This week I went to a new to me archive and was SO VERY happy I did. In fact, I am making plans for my next trip. Which, in reality, I could totally go there all day every day and be happy and content.
I recently began researching for client who has deep roots in Fairfax County Virginia. She was able to get back to her great-grandfather but no further. I was the lucky genealogist she contacted to pull records and dig a little deeper on the ground. Unfortunately,
Fairfax is not a repository that I had researched at before so it took me a few days of digging and prep work before I figured out how to proceed.
If you have ancestors in the Fairfax area and have the opportunity to stop in and research there I highly recommend it. They do have a large number of items digitized, but the archivists will still pull the original records for you to view any way. I was able to see many of the original records for my client’s family including the name of her ancestor on a document stating that he voted for secession from the Union they pulled from the vault then copied for me.
You can learn more about researching onsite at Fairfax Circuit Court Historic Records by going to this website. They are open 8am – 4pm Monday –Friday for research.
If you are in the area on 10 October 2015 they have an open house for the public. On display there will be the original will of Martha Washington. It is going to be an amazing time!
The Virginia Room at the Fairfax County Library has a wonderful and quite large collection of regional genealogy records and resources as well, and the volunteers there are quite helpful. I found an extensive collection of records for both Fairfax county and Alexandria, including land records.
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