Brunswick County, Virginia Genealogy

United States &gt; Virginia &gt; Brunswick County



History


The county was named after the Duchy of Brunswick-Lunenburg in modern-day Germany.

Parent County
1720--Brunswick County was created 2 November 1720 from Prince George, Isle of Wight and Surry Counties. County seat: Lawrenceville

Neighboring Counties

 * Dinwiddie
 * Greensville
 * Lunenburg
 * Mecklenburg
 * Northampton County, North Carolina
 * Nottoway
 * Warren County, North Carolina

African American

 * Heinegg, Paul. "Brunswick County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1815," Free African Americans.com, available online. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]

Cemeteries
For a detailed list, including addresses, phone numbers, and external links, see Brunswick County, Virginia Cemeteries.

The following is a list of cemeteries in Brunswick County:


 * Wilkes, Charles Fred. "Wilkes Burial Ground, 'Charlie's Hope,' Brunswick County, Virginia," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1971):135-136. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).

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.]

DNA
DNA has been collected from men claiming descent from the following Brunswick County, Virginia residents. Attempts have not been made to verify the lineages of those tested.


 * [Fletcher] Descendant of James Fletcher, b. c1680s, resident of Prince George County, Virginia, d. 1733 Brunswick County, Virginia. Y-DNA 37 Marker Test, FTDNA. Genetic signature available online (labelled William Fletcher of Accomac County, Virginia/James Fletcher of Brunswick County, Virginia), courtesy: The Fletcher DNA Project.
 * [Harrison] Descendant of Benjamin Harrison, b. c1720, d. 1790 Brunswick County, Virginia. Y-DNA 67 Marker Test, FTDNA (labelled H-18, Lineage 2). Genetic signature available online, courtesy: The Harrison DNA Project, World Families Network.
 * [Harrison] Descendant of John Harrison, b. 1760 of Brunswick County, Virginia, d. 1822. Y-DNA 67 Marker Test, FTDNA (labelled H-101, Lineage 2). Genetic signature available online, courtesy: The Harrison DNA Project, World Families Network.

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” [Family, 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


 * [Crowder] Crowder, Thomas Warren and Phyllis (Hoggatt) Crowder. "Mark and Anne (Barlow) Crowder of Brunswick County, Virginia," The Genealogist, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Spring 2006):3-43.
 * [Matthews] Matthews, William Kennon. Luke Matthews of Brunswick County, Virginia,1739-1788, and His Descendants. Kobe, Japan: H. Kodama, Printer, 1937?. Available at FHL; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * [Newman] Boogher, William F. Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. Washington: n.p., 1903. Available at FHL; digital version at Google Books. [Includes a chapter titled "Genealogy of the Newman Family, 1618-1900," see Table of Contents; discusses Newmans of Brunswick County.]
 * [Simmons] Bjorkman, Gwen Boyer. The Descendants of Peter Simmons, Brunswick County, Virginia: With Allied Lines of Hiatt, Mills, Patton, James, Harless, and McGriff. Bellevue, Wash.: unknown, 1973. Available at FHL; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Immigration

 * Ljungstedt, Milnor. "Items from Southern Records" [Showing Family and Trade Connections with Northern Colonies and the Home Countries], The American Genealogist, Vol. 15 (1938):95-104. Available at New England Ancestors ($). [Brunswick Co., VA surname: Godwyn.]
 * [http://www.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=Brunswick&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 Brunswick County, Virginia (work in progress), courtesy: Immigrant Servants Database.

Land
Deeds


 * "Brunswick County, Virginia, Deeds, Wills, Etc., No. 1, 1732-1740," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1957):73-79; Vol. 1, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1957):124-131; Vol. 1, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1957):163-168; Vol. 2, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1958):33-37; Vol. 2, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1958):87-90; Vol. 2, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1958):124-127; Vol. 2, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1958):172-176; Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1959):27-33; Vol. 3, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1959):65-70; Vol. 3, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1959):103-112; Vol. 3, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1959):153-161. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).

Grants and Patents


 * Hudgins. 520 patents dated 1717-1801 in what is now Brunswick 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.]

Migration

 * Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 19, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1975):248-254. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($). [These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Brunswick County's 1787 Delinquent List appears on p. 254]
 * 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 FHL; 1983 reprints (both volumes) available at FHL; 1990-1992 reprints (both volumes) also available at FHL. [Includes individuals who migrated out of Brunswick County to other parts of the country.]

Military
French and Indian War


 * Bockstruck, Lloyd DeWitt. Virginia's Colonial Soldiers. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988. Available at FHL. [Identifies some Brunswick 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 Brunswick County, see p. 68-69.]
 * Bracey, Mrs. Carstairs. "Soldiers From Brunswick County, Virginia, in the French and Indian War," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 23, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1979):193-194.
 * Crozier, William Armstrong. Virginia Colonial Militia 1651-1776. Baltimore: Southern Book Co., 1954. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).FHL; digital book at Ancestry ($). [Identifies some Brunswick County militia officers and soldiers; see place name index.]

War of 1812


 * Douthat, James L. Roster of War of 1812, Southside, Virginia. Signal Mountain, Tennessee: Mountain Press, 2007. Available at FHL. [Includes Brunswick County.]

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
SamPubCo has created a free online resource that serves as a good starting place to search for Colonial Brunswick County wills:


 * Brunswick County, Virginia Will Testators Index, Books 1-3 (1732-1769)

Other Brunswick County probate resources include:


 * "Brunswick County, Virginia, Deeds, Wills, Etc., No. 1, 1732-1740," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1957):73-79; Vol. 1, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1957):124-131; Vol. 1, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1957):163-168; Vol. 2, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1958):33-37; Vol. 2, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1958):87-90; Vol. 2, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1958):124-127; Vol. 2, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1958):172-176; Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1959):27-33; Vol. 3, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1959):65-70; Vol. 3, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1959):103-112; Vol. 3, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1959):153-161. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * 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 Brunswick County.]

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Brunswick County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1962):34-38. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * Pritchett, John W. "Genealogical Research in Brunswick County," The Virginia Genealogical Society Newsletter, Vol. 32, No. 3 (2006). Available at FHL.

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.


 * [1748] "Brunswick County, Va., Poll List, 1748," William and Mary College Quarterly, 1st Series, Vol. 26 (1917):59-64. Available at FHL; reprinted in Virginia Tax Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1983, which is also available at FHL; digital version at JSTOR ($).
 * [1782] Fothergill, Augusta B. and John Mark Naugle. Virginia Tax Payers, 1782-87, Other Than Those Published by the United States Census Bureau. 1940; reprint, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1978. Available at FHL. [1782 personal property tax list of Brunswick County.]
 * [1782-1815] Heinegg, Paul. "Brunswick County Personal Property Tax List 1782-1815," Free African Americans.com, available online. [Heinegg abstracted free blacks listed in these records.]
 * [1787] Schreiner-Yantis, Netti and Florene Speakman Love. The 1787 Census of Virginia: An Accounting of the Name of Every White Male Tithable Over 21 Years, the Number of White Males Between 16 &amp; 21 Years, the Number of Slaves over 16 &amp; Those Under 16 Years, Together with a Listing of Their Horses, Cattle &amp; Carriages, and Also the Names of All Persons to Whom Ordinary Licenses and Physician's Licenses Were Issued. 3 vols. Springfield, Va.: Genealogical Books in Print, 1987. Available at FHL. [The source of this publication is the 1787 personal property tax list. Brunswick County is included in Vol. 1.]
 * [1787] Clay, Robert Y. "Some Delinquent Taxpayers 1787-1790," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 19, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1975):248-254. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors ($). [These records identify migrants who left the county and often their intended destinations. Brunswick County's 1787 Delinquent List appears on p. 254]
 * [1788, 1798] Indexed images of the 1788 and 1798 Personal Property Tax Lists of Brunswick County, Virginia are available online, courtesy: Binns Genealogy.
 * [1800] "Brunswick County, Virginia, 1800 Tax List," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1967):35-38; Vol. 11, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1967):67-70; Vol. 11, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1967):116-120; Vol. 11, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1967):175-178. Available at FHL; digital version at New England Ancestors($).
 * [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. Brunswick County is included in Vol. 2.]

Vital Records
Birth

Beth Fridley has published abstracts of Brunswick County births from 1853 through 1896 online at Ancestry:


 * Brunswick County, Virginia Births, 1853-62 [database on-line]. Available at Ancestry ($).
 * Brunswick County, Virginia Births, 1865-73 [database on-line]. Available at Ancestry ($).
 * Brunswick County, Virginia Births, 1874-79 [database on-line]. Available at Ancestry ($).
 * Brunswick County, Virginia Births, 1880-96 [database on-line]. Available at Ancestry ($).

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