1. Name of grantor (seller)   2. Residence of grantor   3. Amount paid (in pounds of tobacco)   4. Name of grantee (buyer)   5. Residence of grantee   6. Description of land (using metes and bounds method of surveying)   7. Name of person(s) owning adjoining land   8. Signature of grantor   9. Witnesses   10. Place recorded   11. Date recorded   12. Date deed was signed

Deed Rappahannock County, Virginia, 1677

Deed	Deed records are one of the most important resources used by genealogists. Deeds record the purchase or sale of land by an ancestor, leave clues to the identities of the ancestor's neighbors and friends, and may be the only place a wife's name is recorded.

In this example, the grantor, Henry Woodnutt, is identified as living in a specific parish, Farnham, in Rappahannock County, Virginia. Woodnutt sold to Thomas Hine 160 acres of land for 2,000 pounds of tobacco in cask. Tobacco was used as the medium of exchange in Virginia during the seventeenth century, and was always delivered in hogsheads, or "casks", similar to barrels. Later in the colonial period, each colony had its own currency.

The early deeds of most counties have been abstracted and indexed. Published abstracts can be found at the LDS Family History Library and Family History Centers, and in the collections of private, public, university, and state libraries.

The deed records of most counties in the country made prior to the Civil War have been microfilmed. Most deed records are indexed by grantor and grantee, and the deed indexes of most counties in the country have been microfilmed. Microfilmed deed records and indexes can be found at the LDS Family History Library and Family History Centers, and at many state libraries or archives. Microfilmed records of local records may also be found in some collections or private, public, university, and state libraries.

Original deed records and indexes are maintained in town or county courthouses, and form the largest single body of records in most towns and counties. The pre-Civil War original records in many states have been transferred to the state archives. Contact the town or county where an ancestor lived before visiting the courthouse to determine what restrictions, if any, are placed on in-person research.

Always check deed indexes and gather deed records for an ancestor. No family history is complete without deed records!

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