Prince William County Death Index
The Prince William County death index covers death records filed within the county from the 1800s to the present. The Circuit Court Clerk in Manassas and the Virginia Department of Health both hold records tied to deaths in Prince William County. You can search the death index online, visit the courthouse in person, or order a certified copy through the state Office of Vital Records. The RELIC collection at the Bull Run Regional Library also holds a unique set of historical death records specific to Prince William County that can help with genealogical research going back to the 1700s.
Prince William County Overview
Prince William County Circuit Court
The Prince William County Circuit Court Clerk's Office is located at the Judicial Center, 9311 Lee Avenue, 3rd Floor, Manassas, VA 20110. The Honorable Jacqueline C. Smith serves as Clerk of Circuit Court, an elected constitutional officer with an eight-year term. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The preferred contact method is email at circuitcourt@pwcgov.org for a faster response. The main phone is (703) 792-6015.
The Circuit Court handles probate matters, land records, marriage licenses, and court case files. Probate cases come up when someone dies and their estate goes through the court. The Clerk's Office maintains wills, estate inventories, and fiduciary records that can be searched alongside the death index. The court's Public Service Center in Room 305 handles land records, marriage licenses, and passport applications during regular business hours. The Criminal Division operates from Room 310 and the Civil Division from Room 314.
The office also offers a mobile service called Seals on Wheels on select Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The full schedule is at www.pwccircuitcourt.com. Birth and death certificates are not kept here. Those must come from the Virginia Department of Health. The Clerk does maintain some historic unbound register sheets for births and deaths that have genealogical value.
| Office | Prince William County Circuit Court Clerk |
|---|---|
| Address | Judicial Center, 9311 Lee Avenue, 3rd Floor Manassas, VA 20110 |
| Phone | (703) 792-6015 |
| circuitcourt@pwcgov.org | |
| Hours | Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. |
RELIC: Prince William County Death Records Archive
The Ruth E. Lloyd Information Center, known as RELIC, is housed at the Bull Run Regional Library in Manassas. This is one of the most complete local genealogical archives in northern Virginia. RELIC holds the Death Records of Prince William County from 1731 through 1912, extending in some collections to 1969. For researchers tracing deaths before the state vital records system began in 1912, RELIC is the primary local source. The collection also includes birth records 1853-1896, death records 1853-1896 on microfilm, birth and death records 1864-1870, marriage records 1864-1936, and a marriage index from 1864 to 1946.
The RELIC Digital Archives also includes cemetery records, tombstone inscriptions, military records, census records, family histories, and historical maps and photographs. Much of this material is specific to Prince William County and not widely available elsewhere. If you are working with deaths in Prince William County from before the modern registration period, RELIC should be one of your first stops. The library is at 8051 Ashton Avenue, Manassas, VA 20109. Phone is (703) 792-4540.
Virginia Death Index at the State Level
The Virginia Department of Health, Office of Vital Records is the official source for death certificates covering deaths in Prince William County from June 1912 to the present. The state office is at 8701 Park Central Drive, Suite 100, Richmond, VA 23227. Walk-in hours are Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. You can also apply online through the VDH website, or mail a request to P.O. Box 1000, Richmond, VA 23218-1000.
Each certified copy costs $12. Payment can be made by check, money order, credit card, mobile pay, or cash in person. Checks should be payable to State Health Department. Death records become public under Virginia Code Title 32.1, Chapter 7 after 25 years from the date of death. Until that point, only immediate family members can request a copy. Eligible family includes the spouse, parent, child, sibling, or grandparent of the deceased. You must provide a legible copy of a government-issued photo ID with your request.
For online ordering, VitalChek is the authorized third-party service that processes requests for the Virginia Department of Health. An additional processing fee applies through VitalChek on top of the $12 state fee. The service handles deaths from June 1, 1912 to the present.
How to Search the Prince William County Death Index Online
The Virginia Judiciary portal for Prince William Circuit Court lets you search case information by name or case number. This covers civil, criminal, and probate cases. Probate cases filed after a death often appear in this system and can supplement your death index research. The Virginia Online Case Information System (OCIS) provides statewide case searches at no cost.
Online records available through the Circuit Court Clerk include land records and deeds from January 1, 1918 to the present, plats from 1918 on, fiduciary records including wills and probate from January 3, 1981 to the present, and the Historical Online Portal (HOP) for wills and estate lists from 1734 to 1981. That last collection can be very useful when searching for deaths from before 1912. The HOP covers a period when formal death certificates did not exist in the county.
The FamilySearch guide for Prince William County explains the gaps in the historical record, notes which databases hold available death records, and provides tips for finding families whose records were lost during the Civil War. Prince William County death records from 1853-1896 on microfilm are listed in this guide alongside databases covering Virginia Deaths and Burials 1853-1912 and Virginia Death Certificates 1912-1987.
Prince William County Death Index: Historical Records
Prince William County was formed in 1731 from Stafford and King George counties. The county has a significant gap in its official records due to vandalism and destruction during the Civil War. No official marriages remain from before 1854. No official births or deaths were recorded from 1896 to 1912 in most of the county. Some deed books were destroyed in 1862. Researchers working with deaths in Prince William County during the 19th century should check the RELIC collection, which holds materials that survived despite the courthouse losses.
For deaths before 1912, the key databases include the death registers from 1853 to 1896 held on microfilm at RELIC and at the Library of Virginia. Church records and cemetery records available through RELIC and Virginia Genealogical Society resources can fill in gaps for families during periods when no official records exist. The Library of Virginia holds a death index through 1954, which can help locate a certificate number before ordering a copy.
The five research strategies most useful for pre-1912 Prince William County deaths are: searching RELIC's physical collection, checking the HOP through the Circuit Court Clerk's online system, using FamilySearch's free Virginia death databases, searching the Library of Virginia's Ancestry for Virginians program, and reviewing church and cemetery records compiled by local genealogical societies.
Cities in Prince William County
Two independent cities are located within the Prince William County area. Both have their own court systems and local vital records offices.
Nearby Counties
These counties border or sit near Prince William County. Each has its own Circuit Court and vital records resources for deaths that occurred in those jurisdictions.