Essex County, Virginia
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 19 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1969. Most listings are in or near Loretto, Tappahannock, Champlain.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for Virginia is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Essex titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP2 of 19 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
19 listed properties
| Property | City | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Blandfield | Caret | 1969 |
| Brooke's Bank | Loretto | 1971 |
| Cherry Walk | Dunbrooke | 1983 |
| DAW Theatre | Tappahannock | 2024 |
| Edenetta | Chance | 2016 |
| Elmwood | Loretto | 1970 |
| Glebe House of St. Anne's Parish | Champlain | 1975 |
| Glencairn | Chance | 1979 |
| Hundley Hall and Hoskins Country Store | Dunnsville | 2024 |
| Linden | Champlain | 1992 |
| Millers Tavern Rural Historic District | Millers Tavern | 2017 |
| Monte Verde | Center Cross | 2002 |
| Occupacia-Rappahannock Rural Historic District | Tappahannock | 2020 |
| Port Micou | Loretto | 1992 |
| St. Matthew's Church | Champlain | 2004 |
| Tappahannock Historic District | Tappahannock | 1973 |
| Vauter's Church | Loretto | 1972 |
| Wheatland | Loretto | 1990 |
| Woodlawn | Millers Tavern | 1980 |
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBEssex was formed in 1692 (1692-04-26) from Rappahanock.
ESSEX created from RAPPAHANOCK (original); RAPPAHANOCK (original) eliminated.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusEssex County population from 1790 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1790 | 1800 | 1820 | 1840 | 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9,122 | 9,508 | 9,909 | 11,309 | 10,469 | 11,032 | 9,701 | 8,542 | 7,006 | 6,530 | 6,690 | 8,864 | 9,989 | 10,599 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
National Park Service sites nearby
NPSPark units within about 40 km of the county centroid (from NPS Public POIs; no API key).
| Site | Type | Dist. |
|---|---|---|
| George Washington Birthplace National Monument | National Monument | 28.1 km |
Source: NPS National Datasets / Public POIs. The NPS Developer API requires a free key and was not used.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS6 cemeteries and 1 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 6 of 6 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Carmel Cemetery |
| Hermon Methodist Church Cemetery |
| Kay Cemetery |
| Rappahannock Cemetery |
| Upper Essex Cemetery |
| Vauters Churchyard |
Historical populated places — 1 of 1
| Name |
|---|
| Nimcock |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Civil War battlefields nearby
ABPPAmerican Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) Civil War study areas near this county.
| Battlefield | Study acres | Dist. |
|---|---|---|
| Walkerton | 1,728 | 23.7 km |
Source: NPS American Battlefield Protection Program Civil War Study Areas (public ArcGIS feature service).
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Essex County, Virginia
Terms: hmdb.org/copyright.asp. Linking is encouraged by HMdb.