A Guide to the Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1860-1912) Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1860-1912)

A Guide to the Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1860-1912)

A Collection in
the Library of Virginia


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Library of Virginia

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© 2010 By The Library of Virginia. All Rights Reserved.

Processed by: Field processors

Repository
The Library of Virginia
Title
Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1860-1912)
Physical Characteristics
Digital images; 71.1 cubic feet (156 boxes)
Collector
Charlotte County (Va.) Circuit Court.
Location
State Records Center Archival Annex
Language
English
Abstract

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912, use digital images found on the Chancery Records Index available electronically at the website of the Library of Virginia.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions on use.

Preferred Citation

Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912 (bulk 1860-1912). (Cite style of suit and chancery index no.). Local government records collection, Charlotte County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

The bulk of these records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Charlotte County (Va.) in 2009, with an additional transfer of records occurring in 2013 under the accession number 50816. The records transferred to the library in 2009 were accessioned in 2014 under the accession number 51443.

Processing Information

The bulk of Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912, were processed by field processors before 2009. Additional chancery causes from 1771-1910 were processed in the field around 2013.

Digital images were generated by Backstage Library Works through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Preservation Program in 2010.

Encoded by G. Crawford: October 2010; updated by C. Collins: September 2023.

Historical Information

Context for Record Type: 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; however, the judge is basing the decision on findings compiled and documented by Commissioners. Chancery causes 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. Chancery causes document the lived experiences of free and enslaved individuals; women; children; people living with physical disabilities or mental health struggles; people living in poverty; defunct institutions and corporate entities; or those that may not have otherwise left traditional written histories.

Locality History: 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. The county seat is Charlotte Court House.

Scope and Content

Charlotte County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1765-1912, consists of cases concerning issues of equity brought largely by residents of the county and filed in the circuit court. These cases often involve the following actions: divisions of estates or land, disputes over wills, disputes regarding contracts, debt, divorce, and business disputes. Other less prevalent issues include freedom suits, permissions to sell property, and disputes concerning trespass. Predominant documents found in these chancery causes include bills (documents the plaintiff's complaint), answers (defendant's response to the plaintiff's complaint), decrees (court's decision), depositions, affidavits, correspondence, lists of heirs, deeds, plats, wills, records involving enslaved individuals, business records or vital statistics.

Businesses involved in several suits include the Buchanan & Hastie Company (also referred to as Buchanan Hastie & Company and Buchanans Hastie & Company), James McClellan & Company, and the Virginia Land Improvement Company. There are several suits concerning fertilizer businesses, such as the Atlantic & Virginia Fertilizer Company and the Richmond Guano Company.

Commonly found names among the plaintiffs and defendants include Adams, Allen, Almond, Anderson, Armistead (also spelled Armestead), Bacon, Bailey, Baker, Barksdale, Barnes, Beasley (also spelled Beazley), Bedford, Bibb, Booker, Bouldin, Brewer, Broocks, Brooks, Brown, Burge, Callicott (also spelled Callicoat, Callicot, and Callicotte), Cardwell, Carrington, Clark (also spelled Clarke), Cobbs, Cole, Collins, Crenshaw, Dabbs, Daniel, Davis, Dejarnatte (also spelled Dejarnett and Dejarnette), Dickerson, Edmunds, Elam, Elliott, Eudailey (also spelled Eudaley, Eudaly, and Eudiley), Faris, Ferrell, Finch, Ford, Fore, Foster, Franklin (also spelled Franklyn), Friend, Fuqua, Gaines, Gilliam, Goode, Green, Hamlett, Hancock, Hankins, Hannah, Harris, Harvey, Haskins, Hatchett, Henry, Hines, Hundley, Hunt, Jackson, Jameson, Jeffress, Johns, Johnson, Johnston, Jones, Lee, Legrand (also spelled Legrande), Lewis, Ligon (also spelled Liggon), Lipscomb (also spelled Lipscombe), Madison, Marshall, Mason, McCargo, Middleton, Moon, Moore, Morgan, Morton, Moseley, North, Osborne, Overby (also spelled Overbey) Overton, Palmer, Paulett, Pettus, Price, Pugh, Randolph, Rawlins, Read, Redmond, Rice, Richardson, Roberts, Robertson, Robinson, Scott, Smith, Spencer, Tankersley, Tarpley, Taylor, Terry, Thomas, Thompson, Thornton, Vaughan, Venable, Walker, Ward, Watkins, Watson, Weatherford, White, Wilkes, Williams, Wilson, and Womack.

Arrangement

Organized by case, of which each is assigned a unique index number comprised of the latest year found in case and a sequentially increasing 3-digit number assigned by the processor as cases for that year are found. Arranged chronologically.

Arrangement of documents within each folder are generally as follows: Bill, Answer, and Final Decree (if found.)

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 also: “A Guide to the Chappell and Fuqua Daybook and Ledger, 1832-1839,” exhibits in Charlotte County Chancery Cause 1841-004: Martin Hancock, etc. vs. Samuel Fuqua, etc.

See also: “A Guide to the Charlotte Banking and Insurance Company Business Records, 1872-1909,” exhibits in Charlotte County Chancery Cause 1908-028: S. C. Daniel, Trst. vs. Charlotte Banking and Insurance Company.

See also: “A Guide to the Cronin, Hannah, and Company Business Records, 1861-1874,” exhibits in Charlotte County Chancery Cause 1871-001: Admr. of James Maloney vs. Cronin, Hannah, and Company.

See also: “A Guide to the David Holmes Morton Daybooks and Journal, 1859-1863,” exhibits in Charlotte County Chancery Cause 1890-010: Davis and Wood vs. D. H. Morton, etc.

See also: “A Guide to the Watkins and Jones Account Book and Daybook, 1877-1885,” an exhibit in Charlotte County Chancery Cause 1894-009: Tucker C. Watkins & wife, etc. vs. Thomas N. Jones, etc.