Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

For Overseers of the Poor Minute Book, 1786-1842, use microfilm copy, Richmond County, (Va.) Reel 69. For Overseers of the Poor Record Book, 1843-1856, use microfilm copy, Richmond County (Va.) Reel 66.

Preferred Citation

Richmond County (Va.) Overseers of the Poor Records, 1786-1870. Local Government Records Collection, Richmond County Court Records. The Library of Virginia,Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

These items cames to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Richmond County.

Historical Information

Richmond County may have been named for Richmond borough in Surrey, England, or for Charles Lennox, first duke of Richmond and a son of King Charles II. It was formed from Old Rappahannock County in 1692. The county seat is Warsaw.

Some volumes were burned and mutilated through unknown causes; in addition, the will books prior to 1699 were missing as early as 1793, and order books for the period 1794-1816 are also missing. Numerous loose records prior to 1781 are missing as well.

In 1780 the Virginia General Assembly replaced the Anglican vestries and churchwardens of the colonial period with elected bodies called Overseers of the Poor. The Overseers provided food, clothing, shelter, and medical treatment for the persons who were too poor to support themselves or too ill to provide for their basic needs. They also bound out children whose parents could not support them or who failed to educate or instruct them, as well as orphans to become apprentices. The boys learned a trade and the girls learned domestic skills.

Scope and Content

The Richmond County (Va.) Overseer of the Poor Minutes Book is one volume dated 1786-1842. The minutes give the names of people receiving financial support, food, and clothing, and the burial of the deceased. The minutes also include the details of the collection of the levy for the poor and how the money was spent. Sept. 8, 1791 in an effort to complete laying the levy, processioners were assigned to procession the boundaries of each person owning land in the county. A brief description of each section of the county to be processioned is given. Lists of Insolvents in Lunenburg Parish for the year 1823, 1824, 1826, 1828, 1829 and for North Farnham Parish in 1824, 1826, 1828, 1829 and for Richmond County in 1827, 1834, 1835, 1840 1841, and 1842 were recorded in the book. List of Delinquents for non payment of Poor Rates for 1833, 1840, 1841, and 1842 were recorded in the book.

The Richmond County (Va.) Overseer of the Poor Record Book is one volume dated 1843-1856. The minutes give the names of people receiving financial support, food, and clothing, and the burial of the deceased. The minutes also include the details of the collection of the levy for the poor and how the money was spent. List of Insolvents in Lunenburg Parish for 1843 and for Richmond County for 1844, 1845, 1846, 1847, 1848, and 1849 were recorded in the book. List of Delinquents for non payment of Poor Rates for 1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, 1847, 1848, and 1849 were recorded in the book. Copies of the Annual Reports sent to the Auditor of Public Accounts for 1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, 1849, 1850, and 1851 are recorded in the book. Copied into the book are Chapters 1 through 6 that tell the duties of the Superentendant, the services for paupers, the duties of the Overseers of the Poor, hiring and payment of the officers and physcians, and information about the fees and other charges.

The Richmond County (Va.) Overseer of the Poor Minutes and Account Book is one volume dated 1869-1870. The accounts give the names of people receiving financial support, food, and clothing. The minutes discuss the Boards plans for the Poor Farm and their other business.

Arrangement

Chronological

Related Material

Additional Richmond County Court Records can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."

Richmond County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Richmond County Records may be found in the Virginia Lost Records Localities Collection at the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Localities Digital Collection available at Virginia Memory.

For more information and a listing of lost records localities see Lost Records research note .

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Richmond County (Va.) Board of Overseers of the Poor
• Richmond County (Va.) Circuit Court

Subjects:

• Poor--Virginia--Richmond County
• Public welfare--Virginia--Richmond County
• Tax Collection--Virginia--Richmond County

Geographical Names:

• Richmond County (Va.)--History

Genre and Form Terms:

• Local government records--Virginia--Richmond County
• Minutes--Virginia--Richmond County

Adjunct Descriptive Data