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McDowell County History and Information |
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County History |
Court Records |
Vital Records |
CENSUS Records |
TAX Records |
Military Records |
Church & Cemetery | Maps & Atlases | Genealogy Addresses | Genealogy Related Sites | |
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McDowell County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on February 28, 1858, from parts of Tazewell County (Virginia). The county was named in honor of James McDowell (1795-1851). The son of Irish immigrants, he served as a member of the Virginia Assembly (1831-1843), was the 25th Governor of Virginia (1843-1846), and represented Virginia in U.S. House of Representatives from 1846 until his death in 1851. In an effort to raise revenue following the American Revolutionary War, the newly formed federal government sold vast areas of unoccupied land to land speculators, typically as low as three cents per acre. In 1794, three large land grants were sold that covered all of the present county and more. Wilson Cary Nicholas purchased a land grant of 300,000 acres and another 320,000 acre land grant with Jacob Kenney. This latter land grant was said to have covered most of the present McDowell County. It was sold the following year to Robert Morris (1734-1806), the famous wealthy financier who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, used his financial fortune to underwrite the expenses of the American Revolutionary Army, and, late in life, lost his fortune and spent three years in debtor's prison. Also, in 1794, David Paterson purchased a 150,00 acre land grant that may have included a small portion of the present county. He sold it to Robert Pollard the following year. Thus, in 1795, Robert Morris owned nearly all of land that is now known as McDowell County. Mathias Harman and his wife Lydia were the first English settlers in the present county. They lived in a cabin along the Dry Fork River as early as 1802. In 1829, William Fletcher was issued a patent for 20 acres of land at the mouth of Little Indian Creek in the present city limits of Welch. In 1825, Moses A. Cartwright and his wife Clary also moved to the present location of Welch. Other early settlers within the county were John and James Milam, Philip Lambert and Amos Totten. County Seat - The county had only 282 land-owning families (called freeholders) when it was formed in 1858. The act creating the county specified that the county seat was to be located at Perryville, and the initial meetings of the county court where held there, in the home of George W. Payne. The construction of a courthouse, jail and other public buildings was delayed, however, due to a dispute concerning the ownership of the site selected (its title was vested in minors) and a lawsuit concerning the commission appointed to make the selection. The delay continued and extended through the Civil War years, with the court meetings taking place throughout the county. In 1867, the West Virginia state legislature passed a law locating the county seat on the lands of Philip Lambert, near Coalwood. Then, in 1872 the state legislature allowed the county residents to select the location of the county seat and they choose Perryville, then the largest town in the county. As the population around Welch increased during the early 1890s, the citizens of that town demanded that the county seat be moved there. In 1892, the residents of the county voted to move the county seat to Welch. The citizens of Perryville contested the election, claiming that the citizens of Welch had cheated by importing numerous railroad workers who had no intention to staying in the county and paid them to vote for Welch. To avoid violence, shortly after the election James A. Strother and Trigg Tabor secretly moved the county records from Perryville to Welch in two wagons. The county seat has remained in Welch since 1892. Welch was settled in the early 1820s by William Fletcher. However, the town did not grow until the late 1880s. In 1880, there were only two or three houses and one store, owned by Squire W. G. Hunt, in the "town." In 1885 (or 1888), Captain Isaiah Welch surveyed the area as a potential site for a logging or mining operation. He, along with J. G. Bramwell and J. H. Duhring, purchased about 165 acres of land from John Henry Hunt, comprising most of present day Welch. The deal was reportedly for $40 and Captain Welch's sorrel mare, Cellum (other accounts report that the "$40 and a horse" was a deposit to bind the deal, a deed was later recorded suggesting that the real price was $2,155.75). Captain Welch's investment paid off when the railroad reached the town in the fall of 1891. Now that the town had access to the "outside" world, it became more attractive as a place to live and work. As the town began to grow, Captain Welch and his partners platted the town into lots for sale in 1893. The town was incorporated and named in honor of Captain Welch in 1894. The nation's first war memorial dedicated to the actions of African-American veterans of World War I is located at Kimball. Also, McDowell County has the distinction of being the home of Minnie Buckingham Harper (R-McDowell) who became the first female, African-American state legislator in the United States when she was appointed to the West Virginia House of Delegates on January 10, 1928 by Governor Howard Gore to fill a vacancy caused by the death of her husband. See also Extended History for more historical details. Areas adjacent to McDowell County are Wyoming County (north), Mercer County (east), Tazewell County, Virginia (south), Buchanan County, Virginia (west), Mingo County (northwest). McDowell County Cities and Towns Include Algoma, Anawalt, Asco, Ashland, Avondale, Bartley, Berwind, Big Sandy, Bradshaw, Canebrake, Capels, Caretta, Coalwood, Crumpler, Cucumber, Davy, Eckman, Elbert, Elkhorn, English, Filbert, Gary, Gilliam, Havaco, Hemphill, Hensley, Iaeger, Isaban, Jenkinjones, Jolo, Keystone, Kimball, Kyle, Leckie, Maybeury, McDowell, Mohawk, Newhall, Northfork, Pageton, Panther, Raysal, Roderfield, Skygusty, Squire, Superior, Switchback, Thorpe, Twin Branch, Vallscreek, Vivian, War, Warriormine, Welch, Wilcoe, Worth, Yukon
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McDowell County Clerk has Land Records from 1868,
Marriage Records from 1859, Probate Records from 1893 and Birth & Death Records from 1872 -Present and is located at the Courthouse,
90
Wyoming Street, Suite 109,
Welch, WV 24801; 304-436-8544, Fax:
304-436-8576 . McDowell County Clerk of Circuit Court has Court Records from 1859 and is located at the Courthouse,
90 Wyoming Street, Suite
111, Welch, WV 24801-0400; 304-436-8532, Fax:
304-436-8576. Since West Virginia was part of Virginia prior to 1863, see Virginia Databases for all records before that date. he McDowell County Courthouse in Welch sits atop a hillside overlooking downtown from Wyoming Street. It is the third courthouse for the county. The first was located in Wilco and the second in Perryville, both of which were log structures. The current courthouse was designed by Frank Milburn Pierce and represents the Romanesque Revival style. The main entrance is recessed beneath a stone frontispiece of Byzantine-style columns supporting a balustraded architrave. Inside, the cast iron stairway takes one to the courtroom, which occupies the entire upper floor of this 1893 building. The steps to the courthouse are infamously associated with the murders of Sid Hatfield and Edward Chambers by coal company agents. On August 1, 1921, Sid Hatfield was shot to death as he approached the building to stand trial for a shooting incident. He had just returned from Washington, D.C. where he had been scheduled to testify in front of the US Senate Committee on Labor and Education. A well-known labor leader and union organizer, he had participated in the May 19, 1920 “Matewan Massacre,” during which seven company guards, the mayor of Matewan and two union men were killed. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Court Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Court Records by clicking the link below:
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Vital Records, 350 Capitol St, Rm 165, Charleston, WV 25301-3701, Please allow up to approximately 2-3 weeks for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail. They have the following records:
Order In Person: The certificates may be ordered by coming into this office. If you want the copy the same day, our hours for same day service are Monday - Friday 8:30 - 5:00 Eastern Time except for official holidays. The West Virginia Vital Records Office is located at Room 165, 350 Capitol Street, Charleston, WV 25301-3701; Phone: 304-558-9100.
Map 1, Map 2 Since West Virginia was part of Virginia prior to 1863, see Virginia Databases for all records before that date. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
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Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for McDowell County, West Virginia are (See Virginia Censuses 1860) 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in McDowell County, West Virginia are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1860, 1870 and 1880. (NOTE: For the years 1860, McDowell County was located in Virginia) See Also Statewide Records that exist for West Virginia Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Census Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Census Records by clicking the link below: |
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Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for West Virginia and other states. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Maps. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Maps by clicking the link below: |
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The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Military Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Military Records by clicking the link below:
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While people were taxed in Virginia prior to 1782, not many tax lists for that early period have survived, and the originals that have survived are at the Virginia State Library. Colonial period taxes were imposed on the personal property of males who were twenty-one and older, and called "tithables." While there is no comprehensive list or collection of early tax lists, many fragments are printed throughout Virginia genealogical literature West Virginia has one of the most complete sets of old tax records in existence. Land tax records dating from 1782 to 1936 for all counties, with some through 1959, are available at the Archives and History Library in Charleston. Most county clerks have duplicate copies in their offices. As noted in the section on Virginia, the Virginia State Library has the original unindexed personal property tax records from 1782 to 1863. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Tax Records by clicking the link below: |
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The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
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There are many churches and cemeteries in McDowell County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the McDowell County Tombstone Transcription Project. Many religious groups have deposited their records at the West Virginia and Regional History Collection. Church record inventories compiled as part of the Historical Records Survey are available there and at the FHL. For a complete discussion of early church records, see Virginia-Church Records. The most extensive collection of West Virginia tombstone inscriptions was compiled by the Historical Records Survey. Available at the West Virginia and Regional History Collection and on microfilm at the FHL, the collection includes inscriptions through 1939-40. The DAR and others have published volumes of cemetery records. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
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When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for McDowell County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing McDowell County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
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