West Virginia Church Records

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Historical Background
The Church of England (now Protestant Episcopal) was the established church in Virginia (including West Virginia) from 1624 to 1786. Other major religious groups in West Virginia were the Baptist, Methodist Episcopal, Roman Catholic, and United Brethren churches. With the arrival of English and Scots-Irish settlers came West Virginia's early dominant religions. Many families of English origin were Quakers; the Scots-Irish were Presbyterians. Both religions were well established by 1740, and they were followed by Baptists who settled in Berkeley County in 1743 and a Methodist circuit in Berkeley and Jefferson counties in 1778.

Information Found in the Records
To effectively use church records, become familiar with their content. Click on these links to learn about a specific record type:

Look for online records.
'''Ancestry.com, FindMyPast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local family history center or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Indexes

 * Index only.
 * Index only.
 * Index only.

Quaker (Society of Friends)

 * U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935, index and images, ($).

Look for digital copies of church records listed in the FamilySearch Catalog.

 * The Family History Library (FHL) has a substantial collection of original church records and transcripts on microfilm for churches in the United States.
 * Online church records can be listed in the FamilySearch Catalog under the state, county, or town.
 * If you find a record that has not yet been digitized, see How do I request that a microfilm be digitized?
 * Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations.
 * To find records:
 * a. Click on the records of United States, West Virginia.
 * b. Click on Places within United States, West Virginia and a list of counties will appear.
 * c. Click on your county if it appears.
 * d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * e. Click on Places within United States, West Virginia [COUNTY] and a list of towns will appear.
 * f. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.
 * g. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * h. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the record is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the records.

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Statewide
These aids generally provide lists of records that are known to exist and information on their location.
 * Inventory of the vital statistics records in West Virginia : Volume II, Church archives. Historical Records Survey., e-book.

Baptist

 * Survey of Baptist churches, West Virginia. Historical Records Survey.

Episcopal

 * Church records survey, West Virginia, Episcopal. Historical Records Survey.
 * Formation of the Diocese in 1878, in the Territory Now Known as the State of West Virginia.']Peterkin, George W. Charleston, West Virginia: Tribune Company, 1902.

Methodist

 * Church records survey, West Virginia, Methodist (Episcopal) South. Historical Records Survey.
 * Church records survey, West Virginia, Methodist (Prostestant). Historical Records Survey.

Presbyterian

 * Survey of church records, West Virginia, Presbyterian. Historical Records Survey.

Books

 * Jewell T. Clark, and Elizabeth Terry Long. A Guide to Church Records in the Archives Branch of the Virginia State Library. Richmond, Va.: Virginia State Library, 1981. 975.5 K23c

Correspond with or visit the actual churches.
Some records are still held in the local churches. Contact the current minister to find out what records are still available.
 * Make an appointment to look at the records. Or ask the minister of the church to make a copy of the record for you.
 * To find church staff available, you might have to visit on Sunday.
 * Ask for small searches at a time, such as one birth record or a specific marriage. Never ask for "everything on a family or surname".
 * A donation ($25-$40) for their time and effort to help you would be appropriate.
 * If the church has a website, you may be able to e-mail a message.
 * See the Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters.
 * Each denomination page offers an online address directory of local churches for that denomination.
 * West Virginia Christian Church Directory (Church Angel.com)

Check the church records collections in archives and libraries.
Some church records have been deposited for preservation in government archives or in libraries. Watch for links to digitized, online records offered by the archives. Some archives provide research services for a fee. For others, if you cannot visit in person, you might hire a researcher. '''Here you will find archive information unique to the state. Many more archives are kept by denomination. For denominational archives, go to  Searching for Church Records by Denomination.

West Virginia University Library

Archives and History Library.


 * West Virginia and Regional History Collection

Library of Virginia.

Baptist
West Virginia Baptist Historical Society Route #2 Box 304 Ripley WV 25271 Telephone 304-372-3675

Lutheran
Tri-Synod Archives Thiel College 75 College Avenue Greenville, PA 16125 Phone: (724) 589-2131
 * Archives hold records for closed churches. For open churches write directly to the local church.

Methodist
Methodist Historical Society West Virginia Wesleyan College Annie M. Pfeiffer Library 59 College Avenue Buckhannon, WV 26201 Telephone: 304-473-8013 Fax: 304-473-8888 Email: [mailto:librarian@wvwc.edu librarian@wvwc.edu]

Episcopal
Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia 1608 Virginia Street East P.O. Box 5400 Charleston, WV 25361 Ph: 304-344-3597 Fax: 304-343-3295 [A History and Record of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of West Virginia: and Before the Formation of the Diocese in 1878, in the Territory Now Known as the State of West Virginia.Peterkin, George W. Charleston, West Virginia: Tribune Company, 1902.

Roman Catholic
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston serves West Virginia:

Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston 1300 Byron Street P.O. Box 230 Wheeling, WV 26003 Telephone: 304-233-0880 or 1- 888-434-6237 Fax: 304-233-0890

United Brethren
Historical Library Church of the Brethren 1451 Dundee Avenue Elgin, IL 60120 Telephone: 847-742-5100 Fax: 847-742-6103

Correspond with genealogical or historical societies.
Some church records have been given to historical societies. Also, historical societies may be able to tell you where the records are being held. To find a society near you, consult these lists:
 * Society Hill List of West Virginia Societies

Next, go to the Wiki article for your ancestors' denomination.
There are frequently additional, nationwide or regional archives and online collections for each denomination. Find the article for your ancestors' denomination and follow the instructions there to access these sources.

Carefully compare any record you find to known facts about the ancestor
You will possibly find many different people with the same name as your ancestor, especially when a family stayed in a locality for several generations, and several children were named after the grandparents or aunts and uncles. Be prepared to find the correct church records by organizing in advance as many of these exact details about the ancestor as possible:
 * name, including middle name and maiden name
 * names of all spouses, including middle and maiden name
 * exact or closely estimated dates of birth, marriage, and death
 * names and approximate birthdates of children
 * all known places of residence
 * occupations
 * military service details

Carefully evaluate the church records you find to make sure you have really found records for your ancestor and not just a "near match". If one or more of the details do not line up, be careful about accepting the entry as your ancestor. There are guiding principles for deciding how to resolve discrepancies between records that are seemingly close. For more instruction in evaluating evidence, read the Wiki article, Evaluate the Evidence.