A Collection in the Library of Vrginia
Accession Number 34894
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia 800 East Broad Street Richmond, Virginia 23219-8000 USA Phone: (804) 692-3888 (Archives Reference) Fax: (804) 692-3556 (Archives Reference) Email: archdesk@lva.virginia.gov(Archives) URL: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/
List of Inhabitants of the Governor's Office, 1782-1785 Accession 34894, State government records collection, The Library
of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.
Acquisition Information
No acquisition information available. Acquired prior to 1905.
Lists of inhabitants were collected in accordance with several acts of the General Assembly, particularly those of May 1782
(Chapter XXIII) and May 1784 (Chapter XXXVIII). The returns dated 1782 and 1783 are for inhabitants (i.e. 'souls'), while
those dated in 1784 and 1785 are for buildings. Occassionally includes a covering letter or forwarding note.
In 1908, the Bureau of Census published a compilation of these lists of the heads of households in Virginia from 1782-1785.
"Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790" represented an attempt to reconstruct
the 1790 census schedules for Virginia. The Lists of Inhabitants are especially important because Virginia's federal census
schedules of 1790 were destroyed when the British sacked Washington during the War of 1812. Though incomplete, the Lists
represent the most thorough records available for the reconstruction of the missing census.
Lists of inhabitants, dated 1782 to 1785, for thirty-nine Virginia counties and the town of Williamsburg. Information found
in the lists for 1782 and 1783 include the name of the head of the household, the number of white inhabitants, and the number
of slaves. The lists for 1784 and 1785 include the heads of households, the number of whites, and the numbers of dwellng houses
and "outhouses." Clerks of the county courts were responsible for collecting the lists from justices and transmitting them
to the Governor. The exact disposition of the records after their transmittal to the Governor is unclear.