A Guide to the Reports on the Virginia Land Office, 1747-1917

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:

Virginia. Land Office. Reports on the Land Office, 1747-1917. Accession Land Office inventory entry no. 6, State government records collection, The Library of Virginia, Archives Branch, Richmond, VA 23219.

Summary

Creator:
Virginia. Land Office
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Virginia. Land Office. Reports on the Land Office, 1747-1917. Accession Land Office inventory entry no. 6, State government records collection, The Library of Virginia, Archives Branch, Richmond, VA 23219.

Background

Scope and content:

Includes reports documenting the condition, records, and efficiency of the Land Office at various dates between 1747 and 1917. The reports were compiled by different sources, including the deputy auditor, registers, and various committees of the General Assembly.

The 1747 report consists of a statement by Deputy Auditor John Blair concerning the settlement of rights with the secretary of the colony, and is one of the most significant documents extant on the operations of the Colonial Land Office. Blair referred to the annual destruction of the supplemental papers relating to patents which had been issued, the rights remaining in the office, records that may have been lost in the recent burning of the Capitol. The document was found by the register in 1816 as a loose page in one of the patent books.

Other reports were prepared by the committees examining the register's office in 1785, 1787, 1788 1791, 1801, 1812, 1842, and 1855. These reports examined the records of the land office to determine that they were in good order and condition. The 1785 report noted that any delay resulted from the fact that Western surveys were only brought to the office every 3 or 4 months, in large quantities. The 1801 report commented specifically on the number of clerks in the office and the duties of each; it also references the surveying expedition of Major William Price. The records also include reports prepared by the register in 1802 and 1810. The 1802 report, prepared in response to a resolution from the Senate requesting information, contains the amounts of land issued in the last year, an account of fees received by the office, and the number of clerks employed as well as their salaries. The 1810 report provides information on the fees received by the office, the number of books containing records of grants, the state of the original plats and certificates for Northern Neck, and the number of surveys on which grants had not been issued. The 1810 report is located in an oversize box.

The 1917 report was prepared by John W. Richardson, Register of the Land Office, for the Commission on Economy and Efficiency that was created by act of the General Assembly in March 1916. The records include correspondence between Richardson and the secretary of the commission, Le Roy Hodges, related to the preparation of the Land Office report. They also include questionnaires sent as a guide in preparing the report, drafts of certain answers, a rough copy of the report, a list of employees under Richardson's supervision, and copies of related acts.

Biographical / historical:

The act which established the Land Office passed the General Assembly on 22 June 1779. The register was the head of the Office and was appointed by joint ballot of both houses of the legislature.

Acquisition information:
Accession LOI 6 transferred by the Secretary of the Commonwealth, 1948.
Arrangement:

This collection is arranged into the following series:

  • Series I. Reports on the Land Office, 1747-1917.

Arranged chronologically.

Physical description:
.1 cu. ft (4 folders)