Orange County, Virginia Genealogy

United States &gt; Virginia &gt; Orange County

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

Neighboring Counties
Albemarle

Culpeper

Greene

Louisa

Madison

Spotsylvania

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” [Friends, 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


 * [Harrison] Torrence, Robert M. "Charles Harrison, of St. Thomas Parish, Orange County, Virginia, and Descendants," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 55, No. 1 (Jan., 1947), pp. 85-94. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * [Miller] Miller, Boyce. "Miller Family of Orange County," The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 13, No. 1 (Jan., 1933), pp. 39-45. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * [Scott] Scott, Paul H. "The Scott Family of Orange County," The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 19, No. 4 (Oct., 1939), pp. 485-509. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * [Taylor] Anderson, William Kyle. Donald Robertson and His Wife Rachel Rogers, of King and Queen County, Virginia, Their Ancestry and Posterity, Also a Brief Account of the Ancestry of Commodore Richard Taylor, of Orange County, Virginia, and His Naval History during the War of the American Revolution. Detroit, Michigan: Winn &amp; Hammond, Printers, 1900. Reviewed in The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 10, No. 2 (Oct., 1902), p. 224. Review available at JSTOR ($).
 * [Terrill] 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 ($).

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

 * 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. Available at FHL.
 * 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.]

Local Histories

 * 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 ($).
 * Scott, W.W. A History of Orange County: From Its Formation in 1734 (O.S.) to the End of Reconstruction in 1870; Compiled Mainly from Original Records. Richmond, Virginia: Everett Waddey Co., 1907. Digital book available at Google Books (full-view).
 * Thomas, William H.B. Orange, Virginia: Story of a Courthouse Town. Verona, Virginia: McClure Press, 1972. Reviewed by James T. Moore in The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 81, No. 1 (Jan., 1973), pp. 116-117. Review available at JSTOR ($).

Maps

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

Military
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.]

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 ($).

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

 * Hoppin, Charles Arthur. "Orange County Tithe Lists," [1734, 1738 Delinquents, 1739] The William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jul., 1918), pp. 19-27. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * Indexed images of the 1790 Personal Property Tax List of Orange County, Virginia are available online at Binns Genealogy.
 * Images of the 1800 Personal Property Tax List of Orange County, Virginia are available to browse online at Binns Genealogy.

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


 * 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 ($).
 * Scott, W.W. "A List of Marriages Recorded in the Back Part of Deed-Book No. 17, Orange County," [1770s-1810] The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 26, No. 2 (Apr., 1918), pp. 190-200; Vol. 26, No. 3 (Jul., 1918), pp. 297-302; Vol. 26, No. 4 (Oct., 1918), pp. 401-404; Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jan., 1919), p. 68; Vol. 27, No. 3/4 (Jul. - Oct., 1919), pp. 345-348; Vol. 28, No. 2 (Apr., 1920), pp. 152-160; Vol. 28, No. 3 (Jul., 1920), pp. 256-265; Vol. 28, No. 4 (Oct., 1920), p. 360. Available at JSTOR ($). 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