Taylor County, West Virginia Genealogy

United States   West Virginia    Taylor County

County Courthouse
Taylor County 214 W Main Street Grafton, WV 26354-1387 304-265-1401


 * County Clerk has birth, marriage, death probate and land records from 1853
 * Land records from 1853
 * Circuit Court Clerk has divorce and court records

History
Taylor County, West Virginia was created on 19 January 1844 from parts of Barbour, Marion, and Harrison Counties in Virginia. Taylor County remained part of Virginia until West Virginia was created as a state on 20 June 1863. The county seat is in Grafton, but was originally at Cross Roads. Cross Roads was renamed Williamsport 1 January 1801 and was again renamed on 23 January 1845 as Pruntytown. West Virginia became a state during the Civil War. Most of the records that were held in Virginia before West Virginia was admitted to the Union were transferred to West Virginia upon statehood, but some of the records from before 1863 may still be found in Virginia. The Tygart Valley River moves through Taylor County, and is the main waterway that provided sustenance to the farmers and other laborers in the County. Taylor County is historically the home of miners and freed former slaves. Taylor County is proudly the home of Mother’s Day founder Anna Jarvis.

Parent County
1844--Taylor County was created 19 January 1844 from Harrison, Barbour and Marion Counties. County seat: Grafton

Boundary Changes
See an interactive map of Taylor County boundary changes.

Neighboring Counties

 * Barbour
 * Harrison
 * Marion
 * Monongalia
 * Preston

Cemeteries
○ ePodunk ○ Find-A-Grave for Taylor County ○ GNIS Search Results ○ The Political Graveyard ○ West Virginia Cemetery Preservation Association, Inc. ● Cemetery inscriptions and readings on film for 19 cemeteries in Taylor County: http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=topicdetails&amp;subject=360675&amp;subject_disp=West+Virginia%2C+Taylor+-+Cemeteries

Census
Court

Land
● Four different sets of court records on film, covering the years 1844 to 1927: http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=topicdetails&amp;subject=390574&amp;subject_disp=West+Virginia%2C+Taylor+-+Court+records ● Land records on film and book at FHL covering 1844 to 1970: http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library/fhlcatalog/supermainframeset.asp?display=topicdetails&amp;subject=390577&amp;subject_disp=West+Virginia%2C+Taylor+-+Land+and+property

Maps
Map of 1850 Virginia and West Virginia

Civil War

 * - 3rd Regiment, Virginia State Line (Cavalry and Infantry) (Confederate). Company C.
 * - 9th Battalion, Virginia Infantry (Hansbrough's) (Confederate). Company A (Letcher Guard), Captain George W. Hansbrough's Company.

Records and histories are available, including:


 * West Virginia, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865

Naturalization
West Virginia, Naturalization Records, 1814-1991

Probate
Taylor County, West Virginia Will Books 1844 - 1969 West Virginia Will Books

Vital Records
Church

● West Virginia Division of Culture and History search Birth Records: http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_bcsearch.aspx ● West Virginia, Births Index, 1853-1969, available on Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2537) ● West Virginia Division of Culture and History search Marriage Records: http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_mcsearch.aspx ● West Virginia Marriage Records, 1863-1900, available on Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=4484) ● West Virginia Marriages Index, 1785-1971, available on Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2538) ● West Virginia Division of Culture and History search Death Records: http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_dcsearch.aspx ● West Virginia, Deaths Index, 1853-1973, available on Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2568)\ ● West Virginia Cemetery Readings, 1941, available on Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=4266)

Societies and Libraries
Taylor County Historical and Genealogical Society, Inc; P O Box 522 Grafton, WV 26354

Family History Centers


 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Web Sites

 * Cyndi's List for West Virginia
 * Cyndi's List for West Virginia

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