Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

Patrons are to use digital images of Charlottesville (Va.) Chancery Causes found on the Chancery Records Index available electronically at the website of the Library of Virginia.

Preferred Citation

Cumberland County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1750-1912 (bulk 1764-1912). Local government records collection, Cumberland County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Acquisition Information

Digital images were generated by PTFS through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Preservation Program.

Historical Information

Chancery Causes are cases of equity. According to Black's Law Dictionary they are "administered according to fairness as contrasted with the strictly formulated rules of common law." A judge, not a jury, determines the outcome of the case.

Cumberland County was named for William Augustus, duke of Cumberland, third son of King George II. It was formed from Goochland County in 1749.

Scope and Content

Cumberland County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1750-1912 (bulk 1764-1912), are indexed into the Chancery Records Index . Cases are identified by style of suit consisting of plaintiff and defendant names. Surnames of others involved in a suit, including secondary plaintiffs and defendants, witnesses, deponents and affiants, and family members with surnames different from the plaintiff or defendant are indexed. Chancery causes often involved the following: divisions of estates or land, disputes over wills, divorces, debt, and business disputes. Predominant documents found in chancery causes include bills (plaintiff's complaint), answers (defendant's response), decrees (court's decision), depositions, affidavits, correspondence, lists of heirs, deeds, wills, slave records, business records or vital statistics, among other items. Plats, if present, are noted, as are wills from localities with an incomplete record of wills or localities other than the one being indexed.

Chancery causes are useful when researching local history, genealogical information, and land or estate divisions. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.

Arrangement

Organized by case, of which each is assigned a unique index number comprised of the latest year found in case and a sequentially increasing 3-digit number assigned by the processor as cases for that year are found. Arranged chronologically.

Related Material

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

See the Chancery Records Index found on the Library of Virginia web site for the chancery records of other Virginia localities.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Cumberland County (Va.) Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• African Americans -- History
• Business enterprises -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Debt -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Divorce suits -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Equity -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Estates (Law) -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Land subdivision -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.

Geographical Names:

• Cumberland County (Va.) -- Genealogy -- Genealogy.
• Cumberland County (Va.) -- History

Genre and Form Terms:

• Chancery causes -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Deeds -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Judicial records -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Land records -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Local government records -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Plats -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.
• Wills -- Virginia -- Cumberland County.

Adjunct Descriptive Data