Virginia Biography

An excellent list of early Virginians is in:

True, Ransom B., ed. Biographical Dictionary of Early Virginia, 1607-1660. Richmond, Virginia: Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, 1982. (On 22 FHL fiche 6332718.) Includes more than 100,000 entries with references to 30,000 people who are mentioned in wills, deeds , court orders, histories, and Virginia Company records. A supplemental Guide (FHL book 975.5 D3bd 1985; film 1750757 item 21) contains an explanation of the dictionary and a listing of the sources with their codes.

You can also request information from the:

Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities 204 West Franklin Street Richmond, Virginia 23220-5012 Phone: 804-648-1889 Fax: 804-775-0802 http://www.apva.org/

An index to biographical sketches  in several hundred local histories and genealogies is:

Wardell, P.G. Timesaving Aid to Virginia-West Virginia Ancestors: A Genealogical Index of Surnames from Published Sources. Two Volumes. Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing, 1985. (FHL book 975 D22w)

Other important biographical sources are:

Brock, Robert Alonzo. Virginia and Virginians. Richmond and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty, 1888. (FHL film 897042 items 2-3.) An index is on FHL fiche 6048346-47. Lists five to ten prominent citizens from each county with early governors and generals.

Foote, William Henry. Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical. Two Volumes. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: William S. Martien, 1850-56. (FHL book 975.5 H2f; Volume 1 on film 1000631; Volume 2 on film 1598334 item 27.) Presbyterian history, ministers, and families. Volume one is indexed in An Index to Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical by William Henry Foot (Richmond, Virginia: The Library, Union Theological Seminary in Virginia, 1966; FHL book 975.5 H2f index).

Tyler, Lyon Gardiner. Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography. Five Volumes. New York, NY: Lewis Historical Publication, 1915. (FHL book 975.5 D3tl; film 1000632) Includes multi-generation family histories.

The Family History Library also has:

French, S. Bassett. Biographical Sketches [of Virginia]. Richmond, Virginia: Virginia State Library, 1949? (FHL films 029664-67) Contains brief handwritten sketches of persons born from the 1700s to 1800s, sometimes with birth and death dates.