Joseph Edward VIRNELSON^{[1, 2]}

1839 - 1887  (48 years)

• Name	Joseph Edward VIRNELSON
  Birth	26 Apr 1839	Portsmouth, Norfolk Co, VA   [1, 3]
  	PORTSMOUTH DEATHS 1856-1895 [ONLINE] SAYS 18 APR 1838
  Gender	Male
  CWSV	20 Apr 1861  [4, 5]
  	On 20 Apr 1861 in Portsmouth, VA Joseph enlisted in Company G, 9th Virginia Infantry. In 1862 he was detached to work at the Portsmouth Naval Yard. On 26 May 1864 Joseph was appointed as an Assistant Engineer in the Confederate States Navy.
  Occupation	1865 - 1887	Portsmouth, VA
  	During the years following the War, Joseph made his living as a merchant in Portsmouth, Virginia.
  Death	18 Jul 1887	Portsmouth City, VA   [2]
  	Joseph died of gastroenteritis on 18 July 1887. He was 48 years old at the time of his death.
  Burial	Portsmouth City, VA   [6]
  	His body was interred in the George James family plot at Cedar Grove Cemetery in Portsmouth, Virginia.
  Person ID	I468	mason
  Last Modified	22 Jul 2026

  
  

  Father	William S. VIRNELSON,   b. 23 Nov 1806, Virginia d. 15 Jun 1851 (Age 44 years)
  Mother	Telitha Bacon JAMES,   b. 4 Jan 1813, Norfolk Co, VA d. 31 Jan 1888, Portsmouth City, VA (Age 75 years)
  Marriage	29 Dec 1831	Portsmouth, Norfolk Co, VA   [3]
  	The couple was married in Portsmouth, Virginia by the Rev. Thomas Webb on 29 December 1831.
  Family ID	F16	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Frances Rebecca DEANS,   b. 14 Dec 1843, Portsmouth, Norfolk Co, VA d. 3 May 1887, Portsmouth City, VA (Age 43 years)
  Marriage	13 May 1862	Portsmouth City, VA   [1]
  	The couple was married at the Portsmouth home of the groom's parents on 13 May 1962.
  Children	1. Eulia Moore VIRNELSON,   b. 23 Feb 1866, Portsmouth City, VA d. 14 Sep 1878, Portsmouth City, VA (Age 12 years)   2. Fannie Deans VIRNELSON,   b. 8 May 1867, Portsmouth City, VA d. 6 Nov 1878, Portsmouth City, VA (Age 11 years)   3. Ada Lee VIRNELSON,   b. 28 Oct 1870, Portsmouth City, VA d. 2 Nov 1878, Portsmouth City, VA (Age 8 years)   4. Martha Telitha VIRNELSON,   b. 15 Nov 1873, Portsmouth City, VA d. 6 Jan 1892 (Age 18 years)
  Family ID	F116	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	22 Jul 2026

  
  

• Notes

  Portsmouth Register of deaths 1850-1896 notes age as 49 and occupation as machinist; all daus birth regs noted merchant as occupation; try City Directory

  
  

• Sources

  [S3891] Joseph E. Vernelson - Rebecca Frances Dean, Portsmouth, VA marriage license & minister’s return no. 280 (1862). [S5030] Jos. E. Virnelson Portsmouth, VA death register entry (1887). . [S3009] "William S. Virnelson Prescription Book". [S1600] John W. H. Porter, Porter, History of Norfolk County, Virginia, 1861 - 1865, ((1892, Rpt. n.p.: Edwards Brothers, Inc., May 1996)), pp. 85 & 221. [S4214] Benjamin H. Trask, Trask, 9th Virginia Infantry, ((Lynchburg, VA: H.E. Howard, 1984)), p. 96., ISBN 978-0-930919-10-8. [S1245] Oak Grove Cemetery burial registers, Portsmouth, VA.