Fluvanna County, Virginia Genealogy

United States &gt; Virginia &gt; Fluvanna County



Parent County
1777--Fluvanna County was created 5 May 1777 from Albemarle County. County seat: Palmyra

Neighboring Counties

 * Albemarle
 * Buckingham
 * Cumberland
 * Goochland
 * Louisa

Church
Baptist


 * King, Mrs. James E. "First Minute Book, Upper Beaver Dam Church, Fluvanna, Virginia," [1830s-1850s] The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 14, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1970):99-104. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).

Family Histories
It is anticipated that this bibliography will eventually identify all known family histories published about residents of this county. In addition to finding a direct ancestor’s surname listed, and watching to see if more recent publications make additions and corrections to earlier works, this list is also useful for determining if genealogists have published accounts, to quote Elizabeth Shown Mills, for any members of an ancestor’s “FAN Club” [Family, Associates, and Neighbors]. Checking publications about those individuals can lead you to new information about your own ancestry. Be mindful that compiled genealogies may contain errors.

Bibliography


 * [Alford] James, Jessamine Bland. Family Records of Andrew Hunter of Louisa County, Virginia, and Jacob Alford of Garrard County, Kentucky, and Charles Alford of Garrard Co., Ky.: Copied from Court Records, Bibles, and Tombstones. MSS., donated in 1958, available at FHL.
 * [Allen] Obert, Isabelle Board, Donald Dougherty, and Penelope Woodford. The Allen Family of Albemarle and Fluvanna. Baltimore, Maryland: Margaret Isabelle Board Obert, 1999. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Ashley] See Johnson.
 * [Bain] Bain, Ethel M. The Bain Family: Ancestors and Descendants of Peter Bain of Tennessee, 1775-1980. San Angelo, Texas: E.M. Bain, 1980. Available at FHL.
 * [Bain] Bain, Ethel M. The Bain Family, 1775-1980: Revised and Updated 1981-1998. Grand Junction, Colorado: E.B. Kennamer, 1998. Available at FHL.
 * [Baskett] Martin, John Robert. Valentine Martin of Cumberland County, Virginia: Also a Short Sketch of the Family of Rev. William Baskett of Fluvanna County, Virginia. 1960. Available at FHL.
 * [Baskett] Ward, Rebecca Ann Eastman. The Baskett Family: Including the Families of Christie, Ford, Martin and Shepherd. Spokane, Washington: R. Ward, 1992. Available at FHL.
 * [Beckner] Sanchez, Margaret Tuttle. Documented American Lineage of Viola Culver Tuttle. Provo, Utah: M.S. Tuttle, 1988. Available at FHL.
 * [Bernard] Macy, E.E. Data Assembled on the Bernard Family for Archibald F. Bennett, Having Particular Reference to that Branch Located in Fluvanna Co., Va. MSS., 1944, available at FHL.
 * [Bernard] Bernard, William Dallas and Pauline K. Skinner. The John Bernard and Mary Abney Genealogy, Fluvanna County, Virginia. Lascassas, Tennessee: W.D. Bernard, 1975. Available at FHL.
 * [Bugg] Brochu, Francis Louis. The Buggs of Big Albemarle County, Virginia: In Three Parts. 3 vols. Salem, Virginia: F.L. Brochu, 1995. Available at FHL.
 * [Claxton] Norris, George W. and Claxton Family Historical Committee. Henry Claxton and Descendants, 1790-1980. Warner Robins, Georgia: Claxton Family Historical Committee, 1982. Available at FHL.
 * [Claxton] Claxton, Brazle Hubert, James T. Martin, George W. Norris, and Claxton Family Historical Committee. Henry Claxton and Descendants, 1980-1990. Utica, Kentucky: McDowell Publications, 1992. Available at FHL.
 * [Harlow] King, Martha Eheart. Harlow - Harlowe: Descendants of Henry Martin and Mary Elizabeth (Hawley) Harlow. Manassas, Virginia: M.E. King, 1980. Available at FHL.
 * [Henley] Small, Deborah Ann Kraemer. Osborn--Randolph--Henley--Bland Family Group Sheets. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Johnson] Greenlee, Martha Sansom. Some Indiana and Kentucky Descendants of Dilmus Johnson, Virginia Soldier of the Revolution: Including Allied Lines Ashley, Pace, Bowden, Gray, Bradley, Porter and Descendants of Margaret E. Johnson, Wife of Benjamin Darby Sansom. MSS., available at FHL; another copy at FHL.
 * [Lowry] Koetting, Jerome D. and Patricia G. Lowery Koetting. Descendants of James Lowry of Caldwell County, Kentucky. Rio Rancho, New Mexico: J.D. &amp; P.G.L. Koetting, 1996. Available at FHL.
 * [Mayo] Mayo, Charles Edward. Joseph Mayo, 2nd Lt., Fluvanna, Va., Patriot: A Genealogy and Family History, 1620 to 2001. Prichard, West Virginia: C.E. Mayo, 2001. Available at FHL.
 * [Moore] Moore, Charles R. The Moore Family of Central Virginia: Covering the Counties of Albeharle, Amherst, Bedford, Buckingham, Campbell, Fluvanna, Louisa, Nelson, and Orange, Virginia. Charlottesville, Virginia: C.R. Moore, 1985. Available at FHL.
 * [Osborne] See Henley.
 * [Smithson] Kennedy, Marvin S. John Smithson Pedigree. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Snead] Hatcher, William E. The Sneads of Fluvanna. Fork Union, Va.: Sneads of Fluvanna, 1959. Available at FHL; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * [Strange] Alloway, Harold Jay. The Alloway History of a Strange Family. Derby, Kansas: H.J. Alloway, 1994. Available at FHL.
 * [Toney] Taylor, George Earl. A Brief Visit with the Old Folks. La Grange, Illinois: Taylor, 1975. Available at FHL.
 * [Westbrooks] Goodwin, Sarah Jones, Rutherford County Historical Society (Murfreesboro, Tn.), Estelle Jones Potts, and Leoma Smotherman Smotherman. Westbrooks-Williams and Related Smothermans of Rutherford County, Tennessee: With Histories of Midland Community, Oak Grove School, Old Leb Church. Murfreesboro, Tenn.: Rutherford County Historical Society, 1984. Available at FHL.
 * [Winks] Dozier, Rebecca Leach. The Winks' Family of England and Fluvanna County, Va., 1700-1990. Augusta, Georgia: R.L. Dozier, [1991?]. Available at FHL.
 * [Wood] Bayne, Margaret Williams. The Wood Family of Fluvanna County, Virginia, 1795-1969. Norfolk, Virginia: M.W. Bayne, 1984. Available at FHL.

Land
Grants and Patents


 * Hudgins et al. 713 patents dated 1721-1855 in what is now Fluvanna County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper, 2008. [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.]

Military
French and Indian War


 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Fluvanna County veterans; see place name index.]

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.

Research Guide

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Fluvanna County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 10, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1966):76-77. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).

Taxation
At first glance, researchers might conclude that Virginia tax lists contain very little family history data, though one soon learns that valuable genealogical conclusions can be drawn from these records, nicknamed "annual censuses," such as: relationships, approximate years of birth, socio-economic status, identification of neighbors, the ability to distinguish between persons of the same name, evidence of land inheritance, years of migration, and years of death.

Virginia began enumerating residents' payments of personal property and land taxes in 1782. These two types of taxation were recorded in separate registers. Personal property tax lists include more names than land tax lists, because they caught more of the population. The Family History Library has an excellent microfilm collection of personal property tax lists from 1782 (or the year the county was organized) well into the late nineteenth century for most counties, but only scattered land tax lists. Microfilm collections at The Library of Virginia include land tax lists for all counties and independent cities for the years 1782 through 1978, as well as personal property tax lists for the years 1782 through 1930 (and every fifth year thereafter). Taxes were not collected in 1808.

Some tax records are available online or in print, though published abstracts often omit useful details found only in the original sources. Statewide indexes can help genealogists identify specific counties where surnames occurred in the past, providing starting points for research.


 * [1782-1850] Fluvanna County, Virginia Personal Property Tax Lists, 1782-1850. Original records, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va.; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * [1782-1800, 1863-1864, 1892] Fluvanna County, Virginia Land (Tax) Books, 1782-1800, 1863-1864, 1892. Original records, Fluvanna County Courthouse, Palmyra, Va.; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * [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. Fluvanna County is included in Vol. 1.]
 * [1790, 1802] Indexed images of the 1790 and 1802 Personal Property Tax Lists of Fluvanna County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1800] "Fluvanna County, Virginia, 1800 Tax List," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 22, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1978):16-22. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * [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 the 1815 land tax. Fluvanna County is included in Vol. 1.]

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