Records that survive
These are the record series the Library of Virginia has on microfilm for City of Norfolk, 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 Book1784–1866
- Hustings1784–1872
- Survey of City Lots1832–1883
Wills
- General Index to Wills1784–1937
- Will Book1834–1904
Estates and guardianships
- Inventories, Appraisements, Accounts of Sales1800–1910
- Guardians' Accounts1804–1850
- Guardians' Bonds1836–1870
- Inventories, Appraisements1850–1875
- Record of Fiduciaries1850–1882
- Record of Reports1850–1874
Marriages, births and deaths
- Register of Births1792–1896
- Marriage Bonds1797–1850
- Returns of Marriages, Births, Etc1799–1853
- Marriage Bonds, Ministers' Returns1802–1859
- Marriage Certificates, Ministers' Returns, Consent Forms, Marriage Licenses1842–1869
- Marriage Licenses Issued1850–1857
- Marriage Register1853–1904
- Register of Deaths1853–1897
- Marriage Licenses1863–1909
- Birth Record Index Cards1900–1963
- Death Record Index Cards1900–1963
Court orders and minutes
- Order Book1761–1870
- Chancery Order Book1833–1872
- Common Law Order Book1833–1866
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 Norfolk 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 Norfolk 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, Norfolk" 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 Norfolk County (extinct)
Check the parent county for earlier records: Norfolk 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.