Monongalia County, West Virginia Genealogy

United States &gt; West Virginia &gt; Monongalia County

Parent County
1776--Monongalia County was created 7 October 1776 from the District of West Augusta. County seat: Morgantown

Neighboring Counties

 * Fayette County, Pennsylvania
 * Greene County, Pennsylvania
 * Marion
 * Preston
 * Taylor
 * Wetzel

Census
1890 Veterans' Census


 * Skidmore, E.J. and J.M. Ware. 1890 West Virginia Veteran Schedule: North Central Region: Including the Counties of Taylor, Preston, Marion, Doddridge, Harrison, Monongalia and Barbour. Kerens, W. Va.: EJ Pub, 2007. Available at FHL.

Court
County Court

An index, titled Court Record Index to 1929 is available on 58 microfilms at the Family History Library. It includes name and subject indexes.

Family Histories

 * [Baker] Burchinal, Beryl Modest and Yvonne Marie Wilson Dailey. George Baker Family: Monongalia County, West Virginia. Pittsburgh [Pennsylvania]: B.M. Burchinal, 2001. Available at FHL.
 * [Barb] White, Magree E. Descendants of Isaac Barb, ca.1770-1981. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Barrickman] Adams, Henderson L. and June B. Barekman. The Bergmann-Barrickman Families of West Virginia, Especially Descendants of John and Barbara Pickenpaugh Barrickman. Fort Walton Beach, Florida: H.L. Adams, 1987. Available at FHL.
 * [Bergmann] See Barrickman.
 * [Bird] Bird, Leonard William. A Family History of John and Rachel Bird of Graham County, Kansas: Their Ancestors and Their Dependents [sic]. Beatrice, Nebraska: L.W. Bird, 1990. Available at FHL.
 * [Bishop] Carl, Betty Jane. The Family of William Harrison Bishop aka Harry 1856-1920 &amp; Sarah Catherine Feather 1871-1958 of West Virginia. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Brand] Brand, Franklin Marion. The Brand Family of Monongalia County, Virginia (Now West Virginia). Morgantown, W. Va.: F.M. Brand, 1922. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Brittain] Pursel, Vida Miller, Franklin Marion Brand, and Edward Mathews. The Brittain-Britton Families of New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania. [reprint, Salem, Mass.: Higginson, 1995?]. Available at FHL.
 * [Britton] See Brittain.
 * [Brummage] Wakeman, Virginia Brumage. Brumage-Brummage: They are the Same Family: Monongalia and Marion Counties, West Virginia. Baltimore, Maryland: Gateway Press, 1988. Available at FHL.
 * [Clemmer] See Warman.
 * [Cochran] Cochran, Teri Ann. The Descendants of James Cochran of Virginia (1749-1830). Deer River, Minnesota: Cochran Family Organization, 1986. Available at FHL.
 * [DeWeese] Descendants of John Blaw (Blue), d. 1757 Somerset Co., NJ, Supplement to the 4th Edition: Susannah (Blue) DeWeese Family. 1991. Available at FHL.
 * [Digman] Poling, Newton L. and Virginia S. Poling. The Digman Family of West Virginia: A Personal Glimpse. Mt. Airy, Maryland: ElderSong Publications, 1997. Available at FHL.
 * [Dotson] Dotson, James E. The Ancestors of James E. Dotson &amp; Ruth Ann Orr: of Ohio - Maryland - New Jersey - Pennsylvania - West Virginia - England - Germany - Ireland - Scotland. 1993. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Dragoo] Parsons, Vi. Jacob Dragoo and Our Susanna Bright Side. Pleasanton, California: Carr Twins &amp; Co., 2008. Available at FHL.
 * [Eckhart] Brown, H. Andrew. George Adam Eckhart and Philip Hansel of Allegany County, Maryland: Including Their Descendants of Fayette County, Pennsylvania; Monongalia County, West Virginia, Northeast Iowa with the Surname, Eckhart, Echard, Hansel, Hentzel, Clapsaddle, Slagle, Eyster, Workman, Zearley, Bevans, and Forsythe. Los Angeles, California: H.A. Brown, 1990. Available at FHL.
 * [Efaw] Dauner, Carolyn Wells. The Descendants of Jacob Efaw and Mary Suthard. Pinehurst, North Carolina: C.W. Dauner, 1994. Available at FHL.
 * [Frederick] Stephens, Elaine Frederick and Mel Stephens. The Frederick Family of Monongalia County, Virginia and North Manchester, Indiana. [Murrieta, California]: E.F. &amp; M. Stephens, 1986. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Hamilton] Shaw, James W. The Hamilton Family: Descendants of Scottish Immigrants. Hutchinson, Kansas: J. Shaw, 198-?. Available at FHL.
 * [Hamilton] Baldwin, John D. and Lloyd B. Hamilton. Hamilton Family of Prince George's County, Maryland, to Monongalia and Preston Counties (West) Virginia, Fayette County, Penna and Beyond: Descendants of Gavin-1 Hamilton. Rex, Georgia: L.B. Hamilton, 1998. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Hansel] Klotz, Lyle Milne. The Story of Our Family: John &amp; Mary Hansel &amp; Alexander &amp; Patience Milne of Northeast Iowa. Olympia, Washington: L.M. Klotz, 1991. Available at FHL.
 * [Harr] Hornick, Janet Gesas. Descendants of John Harr and Elizabeth Merrifield. Englewood, Colorado: J. Hornick, 2000. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Hawkins] Fedorchak, Catharine F. Hawkins Family of West Virginia: Rev. William Hawkins of Marion County and His Brother, Joshua Hawkins with Miscellaneous Hawkins, Brown, and Allen Family Material. Gary, Indiana: C.F. Fedorchak, 1959. Available at FHL.
 * [Hess] Parsons, Thelma Hess. I Shook My Family Tree: Peter Hess and Descendants, 1755-1982 (Especially Descendants of James T Hess). Cedar Rapids, Iowa: T.H. Parsons, 1983. Available at FHL.
 * [Hoffman] Brown, Patsy Ann Saily Reck. Hoffman--Huffman, 1741-1995. 2 vols. [Cascadia, Oregon: P.A.S. Brown, 1995]. Available at FHL.
 * [Hoskins] Hoskins, Robert J., Ella N. Hoskins, and Donna Hoskins Higley. Trails West: A History of the Hoskins Family. Syracuse, Utah: D.H. Higley, 1993. Available at FHL.
 * [Huffman] See Hoffman.
 * [Hunt] Brown, H. Andrew. Joshua &amp; Jonas Hunt of Alexandria Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey and Greene County, Pennsylvania: Including Their Descendants in Monongalia County, West Virginia and Northeast Iowa: Including Surnames Baker, Ely, Hansel, Iliff, Park, Seaton, Wilkinson, Zearley. Los Angeles, California: H.A. Brown, 1989. Available at FHL.
 * [Jarrett] Burchinal, Beryl Modest. The Jarrett Family of Fayette County, Pennsylvania and Monongalia County, West Virginia. Pittsburgh [Pennsylvania]: B.M. Burchinal, 2002. Available at FHL.
 * [Jones] "Gale-Shinn-Stanton-Jones," The American Genealogist, Vol.31 (1955):54-56. Available at New England Ancestors.
 * [Keller] See Digman.
 * [Kelley] Duncil, Charles W. William Kelley - Elwood Smith Genealogy, Browns Chapel, Monongalia County, W. Va.: The Story of the Two Families and How They Intermarried and Held Reunions for Over 50 Years. MSS., Butler, Pa.; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * [Kelly] Kelly, Richard T. and Clifton M. Nichols. History of James and Catherine Kelly and Their Descendants. Springfield, Ohio: Springfield Pub. Co., [1900]. Available at FHL.
 * [Kennedy] See McCord.
 * [Knotts] See also Thorn.
 * [Knotts] Knotts, Robert Homer. James Absalom Knotts Jr. Mulberry, Florida: R.H. Knotts, 1982. Available at FHL.
 * [Knotts] Knotts, Robert Homer. Joseph Knotts &amp; Mary Arnold. Salisbury, North Carolina: R.H. Knotts, 1984. Available at FHL.
 * [Lemasters] Hardway, Ronald V. Benjamin Lemasters of Nicholas County, West Virginia: His Ancestry, His War Record, His Descendants. [Summersville, West Virginia?]: R.V. Hardway, 1993. Available at FHL.
 * [McCord] Mitchell, Patricia D. Descendants of William Emrod McCord &amp; Delilah Ann Kennedy, 1884-1993, Daybrook, West Virginia. Dallas, Texas: P. Mitchell, 1993. Available at FHL.
 * [Merrifield] See also Harr.
 * [Merrifield] Hornick, Janet Gesas. Descendants of Richard Merrifield and Phoebe Tucker. Englewood, Colorado: J.G. Hornick, 2003. Available at FHL.
 * [Morgan] See Warman.
 * [Park] Harl, Louise. W. A. Park Family: (As Far As I Know). MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Prickett] Prickett, J.M. Prickett Family, ca. 1736-1932. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Protzman] See Utt.
 * [Shinn] See Jones.
 * [Smith] See Kelley.
 * [Snodgrass] Kaufman, Jean L. Messing and James E. Kaufman. Snodgrass: Solomon's Descendancy: A Genealogical Record. Dubuque, Iowa: J.L. and J.E. Kaufman, 1989. Available at FHL.
 * [Steele] Steele, Donley Morris. A Genealogy of the Descendants of James Steele and His Wife, Mary: Late of Clinton District, Monongalia County, Virginia (Now West Virginia). [Morgantown, W. Va.: D.M. Steele, 1919]. Available at FHL.
 * [Stewart] Steward, Bradford Alan. William Stewart of Monongalia County, Morgantown, W. Va. MSS., available at FHL.
 * [Tennant] Tennant, J. Ross. Memories of J. Ross Tennant, and a Genealogy of the Family Originated by Richard Tennant. 4 vols. Morgantown, W.Va.: Morgantown Printing &amp; Binding, 1942-1948. Available at FHL.
 * [Tennant] Gates, Nancy E. and Sharon Pawlowski. The Tennants of West Virginia : Descendants of Richard and Elizabeth (Haught) Tennant. [Waverly, W. Va.]: N.E. Gates, [1991]. Available at FHL.
 * [Thorn] Knotts, Robert Homer. Michael Thorn and Sarah Knotts. Salisbury, South Carolina: R.H. Knotts, 1985. Available at FHL.
 * [Tibbs] Pugh, S. Earline Tibbs. Tibbs, Bennett, Crull, Etc., Families of Monogalia Co., VA, Scioto Co., OH, Etc.: Their Ancestors, Descendants, and Allied Families; Ashley, Bennett, Bourne, Crist, Crull, Dalrymple, Dodge, Fairchild, Feirl, Foye, Frum, Glover, Hannum, Hess, Jacobs, Jenkins, Jones, Kinker, Low, McDowell, Mollisee, Munn, Olin, Pugh, Rockwell, Samson, Slattery, Slocum, Snider, Southworth, Stockham, Stover, Stygler, Thomas, Tibbs, Utt, Valentine, Williams and Many Others; Also Data on the Tebbs/Tibbs Family of VA and Their Descendants. 2000. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Utt] Mitchell, Patricia D. Ancestors and Descendants of Morgan Orlando Utt and Olive Rebecca (Protzman) Utt, Monongalia County, West Virginia. Dallas, Texas: P.D. Mitchell, 1996. Available at FHL; digital version at BYU Family History Archives.
 * [Wade] Brand, Franklin Marion. The Wade Family: Monongalia County, Virginia, Now West Virginia. Morgantown, W. Va.: [F.M. Brand, 1927]. Available at FHL.
 * [Warman] Titus, Elroy Wilson. A History of the Warman, Wells and Related Families. Columbus, Ohio: E. Titus, 1991. Available at FHL.
 * [Wells] See Warman.
 * [Williams] See Tibbs.
 * [Zearley] Hamilton, Beth A. The Zearleys and Their Descendants. [Morgantown, West Virginia?: West Virginia University?, 1992?]. Available at FHL.

Local Histories

 * Rush, West &amp; Company (Philadelphia, Pa.). Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Monongalia, Marion and Taylor Counties, West Virginia: Comprising About Five Hundred Sketches of the Prominent and Representative Citizens of These Counties: Illustrated. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Rush, West &amp; Company, 1895. Available at FHL.
 * Shively, Norman B. and Samuel T. Wiley. Index to Samuel T. Wiley's History of Monongalia County, West Virginia (1883). Morgantown, W. Va.: Monongalia County Bicentennial Committee, 1976. Available at FHL.
 * Wiley, Samuel T. History of Monongalia County, West Virginia, from Its First Settlements to the Present Time with Numerous Biographical and Family Sketches. Kingwood, W. Va.: Preston Publishing Co., 1883. 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 Monongalia County militia officers, soldier enlistments, and veterans; see place name index.]

Naturalization

 * Williams, Mary K. Monongalia County, West Virginia, Naturalization Records, 1776-1906. [Morgantown, W. Va.: M.K. Williams], 1986. Available at FHL.

Newspapers

 * Gilchrist, Joy Gregoire. Abstracts of Early Monongalia County, (West) Virginia Newspapers, 1816 - 1842. Coshocton, Ohio: Squires Family Researchers, n.d. Available at FHL.

Private Papers

 * Family Bible of Philemon L. Rice and Serena Elizabeth Laidley [Records ca. 1799-1927]. Original records, in possession of Mrs. Charles Everly of Fairmount, West Virginia (1959); also available on microfilm at FHL.

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Monongalia County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 18, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1974):293-295. 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.


 * Monongalia County, [West] Virginia Personal Property Tax Lists, 1783-1850. Original records, Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va.; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * 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. [Sources for this publication are the 1787 and 1788 personal property tax lists, and partial 1786 personal property tax list (names of those who do not appear on 1787 and 1788 lists were abstracted). Monongalia County is included in Vol. 2.]
 * Monongalia County, [West] Virginia Land Tax, 1788-1806, MSS., W. Guy Tetrick Collection, Clarksburg, W. Va., prepared by the Historical Records Survey; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * Indexed images of the 1790 Personal Property Tax List of Monongalia County, Virginia (now West Virginia) are available online at Binns Genealogy.
 * Monongalia County, [West] Virginia Land Tax, 1796-1865. Original records, Monongalia County Courthouse, Morgantown, W. Va.; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * Monongalia County, [West] Virginia Land Tax, 1799-1806, MSS., West Virginia University Library, Morgantown, W. Va., prepared by the Historical Records Survey; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * Images of the 1800 Personal Property Tax List of Monongalia County, Virginia (now West Virginia) are available to browse online at Binns Genealogy.
 * 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. Monongalia County is included in Vol. 6.]

Vital Records
Birth


 * Carter, Eleanor Yost, Kathleen Mahaffey Bogdan, and Marion County Genealogy Club (Fairmont, W. Va.). Monongalia County Births. [1853-1876] 3 vols. Fairmont, W. Va.: Marion County Genealogy Club, 1991. Available at FHL.

Death


 * Daughters of the American Revolution. Elizabeth Lundington Hagans Chapter (Texas). Death Records, Monongalia County, West Virginia, 1856-1863. Tomball, Texas: Genealogical Publications, 1976. Available at FHL.
 * Trickett, Lorna. Deaths, Monongalia County: 1853-1899. MSS., W. Guy Tetrick Collection, Clarksburg, W. Va., prepared by the Historical Records Survey; also available on microfilm at FHL.
 * Trickett, Lorna. Deaths, Monongalia County, West Virginia: 1853-1899. MSS., West Virginia University Library, Morgantown, W. Va., prepared by the Historical Records Survey; also available on microfilm at FHL.

Web Sites

 * Family History Library Catalog