Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Prince William County (Va.) Board of Supervisors' Records, 1891-1982 (bulk 1968-1982.) Local government records collection, Prince William County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

These items came to the Library of Virginia in a shipment of court records from Prince William County.

Historical Information

Prince William County was formed from Stafford and King George Counties by a statute adopted in 1730, to take effect on 12 March 1731. The county was named for William Augustus, duke of Cumberland and third son of King George II.

Many pre-Civil War records were lost, destroyed, or stolen by Union troops in 1863 during the Civil War. Sixteen deed books and five will books are missing.

The Board of Supervisors is the basic governing body of the county. County laws--called ordinances--may also be passed by this board. This form of government came into existence with the state constitution of 1869 when the counties were divided into a minimum of three townships each, with a popularly elected supervisor from each township. When the township system was abolished in 1875, the counties were divided into magisterial districts. The Board of Supervisors are the current elected representatives of these districts and meet in regular monthly public sessions.

Scope and Content

Prince William County (Va.) Board of Supervisors Records, 1891-1982 (bulk 1968-1982) include minutes, resolutions, daybooks related to District Road Funds and papers. Frequently, the broad category of "papers" is used to describe these records and covers all forms of administrative paperwork.

Related Material

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

Prince William County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Prince William County Records may be found in the Virginia Lost Records Localities Collection at the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Localities Digital Collection available at Virginia Memory.

For more information and a listing of lost records localities see Lost Records research note .

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Prince William County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• Public records--Virginia--Prince William County.

Geographical Names:

• Prince William County (Va.) --History.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Local government records--Virginia--Prince William County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data