Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Petersburg (Va.) Marriage Registers, 1850-1872, Local government records collection, Petersburg Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219.

Acquisition Information

These items came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer from Petersburg Circuit Court under the accession number 52919.

Historical Information

Petersburg was formed from parts of Dinwiddie, Prince George, and Chesterfield Counties. A garrison and fur trading post called Fort Henry was established there in 1645 on the site of the Indian town Appamattuck. The present name, suggested in 1733 by William Byrd (1674-1744), honors Peter Jones, Byrd's companion on expeditions into the Virginia backcountry. Petersburg was established in 1748 and incorporated as a town in 1784. In the latter year the towns of Blandford, Pocahontas, and Ravenscroft were added to Petersburg. It was incorporated as a city in 1850.

Scope and Content

Petersburg (Va.) Marriage Registers, 1850-1872, record the following information: date marriage license issued by court, names of bride and groom, race, name of person consenting to marriage.

Related Material

Additional Petersburg Marriage and Vital Statistics Records can be found on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm" found on the Library of Virginia web site.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Petersburg (Va.). Circuit Court.

Subjects:

• African Americans -- History.
• Marriage -- Virginia -- Petersburg.

Geographical Names:

• Petersburg (Va.) -- History -- 19th century.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Local government records -- Virginia -- Petersburg.
• Marriage registers -- Virginia -- Petersburg.
• Vital statistics -- Virginia -- Petersburg.

Adjunct Descriptive Data