Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

Use microfilm copy, Petersburg (Va.) Reel 124

Preferred Citation

Petersburg (Va.) Sanborn Fire Insurance Company Maps, 1903. Local government records collection, Petersburg (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219.

Acquisition Information

This item came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from the city of Petersburg under the accession number 43614. The microfilm was generated by the Library of Virginia's Imaging Services Branch.

Historical Information

Petersburg was formed from parts of Dinwiddie, Prince George, and Chesterfield Counties. It was established in 1748 and incorporated as a town in 1784. In the latter years the towns of Blandford, Pocahontas, and Ravenscroft were added to Petersburg. It was incorporated as a city in 1850.

The Sanborn Map Company was founded by D. A. Sanborn, a surveyor from Massachusetts, in 1866. The maps allowed fire insurance underwriters and policy holders to more accurately protect the risks of business even if a building was not able to be inspected in person and to prevent an insurance premium from being set too low or high. Aside from fire insurance companies, the Sanborn Maps are useful to people involved in government, business, engineering, health and sanitation, planning and zoning, public works, tax assessment, education, highway development, public libraries, architects, geographers, environmentalists, water works, banking, mortgages, and life insurance, utilities and many other professional industries. Sanborn Maps also serve as historical documents for cities and towns and are important to those involved in social history, local history, architectural history, genealogy, urban studies, and preservation. The detail provided by the Sanborn Maps about each city in terms of its physical make-up, as well as the infrastructure of each city or town, provides important insights into a locality for professionals of all sorts.

Scope and Content

Petersburg (Va.) Sanborn Fire Insurance Company Maps, 1903, are one volume of the Sanborn maps issued for the city of Petersburg for the year 1903.The maps are plans showing the fire insurance risks of buildings in the city and identify commercial, industrial, and residential sections. They show color-coded building construction material, locations of windows and doors, roof type, street widths and names, water facilities, proximity to fire stations, population size, and a coded key to symbols. Oriented with north toward the upper right. Includes index and location map. One sheet is missing half and a section has been cut from the remaining half.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Petersburg (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• Buildings -- Virginia -- Petersburg -- Maps.
• Insurance, Fire -- Virginia -- Petersburg -- Maps.

Geographical Names:

• Norfolk (Va.) -- Buildings, structures, etc. -- Maps.
• Petersburg -- History -- 20th century.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Fire insurance maps -- Virginia -- Petersburg.
• Historical maps -- Virginia -- Petersburg.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Petersburg.
• Maps -- Virginia -- Petersburg.

Added Entry - Corporate Name:

• Sanborn Map Company.