry ($); and World Vital Records ($).

Census
For tips on accessing census records online, see Virginia Census.

1790 - Lost, but a subsitute is available, see [Orange_County,_Virginia#Taxation Taxation.]

1800 - Lost, but a subsitute is available, see [Orange_County,_Virginia#Taxation Taxation.]

1810 - Lost, but a subsitute is available, see [Orange_County,_Virginia#Taxation Taxation.]

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 Orange County.]

Church
Church of England


 * Davis, Rosalie Edith Rogers, St. Mark's Parish (Culpeper County, Virginia: Episcopal), Bromfield Parish (Rappahannock and Madison Counties, Virginia: Episcopal). Saint Mark Parish Vestry Book &amp; Levies, 1730-1785: Spotslyvania, Orange and Culpeper counties, Virginia. Manchester, Missouri: Heritage Trails, 1983. Available at FHL.
 * Papageorgiou, Lizabeth Ward. The Colonial Churches of St. Thomas' Parish, Orange County, Virginia: With Notes on Sites in Orange, Greene, and Madison Counties. Baltimore, Maryland: Clearfield, 2008. Available at FHL.

German Reformed


 * Braun, Johannes, Klaus Wust and Joseph H. Meyerhoeffer. Shenandoah Valley Family Data, 1799-1813: From the Memorandum Book of Pastor Johannes Braun. Edinburg, Va.: Shenandoah History Publishers, 1978. FHL US/CAN Book 975.5 K2bjo.

Court
Chancery Court


 * Sparacio, Ruth Trickey and Sam Sparacio. Chancery Suits (Superior Court of Law &amp; Chancery), Orange County, Virginia, 1831-1845. McLean, Virginia: R. &amp; S. Sparacio, 1988. Available at FHL.

District Court of Fredericksburg

The District Court of Fredericksburg and later the Superior Court of Chancery had jurisdiction over certain Orange County court cases. An index has been compiled:


 * Indexes of Court Records in the Clerk's Office, Fredericksburg, Virginia, 1782-1904. Original records, Fredericksburg City Courthouse, Fredericksburg, Va., microfilmed reproduction available at FHL. [Indexes the following records: District Court law book v. 8, 1782-1792; District Court law books 1790-1793, v. A-F 1789-1811; Superior Court of Law law order books v. G-H 1812-1831; Superior Court of Chancery chancery order books 1814-1831; Hustings Court orders v. A-O 1782-1871; Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery law order books v. A-E 1831-1875; Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery chancery order books v. A-D 1831-1872; Circuit Court chancery order books v. A2, B-C 1875-1904; Fredericksburg District Court (1789-1808) had jurisdiction over the following counties: Spotsylvania (including Fredericksburg), Caroline, King George, Stafford, Orange, and Culpeper; Superior Court of Chancery (1802-1831) had jurisdiction over the following localities: city of Fredericksburg and the counties of Caroline, Culpeper, Fauquier, Fairfax, Lancaster, Northumberland, Madison, King George, Orange, Prince William, Richmond, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Essex, and Westmoreland.]

Superior Court of Chancery

See District Court of Fredericksburg

Genealogy
More than 320 genealogies have been published about Orange County families. To view a list, visit Orange County, Virginia Genealogy.

Historic Residences

 * Miller, Ann L. Antebellum Orange: The Pre-Civil War Homes, Public Buildings, and Historic Sites of Orange County, Virginia. Orange, Virginia: Orange County Historical Society, 1989. Reviewed by Calder Loth in The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 98, No. 4 (Oct., 1990), pp. 671-672. Review available at JSTOR ($).
 * Taylor, Jaquelin P. "'Meadowfarm' Orange County, Virginia," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Jul., 1938), pp. 231-233. Available at JSTOR ($).

Immigration

 * Andrea, Leonardo. Miscellaneous Court Records. Typescript. FHL US/CAN Film 954248 Item 16. [Includes "Importations from abroad to Orange Co., Va., 1735-1755."]
 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes will of a resident of Orange 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=Orange&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 Orange County, Virginia (work in progress), courtesy: Immigrant Servants Database.

Land
Grants and Patents


 * [Map] Hildebrand, John R. The Beverley Patent, 1736: Including Original Grantees, 1738-1815 in Orange &amp; Augusta Counties, Va. 1954. FHL US/CAN Map Case 975.5 E7hjr.
 * Gray, Gertrude E. Virginia Northern Neck Land Grants 1694-1742. Vol. I. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1987. Available at FHL; digital version at [http://search.ancestryinstitution.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=49389 Ancestry. [Includes an Orange County resident.]
 * Grymes, J. Randolph. The Octonia Grant in Orange and Greene Counties. Ruckersville, Va.: Seminole Press, 1977. FHL US/CAN Book 975.537 R2g.
 * Hildebrand, John R. The Beverley Patent, 1736: Including Original Grantees, 1738-1815 in Orange &amp; Augusta Counties, Va. 1954. FHL US/CAN Map Case 975.5 E7hjr.
 * Hudgins, 390 patents dated 1713-1815 in what is now Orange County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper, 2004. [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.]
 * Joyner, Ulysses P. Orange County Land Patents. [Orange, Va.]: Orange County Historical Society (Virginia), 1985. FHL US/CAN Book 975.5372 R2j.

Local Histories

 * Gwathmey, John Hastings. Twelve Virginia Counties, Where the Western Migration Began. Richmond: Dietz Press, 1937. FHL US/CAN Film 1320669 Item 13.
 * Hurst, Patricia J. The History and People of Clark Mountain, Orange County, Virginia. Rapidan, Virginia: P.J. Hurst, 1989. Available at FHL.
 * Joyner, Ulysses P. The First Settlers of Orange County, Virginia: A View of the Life and Times of the European Settlers of Orange County, Virginia, and Their Influence Upon the Young James Madison, 1700-1776. Baltimore, Maryland: Gateway Press, 1987. Available at FHL.
 * Mansfield, James Roger. A History of Early Spotsylvania. Berryville, Virginia: Virginia Book Co., 1977. Available at FHL.
 * Moffatt, L. G., J. M. Carrière and J. G. Moffatt. "A Frenchman Visits Norfolk, Fredericksburg and Orange County, 1816," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 53, No. 2 (Apr., 1945), pp. 101-123; Vol. 53, No. 3 (Jul., 1945), pp. 197-214. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * Scott, W.W. A History of Orange County: From Its Formation in 1734 (O.S.) to the End of Reconstruction in 1870; Compiled Mainly from Original Records. Richmond, Virginia: Everett Waddey Co., 1907. Original edition available at FHL; 1974 reprint available at FHL; digital versions of original edition at Ancestry ($) and Google Books (full-view). Reviewed in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 6, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1962):181. Review available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($); and World Vital Records ($).
 * Thomas, William H.B. Orange, Virginia: Story of a Courthouse Town. Verona, Virginia: McClure Press, 1972. Reviewed by James T. Moore in The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 81, No. 1 (Jan., 1973), pp. 116-117. Review available at JSTOR ($).

Maps

 * Hildebrand, John R. The Beverley Patent, 1736: Including Original Grantees, 1738-1815 in Orange &amp; Augusta Counties, Va. 1954. Available at FHL.

French and Indian War

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Orange County militia officers, soldier enlistments, and veterans; see place name index.]
 * Boogher, William F. Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. Washington: n.p., 1903. Available at FHL; digital version at Google Books. [Includes a chapter titled "Legislative Enactments connecting the preceding historic sketch [French and Indian War, Lord Dunmore's War] with the adjudication of the resulting accounts that follow; with the list of officers, soldiers and civilians entitled to compensation for military and other services rendered." For Orange County, see p. 112.]

Revolutionary War

 * Thomsa, William H.B. Patriots of the Upcountry: Orange County, Virginia in the Revolution. Orange, Virginia: Orange County Bicentennial Commission, 1976.
 * 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 versions at U.S. Census Bureau and Google Books et. al. 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. [See Virginia, Eastern District, Orange County on page 132.]
 * 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." 973 M24ur; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes veterans from this county; Virginia section begins on page 238.]

Civil War

 * Hurst, Patricia J. Soldiers, Stories, Sites and Fights, Orange County, Virginia 1861-1865 and the Aftermath. Rapidan, Virginia: P.J. Hurst, 1998. Available at FHL.
 * Virginia. Office of Comptroller and Library of Virginia. Confederate Pension Applications, Virginia, Acts of 1888, 1900, 1902; Index, 1888-1934. 220 microfilms, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia; also available at FHL. [Includes Spotsylvania County veterans.]
 * Watkins, Raymond Wesley. Deaths of Confederate Soldiers in Orange County, Virginia Hospitals, 1861-1864. MSS., 1979, available at FHL.

Newspapers
Indexed images of the Virginia Gazette(1736-1780) are available online through the Colonial Williamsburgwebsite. In addition, 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 this source and other Virginia newspapers (1736-1803), see: The Geography of Slavery in Virginia. These newspapers are valuable resources for all regions of Virginia.

Private Papers

 * Buni, Andrew. "Reconstruction in Orange County, Virginia: A Letter from Hannah Garlick Rawlings to Her Sister, Clarissa Lawrence Rawlings, August 9, 1865," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 75, No. 4 (Oct., 1967), pp. 459-465. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * Redwine, Lucy Leah, J.E. Hays, and Daughters of the American Revolution. Elijah Clarke Chapter (Athens, Georgia). Family Bible Records. MSS., Department of Archives and History, Atlanta, Georgia; also available at FHL. [Includes records from Spotsylvania County, Virginia.]

Probate
Local Court


 * Wiggins, Mrs. Joseph P. "Will of Robert Terrill, of Orange County, Virginia," (and family notes) [1786] The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 31, No. 2 (Apr., 1923), pp. 175-180. Available at JSTOR ($).

London Courts


 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes will of a resident of Orange County proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.]

Taxation
How can Virginia tax lists help me?


 * [1730-1754] Joyner, Peggy Shomo. Abstracts of Virginia's Northern Neck Warrants and Surveys. Vol. 1 [Orange &amp; Augusta counties, with tithables, delinquents, petitioners, 1730-1754]. Portsmouth, Virginia: P.S. Joyner, 1985. Available at FHL.
 * [1734, 1738-1739] Hoppin, Charles Arthur. "Orange County Tithe Lists," [1734, 1738 Delinquents, 1739] The William and Mary Quarterly, 1st Series, Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jul., 1918):19-27. Available at FHL; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at FHL; digital version at JSTOR ($).
 * [1734-1782] Little, Barbara Vines. Orange County, Virginia, Tithables 1734-1782. 2 vols. [Orange, Virginia?]: Dominion Market Research Corp., 1988. Available at FHL.
 * [1736-1782] Orange County, Virginia Tithables, 1736-1782. Original records, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * [1739] German Tithables, 1739, Beyond Germanna, Vol. 2, No. 4 (Jul. 1990).
 * [1756, 1782] Sparacio, Ruth Trickey and Sam Sparacio. Deed Abstracts of Orange County, Virginia. [1743-1802] 9 vols. McLean, Virginia: R.L. and S. Sparacio, 1985-1995. Available at FHL. [Volume 2. Deed abstracts 1759-1778 (Deed books 13-16; tithable list of Benjamin Cave's precinct, 1756; and land tax book, 1782).]
 * [1785] Tithables, 1785, Orange County Historical Society Newsletter. Vol. 19, No. 4 (Apr. 1988).
 * [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 FHL. [The source of this publication is the 1787 personal property tax list. Orange County is included in Vol. 2.]
 * [1790] Indexed images of the 1790 Personal Property Tax List of Orange County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1800] Tax List, 1800, Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 47, No. 3 (2003); Vol. 47, No. 4 (Oct. 2003); Vol. 48, No. 1 (Jan. 2004). Available at FHL.
 * [1800] Images of the 1800 Personal Property Tax List of Orange County, Virginia are available to browse online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1810] Schreiner-Yates, Netti. A Supplement to the 1810 Census of Virginia: Tax Lists of the Counties for which the Census is Missing. Springfield, Va.: Genealogical Books in Print, 1971. Available at FHL. [The source for this publication is the 1810 personal property tax list. Orange County is included because the 1810 Census for that county has been destroyed.]
 * [1810] Personal Property Tax 1810, Genealogical Forum of Portland Oregon Bulletin, Vol. 15, No. 8 (Apr. 1966).
 * [1815] Ward, Roger D. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Pub. Co., 1997-2000. Available at FHL. [The source for this publication is 1815 land tax. Orange County is included in Vol. 4.]

Vital Records
Birth


 * King, George H.S. "Some Orange County Virginia Birth Records," [1750s-1770s] The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 22, No. 3 (Jul., 1942), p. 317. Available at JSTOR ($). [Found at the back of Orange County, Virginia Deed Book 17; King may have omitted births of black children.]

Marriage


 * Boogher, William F. Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. Washington: n.p., 1903. Available at FHL; digital version at Google Books. [Includes a chapter titled "Early Marriages, Orange County, Virginia, 1770-1800," see p. 383.]
 * Fisher, Therese A. Marriage Records of the City of Fredericksburg, and of Orange, Spotsylvania, and Stafford Counties, Virginia 1722-1850. Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, 1990. Available at FHL.
 * Grinnan, A.G. "Some of the Early Marriage Licenses of Orange County," The William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. 4, No. 1 (Jul., 1895), pp. 59-61. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * Knorr, Catherine L. Marriages of Orange County, Virginia, 1747-1810. Pine Bluff, Arkansas: C.L. Knorr, 1959. Reviewed in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 5, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1961):41. Review available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * Scott, W.W. "A List of Marriages Recorded in the Back Part of Deed-Book No. 17, Orange County," [1770s-1810] The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 26, No. 2 (Apr., 1918), pp. 190-200; Vol. 26, No. 3 (Jul., 1918), pp. 297-302; Vol. 26, No. 4 (Oct., 1918), pp. 401-404; Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jan., 1919), p. 68; Vol. 27, No. 3/4 (Jul. - Oct., 1919), pp. 345-348; Vol. 28, No. 2 (Apr., 1920), pp. 152-160; Vol. 28, No. 3 (Jul., 1920), pp. 256-265; Vol. 28, No. 4 (Oct., 1920), p. 360. Available at JSTOR ($). Alternative titles: "A List of Marriages in Orange County," "List of Marriages in Orange County," and "Orange County Marriages."

Websites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Family History Library Catalog
 * RootsWeb Mailing List: GERMANNA_COLONIES-L