Floyd County Historical Records and Genealogy

Floyd County, Virginia holds genealogy records dating to 1831 at its Circuit Court in the town of Floyd, in the Blue Ridge highlands of southwest Virginia. The clerk maintains land records, marriage and probate documents, court files, and birth and death registers, along with a free VADeed Alert notification service and remote access to land records by subscription. Researchers searching for ancestors in Floyd County will find a solid archive with good online access tools.

Floyd County Circuit Court

The Floyd County Circuit Court is located at 100 East Main Street, Room 200, Floyd, Virginia 24091. The phone number is (540) 745-9330. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Recording stops 15 minutes before closing, so plan to arrive early if you need to record a document. Court terms begin the first Tuesday of January, April, July, and October, and court convenes at 9:30 a.m. every Tuesday.

Floyd County was created from Montgomery County on February 1, 1831 and named for Governor John Floyd, who served Virginia from 1830 to 1834. The county is in the Blue Ridge highlands and has a character shaped by its mountain setting. The clerk has maintained records since the county's founding, and the archive from 1831 forward is intact. There is no known history of courthouse disasters or major record losses in Floyd County.

The clerk's office maintains land records, marriage, divorce, probate, and court records from 1831. Birth and death records from 1852 to 1872 are also held at the office. Land indices are computerized from 1970 to the present. Other indices are computerized from January 1, 1994. Secure remote access to images of land records is available online with a quarterly subscription fee.

Note: Recording cutoff is 15 minutes before the 4:30 p.m. closing time, so if you need to file or record documents rather than just research, plan to arrive before 4:15 p.m.

VADeed Alert and Online Access

VADeed Alert is a free notification service offered through Floyd County that sends email alerts when documents are recorded matching your name or Tax Map/Parcel ID number. This service is primarily designed to help property owners monitor for fraudulent recordings, but genealogy researchers can also use it to track when new documents involving surnames they are researching are recorded. The service is free to sign up and provides automatic notifications without requiring repeated manual searches.

Secure remote access to images of land records is available online with a quarterly subscription fee. This service lets you view and search recorded deeds, deeds of trust, plats, and other land instruments from your home computer. Land indices are computerized from 1970 forward, so online searching is most effective for that period. For earlier records, in-person visits to the courthouse or microfilm searches through the Library of Virginia are necessary.

Contact the Floyd County Circuit Court clerk's office directly at (540) 745-9330 to get current subscription rates and sign-up procedures for the remote access service. Fees are set quarterly and may change.

The computerized indices starting in 1994 make searching Floyd County's modern court records faster than working through older hand-written index books. For records from 1831 through the early 1990s, the older bound index books in the courthouse are the primary finding tool.

Floyd County Genealogy Records

The clerk's office holds marriage, divorce, probate, court, and land records from 1831. These collections cover the full history of the county from its founding through the present. Birth and death records are available from 1852 to 1872, which is an earlier starting date than many Virginia counties. The period from 1852 to 1872 covers the Civil War years and is genealogically significant for tracking family changes during that period. Virginia's statewide birth and death registration began in 1912, so the period from 1872 to 1912 is a gap in the local vital records collection.

Marriage records from 1831 include bonds, registers, and licenses depending on the period. The oldest marriage bonds from the 1830s and 1840s are particularly useful for identifying family relationships through the bondsmen, who were typically close male relatives of the bride. Later marriage registers include more detailed information about both parties' ages and parents.

Probate records from 1831 are a rich source for Floyd County family history. Wills from the mid-19th century document the first generation of county residents and name their children and other heirs. Estate inventories from this period list personal property in detail, including tools, livestock, and household goods. For researchers tracing families from the county's founding generation, the probate files from the 1830s through 1870s are often the most informative documents available.

For families in the area before 1831, the records would be in Montgomery County. Montgomery County was formed from Fincastle County in 1776. Researchers tracing Floyd County ancestry back to the colonial period need to search Montgomery County and then Fincastle County records at the Library of Virginia.

How to Search Floyd County Genealogy

In-person visits to the courthouse at 100 East Main Street in Floyd are the most complete way to access the archive. Deed books, will books, marriage registers, and court order books from 1831 forward are available for review. The office is open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Plan your visit to arrive with enough time to work through the materials you need.

For land records from 1970 forward, the online subscription service provides remote access. Contact the office at (540) 745-9330 to subscribe. For older land records and for non-land record types, in-person visits or microfilm research are necessary. The Library of Virginia holds Floyd County records on microfilm and may have digitized selected collections through the Virginia Memory portal.

FamilySearch has published Virginia-wide collections that cover Floyd County. Virginia Births and Christenings 1584-1917, Virginia Deaths and Burials 1853-1912, and Virginia County Marriage Records 1771-1989 are all searchable at no cost. The FamilySearch wiki for Floyd County summarizes available record types and their beginning dates.

For vital records after 1912, contact the Virginia Department of Health Office of Vital Records. Virginia's vital records statutes govern access to birth and death certificates from 1912 forward.

Libraries and Regional Research Resources

The Library of Virginia in Richmond is the state's primary genealogy archive. The LVA holds Floyd County records on microfilm and has digitized selected collections through the Virginia Memory portal. The Chancery Records Index at the LVA may include Floyd County chancery cases that contain detailed testimony about family relationships and property matters. These cases are searchable by party name through the online index.

The Virginia Genealogical Society provides statewide resources and maintains published genealogies and surname files in their Richmond library. The society has published materials covering southwest Virginia families, including those in Floyd County and the surrounding Blue Ridge region. Their publications are available to members and through interlibrary loan.

For cemetery research, Find A Grave has documented many Floyd County burials through volunteer contributions. Local churches in the Floyd area, including Baptist, Methodist, and Brethren congregations, also kept registers that may document families from the 19th century forward. These church records can provide birth, marriage, and death dates that supplement or predate the official county records. The Virginia Courts system maintains online case indexes for more recent circuit court records.

Note: Floyd County's position in the Blue Ridge highlands means that families in this area often had ties to Montgomery, Carroll, Patrick, and Franklin Counties. Searching adjacent counties is frequently necessary for complete genealogical coverage of Floyd County families, who often migrated through the mountain corridors of southwest Virginia.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Floyd County and each keeps its own genealogy records at the local Circuit Court Clerk's office.