Record loss
Most of this locality's early records are gone. The county's records were destroyed by fire in 1869.
Before you give up, try these:
- The Library of Virginia's Lost Records Localities Digital Collection: copies of deeds, wills and other records from this place that turned up as evidence in other courts' files.
- Land tax and personal property tax books, which begin in 1782. Copies went to the state, so they often survived when the courthouse records didn't.
- The records of the parent county and neighboring counties, where families often bought land, went to court or married.
- Chancery suits, church records, newspapers, Bible records and military pension files. See Burned Counties.
Records that survive
These are the record series the Library of Virginia has on microfilm for Buckingham County, with the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps; it doesn't mean every year in between survives.
Land and deeds
- Surveyor's Book1762–1915
- Surveyors' Plat Book1762–1858
- Deed Book1869–1901
- Deeds and Wills1869–1904
- Grantee Index to Deeds1869–1959
- Grantor Index to Deeds1869–1959
- Petition for Registration of Land - S.L. Manson, et.al1910–1918
- Land Registration Order Book1917–1920
- Register of Titles1920
- Land Book1930–1931
Wills
- General Index to Wills1869–1937
- Will Book1869–1927
Marriages, births and deaths
- Index to Births and Deaths1867–1917
- Register of Births1869–1894
- Register of Deaths1869–1896
- Register of Marriages1869–1972
- Certificates of Death1915–1918
Court orders and minutes
- Chancery Order Book1869–1903
- Common Law Order Book1869–1926
- Index to Common Law Order Book1869–1926
- Index to Determined Chancery Causes1869–1975
- Index to Judgment Lien Dockets1869–1976
- Judgment Lien Docket and Execution Book1869–1976
- Minute Book1869–1924
Military and pensions
- List of property lost during the War1869–1873
Bonds and oaths
- Commissioner's Bond Book1887–1944
- Bond Book1890–1927
See every volume and reel number at the Library of Virginia
Source: Library of Virginia, County and City Records on Microfilm. Reels marked for interlibrary loan can be borrowed through your local library.
Where to find the records
- Buckingham County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the circuit court clerk's office, and any online record search the county offers.
- The circuit court clerk's office
Virginia's deed, will and marriage books are usually kept by the clerk of the circuit court for the county or city, though many older records have been moved to the Library of Virginia. Call before you visit; hours and access to older volumes vary.
- Library of Virginia: Buckingham County records on microfilmfree
Every filmed volume with its years and reel number. Use the reels in Richmond; many can be borrowed through interlibrary loan.
- Library of Virginia: Chancery Records Indexfree
Search equity court suits by name. They're rich in family detail: estate divisions, heirs and land disputes. Many localities' suits are scanned and free to view.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Virginia, Buckingham" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: Albemarle County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Albemarle County
Later formed partly from Buckingham County: Appomattox County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1761, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Start with the deed and will books: they name relatives, neighbors and land. Then try the court order books, which mention almost everyone in the county sooner or later, as witnesses, jurors, road workers or parties to a suit.