Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Local government records   collection, Northumberland County Free   Negro and Slave   Records  , 1786-1862. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

These items came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Northumberland County under accession number 43283.

Historical Information

Northumberland County was probably named for the English county. It was formed about 1645 from the district of Chickacoan, the early seventeenth century name for the region between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers.

An act passed by the Virginia legislature in 1803 required every free   negro or mulatto to be registered and numbered in a book to be kept by the county clerk.

Beginning in 1778, slaveholders   who brought slaves   into Virginia were required to register the slaves   with the county court and sign an oath agreeing not to bring slaves   into the commonwealth with the intent of selling them.

In 1806, the General Assembly moved to remove the free   negro population from Virginia with a law that stated that any emancipated slaves  , freed after May 1, 1806, who remained in the Commonwealth more than a year, would forfeit the right to freedom and be sold by the Overseers of the Poor for the benefit of the parish. Families wishing to stay were to petition the legislature through the local county court. Beginning in 1837, freed slaves   could petition the local courts for permission to remain.

An act passed by the Virginia legislature in 1856 allowed free   persons of color who desired to remain in Virginia to petition for reenslavement   and choose a master or owner and remain in the state.

Scope and Content

Northumberland County (Va.) Free   Negro and Slave   Records  , 1786-1862. The collection contains applications to register as a free   negro, 1818 and 1822; the apprenticeship of William Garner, a free   African American, 1862; certificates of importation of slaves  , 1799 and 1803;a deed of manumission freeing an enslaved   woman called Fanny from Daniel Muse, 1802; two printed circular letters to the county clerk pertaining to slaves   and free   African Americans, 1802 and 1833; a list of three enslaved   people, Judy, Bett, and Esther, belonging to Nancy Blackwell, 1786; two petitions for reenslavement   (Jerry Glascock, 1857; and George Kent, 1860); registers (registrations) of free   negroes, 1829-1845; Petitions to remain in the county, 1818, 1822. The records   are in part, photocopies.

Applications to register as a free   negro, 1818 and 1822, and free   negro registrations, 1829-1845, contain name, sometimes age and a brief physical description, and the circumstances of the person's freedom or emancipation. If born free  , reference is sometimes made to parents. If emancipated, the emancipating owner, place and date of emancipation, and prior registration as a free   negro are usually mentioned.

Certificates of importation of slaves  , 1799 and 1803, contains the oath of James Cox stating that the enslaved   people he is bringing into Virginia from Maryland were not imported from Africa and that he does not intend to sell them in Virginia. The statement contains the names of the slaves   he is bringing into Virginia. The other document is a certificate issued by thethe county clerk to William Harding in 1803 stating that Harding has complied with the law concerning the importation of slaves   from Maryland into Virginia.

The circular letter, 1802, is a communication from the Governor of Virginia informing county clerks of laws requiring county courts to record   proceedings against enslaved   people accused of capital offenses, and to submit copies of those records   to the executive branch. The circular letter, 1833, is from the Board of Commissioners appointed by the legislature in 1833 to make appropriations for the removal of free   persons of color from Virginia. The letter is a follow-up to an earlier request for information to aid the Board with plans to sponsor a ship to transport free   persons of color from Virginia to Liberia in November 1834, under the direction of the American Colonization Society.

Jerry Glascock's petition for reenslavement  , 1857, contains the circumstances of his emancipation, his rationale for requesting reenslavement  , and his choice of James Kelly as his owner. The case also contains a record   of the court's examination of the parties involved in the case to ensure the absence of fraud or collusion; a bond, a summons, and two copies of William Kelly's will emancipating Glascock and the rest of Kelly's slaves  , proven in Lancaster County 1847. In his will, Kelly provides five hundred dollars for each emancipated slave   and requests that his brother purchase a plantation for the emancipated slaves   in a state that admits free   persons of color.

George Kent's petition for reenslavement  , 1860, contains the circumstances of his emancipation by the will of B. Burgess, his rationale for requesting reenslavement   in Virginia over freedom in Africa, and his choice of Samuel B. Burgess as his new owner. The case also contains a summons and Burgess' bond.

Petitions to remain in the County filed by Tom, 1818, and by Charlotte, Vincent, Fanny, Patty, Royston, and Sally, 1822.

Related Material

Additional Northumberland Free   Negro and Slave   records   can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Northumberland County (Va.) Circuit Court

Subjects:

• American Colonization Society--History.
• Antislavery   movements--Virginia--Alexandria.
• Free   African Americans--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Slavery  --Law and legislation--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Slaves  --Emancipation--Virginia--Lancaster County.
• Slaves  --Emancipation--Virginia--Northumberland County.

Geographical Names:

• Liberia--Emigration and Immigration--History--19th century
• Northumberland County (Va.)--History--19th century

Genre and Form Terms:

• Articles of apprenticeship--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Bonds (legal records  )--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Certificates--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Circular letters--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Deeds--Virginia--Lancaster County.
• Deeds--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Free   negro and slave   records  --Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Free   negro registrations--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Free   papers--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Judicial records  --Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Lists (document genres)--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Local government records  --Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Petitions--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Summonses--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Warrants--Virginia--Northumberland County.
• Wills--Virginia--Northumberland County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data