King George County (Va.) Poll Books, circa 1900-1970

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888

Summary

Creator:
King George County (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

King George County (Va.) Poll Books, circa 1900-1970, include King George County lists of registered voters compiled in the individual county precincts and the general voter registration book.

King George County lists of registered voters consist of the individual rolls of registered voters, colored and white, for the following precincts: Hampstead, King George Court House, Shiloh, Passapatanzy, and Owens. Rolls also include names of women who registered following passage of Nineteenth Amendment in 1920 and the names of African-Americans who registered following passage of the National Voting Rights Act of 1965. Information found in the rolls includes date of registration; number of registered voter; name of registered voter; date of birth; age; occupation; residence; length of residence in state, county, and precinct; whether exempt from poll tax; if naturalized, and if so, date of papers and by what court issued; if transferred from another precinct, and if so, when and to what precinct. The information found in the 1902 rolls was transferred to the 1900-1903 general voter registration book also found in this collection.

Biographical / historical:

King George County was named in honor of George I of England and was formed from Richmond County in 1720. Part of Westmoreland County was added in 1777.

The 1902 voter registration books were created following the passage of the 1902 Virginia state constitution. The purpose of the 1902 state constitution was to maintain white suffrage while eliminating African-American voters by means of literacy tests as well as property and poll tax requirements.

The Nineteenth Amendment was granted the right to vote to women. It was proposed on June 4, 1919 and ratified on August 18, 1920.

The National Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans in the United States. The Act prohibited states from imposing any "voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure ... to deny or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color." Congress intended the Act to outlaw the practice of requiring otherwise qualified voters to pass literacy tests in order to register to vote, a principal means by which southern states had prevented African-Americans from exercising the franchise.

Acquisition information:
These items came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from King George County under the accession number 42759.
Arrangement:

Chronological

Physical location:
State Records Center - Archives Annex, Library of Virginia
Physical description:
73 v.