Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Richmond County (Va.) Township Records, 1871-1875. Local government records collection, Richmond County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219.

Acquisition Information

These items came to the Library of Virginia in transfers of court papers from Richmond County.

Historical Information

Richmond County may have been named for Richmond borough in Surrey, England, or for Charles Lennox, first duke of Richmond and a son of King Charles II. It was formed from Old Rappahannock County in 1692. The county seat is Warsaw.

Some volumes were burned and mutilated through unknown causes; in addition, the will books prior to 1699 were missing as early as 1793, and order books for the period 1794-1816 are also missing. Numerous loose records prior to 1781 are missing as well.

The 1870 Virginia Constitution required that each county in the state be divided into no less than three townships (see Article VII, section 2). Based on the New England administrative organization of a county, each township would elect the administration officials for the offices of supervisor, clerk, assessor, collector, commissioner of the roads, overseer of the poor, justice of the peace, and constable. The supervisors of each township would comprise the board of supervisors for the county, and would be responsible for auditing the county accounts, examining the assessors' books, regulating property valuation, and fixing the county levies. The Acts of Assembly provided that each township be divided into school and electoral districts (see Acts of Assembly 1869-1870, Chapter 39). A constitutional amendment in 1874 changed the townships into magisterial districts and each district elected one supervisor, three justices of the peace, one constable, and one overseer of the poor. The supervisors of the districts made up the county board of supervisors whose duties were identical as those set out in 1870. The published Acts of Assembly appended a list of township names by county following the acts for every year that townships existed in Virginia.

Scope and Content

Richmond County (Va.) Township Records, 1871-1875, consist of three volumes of minutes and accounts and one bundle of receipts relating to the administrative functions of the township boards of the county.

Marshall Township Board Minutes, 1871-1875, consist of minutes and accounts. Information recorded includes division of the township into road districts, appointment of road overseers, township levy rates, establishment of rates allowable for road work, accounts allowed against the township board, road overseer reports and accounts, and accounts settled between the collector and treasurer, and between those two and the clerk.

Marshall Township Check Book, 1871-1875, consists of checks and stubs written to individuals from the treasurer of Marshall Township for services provided the township including overseer of the poor, clerk, stationery and books, road accounts, copying land books, and other unspecified services.

Stonewall Township Minutes, 1871-1875, consist of minutes and accounts. Information recorded includes election return, school tax, road districts, road overseer bonds, accounts allowed against the township board, establishment of tax and levy rates, establishment of rates allowable for road work, appointment of election judges, bridge repairs, and payments to county officials.

Farnham Township board vouchers, 1872 circa, consist of receipts for work or services provided the township for which payment is due from the board. Also included is some information about taxes. This group of records is unprocessed.

Related Material

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

Richmond County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Richmond 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:

• Richmond County (Va.). Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• County government -- Records and correspondence -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Local finance -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Local government -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Public records -- Virginia -- Richmond County.

Geographical Names:

• Richmond County (Va.) -- History -- 19th century.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Accounts -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Minute books -- Virginia -- Richmond County.
• Township records -- Virginia -- Richmond County.

Added Entry - Corporate Name:

• Township of Farnham (Richmond County, VA)
• Township of Marshall (Richmond County, VA)
• Township of Stonewall (Richmond County, VA)

Adjunct Descriptive Data