Bland County, Virginia Genealogy

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

County Facts
County seat: Bland
Organized: March 30, 1861
Parent County(s): Giles, Tazewell, Wythe
Neighboring Counties
Giles  • Mercer (WV)  • Pulaski  • Smyth  • Tazewell  • Wythe
See County Maps
Courthouse
VirginiaBlandCourthouse.jpg
Location Map
Location of Bland County, Virginia.png
Adoption

County Information[edit | edit source]

Description[edit | edit source]

Bland County is located in the Southwest portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia sharing a border with West Virginia. Bland County was named after Richard Bland, a leader of Colonial Virginia[1].

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Bland County Courthouse
612 Main Street, Suite 104
Bland, VA 24315
Phone: 540-688-4562
Bland County Website

Clerk Circuit court has marriage, probate and land records 1861, and divorce records from 1900.[2]

Bland County, Virginia Record Dates[edit | edit source]

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records[3]
Birth Marriage Death Court Land Probate Census
1861 1861 1861 1861 1861 1861 1810
* Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1912.
General compliance year is unknown.

Record Loss[edit | edit source]

  • 1888 Most loose papers were destroyed by a courthouse fire in 1888. Bound volumes, and some of the chancery papers remain.[4]
  • Visit the Library of Virginia's website to determine exactly what records have been lost and their Lost Records Localities Database to find additional resources.
  • For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

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:[6]

Unincorporated communities
Census-designated places


History Timeline[edit | edit source]

Richard Bland.JPG

The county was named after Richard Bland (1710-1776), Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress in 1774 and 1775.[7]

Resources[edit | edit source]

Bible Records[edit | edit source]

For databases and indexes, see Virginia Bible Records.

Biographies[edit | edit source]

Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries of Bland County, Virginia online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Virginia Cemeteries for more information.

 

Census Records[edit | edit source]

For databases, indexes, and information online, see Virginia Census.

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1870 4,000 —
1880 5,004 25.1%
1890 5,129 2.5%
1900 5,497 7.2%
1910 5,154 −6.2%
1920 5,593 8.5%
1930 6,031 7.8%
1940 6,731 11.6%
1950 6,436 −4.4%
1960 5,982 −7.1%
1970 5,423 −9.3%
1980 6,349 17.1%
1990 6,514 2.6%
2000 6,871 5.5%
2010 6,824 −0.7%
Source: "Wikipedia.org". United States Census Bureau.

Church Records[edit | edit source]

List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records[edit | edit source]

Chancery Court

  • Indexed images of Bland County, Virginia Chancery Records 1874-1928 are available online through Virginia Memory: Chancery Records Index. The online indexes continues from 1928 through 1938, but at present does not include images. These records, often concerned with inheritance disputes, contain a wealth of genealogical information.[8]

Directories[edit | edit source]

Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]

For databases and immigrant groups, see Virginia Emigration and Immigration

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]

African Americans

Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]

Genealogies[edit | edit source]

See also: Virginia Compiled Genealogies

Guardianship[edit | edit source]

Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]

For land indexes, records, and databases, see Virginia Land and Property, including Colonial and State Land Grants.

Local Histories[edit | edit source]

  • History of Bland County, Virginia. c1961. By Bland County Centennial Corporation. Radford, Virginia : Bland County Centennial Corporation. At various libraries (WorldCat).
  • Little Walkers Creek : A History of the Land and Its People. c2005. By Rebecca Cox Sowers. Franklin, Tennessee : American History Imprints. At various libraries (WorldCat).

Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]

County and state maps, historical and more current, are valuable research tools. For map collections, online and in libraries, see Virginia Maps.

Radford (Independent City)Giles CountyPulaski CountyWythe CountySmyth CountyTazewell CountyMercer CountyVA BLAND.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration[edit | edit source]

Military Records[edit | edit source]

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, DC : Government Printing Office. Online at: Internet Archive, Google Books. See Vol. 5, Virginia, Bland County, p. 64.

Civil War

Regiments: Civil War service men in Bland 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:

- 8th Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Company F (Bland Rangers)[9]
- 36th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate).
- 45th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company F (Sharpshooters).[10]
- 47th Battalion, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Company B.[11]
- 51st Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company F (or K).[12]

World War II

Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

For online newspaper resources, see the Virginia Newspapers page.

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

Other Records[edit | edit source]

Periodicals[edit | edit source]

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

For probate records, indexes, and databases, see Virginia Probate Records.

School Records[edit | edit source]

Social Security Records[edit | edit source]

Tax Records[edit | edit source]

For additional online collections and the value and use of Virginia's tax lists in your research, see Virginia Taxation.

Online Tax Indexes and Records

  • 1890 Bland County, Virginia Property Tax Records. 2004. By Denise A. Smith. Signal Mountain, TN : Mountain Press. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

For additional indexes, databases, and details, see Virginia Vital Records.

Birth[edit | edit source]

Marriage[edit | edit source]

Death[edit | edit source]

Divorce[edit | edit source]

Research Facilities[edit | edit source]

Archives[edit | edit source]

Listed below are archives in Bland County. For state-wide facilities, see Virginia Archives and Libraries.

Family History Centers[edit | edit source]

Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local Family History Centers or Affiliate Libraries

  • Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
  • FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

Libraries[edit | edit source]

Listed below are libraries in Bland County. For state-wide library facilities, see Virginia Archives and Libraries.

Museums[edit | edit source]

Societies[edit | edit source]

Listed below are societies in Bland County. For state-wide genealogical and historical societies, see Virginia Societies.

Websites[edit | edit source]

  • FamilySearch Catalog – 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[edit | edit source]

  • A Guide to the Counties of Virginia: Bland County. By John Frederick Dorman. The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1961):77-78. CD available at: New England Ancestors ($).

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ County
  2. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Iowa.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  3. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Iowa.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  4. ↑ Lost Records Localities: Counties and Cities with Missing Records, 4, in Library of Virginia (accessed 4 April 2014).
  5. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Iowa.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Bland_ County,_Virginia," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, wikipedia accessed 16 Decamber 2019.
  7. ↑ Wikipedia Contributors, "Bland County, Virginia," in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bland_County, accessed 13 January 2012.
  8. ↑ "Virginia Memory: Chancery Records Index Availability," Library of Virginia (accessed 26 January 2010).
  9. ↑ Jack L. Dickinson, 8th Virginia Cavalry (Lynchburg, Va.: H.E. Howard, 1986). FHL Book 975.5 M2vr v. 25.
  10. ↑ J.L. Scott, 45th Virginia Infantry (Lynchburg, Va.: H.E. Howard, 1989). FHL Book 975.5 M2vr v. 58.
  11. ↑ Richard L. Armstrong, 26th Virginia Cavalry (Lynchburg, Va.: H.E. Howard, 1994). FHL Book 975.5 M2vr v. 110.
  12. ↑ James A. Davis, 51st Virginia Infantry (Lynchburg, Va.: H.E. Howard, 1984). FHL Book 975.5 M2vr v. 9; A Guide to Virginia Military Organization 1861-1865, 287.
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Migration
Routes
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