Virginia Archives Month 2026

Remember Me: Death & Memorial in the Archives

Death Records in Virginia

Civil death registrations and certificates can reveal a remarkable amount of information about a person’s life and help researchers discover or confirm details such as:

• Name

• Race

• Sex

• Name of enslaver, if enslaved

• Date of birth and/or age at death (years,

months and days)

• Place of birth

• Marital status

• Occupation

• Date and place of death

• Cause of death

• Burial location

• Parental information for the deceased

(name and place of birth)

Death records can also offer valuable insight into the lived experiences of surviving relatives. For instance, they may help explain abrupt or substantial shifts to a family’s economic or social circumstances or shed light on decisions regarding remarriage, relocation or the division of property.

However, civil registrations and certificates are only part of the broader historical record surrounding death and burial in Virginia. Additional sources can trace how and when someone may have died, where they may have been laid to rest and how they may have been remembered by their communities.

Government Records

Collections to consider:

Civil records such as Coroner’s Inquests and Mortality Schedules

Court records such as Commonwealth/Criminal Causes and Chancery Causes

Public welfare records such as the Board of Overseers of the Poor

State prison records such as the Virginia Penitentiary

Records from state facilities for mental health and developmental disabilities such as Eastern State Hospital or Central State Hospital

Legislative records such as the House & Senate Journals for commemorative resolutions or appropriations for public memorials

State commissions focused on commemoration such as the Virginia War Commission and the Virginia Civil War Commission

State-sponsored programs focused on document­ing historic landscapes, including burial grounds and community or family cemeteries, such as the Virginia History Inventory

Community Institution Records

Organizations, societies or clubs founded for religious, social, educational or charitable purposes often maintained records that may include information on funeral services or other commemorative activities and any financial support provided to surviving relatives or other beneficiaries.

Collections to consider:

Mutual Aid Societies

Fraternal Organizations

Civic and Social Clubs

Labor Unions and Workers’ Organizations

Private Cemetery Foundations

Religious Institutions (Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples)

Business Records

These records can be especially useful as they document the practical arrangements and financial transactions that frequently followed a person’s passing. They may also provide additional details on kinship, ethnicity or religious affiliations.

Collections to consider:

Undertakers and Funeral Homes

Monument Companies

Life or Burial Insurance Companies

Casket suppliers such as Cabinetmakers and Furniture Dealers

Military Records

In addition to verifying military service and funeral honors for individuals, these records can be helpful in documenting last place of residence, interment details and financial disbursements as well as additional information such as commendations, deployments or injuries that may be absent from civilian sources.

Collections to consider:

Service and Personnel Records

Casualty Reports

Pension Files and Benefit Applications

Unit Records and Histories

Memorial Rolls and Honor Lists

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800 East Broad St. | Richmond, VA 23219 | lva.virginia.gov

Death Records related to Black and African American history

Researching the history and genealogy of people of Black descent in America, particularly in Virginia, requires a specialized approach. This guide is meant to be supplemental to the resources highlighted in the 2026 Virginia Archives Month Zine: “Remember Me: Death and Memorial in the Archives.” The list below includes resources that should be considered when researching Black Virginians in the 19th century.

Records from Enslavement

African American historical and genealogical research is shaped by the institution of slavery in which enslaved people were legally recorded as property before the Civil War. For enslavers, a death meant a direct financial loss, which could result in some form of historical documentation. However, there were no legal requirements for enslavers to record the deaths of enslaved people or even report such information to government officials. Instead, researchers can find evidence of these losses in business and personal records such as:  

• Business, Church or Plantation Account Books
• Ship Manifests or Ship Logs
• Family Bibles
• Estate Inventories or Fiduciary Records

Additionally, researchers might try searching records from the Virginia Auditor of Public Accounts, which include public claims that enslavers filed to obtain payment when the state sentenced their enslaved person(s) to execution.

Records from Post-Emancipation

In the post-Civil War era, African Americans built upon existing and established new communities centered around businesses such as Black-owned funeral homes and Black-owned newspapers. These institutions became the primary keepers of community history, making funeral programs and obituaries in Black newspapers important resources for researching death.  

In March 1865, Congress established the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands to aid formerly enslaved individuals’ transition to freedom and citizenship. This “Freedmen’s Bureau” also collected information on formerly enslaved people, generating documentation such as death registers and burial records.

800 East Broad St. | Richmond, VA 23219 | lva.virginia.gov