Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Essex County (Va.) List of Negroes Belonging to Those Under a Guardian and Unsettled Estates, 1821-1825. Local government records collection, Essex County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

This item came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Essex County.

Historical Information

Essex County was formed in 1692 from Rappahannock County, a now extinct Virginia county.

Scope and Content

Essex County (Va.) List of Negroes Belonging to Those Under a Guardian and Unsettled Estates, 1821-1825, is a volume that records lists of slaves held by persons who inherited via a will still in probate or as a result of widow's dower rights, and lists of the slaves belonging to an unsettled estate. Several of these lists are for slaves held by a guardian for his charge. The lists give the name of the owner, widow, and/or guardian; to whose estate the slaves belong; the names and ages of the slaves; some familial relationships, especially that of mother and child; and the date that the list was recorded by the court. Some of the lists are additions to previous lists that give slave births or deaths since the original list was recorded. There is an index at the beginning of the volume that lists in alphabetical order by surname the names of either the estate holder or the legatee and the page number where the list can be found.

Related Material

Additional Essex County Free Negro and Slave Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia. Consult A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Essex County (Va.). Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• African Americans--Virginia--Essex County.
• African Americans--Virginia.
• Decedents' estates--Virginia--Essex County.
• Dower--Virginia--Essex County.
• Guardian and ward--Virginia--Essex County.
• Slave records--Virginia--Essex County.
• Slaveholders--Virginia--Essex County.
• Slaves--Virginia--Essex County.

Geographical Names:

• Essex County--History--19th Century.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Lists--Virginia--Essex County.
• Local government records--Virginia--Essex County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data