Brunswick

Names of Families in Brunswick County Genealogy, Wills, Estates, Marriages

Brunswick County was created in 1720 and was named after the House of Brunswick which had assumed the throne of England in 1714. The first settlement was Fort Christanna and the county seat today is Lawrenceville, Virginia. Some of the earliest settlers were Joseph Dunman, James Lunday, William Lucas, Francis Parham, Charles Ross, Richard Massey and Matthew Marshall.

Brunswick People Came from Different Parts of Virginia

In 1739, one of the largest landowners in the region, William Lucas, owned a plantation near the North Carolina line, 250 acres being the south side of the Meherrin River and 400 acres; also 100 acres on Little Creek. It appears that settlers to Brunswick County had families in Greensville County, Virginnia and other parts. Upon the death of George Brewer in 1744, he owned a plantation on both sides of the Roanoke River, 250 acres. Due to the proximity to North Carolina, the genealogist should also research Warren, Northampton and Halifax Counties in North Carolina. To better clarify the movements of families, it is best to review the deeds and tax digests, comparing them with the probate records of Brunswick and other counties.

Marriages

Marriages 1750 to 1861

Indexes to Probate Records

Index to Wills and Debentures, 1739-1750
Index to Wills, Inventories, Accounts, 1751-1769
Index to Wills, 1783-1785

Miscellaneous Wills, Estates

Adams, William, orphans of, Order Book 12 Allen, Anne, LWT (unrecorded) Brumbelow, Francis, LWT Hicks, James, Order Book 12 Hurst, Judith, Order Book 12 Johnson, William, Order Book 12 Jones, William, Order Book 12 Leftwich, Thomas (1784) Love, Hugh (1780) Martin, William, Order Book 12 McFarlane, Benjamin (1784) Miller, John Michael (1784) Mize, Edith, Order Book 12 Moon, Jacob (1784) Moore, William vs. John Ingram, Order Book 12 Parker, Thomas (1784) Parten, Lucy, LWT Patey, Salley, bastard children of (1784) Ray, Benjamin, son of Edith Mize, Order Book 12 Thompson, Frederick, orphan of Joanna Thompson, Order Book 12 Trigg, William and John (1784) Turner to Turner, Gift Deed Vinson, Thomas, Order Book 12 Walker, Amos, William and Joseph, sons of Rebecca, Order Book 12 Images of Orphans Estates 1740 to 1781 1828 to 1843 1843 to 1853

Digital Images of Wills, 1739 to 1750

Digital Images of Wills 1751-1761

Digital Images of Wills, 1764-1769

Digital Images of Wills, 1783-1785

Testators: Charles Oldham, Edward Taylor, Henry Chambless, James Fisher, James Hobbs, James Howeston, James Upchurch, John Dobbins, Joseph Hambleton, Joseph Wilks, Lewis Charles, Moses Ingraham, Richard Ramsey, William Holloday.

Traced genealogies and family histories of Brunswick County available to Members !

Bagwell

Duke

Edwards

Leftwich

Images of Brunswick County Wills, Inventories, Estates 1795 to 1804

Digital Images of Brunswick County Wills 1804 to 1812

Finding Old Virginia Records

The best place to search through the old courthouse books for Virginia is to do so at the Virginia State Library in Richmond. The old method of each courthouse making its oldest records available to visitors has changed. I have found that it is a waste of time and the reason is that the old books were sent to Richmond! About twenty years or more, I visited the Suffolk Court House and asked for the (formerly) Nansemond County records. They did not know what I was talking about. Virginia is a Commonwealth divided into three main branches, viz: the executive, legislative, and judiciary. Within those branches, there are over 100 state agencies and offices. Certain old counties have been made into independent cities, such as Suffolk. The records of the Library of Virginia make the distinction between City and County Records. Thus, a city might include a landscape of several old counties. One must use old maps to help in zeroing in on the old home place and knowing where the records are stored. Virginia Pioneers has digitized a vast number of old wills and estates, including those dating from the 17th century which was restored.

"Bean porridge hot, bean porridge cold; bean porridge in the pot; nine days old."

In old colonial times loaves of bread were made of mixed Indian meal and rye, not unlike the brown bread of our time. Baked pumpkin with milk was a favorite dish. Bean porridge was always a common article of food, which was made by boiling beans with the liquor in which corned beef had been cooked. It was very convenient for wood-choppers in winter to carry a frozen piece of porridge in their pockets and thaw it out for dinner in the woods. The longer it was kept, the better it tasted. Hence the common rhyme, ” Bean porridge hot, bean porridge cold; bean porridge in the pot; nine days old.” The cupboard or dresser had pewter plates, platters, and porringers. Square wooden plates were often used; but with some poorer families, there was one common dish used, from which the whole family helped themselves with their fingers. The use of forks was unknown. Instead, thick and pewter spoons were used as eating utensils. These were easily broken, and they often had to be melted and formed again into molds by men who traveled from house to house for this purpose. In fact shoemakers, tailors, dressmakers, butchers, and other highly useful artisans traveled about from one family to another in pursuit of work.