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The Charlotte, Columbia, and Augusta Railroad Company Ledger consists of one ledger that records the activities of employees, companies, and railroad contractors hired by the railroad. Several companies included in the ledger were based in either Richmond or Petersburg, Va. Entries are in chronological order and listed under the name of the employee or company. Entries document wages and supplies purchased by employees. Supplies provided included dry goods, tobacco, soap, paper, clothing, lamps, hay, laudanum, and hardware supplies such as axes and axle grease.

Cocke and Gilliam Business Records, 1790-1913, records the activities of the law firm in and around Petersburg, Va., and consists of a ledger, 1873-1891; personal correspondence, 1870-1890; judgments, 1856-1874; indentures, 1806-1890; cancelled checks, 1879-1883; land title abstracts, 1879-1895; executions, 1825 and 1858; case briefs, 1870; jury lists, 1875 and 1878; and notary public bonds, executions, subpoenas, indictments, and declarations for the Hustings Court, Circuit Superior Court, and the Circuit Court of Petersburg, 1790-1913.

First Baptist Church (Petersburg, Va.) Baptism Register and Membership Directory, 1908-1911. The volume contains a list of individuals who were baptized and received into the church from 1908 to 1911. Each entry contains name, age, and street address. The list of baptisms (3 pages) is followed by an alphabetical list of names and addresses that appears to be a membership directory.

First Baptist Church (Petersburg, Va.) Minute Book, 1914. The volume contains minutes of regular monthly meetings from 1914 April 27 to 1914 December 7. Minutes note scripture lessons read, hymns sung, names of persons attending, and church business, such as reception and dismissal of members, committee reports and other business, and plans to repair the church building and parsonage.

Petersburg (Va.) Minute Books, 1781-1874, record all matters brought before the court on a daily basis when it was in session including but not limited to: civil and criminal suits, appointments of county officers, appointments of guardians and administrators, deed recordings, free negro registrations, naturalization registrations, and court fees. Clerks would transfer information from minute books to appropriate order book, deed book, fiduciary book, free negro register, etc. Collection includes minute books from Hustings Court.

Petersburg (Va.) Commonwealth Causes Ended, 1786-1938 (bulk 1823-1859) are criminal court cases and consist primarily of warrants, summons, indictments, and verdicts handed down by grand juries and other legal authorities in order to prosecute individuals who violated the penal code. These offenses ranged in severity from murder, rape, assault and battery, and larceny to tax evasion and slander. Criminal offenders and victims who appear in cases prior to the abolition of slavery in Virginia in 1865 included both free and enslaved persons.

Petersburg (Va) Coroners' Inquisitions, 1807-1947, are investigations into the deaths of individuals who died by a sudden, violent, unnatural or suspicious manner, or died without medical attendance. Causes of death found in coroners' inquisitions include murder, infanticide, suicide, domestic violence, exposure to elements, drownings, train accidents, automobile accidents, and natural causes, or as commonly referred to in the 19th century, visitation by God. Documents commonly found in coroners' inquests include the inquisition, depositions, and summons. Criminal papers such as recognizance bonds can be found in coroner inquisitions. Information found in the inquisition include the name of the coroner, the names of the jurors, the name and age of the deceased if known, gender and race of the deceased, and when, how, and by what means the deceased came to his or her death. If the deceased was African American, the inquest would identify the deceased as a slave or free person if known. If the deceased was a slave, the inquest would include, if known, the name of the slaveowner and the slaveowner's residence. Information found in the depositions include the name of the deponent and his or her account of the circumstances that led to the death of the deceased. Slaves were deponents in coroner investigations.

Petersburg (Va.) Court Records, 1821-1851. The collection contains two letters and a will removed from Petersburg court records, as follows: a letter, with envelope, from Thomas G. Randolph to Thomas S. Gholson, 1850 Mar. 8, pertaining to a proposed settlement in an unamed suit; a letter from John M. Gregory to the Sergeant of the City of Petersburg seeking information about Pleasant Jordan in regards to a suit, Clopton vs. Jordan, 1851 June 30 ; and a copy of the last will and testament of Lucy Bolt, proven in Amelia County in 1821 and used as an exhibit in a Petersburg suit in 1832.

Petersburg (Va.) Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions, 1820-1835, primarily record the declarations of individuals seeking to obtain Revolutionary War pensions provided by various acts of Congress. The applicants present detailed testimony of their time of service during the Revolutionary War. Information found in the declarations include date and location applicants entered into service, names of military companies they served in, names of military commanders they served under, names of fellow soldiers they served with, length of service, their age, and their place of birth. The predominant portion of the declarations are narratives of their tours of duty during the Revolutionary War with emphasis on battles they fought. The declarations also include affidavits from witnesses who could verify information provided by applicants.

Petersburg (Va.) Judgments (Freedom Suits), 1824-1852, consist of suits initiated by slaves seeking to gain their freedom on the law side of the court. Cases are identified by style of suit consisting of plaintiff and defendant names. Surnames of others involved in a suit, including secondary plaintiffs and defendants, witnesses, deponents and affiants, and family members with surnames different from the plaintiff or defendant are indexed. Also identified are names of slaves and slaveowners identified in suit as well as whether slave(s) won their freedom. Predominant documents found in freedom suits include petitions, records of suits, depositions, affidavits, wills, among other items. Information found in documents include slave's argument for freedom, acquisition of slaves by slaveowners, slave ancestry, and relationship between slaves and slaveowners.