Welcome to the Isle of Wight County (Virginia) Historical Society

Antioch Church on Antioch Road

Hear Ye  Hear Ye

Veterans Project

Several people with strong ties to the Wakefield community have formed the Wakefield Historical Association.  Our first project is to preserve the history of our local veterans.  That includes veterans who may have lived in the Wakefield community, gone to school in Wakefield, or are buried in a Wakefield community cemetery.  Many Surry County veterans are buried in Wakefield cemeteries. The information we gather will be on display in the Art Gallery of the Wakefield Foundation on October 7th, Wakefield Day.  This has been a group effort with members gathering and forwarding information to Ralph Seeley who is compiling a book on some of our veterans’ stories. The group is also forwarding information to Thomas Huber who is putting together three ring binders containing short synopses of the veterans’ service and photos where available.  The book will be for sale and the binders will be on display.  Starting at 10 a.m. there will be a parade, food, games for children, music, and numerous other activities for all ages.

Please support our veterans’ project by submitting names, pictures, and military information on your veteran (living or deceased) to:

Gayle Boykin Lanier

P O Box 640

Wakefield, VA  23888

757/899-6451

Email:  gayle_lanier2@verizon.net

 

Nike-Ajax Missile Site

 

 Tour

NikeTour2 p.m. Saturday, May 20, July 15 and October 21 visit one of the Cold War’s few surviving Army Air-Defense Posts.  Local historian Albert Burckard hosts a short presentation and a walking tour of this site which contains the original barracks, mess hall, administration and recreation building, officer/non-commissioned officer family housing, fueling area and underground missile magazines.  The one-hour tour begins and ends at Nike Park in the Senior Center, 13036 Nike Park Road, Carrollton, Virginia 23314.  Reservations are not required. Please wear comfortable walking shoes.

Windsor Castle Kitchen Outbuilding

 Wolftrap Plantation on Emanual Church Road

Roland Edwards house, now owned by Thomas Barlow ... after fire in 2006

Old Bethany Church

~~~ PRESSROOM RELEASES ~~~~

 

Family Search Project Update

The FamilySearch project has been completed. All digital images of genealogical/historical records, including deeds, wills, marriage records, order books, land tax books, bond books, etc. can now be viewed on the FamilySearch website.

The link to FamilySearch has been provided on our Home Page – Genealogy section.
Working with Tony Gilreath from FamilySearch was a pleasure, and the project ran smoothly.

I also want to thank the Isle of Wight County Historical Society and all those who volunteered their time in unfolding all loose papers and documents and preparing the documents for digitization. The efforts of the volunteers made it possible to complete this project within a four-month period.

On a personal note, thank you again Volunteers! Your time is greatly appreciated.
Sharon Jones, Clerk

Genealogy / Research

The Clerk’s Office of the Circuit Court is a good place to conduct genealogical research. The Clerk’s Office contains the following materials:
Will records beginning in the 1600′s
Deed records beginning in the early 1700′s
Birth records 1853 to 1885
Death records 1853 to 1876
Marriage records beginning in 1772

We invite you to visit our spacious records room, where you can view documents on our public computers or pull the actual books from the shelves.

The Clerk’s office provides SRA (secure remote access) to our land records.($300.00 for six months subscription. SRA provides Internet access to Deeds and Wills…Date Range 1647 to present for Wills; and Date Range 1701 to present for Deeds. Also available are Marriage Licenses, Judgments, and Financing Statements…Date Range 1993 to present. The hardware and software used to generate these electronic records are supplied and maintained by Logan Systems, Inc.
 
If you are interested in signing up for SRA, please read our SRA cover letter and submit an application.

SRA Cover Letter
SRA Application

In 1980 documents of pre-1913 chancery causes (also known as “loose papers”) were transferred to the Library of Virginia, and said documents were then scanned and indexed by LVA, and are available to anyone free of charge. Just visit http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/chancery/, or simply go the http://www.lva.virginia.gov/ and search for Chancery Records Index. The digital images as well as the original case files are maintained at LVA at no cost to the County.
 
For additional records and information on how to begin tracing your family history visit the Library of Virginia’s Website. Many of the records stored in the Clerk’s Office can be accessed through this link.

On May 21, 2012 FamilySearch began capturing digital images of genealogical/historical records, including deeds, wills, marriage records, order books, land tax books, bond books, etc from 1647 to 1917. Today, all of these records are available online through the FamilySearch website.

For your convenience, if the researcher provides a book and page number reference, the Clerk’s Office staff will make copies at a cost of 50 cents per page. When you send in your request, please be sure to include a self-addressed, stamped envelope for returning of documents.
 

 

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This Page Updated:July 16, 2017