Craig County, Virginia Genealogy

Guide to Craig County, Virginia ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
Craig County is located in the western portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia sharing a border with West Virginia. Craig County was named for Robert Craig, a 19th-century Virginia congressman.

County Courthouse
Craig County Courthouse 182 Main Street, Suite 4 New Castle, VA 24127 Phone: 540-864-6141 Craig County Website

Clerk Circuit Court has birth records 1864-1896, marriage, divorce, probate and court and land records from 1851

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Bible Records

 * 1607-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Cemeteries

 * 1800-1986 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Census Records
1785
 * Botetourt County, Va., 1785 Enumeration. 1972. By Charles T. Burton. Troutville, Virginia : C.T. Burton. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry ($). All or part of present-day county of Craig is included.

1890 Union Veterans
 * Virginia's Union Veterans: Eleventh Census of the United States 1890. c1994. By Ronald Ray Turner. Online at: Prince William County Virginia, ;.

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records
 * Acts and Joint Resolutions Passed by the General Assembly of the State of Virginia during the Session 1895-96. 1895. Richmond, VA : J.H. O'Bannon Superintendent of Public Printing. Online at: Google Books.
 * Library of Virginia's Chancery Record Index includes digital images of Craig County chancery records for the years 1853-1912. Index can be used to search for records up until 1942 - see online catalog or Archives Research Services for availability.

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African Americans
 * 1865-1872 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Search the Library of Virginia's Virginia Untold collection for digitized images of African Americans of Craig County.

Funeral Homes

 * 1935-2009 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Genealogies
Compiled Genealogies by Surname
 * See Craig County, Virginia Compiled Genealogies for a few +Published books and articles.

Compiled Genealogies for Multiple Families
 * Groseclose, Wanda W. In the Shadows of Our Ancestors, Descendants of Thomas Abbott and Twenty-six Connected Pioneer Families of Craig County, Virginia: including Brickey, Britts, Brizendine, Caldwell, Carper, Craft, Crawford, Crowder, Damewood, Duncan, Elmore, Fisher, Francisco, Greenway, Huffman, Hutchison, Jones, Lafon, Lee, Leffel, Looney, Lucas, Lugar, Paitsel, Reynolds and Sarver. 2 vols. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press, 2004. 929.273 Ab29g v. 1
 * Keeney, Roscoe C. Census, Craig Co., Virginia, 1860 Annotated. Charleston, W. Va.: R.C. Keeney, 199-?. 975.5795 X2k 1860

Local Histories

 * Craig County Virginia. 1907. By New Castle, Virginia. Roanoke, VA : Stone. Online at: Hathitrust.
 * Folk-Songs of Virginia. 1949. By Arthur Kyle Davis, Jr. Durham, NC : Duke University Press. Online at: Hathitrust.
 * Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. 2007. By William F. Boogher. Baltimore : Genealogical Pub. Co. Online at: Internet Archive;.
 * History of Virginia - Vol VI Virginia Biography. 1924. By The American Historical Society. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Cities and Towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
War of 1812
 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... 1883. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. Online at: Google Books,Internet Archive, also at 973 M2Lp v. 5. See Vol. 5, Virginia, Craig County, p. 68.61

Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & 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)

Regiments. Civil War service men in Craig County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed here:
 * - 28th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company B (Craig Rifles) and Company D (Craig Mountain Boys).
 * - 54th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company K (The Roanoke Guards).

World War II
 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1906-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007

Birth

 * 1853-1866 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1912-1913 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1584-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * Craig County, Virginia Births, 1853-96. 1999. By Beth Fridley. Provo, UT, USA : The Generations Network, Inc. Online at: Ancestry ($).

Marriage

 * 1660-1959 Virginia, United States Marriages at Findmypast ($).
 * 1740-1850 Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1785-1940 Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1785-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index ; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
 * 1853-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1936-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Death

 * 1912-1987 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1853-1912 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection;  index & images
 * Craig County, Virginia Deaths, 1853-96. 2001. By Beth Fridley. Provo, UT, USA : The Generations Network, Inc. Online at: Ancestry ($).

Divorce

 * 1918-1988 at FamilySearch — index & images

Family History Centers

 * Pembroke Virginia Family History Center
 * Roanoke Virginia Family History Center
 * White Sulphur Springs West Virginia Family History Center


 * Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library - Blacksburg - an affiliate library
 * Roanoke Public Libraries - an affiliate library

Websites

 * Cyndi's List


 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

Research Guides

 * A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Craig County. The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1964):26-27. ; online at American Ancestors by NEHGS ($).