Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

>King George County (Va.) Circuit Court Records, 1869-1926. Local government records collection, King George County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

These volumes came to the Library of Virginia under accession numbers 42662 and 42759.

Historical Information

King George County was formed from Richmond County by a statute of 23 December 1720. The county court first met on 19 May 1721. Part of Westmoreland County was added later. The county is named in honor of King George I.

Most loose records prior to 1830 are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.

The circuit courts in Virginia were authorized by the constitution of 1851, and were established by acts passed by the General Assembly in May 1852. These courts were granted original jurisdiction concurrent with that of the county courts. Since 1873 they have had exclusive jurisdiction in chancery causes. The constitution of 1902 made no provision for continuing the county courts, and their original jurisdiction was given to the circuit courts effective 1 February 1904. The circuit courts still exist today, and are now the only courts of record in Virginia localities.

Scope and Content

King George County (Va.) Circuit Court Records, 1869-1926, consist of 2 Chancery Docket Books, 1869-1905; 1 Chancery Rule Docket Book, 1905-1923; 2 Fee Books, 1878-1913 and 1887-1890; 1 Witness Attendance Book, 1869-1908; 1 Law Docket Book, 1887-1926 and 1 Clerk's Tax Book, 1889-1904.

Docket Books refer to a brief formal record of proceedings in a court of justice; an entry of all acts in the conduct of a case, from inception to conclusion.

Rules refer to orders or directions made by a court regulating court practices or the actions of parties; also, a session of the court.

Fee Books are volumes showing the date of a duty performed by the clerk, the name of the person paying the fees, and the amount. It includes fees charged attorneys, cash accounts, and the clerk's fees in common law and chancery suits.

Related Material

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

King George County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional King George County Court Records may be found in the Virginia Lost Records Localities Collection at the Library of Virgina. Search the Lost Records Localities Database found on the Library of Virginia's web site.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• King George County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• Public records--Virginia--King George County.

Geographical Names:

• King George County (Va.)--History.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Local government records--Virginia--King George County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data