Records that survive
These are the record series the Library of Virginia has on microfilm for City of Charlottesville, with the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps; it doesn't mean every year in between survives.
Land and deeds
- Deed Book1888–1902
- General Index to Deeds1888–1961
- Release Deed Book1892–1920
Wills
- General Index to Wills1888–1986
- Will Book1888–1915
Estates and guardianships
- Fiduciary Book1895–1913
- Inventories and Appraisements1897–1934
- Bond Book1908–1910
- Trustees Bond Book1971–1987
- General Index to Fiduciary Book1977–1986
Marriages, births and deaths
- General Index to Marriage Registers1888–1987
- Marriage Licenses1888–1901
- Marriage Register1888–1948
Court orders and minutes
- Chancery Issue Docket1888–1960
- Chancery Order Book1888–1986
- General Index to Judgment Lien Dockets1888–1966
- Judgment Lien Docket Book1888–1986
- Law Order Book1888–1904
- General Index to Chancery Causes1893–1982
- General Index to Common Law Order Book1963–1986
- Certificates of Fictitious Names and Co-Partnerships1983–1986
- Common Law Order Book1985–1986
Bonds and oaths
- Commissioners' Bond Book1895–1985
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
- City of Charlottesville official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the circuit court clerk's office, and any online record search the independent city 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: City of Charlottesville 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, Charlottesville" 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: Became an independent city in 1902, separating from Albemarle County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Albemarle County
Records stay with the county that created them. The atlas dates this city's independence to 1902, when Virginia's new constitution separated every city from its county. Many older cities already kept some of their own court records (hustings court records, for example), so search both the city's records and the county's. 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 independent city sooner or later, as witnesses, jurors, road workers or parties to a suit.