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Lost Records Localities Digital Collection

Records from counties and cities that have experienced record loss

Records Loss

The Lost Records localities are divided into two categories: Catastrophic Loss and Considerable Loss.

  • A Catastrophic Loss locality experienced a massive loss of its loose records and volumes (order books, deed books, will books, etc.).
  • A Considerable Loss locality experienced a substantial loss of its loose records but the majority of volumes (order books, deed books, will books, etc.) continue to exist. The extant volumes are available on microfilm at the Library of Virginia. 

Localities

County Loss Type Description of Loss
Accomack Considerable One of the original shires recognized in 1634, it became part of Northampton County in 1643, reverted to Accomack about 1663, merged into Northampton again in October 1670, and reverted to Accomack for final time in November 1673. A significant number of loose records from the 1700s suffered extreme water and pest damage. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Albemarle Considerable Created in 1744. All order books except the first and many loose papers between 1748 and 1781 were destroyed by British general Banastre Tarleton's raid on Charlottesville in 1781 during the Revolutionary War.
Appomattox Catastrophic Created in 1845. All records except land tax books were destroyed by fire on 1 February 1892.
Bland Considerable Created in 1861. Most loose records were destroyed by fire in 1888. All volumes and part of the chancery papers were saved.
Botetourt Considerable Created by an act of 1769 to take effect on 13 February 1770. Many of the loose records including pre-1830 chancery and pre-1854 judgments suffered tremendous water damage as a result of a courthouse fire on 15 December 1970. Because of the near loss of records, the General Assembly passed the Virginia Public Records Act in 1975 for the purpose of preserving local records. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Brunswick Considerable Created in 1720 (county government established in June 1732). Most loose records prior to 1781 are missing. Pre-1781 volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Buchanan  Catastrophic Created in 1858. Records were destroyed in April 1885 by a fire that started at a nearby store; records created after that date suffered extreme damage in a flood in 1977.
Buckingham Catastrophic Created in 1761. Records were destroyed by fire in 1869.
Caroline Catastrophic Created in 1728. Most loose records and deed books prior to 1836 and will books prior to 1853 were stolen, mutilated, and/or destroyed by Union troops who ransacked the courthouse in May 1864. A near-complete run of order books exists.
Charles City Catastrophic Recognized in 1634 as an original shire. Records have been destroyed at various times. The most damage occurred during the Civil War when the records were strewn through the woods in a rainstorm. A few pre–Civil War volumes such as deed books, will books, minute books, and order books exist.
Clarke Considerable Created in 1836. Loose papers from the Circuit and county courts were severely damaged or destroyed between 1862 and 1865 when occupation of the county alternated numerous times between Confederate and Union forces. Deed, order, and will books are largely intact with a few instances of damaged or lost pages in pre-1865 volumes. 
Craig Considerable Created in 1851. The courthouse was vandalized by Union troops in December 1863 and again in June 1864 during the Civil War. Deed Book A and most of the loose papers were destroyed. Pre–Civil War recorded deeds were rerecorded in Deed Books B and C. Volumes that record court orders and wills exist.
Culpeper Considerable Created in 1749. A significant number of loose records are missing for the period prior to 1840. They were stolen, mutilated, and/or destroyed during the Civil War. Culpeper was the site of several military engagements and experienced widespread pillaging by both Union and Confederate troops. The county courthouse was used as a jail for Confederate prisoners by Union forces. Volumes that record deeds and wills from the formation of the county exist. Minute books for the periods 1749–1762, 1765–1797, 1812–1813, and 1817 are missing. 
Dinwiddie Catastrophic Created in 1752. The bulk of court records prior to 1865 were stolen, mutilated, and/or destroyed by Union troops who ransacked the courthouse during the last months of the Civil War. Post-1830 volumes such as deed books, will books, chancery order books, and marriage registers exist.
Elizabeth City Catastrophic Recognized in 1634 as an original shire. Records were burned and/or destroyed during the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. Additional records were burned in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War. A few pre–Civil War volumes such as deed books, will books, and order books exist.
Fairfax Catastrophic Created 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.
Gloucester Catastrophic Created in 1651. All records were destroyed by an 1820 fire, and most of the records created after 1820 were destroyed by fire in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War. 
Greene Considerable Created in 1838. Deed Book 1, 1838–1841, was lost during the Civil War when it was removed from the courthouse. Some court records, primarily volumes, suffered water damage as a result of a courthouse fire on 24 October 1979.
Hanover Catastrophic Created by an act of 1720 to take effect on 1 May 1721. Most county court records, particularly deeds, wills, and marriage records, were destroyed by fire in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War. The circuit court records were not moved to Richmond and were relatively unscathed. Consequently, there is a strong run of common law papers and chancery papers after 1831 that were generated by the circuit superior court of law and chancery and its successor, the circuit court.
Henrico Considerable Recognized in 1634 as an original shire. All county court records prior to 1655 and almost all prior to 1677 are missing. Many records were destroyed by British troops during the Revolutionary War. Post–Revolutionary War county court records exist. Almost all circuit superior court of law and chancery and circuit court records were destroyed by fire during the evacuation of Richmond on 3 April 1865 in the Civil War. The county's circuit court held its sessions at the state courthouse in Richmond.
Isle of Wight Considerable Recognized as Warrosquyoake County, one of the original shires, in 1634 and given its present name in 1637. Most pre–Revolutionary War–era loose records are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist. During the Civil War, the county clerk had Randall Boothe, a Black man he enslaved, transport the court records to Greensville and Brunswick Counties for safekeeping. After the war ended, Boothe returned the records to Isle of Wight and served as Courthouse Caretaker.
James City / Williamsburg Catastrophic James City County was recognized in 1634 as an original shire. Williamsburg was founded in 1699 and declared a “city Incorporate” by a royal charter in 1722, although its actual status was that of a borough. Beginning in 1770, the courts of James City County and Williamsburg shared a common courthouse. During the Civil War, the records of both localities were transferred to Richmond for safekeeping but were destroyed by fire there in Richmond on 3 April 1865. The records of the Superior Court of Chancery for the Williamsburg district were destroyed by a courthouse fire in April 1911. 
King and Queen Catastrophic Created in 1691. Records were lost in courthouse fires in 1828 and 1833. Records were again destroyed by a courthouse fire set by Union troops on 10 March 1864 during the Civil War.
King George Considerable Created by an act of 1720 to take effect on 19 May in 1721. Most loose records prior to 1830 are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
King William Catastrophic Created by an act of 1701 to take effect on 11 April 1702. Most records were destroyed by a courthouse fire on 17 January 1885. Only a few order books and deed books exist.
Lee Considerable Created in 1792 to take effect on 13 May 1793. A significant number of loose records prior to 1860 including chancery and judgments are missing. They were probably destroyed when Union forces burned the courthouse in October 1863 during the Civil War. Most volumes including deed books, will books, and order books exist because a local judge removed them from the courthouse for safekeeping before the fire occurred. 
Mecklenburg Considerable Created in 1764. Numerous loose records prior to 1783 are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Middlesex Considerable Created in 1669. Numerous loose records from the nineteenth century including chancery, judgments, and commonwealth causes are missing. Most volumes including deed books, will books, and order books exist because court clerk Philemon T. Woodward removed them from the courthouse for safekeeping during the Civil War.
Northumberland Considerable Created about 1645. The county suffered some losses in a fire in the clerk's office on 25 October 1710. Volumes beginning in 1650 that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist. 
Mathews Catastrophic Created by an act of 1790 to take effect on 1 May 1791. Most records were burned in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War.
Nansemond Catastrophic Created as Upper Norfolk County by 1640 and renamed Nansemond in 1646. Records were destroyed in three separate fires: the earliest consumed the house of the court clerk in April 1734 (where the records were kept at that time), the second was set by British troops in 1779, and the last occurred on 7 February 1866.
New Kent Catastrophic Created in 1654. Records were destroyed when John Posey set fire to the courthouse on 15 July 1787. Many records were lost when the courthouse was partially destroyed by fire during Civil War hostilities in 1862. Additional records were burned in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War.
Nottoway Catastrophic Created by an act of 1788 to take effect on 1 May 1789. Many records were destroyed or heavily mutilated in 1865 by Union troops during the Civil War. A few volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Prince George Catastrophic Created by an act of 1702 to take effect on 23 April 1703. Most court records were destroyed in 1782 by British troops during the Revolutionary War and again in 1864 by Union troops during the Civil War. A few volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Prince William Catastrophic Created by an act of 1730 to take effect on 1 March 1731. Many pre–Civil War records were lost, destroyed, or stolen by Union troops in 1863 during the Civil War. Sixteen deed books and five will books are missing.
Richmond (City) Considerable Established in 1742; incorporated as a town, although “stiled the city of Richmond,” in 1782. During the burning of Richmond on April 3, 1865, during the Civil War, Richmond circuit court judge John A. Meredith led efforts to save the circuit court records found at the State Court House. Rescuers successfully removed all the circuit court papers that concerned pending suits and many of the order books, but all of the circuit court will and deed books were lost. Records of the superior court and circuit superior court of law and chancery were also destroyed. Most of the pre–Civil War Hustings Court records exist, including Hustings Court wills and deeds.
Richmond (County) Catastrophic Created in 1692. Some volumes were burned and mutilated through unknown causes; in addition, the will books prior to 1699 were missing as early as 1793, and order books for the period 1794–1816 are also missing. Numerous loose records prior to 1781 are missing as well.
Rockingham Considerable Created in 1778. A courthouse fire in 1787 destroyed primarily wills and estate records. In June 1864 during the Civil War, court records (mostly volumes) were removed from the courthouse and loaded on a wagon to be taken to place of safety on or beyond the Blue Ridge. The wagon was overtaken by Union troops near Port Republic and set afire, which was put out by local citizens. Many order books, deed books, will books, and fiduciary books, however, were lost or severely damaged by the fire. The loose records that remained at the courthouse were undamaged. Pre-1865 records including deeds and wills were rerecorded following an act of assembly passed in November 1884.
Russell Considerable Created in 1786. The first marriage register and most loose papers were lost in a fire in the clerk's office in 1872. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills (except Will Book 1) exist.
Spotsylvania Considerable Created by an act of 1720 to take effect on 1 May 1721. Many loose county court papers prior to 1839, when the courthouse moved from Fredericksburg to Spotsylvania Courthouse, are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist. The district court, superior court, and circuit court records of Spotsylvania County from 1813 to 1889 are in Fredericksburg. 
Stafford Catastrophic Created in 1664. Many pre–Civil War court records were lost to vandalism by Union troops during the Civil War. A few volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Surry Considerable Created in 1652. Deed Book 10 (1835–1838) is missing and order books for 1718–1741 and various other early volumes are fragmentary. Most loose records prior to 1806 are missing. Courthouse fires in 1906 and 1922, however, did not result in loss of records, which were then housed in a separate clerk's office.
Warwick Catastrophic Recognized as Warwick River County, one of the original shires, in 1634; the name was shortened to Warwick in 1643. County court records were destroyed at several times with most destruction occurring during the Civil War. The clerk's office was burned on 15 December 1864. County court minute books and loose records from 1787 to 1819 were destroyed by the fire. Additional records were burned in Richmond on 3 April 1865, where they had been moved for safekeeping during the Civil War.
Washington Considerable Created by an act of 1776, court first met on 18 January 1777. Minute books for the periods 1787–1819 and 1821–1837 and many loose papers were lost on 15 December 1864 when the courthouse was burned during Stoneman's Raid. The fire was set by Union captain James B. Wyatt of the 13th Tennessee Cavalry. Wyatt, who was raised in Washington County, sought revenge for what he claimed was a wrong done against him by a county court judge before the war.
Westmoreland Considerable Created in 1653. Many loose papers were burned during both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Volumes that record deeds, court orders (except for an order book for the period 1764–1776), and wills exist.
Williamsburg Catastrophic See James City County.
York Considerable Recognized in 1634 as an original shire. Most pre–Revolutionary War–era loose records are missing. Volumes that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist. County court clerks during the Revolutionary War and Civil War removed the volumes from the courthouse for safekeeping.