Surry County, Virginia Genealogy

United States   Virginia    Surry County

Tidewater county in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia.





History


The county is named after the English county of Surrey.

Parent County
1652--Surry County was created in 1652 from James City County. County seat: Surry

Record Loss

 * Lost censuses: 1790, 1800, 1890

African American

 * George, W. Herbert. The History of Negro Churches in Surry County, Virginia. 1965?. 1753002 Item 20
 * Heinegg, Paul. "Surry County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1816," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * Hudgins, Dennis. Surry County, Virginia Register of Free Negroes. Richmond, Va.: Virginia Genealogical Society, 1995. 975.5562 F2h

Biographies

 * Gwaltney, Anne W. et al. Personal History Departments of Surry and Isle of Wight Counties, Virginia from Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia, Special Virginia Edition, c. 1884. 1884; reprint, 1993?. 975.55 D3p

Census
1890 Union Veterans


 * Turner, Ronald Ray. Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890. Available online, courtesy: Prince William County Virginia website. [Includes residents of this county.]

Church
Church of England


 * Boddie, John Bennett. Births, Deaths and Sponsors, 1717 - 1778 from the Albemarle Parish Register of Surry and Sussex Counties, Virginia. Baltimore, MD: Clearfield, 1998. ; digital version at World Vital Records ($).
 * Mason, George Carrington. Colonial Churches of Tidewater Virginia. Richmond, Virginia: Whittet &amp; Shepperson, 1945. ; digital version at BYU Family History Archives. [Includes Surry County.]

Quaker


 * Brown, Jane Douglas Summers 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 FHL. [Includes records of Surry County Quakers; Brown assisted "William Wade Hinshaw in the writing of the Virginia volume of the Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy."]

Court
County Court


 * Davis, Eliza Timberlake and Robert Barnes. Surry County Records. [1652-1684] 195-?; reprint, Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1995. Original edition available at FHL US/CAN Film 483733 Item 2; reprint available at FHL US/CAN Book 975.5562 P2de; digital version at Ancestry ($)' and World Vital Records ($). [Includes court, land, and probate records.]

Genealogy
More than 25 genealogies have been published about Surry County families. To view a list, visit Surry County, Virginia Genealogy.

Immigration

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. "Some Surry County, Virginia, Colonists, 1678-1705," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 23, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1979):255-258. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($). [Arrival lists of indentured servants who appear in Surry County Court Order Books.]
 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. North American Wills Registered in London 1611-1857. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2007. [Includes wills of residents of Surry 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=Surry&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 Surry County, Virginia (work in progress), courtesy: Immigrant Servants Database.

Land
Deeds


 * Davis, Eliza Timberlake and Robert Barnes. Surry County Records. [1652-1684] 195-?; reprint, Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1995. Original edition available at FHL US/CAN Film 483733 Item 2; reprint available at FHL US/CAN Book 975.5562 P2de; digital version at Ancestry ($)' and World Vital Records ($). [Includes court, land, and probate records.]

Grants and Patents


 * Hudgins. 592 patents dated 1619-1788 in what is now Surry County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper. 2001. [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.]
 * Nugent, Nell Marion. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants 1623-1666. Vol. I (1934; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1991). Available at FHL; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes Surry County. N.B. If Ancestry's search engine fails, try checking the printed index at the end of the book.]

Colonial Militia

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Surry County militia officers and/or soldiers; see place name index.]
 * Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at FHL; digital book at Ancestry ($). [Identifies some Surry County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.]

French and Indian War

 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Surry 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 FHL; digital version at Google Books. [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 Surry County, see p. 101.]
 * Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at FHL; digital book at Ancestry ($). [Identifies some Surry County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.]

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, Surry County on page 133.]
 * 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." 973 M24ur; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes veterans from this county; Virginia section begins on page 238.]

War of 1812

 * 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, Surry County, p. 105. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

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.

Probate
Unrecorded Wills


 * Livingston, Virginia Pope. "Unrecorded Wills of Surry County, Virginia, 1759-1844," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1969):51-55. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($).

Wills


 * Davis, Eliza Timberlake. Wills and Administrations of Surry County, Virginia, 1671 - 1750. [Smithfield, VA: s.n.], c1955. Available FHL US/CAN Book 975.5562 P2d, and FHL US/CAN Film 928168 Item 2, Reprint FHL US/CAN Book 975.5562 P2d 1980. Digital version at World Vital Records ($).

Local Court


 * Davis, Eliza Timberlake and Robert Barnes. Surry County Records. [1652-1684] 195-?; reprint, Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1995. Original edition available at FHL US/CAN Film 483733 Item 2; reprint available at FHL US/CAN Book 975.5562 P2de; digital version at Ancestry ($)' and World Vital Records ($). [Includes court, land, and probate records.]
 * Hopkins, William Lindsay. Some Wills from the Burned Counties of Virginia and Other Wills Not Listed in Virginia Wills and Administrations 1632-1800. Richmond, Virginia: W.L. Hopkins, 1987. Available at FHL. [Includes Surry County.]

London Courts


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

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Surry County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 23, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1979):125-127. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($).

Taxation
How can Virginia tax lists help me?


 * [1668] "Census of Tithables in Surry County in the Year 1668," William and Mary College Quarterly, 1st Series, Vol. 8 (1900):160-164. Available at FHL; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at FHL; digital version at JSTOR ($).
 * [1668-1703] MacDonald, Edgar and Richard Slatten. Surry County (Virginia) Tithables, 1668-1703. Baltimore, Maryland: Clearfield, 2007. Available at FHL.
 * [1668-1670] Tithables, 1668, 1669, 1670, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Feb 1984. Vol. 22 Iss. 1.
 * [1673] Annual co. levy, unlawful assembly, advices, 1673, Colonial Williamsburg. Williamsburg VA: Spring 2003. Vol. 25 Iss. 1.
 * [1673-1675] Tithables, 1673, 1674, 1675, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: May 1984. Vol. 22 Iss. 2.
 * [1677-1679] Tithables, 1677, 1678, 1679, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Aug 1984. Vol. 22 Iss. 3.
 * [1680-1682] Tithables, 1680, 1681, 1682, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Nov 1984. Vol. 22 Iss. 4.
 * [1683-1685] Tithables, 1683, 1684, 1685, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Feb 1985. Vol. 23 Iss. 1.
 * [1686-1688] Tithables, 1686, 1687, 1688, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: May 1985. Vol. 23 Iss. 2.
 * [1689-1691] Tithables, 1689, 1690, 1691, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Aug 1985. Vol. 23 Iss. 3.
 * [1692-1694] Tithables, 1692, 1693, 1694, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Nov 1985. Vol. 23 Iss. 4.
 * [1695-1697] Tithables, 1695, 1696, 1697, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Feb 1986. Vol. 24 Iss. 1.
 * [1698-1700] Tithables, 1698, 1699, 1700, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: May 1986. Vol. 24 Iss. 2.
 * [1701-1703] Tithables, 1701, 1702, 1703, Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Richmond VA: Aug 1986. Vol. 24 Iss. 3.
 * [1704] "Virginia Quit Rent Rolls, 1704," Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 28 (1920):207-218, 328-339; Vol. 29 (1921):18-28, 337-343, 402-412; Vol. 30 (1922):21-30, 280-285, 341-347; Vol. 31 (1923):70-75, 153-163, 215-231, 314-318; Vol. 32 (1924):69-75, 144-158, 281-287, 338-343; Vol. 33 (1925):47-50, 359-370; Vol. 34 (1926):113-119, 252-258, 313, 321. Available at FHL; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at FHL; digital version of VMHB at JSTOR ($). [Surry County appears in 29:18-28.]
 * [1782-1821] Heinegg, Paul. "Surry County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1816," Free African Americans.com. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * [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. Surry County is included in Vol. 2.]
 * [1790, 1800] Indexed images of the 1790 and 1800 Personal Property Tax Lists of Surry County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1790, 1799] Indexed images of the 1790 and 1799 Land Tax Lists of Surry 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 FHL. [The source for this publication is the 1815 land tax. Surry County is included in Vol. 3.]

Vital Records
Birth


 * Boddie, John Bennett. Births, Deaths and Sponsors, 1717 - 1778 from the Albemarle Parish Register of Surry and Sussex Counties, Virginia. Baltimore, MD: Clearfield, 1998. Available at FHL. Digital version at World Vital Records ($).

Marriage


 * Knorr, Catherine Lindsay. Marriage Bonds and Ministers' Returns of Surry County, Virginia, 1768-1825. Pine Bluff, Arkansas: C.L. Knorr, 1960. Available at FHL. Reviewed in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 5, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1961):41. Review available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($).

Death


 * Boddie, John Bennett. Births, Deaths and Sponsors, 1717 - 1778 from the Albemarle Parish Register of Surry and Sussex Counties, Virginia. Baltimore, MD: Clearfield, 1998. Available at FHL. Digital version at World Vital Records ($).

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