Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

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Use Restrictions

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Preferred Citation

Secretary of the Commonwealth, Records, 1967-1929. Accession 25299, State Records Collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

Transferred from the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, 24 March 1961.

Biographical/Historical Information

The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth has evolved from early colonial times when there existed a Secretary of the Colony. Thomas Nelson held the position of the first Secretary of Virginia in 1776. Early Secretaries were elected by the public. An Act of the General Assembly in 1920 changed the election to a joint vote of the General Assembly. In a 1930 Act the duties of the Secretary were redefined with the Secretary of the Commonwealth serving as the ex officio secretary of the Governor, as custodian of many official State records, and as keeper of the Greater and Lesser Seals of the Commonwealth. The office of the Secretary has gradually acquired other functions, such as: service of out-of-state civil process; appointment and regulation of notaries public; and registration and oversight of lobbyists. The Office became a gubernational appointment subsequent to a 1958 Act of the Assembly. The Secretary of the Commonwealth is under the jurisdiction of the Governor's Office.

Scope and Content Information

Arranged into the following series: Series I. Applications and recommendations for appointments to state positions, 1870-1873, 1883; Series II. Applications and recommendations for appointments as Inspector of Tobacco, 1870-1876; Series III. Applications and recommendations for appointments as local officials, 1870; Series IV. Correspondence from governors of other states, 1869-1874; Series V. Miscellaneous records, 1872-1906; Series VI. Penitentiary papers, 1867-1897; Series VII. Records of various state institutions and asylums, 1870-1897; Series VIII. Notifications of candidacy, 1900; Series IX. Miscellaneous papers of the Adjutant General, 1880-1897; Series X. Contracts and bonds for printing, 1903-1919; and Series XI. Contracts and bonds for ruling and binding, 1903-1919.

Series I. Applications and recommendations for appointments to state positions, 1870-1874, 1883. Includes applications and recommendations for various state positions, including boundary commissioner, clerkships, Geological Survey, fish inspectors, flour inspectors, lumber inspectors, provisions inspectors, Public Guard, State Board of Health, and the Board of Visitors at the University of Virginia. Arranged alphabetically.

Series II. Applications and recommendations for appointments as Inspectors of Tobacco, 1870-1876. Includes applications and recommendations for appointments in Farmville, 1874-1875; Lynchburg, 1870-1872; Petersburg, 1870-1871, 1875; Richmond, 1874-1876. Arranged alphabetically by city, and thereunder chronologically.

Series III. Applications and recommendations for appointments as local officials, 1870. Includes applications and recommendations for local officials in various Virginia counties and cities, including constables, councilmen, justices of the peace, magistrates and trustees. Arranged alphabetically by locality.

Series IV. Correspondence from governors of other states, 1869-1874. Includes correspondence to Virginia Governors Gilbert C. Walker and James L. Kemper from various governors of other states regarding a variety of topics. Arranged chronologically.

Series V. Miscellaneous records, 1872-1906. This series includes the following: Annual reports of the Board of Visitors at the University of Virginia, 1872-1873; Bond of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, 1906; Certificate of organization for the Seafood Investment Company, 1892; Contract for metal fixtures and furniture for the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, 1906; Miscellaneous correspondence, 1873, 1877, 1897, 1899; Leases for state property, 1866, 1879 (Public Warehouse and Armory); List of books delivered to the University of Virginia, 1896; List of textbook regulations in other states, c. 1877; Memorial of the Pamunkey Tribe, 1877; Papers related to the Mutual Endowment Association of Virginia, c. 1880; Petition to Governor Kemper regarding assistance to former Governor Letcher during his illness, c. 1874-1878; Reports of visitors to Mt. Vernon, 1896; Reports of debt from other states, 1873; State of the Public Debt of the United States, 1871; Various papers from the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth, n.d.; West Virginia Act regarding the taking of fish from the Potomac River, 1897. Arranged alphabetically.

Series VI. Penitentiary papers, 1867-1897. Includes: Applications and recommendations for the positions of director, board of directors, clerk of the board of directors, superintendent, and commissioner of revenue at the Virginia State Penitentiary, 1870, 1872 and 1874; Applications and recommendations for the position of physician, 1869-1870 and 1873-1874; Monthly reports of prisoners received, discharged, pardoned, died, escaped, etc., 1894-1897; Quarterly financial and surgeon reports, 1894-1897. Financial reports include information on receipts, deposits and disbursements and surgeons reports include information on the number of patients excused from work, the number of patients treated at the hospital and their ailments, and the number of deaths at the prison hospital; Miscellaneous financial reports, 1871-1874; Quarterly reports of the Board of Directors, 1872-1874, which include statements on manufacturing operations, receipts and expenditures, and written reports; Special reports, 1869 and 1872, including a report regarding hauling rock from Capitol Square, 1869, a report of the Commission appointed by Special Order 250, 1869, and a report made with regard to one of the Guard of convicts and his dereliction of duty, 1872; Correspondence and contracts regarding convict labor, 1867-1873; Correspondence regarding escapees, fugitives and rewards, 1869-1871; and Miscellaneous papers, 1867-1877, most of which concern individual convicts, prison conditions and pay, and also includes National Prison Association circulars.

Series VII. Records of various state institutions and asylums, 1870-1897. This series includes correspondence, recommendations and reports for the following state institutions and asylums: Central Lunatic Asylum, 1870-1874; Mount Vernon, 1896; the "New" Lunatic Asylum, 1872-1874; Southwestern State Hospital, 1894-1897; Virginia Institution for the Education of the Deaf, Dumb and Blind, 1896-1897; and the Western Lunatic Asylum, 1869-1875. Arranged alphabetically.

Series VIII. Notifications of candidacy, 1900. These letters consist of official notices of candidacy to the Secretary of the Commonwealth for Congressional offices and electors for President and Vice- President for 1900. These notices were required by law and requested that the candidate's name be placed on the official ballot.

Series IX. Miscellaneous papers of the Adjutant General, 1880-1897. These papers include mostly incoming correspondence and receipts for supplies for the years 1880-1888; 1895; and 1897. Arranged chronologically.

Series X. Contracts and bonds for printing, 1903-1919. Includes ontracts and bonds for the printing of state government publications. Also includes a petition for a contract and transcripts of the ensuing hearing (1907). Arranged chronologically.

Series XI. Contracts and bonds for ruling and binding, 1903-1919. Includes contracts and bonds for the ruling and binding of state government publications. Arranged chronologically.