Marion County, West Virginia Genealogy

United States

West Virginia

Marion County

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

County Facts County seat: Fairmont Organized: January 14, 1842 Parent County(s): Monongalia, Harrison Neighboring Counties Harrison  • Monongalia  • Taylor  • Wetzel See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

Francis Marion.JPG

The County was named for Francis Marion. The County has Fairmont as its seat and the County was created January 14, 1842. The County is located in the north central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Marion County Courthouse
217 Adams Street
Fairmont, WV 26554
Phone: 304-367-5440
Marion County Website

County Clerk has birth, marriage and death records from 1872.
Clerk of the Circuit Court has probate and land records.

Marion County, West Virginia Record Dates

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
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1872	1872	1872	1842	1842	1842	1870
Statewide registration for births and deaths began in 1917. General compliance by 1925.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

1842--Marion County was created 14 January 1842 from Monongalia and Harrison Counties. County seat: Fairmont For animated maps illustrating West Virginia county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation West Virginia County Boundary Maps" (1617-1995) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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:

Cities
Fairmont (county seat)	Mannington	Pleasant Valley
Towns
Fairview Barrackville Farmington	Grant Town Monongah Rivesville	White Hall Worthington
Unincorporated communities
Baxter Basnettville Beverly Hills Big Run Boothsville Brink Catawba Colfax Flyblow Forksburg Four States Grays Flat	Hebron Highland Hopewell Hutchinson Joetown Jordan Katy Kingmont Logansport Meadowdale Metz Montana	Montana Mines Paw Paw Pettyjohn Pine Grove Pleasant View Shagtown Seven Pines Stringtown Viola Wahoo Watson
Census-designated places
Carolina	Idamay	Rachel

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Marion County, West Virginia online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com WVGenWeb WVGenWeb Archives WVTombstone Project Interment WVGravestones Billion Graves Index at FamilySearch
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com Billion Graves EPodunk
See West Virginia Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

For tips on accessing Marion census records online, see: West Virginia Census.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1850	10,552	—
1860	12,722	20.6%
1870	12,107	−4.8%
1880	17,198	42.1%
1890	20,721	20.5%
1900	32,430	56.5%
1910	42,794	32.0%
1920	54,571	27.5%
1930	66,655	22.1%
1940	68,683	3.0%
1950	71,521	4.1%
1960	63,717	−10.9%
1970	61,356	−3.7%
1980	65,789	7.2%
1990	57,249	−13.0%
2000	56,598	−1.1%
2010	56,418	−0.3%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records

LDS Ward and Branch Records

• Fairmont

Genealogies

• Brand - Brand, Franklin Marion. The Brand Family of Monongalia County, Virginia (Now West Virginia). Morgantown, W. Va.: F.M. Brand, 1922. FHL Film 1033725 Item 7; digital version at FamilySearch Books Online - free.

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See West Virginia Land and Property for additional information about early West Virginia land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Marion County, West Virginia Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories see the wiki page section West Virginia Local Histories.

• History of the county of Marion, West Virginia at Ancestry ($)

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of West Virginia (1617-1995)
• Map of 1850 Virginia and West Virginia

Military Records

Civil War

Regiments. Service men in Marion 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 in Marion County:

- 19th Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Company D.

- 20th Regiment, Virginia Cavalry (Confederate). Companies A and B..

- 31st Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate). Company A (Marion Guards).

Records and histories are available, including:

• 1861-1865 West Virginia Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
• 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)

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1814-1991 West Virginia Naturalization Records, 1814-1991 at FamilySearch — index and images

Probate Records

Online Probate Records

• 1724-1978 West Virginia Wills and Probate Records 1724-1978 at Ancestry — index and images $
• 1756-1971 West Virginia Will Books 1756-1971 at FamilySearch — index and images
• Marion County West Virginia Will Books 1842-1970
• West Virginia Will Books

Tax Records

West Virginia real and personal property tax records are managed by the County Assessor in each county. Land and land improvements are considered real property while mobile property is classified as personal property.

Many County Assessors offer an online searchable database, where assessment record searches can be performed by name, account number, year, or mp/parcel number. Where online records are not available, requests for records can be made to the Assessment Office in person, by phone, or in writing.

The search for tax information can start here

Vital Records

• West Virginia Vital Records, 1865-1969 (varies) - Includes birth, death, and marriage.

Marriage

• 1780-1970 - West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970 at FamilySearch — index
• 1801-1962 - West Virginia, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
• 1851-1863 - Virginia Marriages 1851-1863 (Ancestry) ($).

Death

• 1804-1999 - West Virginia Deaths, 1804-1999 at FamilySearch — index

Research Facilities

Family History Centers

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes.

• Introduction to Family History Centers
  
• Fairmont West Virginia Family History Center

Libraries

• Marion County Library
  Monroe Street
  Fairmont, WV 26554

Societies

• Marion County Genealogical Club, Inc.
  Marion County Library
  Monroe Street
  Fairmont, WV 26554

Websites

• Marion County, WV History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• West Virginia Genealogy Network Community on Google+
• West Virginia Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
• Cyndi's List
• Linkpendium
• 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