Roanoke County, Virginia Genealogy

United States   Virginia    Roanoke County

Southwest Virginia county in the Shenandoah Valley region.





County Courthouse
Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness courthouse lookup volunteer is listed under Bedford County, Virginia.

History


The county is named after the Roanoke River.

Parent County
1838--Roanoke County was created 30 March 1838 from Botetourt and Montgomery Counties. County seat: Salem

Record Loss

 * Lost census: 1890

Cemeteries

 * Tombstone Transcription Project Roanoke County- cemetery transcriptions - USGenWeb

Census
1785


 * Burton, Charles T. Botetourt County, Va., 1785 Enumeration. Troutville, Va.: Burton?, 1972. ; digital version at Ancestry ($). [All of part of present-day county of Roanoke is included.]

1840


 * Douthat, James L. 1840 Mountain Empire of Virginia Census. Signal Mountain, Tenn.: Mountain Press, 2001. 975.5 X2d 1840. Free online surname index and purchase details at Mountain Press website. [Includes Roanoke County.]

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.]

Genealogy
It is anticipated that this bibliography will eventually identify all known family histories published about residents of this county. Use this list to:


 * Locate publications about direct ancestors
 * Find the most updated accounts of an ancestor's family
 * Identify publications, to quote Elizabeth Shown Mills, about an ancestor's "FAN Club" [Friends, Associates, and Neighbors]

General
As of November 2010, a query for individuals born in Roanoke, Virginia at World Connect, results in more than 30,000 entries.

The Virginia Room at the Roanoke Public Library includes Surname Files. A list of families in this collection is available at the library's website.

Land
Grants and Patents


 * Hudgins. 231 patents dated 1742-1855 in what is now Roanoke County, Virginia placed on a map. DeedMapper. 2005. [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.]

Local Histories

 * Jack, George S. History of Roanoke County. Roanoke, Va.: Stone, c1912. Available at ; digital versions at Ancestry ($); Google Books.
 * McCauley, William. History of Roanoke County, Salem, Roanoke City, Virginia, and Representative Citizens, 1734-1900. Chicago: Biographical Pub. Co., 1902. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Prillaman, Helen R. Places Near the Mountains: From the Community of Amsterdam, Virginia Up the Road to Catawba, on the Waters of the Catawba and Tinker Creeks, along the Carolina Road as it Aproached Big Lick and Other Areas, Primarily North Roanoke [Botetourt and Roanoke Counties, Virginia]. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2002. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Roanoke, Story of County and City. unknown: unknown, 1942. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Salem and the Roanoke Valley: A Circular of Information, Location, Railroad Facilities, Business Interests, Manufacturing Prospects, Water Power, Mineral wealth, Fertile Lands, Healthful Climate, Social, Moral, Religious and Educational Advantages. Salem, Va.: Times-Register Power Press Print, 1884. Available at ; digital version at Ancestry ($).

Revolutionary War

 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census]. 1841. Digital versions at U.S. Census Bureau and Google Books et. al. 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. [See Virginia, Western District, Roanoke County on page 136.]

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... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Virginia, Roanoke County, pp. 100-101. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

Newspapers
Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness lookup volunteer is listed under Bedford County, Virginia.

Occupations

 * Cutten, George Barton. The Silversmiths of Virginia (together with Watchmakers and Jewelers) from 1694 to 1850. Richmond, Va.: The Dietz Press, Incorporated, 1952. Available at . [Includes a section on Salem silversmiths.]

Research Guides

 * "A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Roanoke County," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 21, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1977):285-286. Available at ; digital version at New England Ancestors ($).

Taxation

 * [1882] Big Lick District Personal Property Tax List, 1882, Virginia Appalachian Notes. Roanoke VA: Nov 1982. Vol. 6 Iss. 4.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Roanoke Virginia Family History Center (Salem)

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.