Administrative Information

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Preferred Citation

James H. Barton Real Estate Business Records, 1889-1898. Local government records collection, Henrico County Court Records/Richmond (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

Barcode numbers 1108155, 1108156, 1108171, 1108173, 1108174, 1108178, 1108193 came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Henrico County. Barcode number 1092270 came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from the City of Richmond.

Historical Information

James H. Barton was born in Pennsylvania in 1837. He served in the Union army during the Civil War. After the war, Barton became a real estate developer in Little Rock, Arkansas and Memphis, Tennessee. In 1889, Barton moved to Virginia and founded a real estate development on a site a north of Richmond in Henrico County that became known as Barton Heights. Barton was so successful that in less than six years Barton Heights had been incorporated as a town in Henrico County. Due to a depressed economy and poor financial decisions, Barton had a difficult time repaying loans he owed. Hounded by creditors and allegations of financial improprieties, Barton and his wife Elizabeth fled Virginia in 1896 February. Barton died in Chester, Pennsylvania in 1912 January.

Founded in 1889, Barton Heights began as a late nineteenth-century suburban development named for its founder James H. Barton. It was built north of Richmond, Virginia on the heights above the confluence of Bacon Quarter branch and Cannon's branch of Shockoe Creek, which flow east and south to separate the high land from Richmond's Jackson Ward. Barton's goal was to attract middle class professionals seeking affordable homes and who wanted to move away from the turmoil of the city. Barton Heights was annexed from Henrico County by the city of Richmond in 1914.

Scope and Content

James H. Barton Real Estate Business Records, 1889-1898, consists of eight volumes used as exhibits in the chancery suit, Home Building Company versus James H. Barton and wife, etc., heard in the Circuit Court of Henrico County.

Ledger, 1889-1890 and Building Book Number 2, 1889-1891, records individual accounts of contractors, businesses, laborers, and Barton Heights homeowners with whom Barton conducted business. Transactions relate specifically to home constuction and repair. Each account lists debit and credit transactions in chronological order. Information found in each entry includes date of transaction, type of transaction, amount owed, and amount paid. Ledger, 1889-1890, was exhibit A and Building Book Number 2 was exhibit B in chancery suit.

Ledger, 1891-1896, records individual accounts of contractors, businesses, and Barton Heights homeowners with whom Barton conducted business. Each account lists debit and credit transactions in chronological order. Information found in each entry includes date of transaction, type of transaction, line number of transaction entry found in corresponding journal, amount owed, and amount paid. The ledger was exhibit C in chancery suit.

Journal, 1891-1896, records transactions in chronological order. Information found in transaction entries include dates of transactions, names of parties involved in transactions, types of transactions, amounts owed and paid. The journal was exhibit E in chancery suit.

Ledger, 1895-1896, records the names of individuals indebted to Barton or to whom Barton was indebted and whether or not debts were paid. It also records total sales. The ledger was exhibit F in the chancery suit.

Bills Receivable and Payable, 1889-1898, and Bills Receivable and Payable, 1892-1896, records the names of individuals indebted to Barton or to whom Barton was indebted and whether or not debts were paid. These volumes were exhibits G and H in the chancery suit.

Daybook, 1894, records Barton's banking transactions with Richmond Perpetual Building Loan and Trust Company. It contains only three pages of entries. Daybook was exhibit I in the chancery suit.

Related Material

For additional information see the Henrico County Chancery Cause, Home Building Company versus James H. Barton and wife, etc. It can be found in the Local Records Collection at the Library of Virginia. The index number is 1921-001.

Index Terms

Persons:

• Barton, James H., 1837-1912 Jan.

Subjects:

• House construction -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Housing development -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Real estate business -- Virginia -- Henrico County.

Geographical Names:

• Barton Heights (Va.) -- History -- 19th century.
• Henrico County (Va.) -- History -- 19th century.
• Richmond (Va.) -- History.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Business records -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Business records -- Virginia -- Richmond.
• Daybooks -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Journals (accounts) -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Ledgers (account books) -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Ledgers (account books) -- Virginia -- Richmond.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Henrico County.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Richmond.

Added Entry - Corporate Name:

• Henrico County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Adjunct Descriptive Data