Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

Patrons are to use digital images of Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes found on the Chancery Records Index available electronically at the website of the Library of Virginia.

Preferred Citation

Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1784-1912). (Cite style of suit and chancery index no.). Local Government Records Collection, Charlotte County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

Digital images were generated by Backstage Library Works through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Preservation Program.

Historical Information

Chancery Causes are cases of equity. According to Black's Law Dictionary they are "administered according to fairness as contrasted with the strictly formulated rules of common law." A judge, not a jury, determines the outcome of the case.

Charlotte County was named for Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of King George III. It was formed from Lunenburg County in 1764. The county court first met on 5 March 1765.

Scope and Content

Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1784-1912), are indexed into the Chancery Records Index. Cases are identified by style of suit consisting of plaintiff and defendant names. Surnames of others involved in a suit, including secondary plaintiffs and defendants, witnesses, deponents and affiants, and family members with surnames different from the plaintiff or defendant are indexed. Chancery causes often involved the following: divisions of estates or land, disputes over wills, divorces, debt, and business disputes. Predominant documents found in chancery causes include bills (plaintiff's complaint), answers (defendant's response), decrees (court's decision), depositions, affidavits, correspondence, lists of heirs, deeds, wills, slave records, business records or vital statistics, among other items. Plats, if present, are noted, as are wills from localities with an incomplete record of wills or localities other than the one being indexed.

Chancery cases are useful when researching local history, genealogical information, and land or estate divisions. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.

Related Material

Additional Charlotte County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia web site. Consult A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.

See the Chancery Records Index found on the Library of Virginia web site for the chancery records of other Virginia localities.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Charlotte County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• African Americans -- History.
• Business enterprises. -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Debt -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Divorce suits -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Equity -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Estates (Law) -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Land subdivision -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.

Geographical Names:

• Charlotte County (Va.) -- Genealogy.
• Charlotte County (Va.) -- History.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Chancery causes -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Deeds -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Judicial records -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Land records -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Plats -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.
• Wills -- Virginia -- Charlotte County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data

Additional Charlotte County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia web site. Consult A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.

See the Chancery Records Index found on the Library of Virginia web site for the chancery records of other Virginia localities.