Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions

Preferred Citation

Lancaster   County (Va.) Records, 1867-1908. Local government records collection, Lancaster   County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219

Acquisition Information

These items came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Lancaster   County under the accession number 50291.

Historical Information

Lancaster   County was named for the English county. It was formed from Northumberland and York Counties in 1651.

Scope and Content

Lancaster   County (Va.) Records, 1867-1908, include bonds, commissions, and oaths; commonwealth causes; judgments; oyster plats; and tax and fiscal information. All items in the collection relate to the oyster industry.

Bonds/Commissions/Oaths, 1879, contains items relating to the nomination of an oyster inspector.

Commonwealth Causes, 1891 and 1893, contains cases of oyster theft, as well as an arrest warrant for a man who bought oysters "in an unlawful measure."

Judgments, 1893, contains two objections from an oysterman regarding the surveys and assignments of others' oyster plots.

Oyster Plats, 1893-1908, contains hand-drawn oyster plats. The plats include the coordinates, acreage, and location of the oyster grounds surveyed, as well as the scale of the plat. Additional information, such as names of the oystermen renting the grounds, the yearly amount of rent paid, and the date the plat was filed in court is also included.

Tax and Fiscal Records, 1867-1890, contains lists of fines, bushel taxes, capitation taxes, tonnage taxes, number of oyster measures inspected, lists of oyster licenses issued, annual licenses, lists of vessels fined for violating the dredger law, single trip permits, oyster inspector reports, and lists of persons who planted/deposited oysters.

Arrangement

Chronological within each series.

Related Material

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

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Lancaster   County (Va.) Circuit Court

Subjects:

• Oysters--Virginia-- Lancaster   County

Geographical Names:

• Lancaster   County (Va.)--History

Genre and Form Terms:

• Civil court records--Virginia-- Lancaster   County
• Criminal court records--Virginia-- Lancaster   County
• Judicial records--Virginia-- Lancaster   County
• Plats (maps)--Virginia-- Lancaster   County
• Tax records--Virginia-- Lancaster   County

Adjunct Descriptive Data