Updated November 24, 2022
Background
Warwick County was originally called Warwick River County when it was formed as one of the original eight shires in 1634. The shorter name was adopted in 1643. It was named either for Robert Rich, earl of Warwick, a prominent member of the London Company, or for the county of Warwick in England. Warwick County became extinct in 1952, when it became the city of Warwick. The new city was consolidated with the city of Newport News in 1958 and took the latter's name. Denbigh was the county seat. Warwick is one of the Commonwealth's Burned Records Counties. County court records were destroyed at several times with most destruction occurring during the Civil War. A seventeenth-century livestock registry, one order book, and one minute book from the eighteenth century survive.Newport News was located in Warwick County, which is now extinct. The origin of the name is uncertain but the phrase "Newportes News" appeared in documents as early as 1619 and probably commemorated Christopher Newport, who made five voyages to Virginia between 1607 and 1619. Newport News was a small settlement until late in the nineteenth century, when it became the eastern terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. It was established in 1880 and incorporated as a city by act of the General Assembly in 1896 without ever having been incorporated as a town. Newport News was enlarged by consolidation with the city of Warwick in 1858.
Parishes
Blount Point Parish, bef 1634
Denbigh Parish, 1635-abt 1730
Elizabeth City Parish, 1619
Mulberry Island Parish, 1635-abt 1730
Nutmeg Quarter Parish, 1630s-1657
Santley Hundred Parish, 1628-abt 1635
Warwick Parish, 1725
Waters Creek Parish, 1629-abt 1643
Overview
Few GILLIAMs lived in Warwick County. In 1815, William GILLIAM of York County, held land at the headwaters of the Warwick River.
In the mid 1830s the family of Richard GILLIAM, son of William GILLIAM and Mary Moss of York County, above, reside in Newport News. Their family Bible was preserved by the Works Progress Administration of Virginia, Historical Inventory.
Bibles
Moss family Bible record, 1833-1878.
Notes and Summaries: Areas covered are James City and Warwick Counties, Virginia.
Other surnames mentioned: GILLIAM.
Library of Virginia. Bible Records. Moss family Bible record, 1833-1878.
Moss family Bible record, 1831-1924.
Summary: Record is a typed transcript. Area covered is Newport News, Virginia. Bible printed in 1831.
Other surnames mentioned: Garrett, GILLIAM, and Harwood.
Library of Virginia. Bible Records. Moss family Bible record, 1831-1924.
GILLIAM Family Bible, Newport News, VA.
Cox, Roger P. GILLIAM Family Bible, Works Progress Administration of Virginia Historical Inventory, Library of Virginia
1815 Landowner's Directory
William GILLIAM of York County, head waters of the Warwick River, 5NW.
[Directions and distances are measured from the Courthouse.]
Ward, Roger G. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer) Volume 3. Athens, GA: Iberian Pub. Co.
Military
Index to Virginia War History Commission questionnaires completed by World War I veterans in Virginia.
Dr. Randolph Moore GILLIAM
[Randolph was the son of Richard James GILLIAM and his wife Marion Mildred Perkins. Richard James GILLIAM is the son of John GILLIAM of Powhatan County.]
Library of Virginia. Index to Virginia War History Commission questionnaires completed by World War I veterans in Virginia.
Sources
- Cox, Roger P. GILLIAM Family Bible, Newport News, VA. Works Progress Administration of Virginia Historical Inventory, December 12, 1937. Library of Virginia.
- "Dr. Randolph Moore GILLIAM," Index to Virginia War History Commission questionnaires completed by World War I veterans in Virginia. Library of Virginia.
- Moss Family Bible Record, 1833-1878. Library of Virginia
- Moss Family Bible Record, 1831-1924. Library of Virginia
- Ward, Roger G. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer) Volume 3. Athens, GA: Iberian Pub. Co.