Lunenburg County, Virginia Genealogy

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

Description
Lunenburg County is located in the south-central portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia and was named for the former Duchy of Brunswick-Lünenburg.

County Courthouse
Luneburg County Courthouse 11435 Courthouse Road Lunenburg, VA 23952 Phone: 434-696-2132 Luneburg County Website

Clerk Circuit Court has marriage, divorce, probate and land records from 1746

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:

History Timeline
The county was named after the Duchy of Brunswick-Lunenburg, which is located in modern-day Germany.

Bible Records

 * 1607-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Cemeteries

 * 1800-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Census Records
1890 Union Veterans
 * Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890.   Online at: Ancestry ($). Includes residents of this county.

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Baptist

Early Baptist churches (with years constituted): Lunenburg County fell within the bounds of the Meherrin Association.
 * 1) Cedar Creek (1779)
 * 2) Flatrock (1805)
 * 3) Meherrin (1771) . 1771 list of original members has been published. Marriages 1771-1773 have been published: Southsider, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Winter 1983). A history was published in Virginia Baptist Register, Issue 15 (1976) and a 1774 note in the same publication, Issue 10 (1971).
 * 4) Reedy Creek (1775)
 * 5) Tussekiah (1777)

Church of England See also Cornwall Parish See also Cumberland Parish  See also St. James's Parish

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

Christian
 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. "Deaths from the Records of Perseverance Christian Church in Lunenburg County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 24, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1980):301-302. Available at ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records
 * Library of Virginia's Virginia Memory: Chancery Records Index can be used to search for Lunenburg County chancery records for the years 1743-1921. Records can be found on microfilm, at the Clerk's Office or in original format at the Library of Virginia (suits marked "ORIGINAL" in the index are only available at the Library of Virginia).

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American Search the Library of Virginia's Virginia Untold collection for digitized records related to African Americans of Lunenburg County.
 * See Virginia Cohabitation Records for links to online records.
 * 1865-1872 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Heinegg, Paul. "Lunenburg County Personal Property Tax List, 1782-1807," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]

Funeral Homes

 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Genealogies
Compiled Genealogies by Surname A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 * See Lunenburg County, Virginia Compiled Genealogies for a list of published books and articles, or jump to the surname using the alphabet bar.

Compiled Genealogies for Multiple Families
 * The Heritage of Lunenburg County, Virginia, 1743-2009. Waynesville, N.C.: County Heritage, Inc.; Southside Virginia Genealogical Society, 2009. Available at Virginia Historical Society.
 * 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 a great deal of information about residents of Lunenburg County, see discussion of cited sources. CD-ROM no. 3887.

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records

Grants and Patents
 * Hudgins. 618 patents dated 1728-1796 in what is now Lunenburg County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper, 2002. 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

 * Bell, Landon Covington. The Old Free State: A Contribution to the History of Lunenburg County and Southside Virginia. Richmond, Virginia: W. Byrd Press, 1927. Two volumes available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Cities and Towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration
Bell published records of Lunenburg County residents who migrated to South Carolina:
 * Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 20, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1976):199-208; Vol. 22, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1978):43-50. Available at ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($). [These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Lunenburg County's 1789 Delinquent List appears on 20:202-204; 1787 Delinquent List appears on 22:46.]
 * Elliott, Katherine B. Emigration to Other States from Southside Virginia. 2 vols. South Hill, Virginia: K.B. Elliott, 1966. Vol. 1 of original edition available at ; 1983 reprints (both volumes) available at ; 1990-1992 reprints (both volumes) also available at . [Includes individuals who migrated out of Lunenburg County to other parts of the country.]
 * Bell, Mary McCampbell. "Some Migrations from Virginia to South Carolina," The South Carolina Magazine of Ancestral Research, Vol. 9, No. 3 (Summer 1981):143-144; Vol. 10, No. 2 (Spring 1982):70-77; Vol. 11, No. 2 (Spring 1983):97-102; Vol. 12, No. 1 (Winter 1984):19-21.

Military Records
French and Indian War Revolutionary War
 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at . Online at: Ancestry ($). Identifies some Lunenburg County militia officers, soldier enlistments, and veterans; see place name index.
 * Boogher, William F. Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. Washington: n.p., 1903. Available at ; online at Internet Archive. Includes a chapter titled "Legislative Enactments connecting the preceding historic sketch (French and Indian War, Lord Dunmore's War) with the adjudication of the resulting accounts that follow; with the list of officers, soldiers and civilians entitled to compensation for military and other services rendered." For Lunenburg County, see pp. 89-95, 112.
 * 1651-1776 Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at ; digital book at Ancestry ($). Identifies some County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.
 * 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. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. See Virginia, Eastern District, Lunenburg County on page 131.
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." ; digital version at Ancestry ($). Includes veterans. Virginia section begins on page 238.

Regiments. Service men in Lunenburg County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Lunenburg County supplied soldiers for the:
 * - 6th Virginia Regiment
 * - 14th Virginia Regiment (3rd Company)

Lunenburg residents' participation in the Revolutionary War. War of 1812
 * Douthat, James L. Roster of War of 1812, Southside, Virginia. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2007. Mountain Press provides online surname list. 975.5 M2djL. Includes Lunenburg County.
 * War of 1812 the 6th Virginia Militia was Lunenburg County, Virginia
 * 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; online at Internet Archive,  Ancestry ($). See Vol. 5, Virginia, Lunenburgh County [sic], p. 89. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.

Regiments. Lunenburg County men served in the 73rd Regiment. Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 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)

Regiments. Civil War service men in Lunenburg County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed here:
 * - 9th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company G (Lunenburg Light Dragoons).
 * - 20th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company B (The Pryor Rifle Company) and Company C (The Flat Rock Riflemen or Loch Leven Rangers).
 * - 59th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company H2 (Lunenburg Heavy Artillery).

World War II
 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Mary Croft Pulley, compiled. History of Lunenburg County in World War II Richmond, Virginia : The Dietz Press, Inc., 1949 FamilySearch Digital Images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1906-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Newspapers
Indexed images of the Virginia Gazette (1736-1780) are available online through the Colonial Williamsburg website. 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.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * Elliott, Katherine B. Early Wills, 1746-1765, Lunenburg County, Virginia. South Hill, Virginia: K.B. Elliott, 1967. Available at . Reviewed in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 11, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1967):137. Review available at ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).
 * Digital Images of Lunenburg County Wills 1810-1818; 1818-1826. See names of Testators. Virginia Pioneers
 * 1639-1850 Virginia Land, Marriage and Probate Records 1639-1850 at Ancestry — index, incomplete ($)
 * 1652-1900 Virginia, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1900 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1810-1818;1818-1826 Images of Wills at Virginia Pioneers ($).
 * Images of Wills, Inventories, Accounts 1745-1762, No 1; 1762-1778, No 2; 1778-1791, No 3; 1791-1799, No 4; 1800-1802, No 5; 1802-1809, No 6  Virginia Pioneers.net($)
 * Guardian Accounts 1791-1798; 1798-1810; 1828-1851 Virginia Pioneers.net($)

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

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * 1748-1783 Bell, Landon C. Sunlight on the Southside: Lists of Tithes, Lunenburg County, Virginia, 1748-1783. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: George S. Ferguson, 1931. Available at ; digital version available under "Tax Lists" at Lunenburg County, VA USGenWeb Archives census genealogy.
 * 1749 Morton, W.S. "Lunenburg County Tithable List Taken by William Caldwell in 1749," William and Mary College Quarterly, 2nd Series, Vol. 11 (1931):55-58. Available at ; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at ; digital version at JSTOR ($).
 * 1782-1835 Lunenburg County Personal Property Tax Lists 1782-1835 (images); digital version in Tax List Club at Binns Genealogy ($).
 * 1782, 1785 T.L.C. Genealogy. Lunenburg County, Virginia Personal Property Tax Lists 1782 & 1785. Miami Beach, Florida: TLC Genealogy, 1992. Available at.
 * 1782 Fothergill, Augusta B. and John Mark Naugle. Virginia Tax Payers, 1782-87, Other Than Those Published by the United States Census Bureau. 1940; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1978. . Online at FamilySearch Digital Library, - images. 1782 personal property tax list of Lunenburg County.
 * 1782-1807 Heinegg, Paul. "Lunenburg County Personal Property Tax List, 1782-1807," Free African Americans.com.  Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.
 * 1783 - Personal Property (or Land) Tax List, 1783; index online at Revolutionary War Service website - free.
 * 1783-1784 Lunenburg County 1783-1784 Tax List. or microfiche.
 * 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 & 21 Years, the Number of Slaves over 16 & Those Under 16 Years, Together with a Listing of Their Horses, Cattle &  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 . The source of this publication is the 1787 personal property tax list. Lunenburg County is included in Vol. 2.
 * 1787, 1789 Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 20, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1976):199-208; Vol. 22, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1978):43-50. Available at ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($). These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Lunenburg County's 1789 Delinquent List appears on 20:202-204; 1787 Delinquent List appears on 22:46.
 * 1789 Indexed images of the 1789 Personal Property Tax List of Lunenburg County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * 1800 Tax List, 1800, Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 38, No. 3 (Jul. 1994); Vol. 38, No. 4 (Oct. 1994); Vol. 39, No. 1 (Jan. 1995). Available at.
 * 1803 Images of the 1803 Personal Property Tax List of Lunenburg County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * 1815 Ward, Roger D. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Pub. Co., 1997-2000. Available at . The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Lunenburg County is included in Vol. 2.

Birth

 * 1584-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1853-1866 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1912-1913 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Marriage

 * 1660-1800 Virginia Marriages 1660-1800 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1660-1959 United States Marriages at at Findmypast — index, ($) — index $
 * 1740-1850 Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1746-1853 Matheny, Emma R. and Helen K. Yates. Marriages of Lunenburg County, Virginia, 1746-1853. 1967; reprint, Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1979. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * 1760s-1790s Crozier, William Armstrong. Early Virginia Marriages. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1953. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library. Includes Lunenburg County marriages 1760s-1790s.
 * 1763-1821 Ellsberry, Elizabeth Prather. Marriage Bonds for Lunenburg County, Virginia 1763-1821. Chillicothe, MO, USA: Elizabeth Prather Ellsberry, 1965. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * 1785-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
 * 1785-1940 Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1819-1825 Marriages (in Will Book 1818-26) Virginia Pioneers ($).
 * 1853-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry ($)
 * 1936-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1660-1800 Virginia Marriages 1660-1800 at Ancestry — index ($)

Death

 * 1853-1911 Virginia, U.S., Death Registers, 1853-1911 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1853-1912 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection;  index & images
 * 1912-1987 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Divorce

 * 1918-1988 at FamilySearch — index & images

FamilySearch Centers

 * Buckingham Virginia Family History Center
 * Lynchburg Virginia Family History Center
 * Richmond Virginia Midlothian Family History Center


 * Greenwood Library - Longwood University - an affiliate library

Websites

 * Lunenburg Co., VAGenWeb. Part of the USGenWeb Project. Maps, name indexes, history.
 * Virginia Pioneers ($)


 * – 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: Lunenburg County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 16, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1972):219-221. Available at ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).