Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850

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:

Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850, are digitized and available through Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative Digital Collection on the Library of Virginia website. Please use digital images.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850. Local government records collection, Frederick County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
15 items
Creator:
Frederick County (Va.) Circuit Court.
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850. Local government records collection, Frederick County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850, consist of 15 records related to the petitions of eight people. These petitions are applications that formerly enslaved individuals submitted to state and local courts for permission to remain in Virginia with their free status. The petitions often include the formerly enslaved individual's name, their method of emancipation, name of their former enslaver, and whether the application/petition was successful or not. Petitions may also include affidavits signed mainly by white residents or witness statements again provided by white residents. Additional names of enslaved or free Black and Multiracial individuals can be found in these records.

These records include the following petitions: 1816, of James Beesick (or Besick), who was emancipated by Jane Graham; 1816, of Isaac, who provided a reference by Susan B. Taylor and received permission to remain in the county; 1817, of Brutus, who was emancipated by the executors of Mary Meade and ultimately allowed to remain; 1817, of Reuben Strange and Courtney, his wife, who were freed by Edward McGuire and given leave to remain; 1843, of Billy Williams (also referred to as William Williams), who was given leave to remain; 1843, of Frank Robinson, whose petition was rejected by the court; and 1850, of Edward Kean, who was granted permission to remain.

Biographical / historical:

Context for Record Type: Sometimes referred to as "Applications to Remain," these records are applications that formerly enslaved individuals submitted to state and local courts for permission to remain in Virginia with their free status. The Virginia General Assembly passed a law stating that all formerly enslaved people freed after 1 May 1806 who remained in Virginia more than twelve months could be put on trial by the state. Individuals who wished to remain in the commonwealth were to petition the state legislature. In 1816, a new Act of Assembly gave the local courts power to grant permission to remain. The documents in these cases will include: the name(s) of the petitioner(s), the circumstances of free status, and a request to remain in the county. Individuals needed to prove that they had in fact been emancipated. Therefore, application packets might also include supporting documents such as the formerly enslaved person's register, a copy of a will or deed of emancipation, or witness statements known as affidavits.

Locality History: Frederick County was named in honor of Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales and eldest son of King George II. It was formed from Orange County by a statute of 1738 that stipulated that when the population was large enough the new county government would begin to function. The county court first met on 11 November 1743. Part of Augusta County was added in 1754. The county seat is the city of Winchester.

Acquisition information:
These records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Frederick County (Va.) as part of an undated accession.
Processing information:

Frederick County Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth were originally described as part of the Frederick County (Va.) Free and Enslaved Records, 1761, 1795, 1820-1861, but were removed to the present Frederick County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850, record to enhance discoverability in July 2026.

These records have been processed, scanned, and indexed by S. Nerney, L. Neuroth, and LVA staff for the purposes of digitizing them for the digital project Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative.

Encoded by C. Collins: July 2026.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged

  • Series I: Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1816-1850, arranged chronologically.

Physical location:
Library of Virginia