Petersburg (Va.) Wills, inventories, accounts, and sales, 1784-1928 (bulk 1784-1912)

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
Restrictions:

There are no restrictions.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Petersburg (Va.) Wills, inventories, accounts, and sales, 1784-1928 (bulk 1784-1912). Local Government Records Collection, Petersburg (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Summary

Creator:
Petersburg (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Petersburg (Va.) Wills, inventories, accounts, and sales, 1784-1928 (bulk 1784-1912). Local Government Records Collection, Petersburg (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Petersburg (Va.) Wills, inventories, accounts, and sales, 1784-1928 (bulk 1784-1912), consists predominantly of wills that record the deceased's plan for how his or her estate was to be divided among his or her heirs following his or her death. Information commonly recorded in wills include the name of the deceased, also referred as the testator; names of heirs; a listing of real and personal property (including slaves) and how it was to be divided among the heirs; names of individuals who were to be the will's executors; the date will was written; and the date will was recorded at the court house. Additional record types found in this collection include estate inventories, accounts, and sales filed with the wills.

Biographical / historical:

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, 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.

Individuals dying with a written will died testate. After the death of an individual, his or her will was brought into court, where two of the subscribing witnesses swore that the document was genuine. After the will was proved, the executor was bonded to carry out his or her duties to settle the estate. The court then ordered the will to be recorded.

Acquisition information:
These items came to the Library of Virginia in transfer of court papers from Petersburg under the accession number 43614.
Arrangement:

Chronological

Physical location:
State Records Center - Archives Annex, Library of Virginia
Physical description:
10.00 cu. ft. (22 boxes)