{"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Slavery+--+Virginia+--+Northampton+County.","last":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog.json?f%5Baccess_subjects%5D%5B%5D=Slavery+--+Virginia+--+Northampton+County.\u0026page=1"},"meta":{"pages":{"current_page":1,"next_page":null,"prev_page":null,"total_pages":1,"limit_value":10,"offset_value":0,"total_count":1,"first_page?":true,"last_page?":true}},"data":[{"id":"vi_vi04766","type":"collection","attributes":{"title":"Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845","creator":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vi_vi04766#creator","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"Northampton County (Va.) Circuit Court\n","label":"Creator"}},"abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vi_vi04766#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"\u003cp\u003eNorthampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. Information found in documents include slave's argument for freedom, acquisition of slaves by slaveowners, slave ancestry, and relationship between slaves and slaveowners. \u003c/p\u003e","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/vi_vi04766#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"id":"vi_vi04766","ead_ssi":"vi_vi04766","_root_":"vi_vi04766","_nest_parent_":"vi_vi04766","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/lva/vi04766.xml","title_ssm":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"title_tesim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["0007532874\n"],"text":["0007532874\n","Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845","African Americans -- Virginia.","Free African Americans -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Slaveholders -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Slavery -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Civil actions -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Freedom suits -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Judicial records -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Local government records -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Petitions -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Wills -- Virginia -- Northampton County.",".25 cu. ft.","There are no restrictions.\n","Arranged chronologically.\n","Slaves sued for emancipation in freedom suits based on the following: they were descendant(s) of a free female ancestor, typically a Native American (Hening Statutes, volume 2, p.170); failure of slaveowner(s) to abide by the 1778 slave nonimportation act (Henings Statutes, volume 9, pp. 471-472); or claimed to have been freed by slaveowner(s) by deed of emancipation or last will and testament (Henings Statutes volume 11, pp. 39-40)\n","Northampton County was named probably for the English county, of which Obedience Robins, a prominent early resident of the Eastern Shore, was a native. The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634, was first called Accomack. The General Assembly changed the name to Northampton County in 1643. Accomack County was created from Northampton County about 1663, but in October 1670, the General Assembly temporarily reunited the two counties as Northampton County. In November 1673, Accomack County was again separated from Northampton. The county seat is Eastville. \n","Additional Northampton County Court Records are found at the Library of Virginia.\n","Additional Northampton County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia.  Consult  \"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"","Additional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the  the Chancery Records Index  found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n","Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. Information found in documents include slave's argument for freedom, acquisition of slaves by slaveowners, slave ancestry, and relationship between slaves and slaveowners.\n","Judgments (Freedom Suits) are useful when researching local history and genealogical information, particularly for African Americans. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.\n","There are no restrictions.\n","Library of Virginia\n","Northampton County (Va.) Circuit Court.","English\n"],"unitid_tesim":["0007532874\n"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"collection_title_tesim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"collection_ssim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"repository_ssm":["Library of Virginia"],"repository_ssim":["Library of Virginia"],"creator_ssm":["Northampton County (Va.) 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The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634, was first called Accomack. The General Assembly changed the name to Northampton County in 1643. Accomack County was created from Northampton County about 1663, but in October 1670, the General Assembly temporarily reunited the two counties as Northampton County. In November 1673, Accomack County was again separated from Northampton. The county seat is Eastville. \n\u003c/p\u003e"],"bioghist_heading_ssm":["Historical Information\n"],"bioghist_tesim":["Slaves sued for emancipation in freedom suits based on the following: they were descendant(s) of a free female ancestor, typically a Native American (Hening Statutes, volume 2, p.170); failure of slaveowner(s) to abide by the 1778 slave nonimportation act (Henings Statutes, volume 9, pp. 471-472); or claimed to have been freed by slaveowner(s) by deed of emancipation or last will and testament (Henings Statutes volume 11, pp. 39-40)\n","Northampton County was named probably for the English county, of which Obedience Robins, a prominent early resident of the Eastern Shore, was a native. The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634, was first called Accomack. The General Assembly changed the name to Northampton County in 1643. Accomack County was created from Northampton County about 1663, but in October 1670, the General Assembly temporarily reunited the two counties as Northampton County. In November 1673, Accomack County was again separated from Northampton. The county seat is Eastville. \n"],"prefercite_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eNorthampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845. Local government records collection, Northampton County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"prefercite_tesim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845. Local government records collection, Northampton County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219.\n"],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eAdditional Northampton County Court Records are found at the Library of Virginia.\n\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eAdditional Northampton County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia.  Consult \u003cextref type=\"simple\" href=\"https://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/local/results_all.asp?CountyID=VA197\"\u003e\"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eAdditional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the \u003cextref type=\"simple\" href=\"http://www.lva.lib.va.us/whatwehave/local/chancery/index.htm\"\u003ethe Chancery Records Index\u003c/extref\u003e found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material\n"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Additional Northampton County Court Records are found at the Library of Virginia.\n","Additional Northampton County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia.  Consult  \"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"","Additional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the  the Chancery Records Index  found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n"],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eNorthampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. Information found in documents include slave's argument for freedom, acquisition of slaves by slaveowners, slave ancestry, and relationship between slaves and slaveowners.\n\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eJudgments (Freedom Suits) are useful when researching local history and genealogical information, particularly for African Americans. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Content\n"],"scopecontent_tesim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. Information found in documents include slave's argument for freedom, acquisition of slaves by slaveowners, slave ancestry, and relationship between slaves and slaveowners.\n","Judgments (Freedom Suits) are useful when researching local history and genealogical information, particularly for African Americans. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.\n"],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no restrictions.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions\n"],"userestrict_tesim":["There are no restrictions.\n"],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc label=\"Location\"\u003eLibrary of Virginia\n\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["Library of Virginia\n"],"names_ssim":["Northampton County (Va.) Circuit Court."],"corpname_ssim":["Northampton County (Va.) Circuit Court."],"language_ssim":["English\n"],"total_component_count_is":0,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-05-21T10:33:48.010Z","collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"vi_vi04766","ead_ssi":"vi_vi04766","_root_":"vi_vi04766","_nest_parent_":"vi_vi04766","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/lva/vi04766.xml","title_ssm":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"title_tesim":["Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["0007532874\n"],"text":["0007532874\n","Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), \n1723-1845","African Americans -- Virginia.","Free African Americans -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Slaveholders -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Slavery -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Civil actions -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Freedom suits -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Judicial records -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Local government records -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Petitions -- Virginia -- Northampton County.","Wills -- Virginia -- Northampton County.",".25 cu. ft.","There are no restrictions.\n","Arranged chronologically.\n","Slaves sued for emancipation in freedom suits based on the following: they were descendant(s) of a free female ancestor, typically a Native American (Hening Statutes, volume 2, p.170); failure of slaveowner(s) to abide by the 1778 slave nonimportation act (Henings Statutes, volume 9, pp. 471-472); or claimed to have been freed by slaveowner(s) by deed of emancipation or last will and testament (Henings Statutes volume 11, pp. 39-40)\n","Northampton County was named probably for the English county, of which Obedience Robins, a prominent early resident of the Eastern Shore, was a native. The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634, was first called Accomack. The General Assembly changed the name to Northampton County in 1643. Accomack County was created from Northampton County about 1663, but in October 1670, the General Assembly temporarily reunited the two counties as Northampton County. In November 1673, Accomack County was again separated from Northampton. The county seat is Eastville. \n","Additional Northampton County Court Records are found at the Library of Virginia.\n","Additional Northampton County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia.  Consult  \"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"","Additional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the  the Chancery Records Index  found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n","Northampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. 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Consult \u003cextref type=\"simple\" href=\"https://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/local/results_all.asp?CountyID=VA197\"\u003e\"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"\u003c/extref\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003eAdditional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the \u003cextref type=\"simple\" href=\"http://www.lva.lib.va.us/whatwehave/local/chancery/index.htm\"\u003ethe Chancery Records Index\u003c/extref\u003e found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Material\n"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["Additional Northampton County Court Records are found at the Library of Virginia.\n","Additional Northampton County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia.  Consult  \"A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm.\"","Additional freedom suits may be found in the Northampton County Chancery Causes. Search the  the Chancery Records Index  found on the Library of Virginia web site. Enter the tilde symbol in the plaintiff surname field.\n"],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eNorthampton County (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1723-1845, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. 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. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners found in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. 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They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history.\n"],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThere are no restrictions.\n\u003c/p\u003e"],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Use Restrictions\n"],"userestrict_tesim":["There are no restrictions.\n"],"physloc_html_tesm":["\u003cphysloc label=\"Location\"\u003eLibrary of Virginia\n\u003c/physloc\u003e"],"physloc_tesim":["Library of Virginia\n"],"names_ssim":["Northampton County (Va.) Circuit Court."],"corpname_ssim":["Northampton County (Va.) 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