Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

Use microfilm copies, Albemarle County (Va.) Reels 62 and 233.

Preferred Citation

Albemarle County (Va.) Marriage Register No. 1 and Index, Albemarle County (Va.) Reels 62 and 233, Albemarle County Court Records, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

Index to Marriage Register No. 1, 1854-1893, came to the Library of Virginia in a shipment of court papers from Albemarle County.

Reel 62 was generated by the Genealogical Society of Utah while filming in the Albemarle County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.

Reel 233 was generated by Backstage Library Works through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Program.

Historical Information

Albemarle County was created by a statute of 1744 and formed from Goochland County; part of Louisa County was added in 1761 and islands in the Fluvanna (now the James) River in 1770. The court met for the first time on 8 February 1745. The county was named for William Anne Keppel, second earl of Albemarle, and governor of Virginia from 1737 to 1754.

In 1853, the General Assembly passed a law requiring the systematic statewide recording of vital statistics. The marriage register, still compiled by the county clerk from ministers' returns and other marriage records, became more standardized and comprehensive.

The original marriage bonds and certificates, from which these volumes were compiled, were created by the County Court.

Scope and Content

Albemarle County (Va.) Marriage Register No. 1, 1854-1903, records marriages in the county from the mid-nineteenth century until early twentieth century. The original volume is found in the Albemarle County Circuit Court Clerk's Office. A copy of the volume is found on Reel 62. The register contains information such as a consecutive line number for each entry, the date and place of marriage, the full names of both parties, age and condition of parties before marriage, birth places of parties, places of residences of parties, names of their parents, occupation of husband, the name of the person performing the ceremony. By 1866, the remarks section contains the race of the parties (white or colored). The volume has 205 leaves. Some pages of the volume include the dates and names of marriage bonds and certificates, for various years, not recorded in the register.

Albemarle County (Va.) Index to Marriage Register No. 1, 1854-1893, combines references to both brides and grooms on specific page numbers (pages 1-150). The volume is arranged by the bride or groom's surname (A-Z) within specific year according to page number found in register. The index references both white and colored marriages . As indicated, this volume is only a partial index to Marriage Register No. 1. Indexes to Marriage Registers Nos. 1-3, 1854-1940 is a single volume found on Reel 62. This reel contains a complete copy of Index to Marriage Register No. 1. Reel 233 contains only a partial copy (1854-1893) of Index to Marriage Register No. 1.

Related Material

Additional Albemarle County Marriage Records can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm"

Albemarle County is one of Virginia's Lost Record Localities. Additional Albemarle Court Records may be found in the Virginia Lost Records Localities Collection at the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Localities Database found at the Library of Virginia's web site.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Albemarle County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• African Americans--Marriage--Virginia--Albemarle County.
• African Americans--Virginia--Albemarle County.
• Clergy--Virgnia--Albemarle County.
• Marriage--Virginia--Albemarle County.

Geographical Names:

• Albemarle County (Va.)--History.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Indexes (reference sources)--Virginia--Albemarle County.
• Local government records--Virginia--Albemarle County.
• Marriage records--Virginia--Albemarle County.
• Marriage registers--Virginia--Albemarle County.

Added Entry - Corporate Name:

• Albemarle County (Va.) County Court.

Adjunct Descriptive Data

Marriage Register No. 1 is located in the Albemarle County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.