Portsmouth (Va.) Organization Records, 1904

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:

Portsmouth (Va.) Organization Records, 1904 [series or volume title]. Local government records collection, Portsmouth Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Summary

Extent:
1 volume
Creator:
Portsmouth (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Portsmouth (Va.) Organization Records, 1904 [series or volume title]. Local government records collection, Portsmouth Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va. 23219.

Background

Scope and content:

Portsmouth (Va.) Organization Records, 1904 is comprised of various records created by groups in Portsmouth. The records consist of a minute book.

Historical Information:The Parker, Davis, and Maynard Club was named for three different individuals active in politics for the Democrats in 1904. Alton Brooks Parker and Henry Gassaway Davis were the Democratic presidential and vice presidential candidates in the election of 1904 where Theodore Roosevelt and the Republicans were victorious. Harry Lee Maynard was a Democratic United States Representative from Portsmouth who served from Virginia's Second District from 1901 to 1911. The club was formed to organize the white Democratic vote in Portsmouth's fifth ward and render it more effective in state and national elections.

Scope and Content: The Parker, Davis, and Maynard Club records consist of a minute book. The volume contains the minutes of club meetings. Subjects covered include election of officers, enrollment of members, and various actions taken to get out the Democratic vote. A loose copy of the club's bylaws are inserted at p. 1. There is an index at the front of the volume with a list of the members' names preceeding that.

Biographical / historical:

Context for Record Type: Organization Records, both volumes and loose records, are in some cases transferred to the Library of Virginia as components of court record transfers. These organization records in some cases were simply stored in the local court building for safe keeping by business owners. In other cases, organization records (particularly ledgers, account books, etc.) may have been filed in a court case as an exhibit. These organization record exhibits appeared both in chancery causes and in judgments, these records serving as exhibits for business dissolution cases, debt suits, and contract disputes.

Locality History:Portsmouth was located in Norfolk County, which is now extinct. It was named by its founder, William Craford, for the English seaport and was established in 1752. Portsmouth was incorporated as a town in 1836 and as a city in 1858.

Acquisition information:
These records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from the city of Portsmouth in 2007 under accession number 43522.
Processing information:

Prior to 2025, the various organization records in this collection were originally described as individual records, but they have been consolidated into one large organization record for the locality. Since 2025, these records additionally include identified but not processed records.

Greater Hampton Roads Organization Records were removed from the Portsmouth Organization records in 2025 as they were deemed to be a City Administrative record.

Encoded by J. Taylor: October 2025.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged into one series:

  • Series I: Park, Davis, and Maynard Club Records, 1904

Physical location:
Library of Virginia