British Legal Records Collection

Access and use

Location of collection:
Thomas Balch Library
Thomas Balch Library
208 West Market Street
Leesburg, Virginia 20176
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Alexandra S. Gressitt
Phone: (703) 737-7195
Fax: (703) 737-7195

Summary

Extent:
.5 cubic feet
Creator:
Raymond Ruff, Lansdowne, VA
Abstract:
British Legal Records Collection consists of seventeen documents written on parchment paper ranging in date from 1801 to 1914. These items were purchased by the donor as a mixed lot at auction, and are unrelated. Many refer to leases for a "messuage" - a dwelling house with outbuildings and land assigned to its use. The documents were registered at the Middlesex Deeds Registry and the London Land Registry.
Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of seventeen documents written on parchment paper ranging in date from 1801 to 1914. These items were purchased by the donor as a mixed lot at auction, and are unrelated. Many refer to leases for a "messuage" - a dwelling house with outbuildings and land assigned to its use. The documents were registered at the Middlesex Deeds Registry and the London Land Registry.

Biographical / historical:

A customary format for written record of property transactions developed in medieval England and became formally standardized by the 17th century. First written in Latin, all deeds after 1733 were composed in English. Each conveyance included an abstract, title deeds, supplementary documents providing proof, such as wills, certificates marriage settlements, contracts, auctioneer's papers, or other evidence. After 1840, a plan of the property was also included. Many deeds include seals, varying from elaborate pendant seals encased in a box, known as a skippet, to simple wafer seals. The absence of seals on a document may indicate that it was never executed, however, many seals have been lost or removed over time. A herring-bone pattern of cuts across a document indicates that it has been canceled, and is no longer valid. Stamps also appear on some deeds. The practice of using stamps as a form of regulating tax was first introduced in 1694. During the 18th and first third of the 19th century, stamp taxes were administered by the Board of Stamps, which became the Board of Stamps and Taxes and then the Board of Inland Revenue.

Following an act of Parliament in 1925, only thirty years of previous documentation was required to prove title to a property, and subsequently, many older documents were not retained.

Acquisition information:
Raymond Ruff, Lansdowne, VA
Physical description:
.