Surry County, North Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Surry County, North Carolina ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Surry County, North Carolina Courthouse
Surry County Courthouse 114 W Atkins St Dobson, NC 27017-0345 Phone: 336-401-8150 Register of Deeds has birth, marriage death, burial and land records Clerk Superior Court has divorce court and probate records from 1771 1771

Register of Deeds P.O. Box 303 Dobson, NC 27017 Phone: 336-401-8150 Fax: 336-401-8149 Website

Clerk Superior Court P.O. Box 345 Dobson, NC 27017 Phone: (336) 386-3700

Parent County
1771--Surry County was created from Rowan County. County seat: Dobson

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating North Carolina county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation North Carolina County Boundary Maps" (1664-1965) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Brief History
Surry County, North Carolina is said to have been named after Surrey County, England. The county's northern boundary is the Virginia state line.

Surry County was originally formed from Rowan County in 1771. Rowan had been formed from Anson in 1753, and Anson was formed from Bladen in 1750. The act to form Surry County was proposed to the assembly of North Carolina in December 1770, and was passed the following month, January 1771. This act became effective 1 Apr 1771.

Wilkes County was formed in 1777 from Surry County and, according to some sources, Washington District, also known as the District of Washington. Evidently, however, the District of Washington was created in the same legislative session. Washington District is, today, Washington County, Tennessee. Stokes County was formed ten years later, in 1789, from the eastern section of Surry County.

Surry County records dated from the 1770s and 1780s cover parts of present-day Ashe, Alleghany, Forsyth, Stokes, Wilkes, and Yadkin Counties.

In 1790, the county seat of Surry County became Rockford.

Yet another division took place in 1851, as Yadkin County was formed from the area south of Yadkin River. In 1853, the county seat was moved from Rockford to the new town of Dobson, and has remained there to this day. Dobson is named for William Polk Dobson, a prominent citizen. The Registrar of Deeds Office in Dobson welcomes visitors to its very user-friendly collection of vital records.

The 1860 census for Surry County shows about 1,200 slaves in the county.

Settlers from Virginia and Pennsylvania who were of the Quaker religion came from the New Garden and other meetings in Guilford County, North Carolina. Some of those families include Bond, Burcham, Hill, Hiatt, Horton, Love, Pinson, Jackson, Jessup, Simmons, Stanley and Taylor. Many of them moved on to Indiana but numerous descendants are still in the area.

Those of the German Moravian faith who came from other North Carolina settlements include the Brinkley, Hauser, Kiger, Moser and Shouse lines. Families of French descent include Hardin, Poindexter, Lambert, Laurence, and probably Laffoon.

The Riggs family, said to descend from Edward Riggs III who came to Massachusetts in the 1630s and founded Morristown, New Jersey, came to Surry County with the Henson, Jarvis and Wilmoth families.

Families that came from Albermarle County, North Carolina, were Burrus, Cave, Easley, Fleming, Franklin, Ollesby, Perkins, Snow, Taliaferro and Tucker. Those that came from neighboring Stokes County were East, Hill, King, Pratt, Simpson, Venable and Vernon.

Other prominent familes were Marion, Creed, McKinney, Moore, Dudley and McCraw.

Present-day Surry County is southern living at its best. Because of being somewhat isolated at the base of the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia, it has been able to retain the long-held traditions of the families lines that have remained there for over 220 years. Some have clung to the old Elizabethan English and many have strong roots in their Primitive Baptist upbringing. Most of these second-generation Americans were born in Virginia and migrated to North Carolina looking for the fertile land that had been advertised and scouted.

Populated Places

 * Dobson (county seat)
 * Elkin
 * Mount Airy
 * Pilot Mountain

Neighboring Counties

 * Alleghany
 * Carroll County, Virginia
 * Forsyth
 * Grayson County, Virginia
 * Patrick County, Virginia
 * Stokes
 * Wilkes
 * Yadkin

Townships

 * Bryan
 * Dobson
 * Eldora
 * Elkin
 * Franklin
 * Long Hill
 * Marsh
 * Mount Airy
 * Pilot Mountain
 * Rockford
 * Shoals
 * Sloam
 * South Westfield
 * Stewarts Creek
 * Westfield

Major Rivers

 * Ararat River
 * Fisher River
 * Mitchell River
 * Yadkin River

Cemeteries

 * Fisher's Gap Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery (online list, New River Notes)
 * Liberty Union Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery (online list, New River Notes)
 * Stony Ridge, Wolff Family Cemetery (online list, New River Notes)
 * Surry County, North Carolina Cemetery Transcriptions (Access Genealogy)
 * USGS: List of cemeteries in Surry County (USGS)
 * Wolff Family Cemetery (online list, New River Notes)

Censuses

 * 1786 State Census for Surry County; 15 districts were established, but the returns from six are missing.
 * 1790 Census, Surry County, North Carolina (transcription, alphabetical order, GenWeb Archives)
 * 1790 Census, Surry County, North Carolina (transcription, searchable by surname, Don Chesnut)
 * 1810 Census, Surry County, North Carolina (last name index, GenWeb Archives)
 * 1850 Census, Surry County, North Carolina (index, GenWeb Archives)

Baptist

 * Deep Creek. Constituted 1781.
 * Hunting Creek. Constituted 1781.
 * Little Yadkin River. Constituted 1785.
 * Shallow Fords. Founded before 1773.

Dunker

 * Fraternity Church of the Brethren, near Clemmons, N.C. Established about 1775. Later located in Stokes and Forsyth counties.

Lutheran

 * Nazareth Church aka Old Dutch Meeting House. Organized about 1778 by German settlers. Later located in Stokes County and presently situated in Forsyth County.

Moravian

 * Friedberg Church. Begun 1759; organized 1773. Later located in Stokes County and presently situated in Forsyth County.

Family Histories

 * [Adamson] Dixon Ben F. and Alice L. Dwelle Dixon. The Adamson Source Book, a Genealogy of the Descendants of Rachel Williams Adamson, 1776-1850 of Surry County, N.C., Jefferson County, Tenn., and Lawrence County, Ind.: with an Addendum of Miscellaneous Historical Material on the Name Adamson. 2 vols. Washington, D.C.: B.F. Dixon, 1942-1961.
 * Coats, Charlotte, Joshua Richardson, Lazarus Tilley, William Mason: The American Revolution and Before, 2006.
 * Combs &amp;c Families of Surry County, North Carolina (website)
 * Dunagin, Percy E., The Early Dunagins of Surry County, North Carolina, Family Heritage Publishers, 2007.
 * Heinegg, Paul, Free African Americans of North Carolina, Virginia, and South Carolina, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2005.
 * [Whitaker] Whitaker-Buck, Ruby M. Mark Whitaker, Baltimore County, Maryland (c1670-1729) and Allied Families. Sacramento, Calif.: privately published, 1992. Digital version at - free.

Land
Surry County, North Carolina deed records date from 1771, when the county was formed. In addition to more ordinary deeds, Surry County land records at the Register of Deeds' office also include records involving Lord Granville's agents, and state land grants. Bills of sale for slaves are also included.

According to the Register of Deeds' web pages in the county government site, the earliest deed index for the county covers 1771 to 1870. This was followed by a second index, which covers the period from 1870 to 1937.

The office of the Register of Deeds is located at 201 E. Kapp Street in Dobson. More information, including phone number and office hours, can be found in the Register of Deeds' web pages.

Local Histories

 * Absher, Mrs. W.O., and Mae R. Hayes, Surry County, North Carolina Deed Book C (1777-1788). Self-published.
 * Boyles, Carolyn, Wilma Hiatt, and Surry County Genealogical Association, Surry County (Images of America series), Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2000.
 * Columbine, Mary Felts, Surry County, North Carolina: Early Settlers and Road Builders, 1771-1850, 2005.
 * Heinegg, Paul, Free African Americans of North Carolina, Virginia, and South Carolina, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2005.
 * Holcomb, Brent, Marriages of Surry County, North Carolina, 1778-1868, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1982.
 * Hollingsworth, Jesse Gentry, History of Surry County, or Annals of Northwest North Carolina, W.H. Fisher Company, 1935. (Google Books link, without preview)
 * Jackson, Hester B., Surry County Soldiers in the Civil War, Dobson, North Carolina: Surry County Historical Society, 1992.
 * Linn, Jo White, Surry County, North Carolina Wills, 1771-1827, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1992.
 * Snow, Carol Leonard, Surry County, North Carolina, Deed Abstracts, Toast, North Carolina: Self-published, 1995, 3 vols. (FHL)
 * Thompson, Evelyn Scales, Around Surry County (Black America Series), Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2005. (Google Books link with preview)

Maps
Map created by William Dollarhide that shows the counties in North Carolina. It was published by The Red Book.

Revolutionary War

 * 1779 - 1782 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch.org — index and 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)
 * 1885 - 1953 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Act of 1885 - Pension Applications at North Carolina State Archives -- Searchable Images in Mars Catalog


 * - 2nd Battalion, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 37th Battalion, Virginia Cavalry (Dunn's Battalion, Partisan Rangers) (Confederate). Company D and Company F.
 * - 1st Battalion, North Carolina Junior Reserves, Company E
 * - 2nd Battalion, North Carolina Infantry, Company B
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Detailed Men, Company C
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Detailed Men, Company D
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Detailed Men, Company E
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, 2nd Company A
 * - 5th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Company C
 * - 5th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves

World War I

 * 1917 - 1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1917 - 1919 - Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918--Index and Images

World War II

 * 1938 - 1946 - Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946--Index
 * 1940 - 1948 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * Surry County, North Carolina Obituaries

Probate
Online Probate Records


 * 1660 - 1790 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1663 - 1979 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1665 - 1998 - North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1735 - 1970 - at FamilySearch.org — images
 * 1760 - 1800 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry.com — index and images $


 * Pre-1790  - Pre-1790  Wills stored at the North Carolina State Archives are online - free. Website tips.
 * 1771 - 1963 - have been digitized by FamilySearch - free
 * 1771 - 1963 - Surry County North Carolina list of will book testators SAMPUBCO - Browsable index of testators of wills. - Free
 * Images of Wills and Estates: 1771-1783;- and 1783-1792. North Carolina Pioneers ($)

Research Guides

 * Sweeney, Alice J. "Bassett Historical Center," The Virginia Genealogical Society Newsletter, Vol. 28, No. 4 (Aug. 2002):1-3. Available at ; digital version at Virginia Genealogical Society website.

Taxation
Tax lists, 1784-1789, are extant.


 * 1771 - Tax Lists, Surry County, 1771 (images) online at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1771 - 1771 Surry County, North Carolina Tax List (Signal Mountain, Tennessee: Mountain Press, 199-). FHL Book 975.665 R4sn
 * 1771-1772 - Lists of Taxables, 1771-1772 (images) online at FamilySearch
 * 1771-1777 - Surry and Wilkes Counties, North Carolina Taxables, 1771-1800 [1771, 1772, 1774, 1775, 1777] (transcripts) online at FamilySearch
 * 1772 - Tax Lists, Surry County, 1772 (images) online at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1774 - 1774 List of Tithables for Surry County, North Carolina (transcript) online at New River Notes
 * 1782 - Tax Lists, Surry County, 1782 (images) online at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1782 - Lists of Taxables, 1782 (images) online at FamilySearch
 * 1786 - 1786 Taxables, Surry County (online lists)
 * 1786 - 1786 Taxables, Atkins District, Surry County, North Carolina (GenWeb Archives)
 * 1786 - 1786 Taxables, Krous' District, Surry County, North Carolina (GenWeb Archives)
 * 1790 - 1790 Tax List, Surry County, North Carolina (transcript) online at New River Notes
 * 1790-1800 - 1790-1800 Tax Lists (images) online at FamilySearch
 * 1791-1792 - List of Taxables, 1791-1792 (images) online at FamilySearch
 * 1815 - Harvey, Iris M. Surry County, North Carolina Tax List 1816 (Raleigh, North Carolina: I.R. Harvey, 1990).
 * 1815-1835 - Tax Lists, 1815-1835 (images) online at FamilySearch
 * 1835-1866 - Tax Lists, 1835-1866 (images) online at FamilySearch

Birth Records

 * 1800 - 2000 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1866 - 1964 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1912 - 1963 - Surry County Birth Index 1912-1963. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * Obtain Certified copies of Birth Certificates at Register of Deeds.

Death Records

 * 1898 - 1994 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1906 - 1930 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1908 - 2004 - North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1909 - 1975 - North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1931 - 1994 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * Obtain Certified copies of Death Certificates at Register of Deeds.

Divorce Records

 * 1926 - 1975 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1958 - 2004 - North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $

Marriage Records
Brent Holcomb, in his book Marriages of Surry County, North Carolina 1779-1868, points out that no Surry County marriage bonds from prior to 1779 are extant. Most bonds are housed in Raleigh, North Carolina at the State Archives, but Holcomb points out that about 120 Surry County marriage bonds were found to remain in the Surry County Courthouse in Dobson.


 * 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * Surry County Marriages at USGenWeb - free.
 * 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1759 - 1979 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1762 - 1979 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1763 -1 868 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1853 - 1940 - Surry County Marriage Index 1853-1940 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * Obtain Certified copies of Marriage Licenses at Register of Deeds.

Yearbooks

 * Surry Community College - various issues between 1969-1995

Surry County, North Carolina Genealogy Societies and Libraries
Surry County Genealogical Association PO Box 997 Dobson 2701 Website

Surry County Historical Society 832 East Country Club Road Mount Airy, NC 27030 Website


 * Bassett Historical Center, Bassett, Virginia. Website includes descriptions of collections. Excellent resource for family history research in Henry, Patrick, Floyd, Franklin and Pittsylvania counties in Virginia, the city of Martinsville, Virginia, and Rockingham, Stokes and Surry counties in North Carolina.
 * Elkin Public Library, member of Northwestern Regional Library system, 111 North Front St., Elkin, North Carolina
 * Northwestern Regional Library: Genealogy (links; information regarding the area genealogy holdings at the Charles H. Stone Memorial Library, Danbury Public Library, and Yadkin County Public Library.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Mount Airy North Carolina Family History Center

Surry County, North Carolina Genealogy Websites

 * Surry County, NC History, Records, Facts and Genealogy (Genealogy Inc)
 * Register of Deeds, Surry County
 * Surry County (official government website)
 * Surry County Genealogy (North Carolina Genealogy)
 * Surry County Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Surry County NCGenWeb
 * Surry County, North Carolina (New River Notes)
 * Surry County, North Carolina Genealogy Trails *Surry Cousins
 * Surry County at Our Family Tree
 * Surry County at Our Family Tree