Using the Collections

Free access to select Ancestry.com materials from the Library of Virginia's collections. Available for Virginia residents only through Find It Virginia. Requires a valid Library of Virginia or Virginia public library card. GeoIP validation is used where available.

A classified index to The Dictionary of Virginia Biography (DVB), the first scholarly, comprehensive biographical reference work on Virginia.

A Library of Virginia partnership with Virginia's local public libraries to digitize and make publicly accessible yearbook collections held in libraries across the commonwealth. Funded through the Library Services & Technology Act (LSTA), a program of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

A guide to the Library's microfilm holdings of indexes to births (1853-1899) and marriages (1853-1935).

A guide to the Library's microfilm holdings of state vital statistics: births (1853-1896), deaths (1853-1896), and marriages (1853-1935).

A guide to the microfilm of the death certificates and related indexes for deaths in Virginia from 1912-1939.

A list of publications currently available from Virginia state agencies

The letters received for Governors Jefferson and Henry have been redigitized and are available separately.

A guide to the archival collection illustrating the development of Virginia's roads, canals and railroads during the nineteenth century.

A fully-searchable index to the personal names of Confederate soldiers as they appear in the Confederate Veteran magazine published between 1893 and 1932.

An ongoing project indexing more than 744 sources and listing approximately 34,402 Virginians who have died in service.

A list of newspaper titles published by Virginia's local Civilian Conservation Corps Camps during the New Deal.

A bibliography of American Newspapers cataloged and inventoried by the Virginia Newspaper Project.

This is a bibliography and guide to newspaper indexes in the collections of the Library of Virginia.

A proper name and subject index covering more than 40 newspaper titles primarily published in Petersburg, Va., 1797-1877.

An author/subject index for 1951-2002 and the table of contents for all volumes.

An index to city and county land tax records on microfilm.

An index to city and county personal property tax records on microfilm.

Research note explaining how to use the Virginia Colonial Records Project database.

Provides the complete contents of The Papers released to date: the Colonial Series (1748-1775), Revolutionary War Series (1775-1783), Confederation Series (1784-1788), Presidential Series (1788-1796), Retirement Series (1797-1799) and the complete diaries (1748-1799).

Contains the complete contents of the print edition: the Congressional Series (1751-1801), Secretary of State Series (1801-1805), Presidential Series (1809-1815), and Retirement Series (1817-1826).

Presents the complete contents of the print edition (1775-1835).

Provides the contents of the Main Series (1760-1804), volumes 1-12 of the Retirement Series (1809-1818), and volumes 1 and 2 of the Memorandum Books (a look at the daily life of Jefferson).

Presents the complete contents of the letterpress edition (1856-1924).

Provides biographical information for over 75,000 men and women born between 1713 and 1815, drawn from the digitized papers of the founding fathers and other documentary editions of the Founding Era collection.

Access to census records, family trees, vital records, historical maps, immigration records, city directories, military records, and much more. Free remote access to select Ancestry.com materials from the Library of Virginia collections is available to Virginia residents via Ancestry for Virginians, a Find It Virginia (finditva.com) resource.

An index to reference works containing multiple biographies such as biographical dictionaries, who’s who publications, subject encyclopedias, and literary criticism volumes.

Searchable U.S. federal census records (1790-1940), full-text access to thousands of local and family history books, Revolutionary War pension and bounty-land-warrant application files, city directories, and Freedman's Bank records (1865-1874).

Includes diaries, journals and narratives of explorers, emigrants, military men, Native Americans, and travelers. There are also family histories, folklore, and accounts regarding the development of farming and mining communities. These chronicles provide details regarding the social, political, economic, scientific, religious and agricultural characteristics of the communities in the vast region between Lexington, Kentucky and Winchester, Virginia, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Birmingham, Alabama.

Business records include ledger books, payroll books, cotton ginning books, work rules, account books, and receipts. Personal papers include family correspondence, diaries, and wills. The collection includes items from Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida plantations.

Includes corporate profiles and financial data on over 80 million companies.

U.S. and international company data including annual reports, stock prices, SEC filings, equity and industry reports, and company histories.

U.S. business and residential directory. Allows users to generate lists of businesses by location and other variables such as business type, sales volume, number of employees, and year established. White pages can be used to conduct market research or locate friends and relatives. Search options include name, address, median home value, median home income, phone number, and more.

Allows users to determine the publication status of U.S. books, ebooks, audio books, video, and multimedia titles. Users can also create lists of titles using various criteria such as awards won, format, audience category, review sources, and much more.

Provides support with creating resumes, writing cover letters, and applying for positions. Includes career exploration tools to assist with discovering interests and identifying new opportunities based on work or military experience.

A collection of general interest eBooks (fiction and non-fiction) in PDF and EPUB formats. There are classics of literature, popular works, texts for teens and children, and an extensive history collection. Compatible eBook readers include Apple (iOS) devices (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch) and Android devices (smartphones, tablets). For additional options, please see the full list of compatible devices. For technical assistance please visit the EBSCO support page.

Comprehensive readers' advisory resource with reading recommendations for fiction and nonfiction titles for all ages.

Access to the 20-volume Second Edition and 3 Additions Series volumes, as well as OED’s historical thesaurus.

Over 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works, plus the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.

Provides Virginia legal forms for divorce, wills and estates, real estate, bankruptcy, landlord tenant, power of attorney, name change, business incorporation and more.

Use this resource to locate congressional reports, hearings, bills, laws, and much more. Includes full text access to: the U.S. Congressional Serial Set, including the American State Papers (1789-present), bills and laws (1970-present), vote report (1987-present), and the Congressional Record (1985-present). See govinfo for additional full-text hearings. For earlier documents see A Century Of Lawmaking (Library of Congress).

Provides quick and easy access to current and historical census data and demographic information. Enables users to create maps and reports to help visually analyze and understand demography and social change throughout history. Includes US Census data from 1790 to 2010, American Community Survey updates, the Religious Congregations and Membership Study (1980-2000) and more.

Includes the most up-to-date information on the antique maps market, compiled from the offerings of hundreds of dealer and auction catalogs. The database currently contains over 80,000 entries, representing thousands of mapmakers, with new listings being routinely added as they become available.

Provides access to over 1.5 million U.S. cadastral (land ownership) maps from the late 1700’s to the present day and thousands of antiquarian maps covering the world (1400’s-1800’s). Includes geocoded maps which can be overlaid with present day Google map images and a Points of Interest Map Finding Tool to help users locate places and geographical features (e.g., buildings, streams, bridges, etc.). Provides access to over 1,000 city directories and to thousands of map-related images of family residences, buildings, advertisements, and more.

Historical Virginia fire insurance maps searchable by address or geographic coordinates. Allows maps from different years to be layered on top of each other and over modern street, satellite, and hybrid images. These maps are large-scale plans containing data that can be used to estimate the potential risk for urban structures. This includes information such as the outline of each building, the size, shape and construction materials, heights and functions of structures, and location of windows and doors. The maps also provide street names, street and sidewalk widths, property boundaries, building use, and house and block numbers.

Provides military records for over 4 million soldiers and thousands of battles, with over 17,000 photographs. Information which can be used for statistical analysis such as soldiers’ methods of entry into and exit from the military, age at enlistment, and the number of prisoners taken and casualties incurred during battles is also provided.

Regimental histories and first-person accounts compiled in the postwar period and early 20th century which chronicle the highs and lows of army life from 1861 through 1865. These accounts explore the reasons individuals volunteered, the experience of leaving home for the first time and entering camp, the clash of arms, the daily routines of camp life and garrison duty, and the anguish of imprisonment. Soldiers’ attitudes regarding army life, officers and fellow soldiers, the enemy, and the political questions of the war are candidly expressed. This collection comprises, in its entirety, the microfilm collection Travels in the Confederate States, as well as a small number of selected titles from the microfilm collection Travels in the New South I, 1865-1900.

Military records from the Civil War, Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican American and Early Indian wars, Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War. Also provides access to some non-military record collections (e.g., the African American Collection and the Native American Collection).

Searchable digital images of over 1,100 periodicals published between 1740 and 1940, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children's and women's magazines, and many other historically-significant periodicals.

A fully-indexed and keyword searchable electronic archive of the news and literary journal Harper's Weekly.

Full-text archives of over 1,000 leading academic journals across the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work. Off-site users can access all JSTOR journal content published prior to 1923 in the United States and prior to 1870 elsewhere, in addition to over 2,000 ebooks via JSTOR's Open Content program. Additional journal content can be accessed by using the Register & Read program.

Provides full-text articles from over 2500 foreign and domestic newspapers including the New York Times (1980-current), Washington Post (1977-current), and USA Today (1989-current). Includes death notices and obituaries. Provides access to popular magazines such as Consumer Reports, as well as academic journals and law reviews. Also includes company profiles and financial data and a broad array of federal and state legal resources. Please note: The legal resources can only be accessed at the Library.

Full-text magazines, reference books and primary source documents, as well as an extensive image collection containing photos, maps and flags.

Digital collection of select issues of more than 5,000 national, local, and foreign newspapers, with some content dating back to the 1700's. Virginia titles with extensive coverage include the Bee (Danville, VA), Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Danville Register, Harrisonburg Daily News Record, Progress Index (Petersburg, VA), Pulaski Southwest Times, Radford News Journal, and Winchester Star.

Full-text coverage for national and international newspapers, and radio/t.v. program transcripts. Virginia content includes select coverage for the Daily Press (1997-2009; Nov. 2014-), Free Lance-Star (2002-Nov. 2016; May 2017-),Carroll News (2011-), and Virginia Gazette (2009-). Select historical coverage is provided for many titles including the Progress Index (2008-2014), Roanoke Times (1998-2013), and Manassas Journal & Messenger (2007-2009).

A digital collection that includes nearly 2,000 pamphlets and complete runs of eight newspaper titles (including Richmond’s Daily Dispatch from 14 January 1852 through 30 December 1865) which were specifically selected for the regional and diverse perspectives they offer.

Digital reproductions of pages with a 3-month content embargo.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

An electronic newsstand that offers digital copies of popular magazines. Magazines can be downloaded or read offline using mobile apps for iOS and Android devices. To begin click on the 'Create New Account' link and enter your library card number. This database cannot be accessed using a Virginia driver's license or id number. Please note: your user name is your email address.

Provides full-text access (no images) to select content. This database does not include all published obituaries. It includes select content from the Richmond Times-Dispatch from Aug. 19, 1985-present and from the Richmond News Leader from Aug. 19, 1985-May 30, 1992. However, all articles are cited as being from the Richmond Times-Dispatch. For citations, the microfilm of the newspapers can be checked to determine the correct source.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

A database developed especially for beginning researchers in Kindergarten through Grade 5. Features a developmentally appropriate, visually graphic interface & curriculum-related, age appropriate content from the best elementary reference sources.

Designed for middle and high school students and adults who have a basic foundation in English grammar and reading but need adapted reading material for a variety of subjects. This database offers resources to help build background knowledge and improve study skills.

Provides access to over 500 classes covering subjects ranging from computer software and marine biology to gardening and meditation. Courses include lesson assignments, exams, discussion boards, and progress assessments.

Provides military records for over 4 million soldiers and thousands of battles, with over 17,000 photographs. Information which can be used for statistical analysis such as soldiers’ methods of entry into and exit from the military, age at enlistment, and the number of prisoners taken and casualties incurred during battles is also provided.

Provides the complete contents of The Papers released to date: the Colonial Series (1748-1775), Revolutionary War Series (1775-1783), Confederation Series (1784-1788), Presidential Series (1788-1796), Retirement Series (1797-1799) and the complete diaries (1748-1799).

Contains the complete contents of the print edition: the Congressional Series (1751-1801), Secretary of State Series (1801-1805), Presidential Series (1809-1815), and Retirement Series (1817-1826).

Presents the complete contents of the print edition (1775-1835).

Provides the contents of the Main Series (1760-1804), volumes 1-12 of the Retirement Series (1809-1818), and volumes 1 and 2 of the Memorandum Books (a look at the daily life of Jefferson).

Presents the complete contents of the letterpress edition (1856-1924).

Provides biographical information for over 75,000 men and women born between 1713 and 1815, drawn from the digitized papers of the founding fathers and other documentary editions of the Founding Era collection.

Searchable digital images of over 1,100 periodicals published between 1740 and 1940, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children's and women's magazines, and many other historically-significant periodicals.

Free access to select Ancestry.com materials from the Library of Virginia's collections. Available for Virginia residents only through Find It Virginia. Requires a valid Library of Virginia or Virginia public library card. GeoIP validation is used where available.

Access to census records, family trees, vital records, historical maps, immigration records, city directories, military records, and much more. Free remote access to select Ancestry.com materials from the Library of Virginia collections is available to Virginia residents via Ancestry for Virginians, a Find It Virginia (finditva.com) resource.

Includes the most up-to-date information on the antique maps market, compiled from the offerings of hundreds of dealer and auction catalogs. The database currently contains over 80,000 entries, representing thousands of mapmakers, with new listings being routinely added as they become available.

An index to reference works containing multiple biographies such as biographical dictionaries, who’s who publications, subject encyclopedias, and literary criticism volumes.

A guide to the Library's microfilm holdings of indexes to births (1853-1899) and marriages (1853-1935).

A guide to the Library's microfilm holdings of state vital statistics: births (1853-1896), deaths (1853-1896), and marriages (1853-1935).

A guide to the archival collection illustrating the development of Virginia's roads, canals and railroads during the nineteenth century.

Allows users to determine the publication status of U.S. books, ebooks, audio books, video, and multimedia titles. Users can also create lists of titles using various criteria such as awards won, format, audience category, review sources, and much more.

Provides support with creating resumes, writing cover letters, and applying for positions. Includes career exploration tools to assist with discovering interests and identifying new opportunities based on work or military experience.

Describes these rich court records that often contain useful information for biographical, genealogical, and historical research. Chancery cases often address the division of estates, the dissolution of business partnerships, the resolution of land disputes, and divorce. The Chancery Records Index, including digital images for many counties, is available on Virginia Memory

Regimental histories and first-person accounts compiled in the postwar period and early 20th century which chronicle the highs and lows of army life from 1861 through 1865. These accounts explore the reasons individuals volunteered, the experience of leaving home for the first time and entering camp, the clash of arms, the daily routines of camp life and garrison duty, and the anguish of imprisonment. Soldiers’ attitudes regarding army life, officers and fellow soldiers, the enemy, and the political questions of the war are candidly expressed. This collection comprises, in its entirety, the microfilm collection Travels in the Confederate States, as well as a small number of selected titles from the microfilm collection Travels in the New South I, 1865-1900.

A list of newspaper titles published by Virginia's local Civilian Conservation Corps Camps during the New Deal.

Research note explaining how to use the Virginia Colonial Records Project database.

A fully-searchable index to the personal names of Confederate soldiers as they appear in the Confederate Veteran magazine published between 1893 and 1932.

A guide to the microfilm of the death certificates and related indexes for deaths in Virginia from 1912-1939.

A classified index to The Dictionary of Virginia Biography (DVB), the first scholarly, comprehensive biographical reference work on Virginia.

A collection of general interest eBooks (fiction and non-fiction) in PDF and EPUB formats. There are classics of literature, popular works, texts for teens and children, and an extensive history collection. Compatible eBook readers include Apple (iOS) devices (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch) and Android devices (smartphones, tablets). For additional options, please see the full list of compatible devices. For technical assistance please visit the EBSCO support page.

Military records from the Civil War, Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican American and Early Indian wars, Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War. Also provides access to some non-military record collections (e.g., the African American Collection and the Native American Collection).

Provides Virginia legal forms for divorce, wills and estates, real estate, bankruptcy, landlord tenant, power of attorney, name change, business incorporation and more.

The letters received for Governors Jefferson and Henry have been redigitized and are available separately.

A fully-indexed and keyword searchable electronic archive of the news and literary journal Harper's Weekly.

Searchable U.S. federal census records (1790-1940), full-text access to thousands of local and family history books, Revolutionary War pension and bounty-land-warrant application files, city directories, and Freedman's Bank records (1865-1874).

Provides access to over 1.5 million U.S. cadastral (land ownership) maps from the late 1700’s to the present day and thousands of antiquarian maps covering the world (1400’s-1800’s). Includes geocoded maps which can be overlaid with present day Google map images and a Points of Interest Map Finding Tool to help users locate places and geographical features (e.g., buildings, streams, bridges, etc.). Provides access to over 1,000 city directories and to thousands of map-related images of family residences, buildings, advertisements, and more.

Full-text archives of over 1,000 leading academic journals across the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work. Off-site users can access all JSTOR journal content published prior to 1923 in the United States and prior to 1870 elsewhere, in addition to over 2,000 ebooks via JSTOR's Open Content program. Additional journal content can be accessed by using the Register & Read program.

Offer a tremendous amount of research potential, providing a great deal of information concerning the activities and interests of the people who lived in the locality.

A database developed especially for beginning researchers in Kindergarten through Grade 5. Features a developmentally appropriate, visually graphic interface & curriculum-related, age appropriate content from the best elementary reference sources.

An index to city and county land tax records on microfilm.

Includes corporate profiles and financial data on over 80 million companies.

Provides full-text articles from over 2500 foreign and domestic newspapers including the New York Times (1980-current), Washington Post (1977-current), and USA Today (1989-current). Includes death notices and obituaries. Provides access to popular magazines such as Consumer Reports, as well as academic journals and law reviews. Also includes company profiles and financial data and a broad array of federal and state legal resources. Please note: The legal resources can only be accessed at the Library.

Full-text magazines, reference books and primary source documents, as well as an extensive image collection containing photos, maps and flags.

U.S. and international company data including annual reports, stock prices, SEC filings, equity and industry reports, and company histories.

An ongoing project indexing more than 744 sources and listing approximately 34,402 Virginians who have died in service.

Includes diaries, journals and narratives of explorers, emigrants, military men, Native Americans, and travelers. There are also family histories, folklore, and accounts regarding the development of farming and mining communities. These chronicles provide details regarding the social, political, economic, scientific, religious and agricultural characteristics of the communities in the vast region between Lexington, Kentucky and Winchester, Virginia, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Birmingham, Alabama.

Digital collection of select issues of more than 5,000 national, local, and foreign newspapers, with some content dating back to the 1700's. Virginia titles with extensive coverage include the Bee (Danville, VA), Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Danville Register, Harrisonburg Daily News Record, Progress Index (Petersburg, VA), Pulaski Southwest Times, Radford News Journal, and Winchester Star.

Full-text coverage for national and international newspapers, and radio/t.v. program transcripts. Virginia content includes select coverage for the Daily Press (1997-2009; Nov. 2014-), Free Lance-Star (2002-Nov. 2016; May 2017-),Carroll News (2011-), and Virginia Gazette (2009-). Select historical coverage is provided for many titles including the Progress Index (2008-2014), Roanoke Times (1998-2013), and Manassas Journal & Messenger (2007-2009).

A bibliography of American Newspapers cataloged and inventoried by the Virginia Newspaper Project.

This is a bibliography and guide to newspaper indexes in the collections of the Library of Virginia.

Comprehensive readers' advisory resource with reading recommendations for fiction and nonfiction titles for all ages.

Access to the 20-volume Second Edition and 3 Additions Series volumes, as well as OED’s historical thesaurus.

Over 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works, plus the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.

An index to city and county personal property tax records on microfilm.

A proper name and subject index covering more than 40 newspaper titles primarily published in Petersburg, Va., 1797-1877.

A digital collection that includes nearly 2,000 pamphlets and complete runs of eight newspaper titles (including Richmond’s Daily Dispatch from 14 January 1852 through 30 December 1865) which were specifically selected for the regional and diverse perspectives they offer.

Use this resource to locate congressional reports, hearings, bills, laws, and much more. Includes full text access to: the U.S. Congressional Serial Set, including the American State Papers (1789-present), bills and laws (1970-present), vote report (1987-present), and the Congressional Record (1985-present). See govinfo for additional full-text hearings. For earlier documents see A Century Of Lawmaking (Library of Congress).

Digital reproductions of pages with a 3-month content embargo.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

Business records include ledger books, payroll books, cotton ginning books, work rules, account books, and receipts. Personal papers include family correspondence, diaries, and wills. The collection includes items from Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida plantations.

Historical Virginia fire insurance maps searchable by address or geographic coordinates. Allows maps from different years to be layered on top of each other and over modern street, satellite, and hybrid images. These maps are large-scale plans containing data that can be used to estimate the potential risk for urban structures. This includes information such as the outline of each building, the size, shape and construction materials, heights and functions of structures, and location of windows and doors. The maps also provide street names, street and sidewalk widths, property boundaries, building use, and house and block numbers.

An electronic newsstand that offers digital copies of popular magazines. Magazines can be downloaded or read offline using mobile apps for iOS and Android devices. To begin click on the 'Create New Account' link and enter your library card number. This database cannot be accessed using a Virginia driver's license or id number. Please note: your user name is your email address.

Designed for middle and high school students and adults who have a basic foundation in English grammar and reading but need adapted reading material for a variety of subjects. This database offers resources to help build background knowledge and improve study skills.

U.S. business and residential directory. Allows users to generate lists of businesses by location and other variables such as business type, sales volume, number of employees, and year established. White pages can be used to conduct market research or locate friends and relatives. Search options include name, address, median home value, median home income, phone number, and more.

Provides full-text access (no images) to select content. This database does not include all published obituaries. It includes select content from the Richmond Times-Dispatch from Aug. 19, 1985-present and from the Richmond News Leader from Aug. 19, 1985-May 30, 1992. However, all articles are cited as being from the Richmond Times-Dispatch. For citations, the microfilm of the newspapers can be checked to determine the correct source.

Provides full-text access with digital reproductions of pages.

Provides quick and easy access to current and historical census data and demographic information. Enables users to create maps and reports to help visually analyze and understand demography and social change throughout history. Includes US Census data from 1790 to 2010, American Community Survey updates, the Religious Congregations and Membership Study (1980-2000) and more.

Provides access to over 500 classes covering subjects ranging from computer software and marine biology to gardening and meditation. Courses include lesson assignments, exams, discussion boards, and progress assessments.

An author/subject index for 1951-2002 and the table of contents for all volumes.

A list of publications currently available from Virginia state agencies

A Library of Virginia partnership with Virginia's local public libraries to digitize and make publicly accessible yearbook collections held in libraries across the commonwealth. Funded through the Library Services & Technology Act (LSTA), a program of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).