Pendleton County, West Virginia Genealogy

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

Description
Pendleton County was named by white hunters and prospectors. The county is located in the northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Pendleton County Courthouse Main Street Franklin, WV 26807 Phone: 304-358-2505 Pendleton County Website County Clerk has birth and death records from 1853, marriage records from 1800, probate and land records from 1780.

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:

Bible Records

 * Bible Records at Pendleton County, WV Genealogy Trails
 * Pendleton County Bible Records at USGenWeb Archives
 * Bible Records of Nathan S Keen at Historical Society
 * Nelson Family Bible Records at West Virginia and Regional History Center

Census Records

 * 1810 Census of Pendleton County, Virginia
 * 1850 Pendleton County Census
 * Search 1850 Pendleton County Census
 * 1910 Pendleton County Census
 * 1930 Pendleton County Census Information
 * Pendleton County Districts

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1787-1902 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1788-1794 (*); Historical Records Survey and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1788-1856 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1788-1902 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1789-1842 (*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1789-1859 (*); County Court and Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1797-1816 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1797-1837 (*); District Court, Superior Court of Law, Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1801-1825 (*); District Court and Superior Court of Law at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1803-1840 (*); District Court, Superior Court of Law, Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1810-1817 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1831-1926 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1852-1869 (*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1858-1869 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1874-1880 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * Historical Records of Pendleton County, West Virginia at User.Fred.net
 * CDs by Marsha L. Fuller, 8 CDs (19th Century Marriage Records 1826-1857, County Court Record Book 1788, Court Record Indexes 1788-1911, Letters and Photographs).

Genealogies

 * Butcher - Brown, Nancy Clark. "Are You Related To...Loretta Webb Lynn," The Appalachian Quarterly, Vol. 12, No. 4 (Dec. 2007):4-22..
 * Coberly - Harter, Mary. "James Cunningham of Western Virginia," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 29, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1985):9-16; Vol. 29, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1985):109-116. Digital version at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($)..
 * Cunningham - Harter, Mary. "James Cunningham of Western Virginia," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 29, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1985):9-16; Vol. 29, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1985):109-116. Digital version at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($)..
 * Harman - Harman, John Newton. Harman Genealogy (Southern Branch): With Biographical Sketches, 1700-1924. Richmond, Va.: W.C. Hill Print. Co., 1925. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Harper - Rutherford, William Kenneth and Anna Clay Rutherford. Genealogical History of Our Ancestors. Revised Edition. 2 vols. Lexington, Mo., 1977..
 * McCoy - Forbes, Amanda C. "Oliver Family Records, Augusta County," Virginia Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1982):145-148. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Skidmore - Skidmore, Warren. Thomas Skidmore (Scudamore), 1605-1684, of Westerleigh, Gloucestershire, and Fairfield, Connecticut; His Ancestors and His Descendants to the Ninth Generation. 1980. ; 1985 edition: ; 1998 edition:.
 * Van Deventer - Vandevander, Paul J. and Ida Christobelle Van Deventer. The Van Deventer Family, 1550-1977. Parsons, W.Va.: McClain Print. Co., 1978..
 * Van Deventer - Arthaud, John Bradley and Catherine DeEtte Arthaud. The Mary Coberly and William Van Deventer Family of Pendleton and Randolph Counties, West Virginia, An Annotated Index to Paul J. Vandevander's The Van Deventer Family 1550-1977. Columbia, Mo., 1988..

Local Histories

 * A History of Pendleton County, West Virginia. By Oren Frederic Morton. Franklin, West Virginia : O.F. Morton, c1910. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
 * Maps of West Virginia (1617-1995)
 * Map of 1850 Virginia and West Virginia
 * Pendleton County, West Virginia Map

Military Records

 * The Dyer settlement, the Fort Seybert massacre Fort Seybert, West Virginia at Ancestry ($)

Revolutionary War

 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshals of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. 1841. FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). 1967 reprint: . See Virginia, Western District, Pendleton County on page 135.
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." ; digital version at Ancestry ($). Includes veterans from this county; Virginia section begins on page 238.

War of 1812
Pendleton County men served in the 46th Regiment.

Civil War

 * - 18th Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Company E.
 * - 25th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Heck's) (Confederate). Company E (Pendleton Rifles), Company F (Franklin Guards), and Company K (South Branch Riflemen).
 * - 62nd Regiment, Virginia Mounted Infantry (Confederate). Companies C, D, F (Franklin Guards), I (Pendleton Rifles), and K.

Records, histories, and societies exist:


 * Civil War Links
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 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)
 * Blue and Gray Trail Pendleton County, WV

World War II

 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1814-1991  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Newspapers

 * Online Newspapers from Surrounding Areas
 * Pendleton Times P.O. Box 906 Franklin, WV 26807-0906

Obituaries

 * Obituary Search Engline, Pendleton County, West Virginia
 * Obituaries from Pendleton Times
 * Contributed Obituaries

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1724-1985 West Virginia, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1724-1985 at Ancestry ($) — index & images
 * 1756-1971 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1776-1971 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1783-1899 (*); Historical Records Survey and Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1787-1902 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1788-1794 (*); Historical Records Survey and County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1788-1856 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1788-1970 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1789-1828 (*);Superior Court of Law and District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1789-1899 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1810-1817 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1816-1930 (*); Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1831-1926 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1844-1909 (*); Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1866-1925 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1874-1880 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1878-1900 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1884-1909 (*); Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1900-1922 (*); Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1909-1930 (*); Clerk of the County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — 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 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records
How can West Virginia tax lists help me?

West Virginia real and personal property tax records are managed by the County Assessor in each county. Land and land improvements are considered real property while mobile property is classified as personal property.

Many County Assessors offer an online searchable database, where assessment record searches can be performed by name, account number, year, or mp/parcel number. Where online records are not available, requests for records can be made to the Assessment Office in person, by phone, or in writing.


 * 1789-1850 Pendleton County Personal property tax lists, 1789-1850..
 * 1815 Ward, Roger D. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, Ga.: Iberian Pub. Co., 1997-2000. . The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Pendleton County is included in Vols. 5 and 6.

Vital Records

 * West Virginia Vital Records, 1865-1969 (varies) - Includes birth, death, and marriage.
 * 1865 Pendleton County Birth and Death Register 1865 at Eric Hedrick Research.

Birth

 * 1853-1914 West Virginia Birth Index, 1853-1914 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Marriage

 * 1776-1971 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1780-1970 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1801-1962 West Virginia, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $

Death

 * 1804-1999 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1853-1964 West Virginia Death Index & Certificates, 1853-1964 at MyHeritage - index ($)

FamilySearch Centers

 * Franklin West Virginia FamilySearch Center

Societies
Pendleton County Historical Society, Inc. Main Street P.O. Box 383 Franklin, WV 26807 Phone: 304-358-7366 Website Sons of Confederate Veterans Brig. Gen. James Boggs' Camp # 1706 Phone: 304-358-2746 Email: [mailto:wv4scv@gmail.com wv4scv@gmail.com] Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War 7th WV Infantry Camp #7 P.O. Box 622 Franklin, WV 26807 Phone: 304-620-5285 Email: [mailto:trapperwv1@yahoo.com trapperwv1@yahoo.com] Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

Websites

 * WVGenWeb
 * USGenWeb Archives
 * USGenWeb Project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Archives and History Finding Aids and Databases at West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture & History
 * Pendleton County, West Virginia Microfilms at the Library of Virginia
 * Cyndi's List
 * History and Genealogy History and Genealogy at Genealogy Trails
 * West Virginia Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * - 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: Pendleton County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 20, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1976):119-123. ; digital version at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).