Fairfax County (Va.) County Court Minute Book, 1749-1751

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:
Fairfax County (Va.) Circuit Court.
Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

Fairfax County (Va.) County Court Minute Book, 1749-1751, along with closely related court records such as order books, records all matters brought before the court when it was in session and may contain important information not found anywhere else. Generally minute books contain brief entries as they were the clerk of court's rough draft that would later be transcribed into an order book. A locality's loose papers are the raw materials from which this type of book was created. Like order books, a wide variety of information is found in its pages including: appointments of county officers, appointments of guardians and administrators, records of legal disputes heard before the court, recordation of deeds and wills, estate settlements, wolf bounties, licenses for ordinary keepers, road surveys, and matters related to the fiscal management of the court.

A vellum volume binding labeled "court martial records Fairfax Co." came along with the two volumes in this accession. The binding does not go with either volume.

Biographical / historical:

Fairfax County was named for Thomas Fairfax, sixth baron Fairfax of Cameron, proprietor of the Northern Neck. It was formed from Prince William County in 1742.

Original wills and deeds as well as many other loose papers were destroyed during the Civil War; deed books for twenty-six of the fifty-six years between 1763 and 1819 are missing. Numerous pre-Civil War minute books are missing as well.

Acquisition information:
This volume came to the Library of Virginia under the accession number 50447.
Arrangement:

Chronological by court date.

Physical location:
Library of Virginia
Physical description:
1 v.