Campbell County, Virginia Genealogy

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

Virginia Online Genealogy Records

Description
Campbell County is located in the Piedmont area of the Commonwealth of Virginia and was named for General William Campbell, the Revolutionary War hero famous for his leadership in defeating the Tories and Loyalists at the Battle of King’s Mountain in the Carolinas.

Campbell County Virginia Courthouse
Campbell County Courts P.O. Box 7 732 Village Highway Rustburg, VA 24588-0007 Phone: (434) 592-9517 Clerk Circuit Court has birth and death records 1912-1918 marriage, divorce, probate, court and land records from 1782

Parent County
1781--Campbell County was created 5 November 1781 from Bedford County. County seat: Rustburg

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Virginia county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Virginia County Boundary Maps" (1617-1995) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss

 * Lost censuses: 1790, 1800, 1890

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:

Research Guides

 * A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Campbell County. The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 6, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1962):176-179. CD available at: American Ancestors ($). Available at.

African American
In 1860, Campbell County had one of the largest slave populations in the state (11,580 slaves). Ten years later in 1870, it had one of the largest African American populations in Virginia (14,343) - the town of Lynchburg in particular.


 * Campbell County Personal Property Tax List 1785-1814. By Paul Heinegg. Online at: Free African Americans.
 * Freedmen's

Cemeteries

 * 1800-1986 -

Census
1890 Union Veterans
 * Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890. c1994. By Ronald Ray Turner. Online at: Prince William County Virginia, ;.

Baptist
Early Baptist churches (with years constituted):


 * 1) Burton's Creek (1806)
 * 2) Ebenezer 
 * 3) Lower Falling (1792)
 * 4) New Chapel
 * 5) Seneca 

Campbell County fell within the bounds of the Appomattox Association, the Roanoke Association, and the Strawberry Association.

Church of England
See also Russell Parish

Meade's 1861 history of parishes in Campbell County is available online.

Quaker
Early monthly meetings (with years of existence):


 * Hill's Creek Monthly Meeting (1778-1803)
 * Seneca Monthly Meeting (1781-1810)
 * South River Monthly Meeting, Lynchburg, Va. (1757-1839). The original records have been microfilmed: . In 1905, Bell published the early records, which are now available online at FamilySearch Digital Library and Google Books. Wright also published early records (1756-1800): . Hinshaw also published the early records:.


 * (64+ entries)


 * Jane Douglas Summers Brown and Jones Memorial Library. Jane Douglas Summers Brown (1903-) Quaker Records: Jones Memorial Library (Lynchburg, Virginia); MS 1515. MSS, Jones Memorial Library, Lynchburg, Va. Available on 26 microfilms at . Includes records of Campbell County Quakers; Brown assisted William Wade Hinshaw in the writing of the Virginia volume of the Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy.

Presbyterian

 * History of Hat Creek Church. 1834. By William Irvin. Columbia, SC : n.p. Online at: Hathitrust

Court
Chancery Court


 * Indexes (1793-1946) and images (1793-1914) to Campbell County, Virginia Chancery Records are available online through Virginia Memory: Chancery Records Index. These records, often concerned with inheritance disputes, contain a wealth of genealogical information.

Genealogy
More than 175 genealogies have been published about Campbell County families. To view a list, visit Campbell County, Virginia Compiled Genealogies.

See also: Virginia Compiled Genealogies

Jones Memorial Library in Lynchburg, Virginia has a nice genealogical collection. Among its holdings are the Family File. An index is available onsite and will help you track down genealogical charts and sources about specific families. To learn more, visit their website. Go to collections, family file.

Compiled genealogies that treat multiple Campbell County families include:


 * The Campbell Clan in Virginia. 1954. By Leslie Lyle Campbell. Lexington, VA : The Virginia Book Co. Online at: Hathitrust


 * Early, R. H. Campbell Chronicles and Family Sketches: Embracing the History of Campbell County, Virginia, 1782-1926. Lynchburg, Va.: J.P. Bell Co., 1927. ; digital versions at Ancestry ($); and World Vital Records ($). Information on the Adams, Alexander, Anderson, Anthony, Bailey, Brown, Bolling, Bullock, Burton, Callaway, Candler, Chiles, Clark, Clay, Clemens, Clement, Cobbs, Cocke, Dabney, Daniel, Davis, Davies, Deering, Diuguid, Douglas, Early, Evans, Floyd, Franklin, Garland, Gilliam, Goggin, Hairston, Hanks, Haythe, Henry, Holcombe, Hughes, Hunter, Irvine, Jennings, Johnson, Johnston, Jones, Kabler, Langhorne, Lee, Leftwich, Lewis, Lynch, McReynolds, Miller, Moorman, Morgan, Murrell, Norvell, Otey, Owen, Pannill, Payne, Perrow, Preston, Pleasants, Prewitt, Robertson, Rosser, Russell, Scott, Slaughter, Snow, Stith, Strange, Talbot, Tate, Terrell, Thompson, Thorpe, Thurman, Tyree, Venable, Wade, Walden, Ward, Watts, Winston, Withers, Wyatt, and Yuille families.


 * Pritchett, John W. Southside Virginia Genealogies. CD-ROM. Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. Free online index, courtesy: Virginians - The Family History of John W. Pritchett. [Includes information about residents of Campbell County, see discussion of cited sources.] . Purchase at Virginians.com.

Immigration

 * North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. By Peter Wilson Coldham. 2007. Baltimore, MD : Genealogical Pub. Co. . Includes wills of residents of Albemarle County proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.

During the War of 1812, American officials reported finding a total of 11 British aliens, many of whom had families, living in Lynchburg, Campbell County.

Land and Property
Grants and Patents


 * Hudgins et al. 795 patents dated 1736-1902 in what is now Campbell County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper, 2010. [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

 * Campbell Chronicles and Family Sketches: Embracing the History of Campbell County, Virginia, 1782-1926. 1927. By Ruth Hairston Early. Lynchburg, VA : J.P. Bell Co. Online at: FamilySearch Books, Ancestry ($).
 * Index to Mrs. Cabell's Sketches and Recollections of Lynchburg. Bulletin of the Virginia State Library, Vol. 13, No. 3 (Jul. 1920):35-45. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Lest It Be Forgotten : A Scrapbook of Campbell County, Virginia. 1976. By Historical Committee of the Bicentennial Commission of Campbell County, Virginia. Altavista, VA : Altavista Printing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Books.
 * Virginia and Virginians : Eminent Virginians (from Settlement of Jamestown to Close of the Civil War). 1888. By Dr R. A. Brock. Richmond, VA : H. H. Hardesty, Publisher. Online at: Hathitrust.

Migration

 * Emigration to Other States from Southside Virginia. 1966. By Katherine B. Elliott. South Hill, Virginia : K.B. Elliott. 2 vols.  Vol. 1 online at: Ebook download, . Vol 1-2 1983 reprints at . Vol 1-2 1990-1992 reprints at . Includes individuals who migrated out of Campbell County to other parts of the country.

French and Indian War

 * Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. By Lloyd DeWitt Bockstruck. 1988. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co..

Revolutionary War

 * 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, Campbell County on page 129.
 * A List of Soldiers Who Made Declaration of Service in Revolutionary War. By W.S. Morton. Campbell County, VA. The William and Mary Quarterly, Second Series, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Jan. 1962):79. Available at JSTOR ($).
 * King's Mountain and Its Heroes : History of the Battle of King's Mountain, October 7th, 1780, and the Events Which Led to It. 1881. By Lyman C. Draper, LL.D. Cincinnati, OH : Peter G. Thomson, Publisher. Online at: Hathitrust.
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include an Added Index to States. . Online at: Ancestry ($). Includes veterans from this county; Virginia section begins on page 238.
 * Revolutionary War Soldiers from Campbell County, Virginia. By Harriett A. Chilton. The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 20, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1976):297-298. Available at . CD available at: New England Ancestors ($).

War of 1812
Campbell County men served in the 53rd and 117th Regiments.


 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Virginia, Campbell County, pp. 65-66.]
 * Roster of War of 1812, Southside, Virginia. 2007. By James L. Douthat. Signal Mountain, Tennessee : Mountain Press. Online at: Mountain Press ($) with Free online surname index..

Civil War

 * - 1st Regiment, Virginia Artillery (Confederate). Company C (1st) (Lynchburg Beauregard Rifles Artillery)
 * - 2nd Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Company B (Wise Troop), Company C (Botetourt Dragoons), Company I (Campbell Rangers)
 * - 11th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate).
 * - 28th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company E (Clifton Grays).
 * - 34th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company C (Davis Artillery).
 * - 42nd Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company D (Campbell-Lee Guards) and Company I (Campbell Guards).

Records and histories are available, including:


 * 1861-1865 Virginia, Civil War Service
 * 1861-1865 Virginia, Civil War Service
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry ($)


 * Page's Battery or Morris Artillery, 2d Corps, Army Northern Virginia. 1885. By One of the Company. New York, NY : Thomas Smeltzer, Stationer and Printer. Online at: Hathitrust.

World War II

 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Miscellaneous Records

 * 1607-2007 at FamilySearch — index and images

Naturalization

 * Virginia

Newspapers
Jones Memorial Library has a free online obituary index to many local newspapers. They also have a great collection of newspapers accessible in their facility.

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 the Virginia Gazette and other Virginia newspapers (1736-1803), see: The Geography of Slavery in Virginia.


 * 1794-1836 Marriages and Deaths from Lynchburg, Virginia Newspapers, 1794-1836 Ancestry ($).


 * 1797-1798 Lynchburg Weekly Museum at Genealogy Bank ($).


 * 1798-1799 Lynchburg Weekly Gazette at Genealogy Bank ($).


 * 1809-1818 Lynchburg Press at Genealogy Bank ($).

Occupations

 * The Silversmiths of Virginia (together with Watchmakers and Jewelers) from 1694 to 1850. 1952. By George Barton Cutten. Richmond, Virginia : The Dietz Press, Incorporated. . Includes a section on Liberty (now Bedford) silversmiths and watchmakers.

Probate Records
Local Court


 * Virginia Wills Before 1799: A Complete Abstract Register of All Names Mentioned in Over Six Hundred Recorded Wills, ... Copied from the Court House Records of Amherst, Bedford, Campbell, Loudoun, Prince William and Rockbridge Counties. 1924. By William M. Clemens. Pompton Lakes, NJ : Biblio Co. Online at: Access Genealogy, Ancestry ($), Heritage Quest Online ($). Free online surname index and 2004 reprint purchase details at Mountain Press ($).
 * 1763-1787; 1788-1805 Images of Wills, Estates, Inventories, Bonds Virginia Pioneers ($).

London Courts


 * North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. 2007. By Peter Wilson Coldham. Baltimore, MD : Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. Includes wills of Lynchburg residents proved in London. These records often help establish an immigrant's place of origin.

Online Probate Records
 * 1639 – 1850 Virginia Land, Marriage and Probate Records 1639-1850 at Ancestry ($).
 * 1782-1810 Images of Wills Virginia Pioneers ($).

Taxation
How can Virginia tax lists help me?

Bibliography


 * 1783 Land Tax List, 1783. Online at: Revolutionary War Service.
 * 1785 Campbell County, Virginia Personal Property Tax list; index online at New River Notes.
 * 1785-1814 Indexed images of the 1785-1814 Personal Property Tax Lists of Campbell County, Virginia - Binns Genealogy.
 * 1785 Virginia Tax Payers, 1782-87, Other Than Those Published by the United States Census Bureau. 1940. By Augusta B. Fothergill and John Mark Naugle. Baltimore, MD : Genealogical Publishing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library,.
 * 1785-1814 Campbell County Personal Property Tax List 1785-1814. By Paul Heinegg. Online at:  Free African Americans.
 * 1787 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. By Netti Schreiner-Yantis and Florene Speakman Love. c1987. Springfield, Virginia : Genealogical Books in Print. . Campbell County is included in Vol. 1.
 * 1791, 1800 Indexed images of the 1791 and 1800 Personal Property Tax Lists of Campbell County, Virginia - Binns Genealogy.
 * 1800 Campbell County, Virginia, 1800 Tax List. The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1969):61-64; Vol. 13, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1969):106-110; Vol. 13, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1969):159-162. Available at ; digital version at New England Ancestors ($).
 * 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). By Roger D. Ward. c1997. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Pub. Co. . . The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Campbell County is included in Vol. 2.

Birth

 * 1853-1866 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1912-1913 -

Marriage

 * 1660-1800 - Virginia Marriages 1660-1800 Ancestry ($).


 * 1660-1959 - Virginia, United States Marriages at FindMyPast ($)
 * 1740-1850 - Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 Ancestry ($).


 * 1781-1854 - Ricks, Joel. Campbell County, Virginia Marriage Bonds 1781-1854. 1936. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.


 * 1782-1800 - Marriage Bonds Virginia Pioneers ($).


 * 1782-1810 - Marriages of Campbell County, Virginia, 1782-1810. c1971. By Lucy Harrison Miller Baber. Lynchburg, Virginia : L.H.M. Baber and H.L. Williamson. Available at . Online at:  Ancestry ($) - 1980 edition.


 * 1782-1936 - Campbell County Marriage Index 1782-1936. Batch.


 * 1812-1828 - Marriages Virginia Pioneers ($).


 * 1853-1935 - at FamilySearch — index and images


 * 1936-1988 -.

Divorce

 * 1918-1988 -

Death

 * 1812-1828 Deaths Virginia Pioneers ($)
 * 1912-1987 -

See also Newspapers

The website of Jones Memorial Library includes a free online index to records of several local twentieth century funeral homes.

Campbell County Virginia Genealogy Societies and Libraries

 * Central Virginia Genealogical Association

Campbell County Virginia Genealogy Websites

 * Campbell Co., VAGenWeb. Part of the USGenWeb Project. Maps, name indexes, history.
 * Campbell County, VA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy (Familytree101)
 * Cyndi's List
 * Cyndi's List